Posted on April 6th, 2008 by Sonya Smith-Valentine, Valentine Legal Group
If you don’t intend to dispute the parking ticket you received, cough up the money and pay it timely. Tardiness is costly. Many states add hefty late fees to parking tickets that are not paid on time. Some states will tow your car and other states will withhold your state tax refund. Some jurisdictions send unpaid parking tickets to collection agencies and also report to the credit bureaus. So if you aren’t contesting the ticket, just pay it.
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Filed under: Credit Reports, Debt Collection
Posted on March 21st, 2008 by Sonya Smith-Valentine, Valentine Legal Group
Shopping around for a credit card can save you money on interest and fees. You’ll want to find a credit card with features that matches your needs. In choosing a credit card, you should think about how you will use the card. If you expect to pay your bill in full each month, your best choice would be a card that has no annual fee and offers a longer grace period. If you sometimes carry a balance from month to month, you should look for a card that carries a lower interest rate. If you expect to use your card to get cash advances, you’ll do better with a card that carries a lower interest rate and lower fees on cash advances. Some cards, however, charge a higher interest rate on cash advances as compared to purchases.
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Filed under: Credit Cards
Posted on March 16th, 2008 by Sonya Smith-Valentine, Valentine Legal Group
A security freeze locks access to a consumer’s credit report and credit score. This helps to prevent a thief from using your personal information to obtain credit. If a consumer wants to apply for credit, they use a PIN number to unlock access to their credit report. Victims of identify theft can place a freeze on their credit report for free. If you have not been a victim of identify theft, the credit bureaus charge a fee for placing a credit freeze on your credit report. The cost varies by state. You won’t be able to open new credit while a freeze is in place. However, you can request that a freeze be temporarily lifted for this purpose. There may be a charge for removing a freeze. It does no good to freeze only one or two credit reports. If you want real identity theft protection, you’ll have to go through the requirements to freeze all three credit agencies.
Send a request for a security freeze to the three major credit reporting agencies. Your request must be sent by certified mail and must include a copy of your identification. Send your freeze request to the following addresses:
Equifax Security Freeze
P.O. Box 105788
Atlanta, GA 30348
Experian Security Freeze
P.O. Box 9554
Allen, TX 75013
Trans Union Security Freeze
P.O. Box 6790
Fullerton, CA 92834-6790
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Filed under: Credit Reports, Identity Theft
Posted on March 16th, 2008 by Sonya Smith-Valentine, Valentine Legal Group
Credit card companies have been adding universal default clauses to the terms of credit card agreements. This will be very detrimental for consumers who are late on even just one payment with a different credit card or loan. The universal default clause allows credit card companies to pull your credit report on a regular basis. If you have been late on any payments (even to a different company), a higher interest rate can be applied to your credit card. This includes any late payments on your mortgage, car, or utility bill if it is reported on your credit report. This could not only increase the interest rate on future purchases, but also raise the interest rate on the consumer’s entire outstanding balance. For example: if you are late even just once on your car payment, your credit card interest rate could jump from 8% to 29% instantly.
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Filed under: Credit Reports
Posted on March 10th, 2008 by Sonya Smith-Valentine, Valentine Legal Group
According to a government report, banks are not providing consumers with information about account fees even though required by federal law. The report says that fees have been on the rise in recent years. The Government Accountability Office (GAO) made undercover visits to 185 bank branches and could not get a comprehensive list of account fees at more than one-fifth of the branches. At one-third of the branches, the GAO employees could not get account terms, like how overdrafts are handled. Federal law requires disclosure of fees and interest rates. The GAO report recommends that the five federal banking regulators incorporate ways to ensure that account fees and other information are available to consumers before opening an account.
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Filed under: Banking
Posted on March 5th, 2008 by Sonya Smith-Valentine, Valentine Legal Group
HUD is holding a foreclosure prevention clinic today in Prince George’s County at the Show Place Arena in Upper Marlboro. There are 2 separate sessions at 2 pm and 5 pm. You can register for the event by calling 1-800-CALL-FHA. If you are facing foreclosure or having problems paying your mortgage, I urge you to attend this clinic.
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Filed under: Mortgages
Posted on March 4th, 2008 by Sonya Smith-Valentine, Valentine Legal Group
If you live in Maryland and you own a home (and are living in that home), you should have received an Application for Homestead Tax Credit Eligibility. An on-line version of the application is available directly from SDAT’s Web site:
http://www.dat.state.md.us/sdatweb/Homestead_application.pdf
The state was concerned about that some homeowners were claiming principal residence status for more than one Maryland property. Therefore, the Maryland legislature is now requiring everyone who is seeking to retain principal residence status for their home to fill in and submit the above form. This is a one-time process. Loss of principal residence status will be automatic unless this form is submitted and approved, and that loss of status may result in higher future tax increases and less favorable tax treatment.
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Filed under: Uncategorized
Posted on February 21st, 2008 by Sonya Smith-Valentine, Valentine Legal Group
This week I received an agreement from Comcast along with my bill. The agreement is the size of a little booklet about 15-20 pages long. In the middle of the agreement is a clause regarding Binding Arbitration. Comcast is inserting a binding arbitration clause into its agreements with consumers. Comcast gives you the ability to opt out of the arbitration clause but it must be done within 30 days of recieving the agreement. The website to opt out is www.comcast.com/arbitrationoptout. If you are a Comcast subscriber, I urge you to opt out of arbitration. Arbitration favors big companies over consumers.
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Filed under: Consumer Protection
Posted on February 15th, 2008 by Sonya Smith-Valentine, Valentine Legal Group
The 10th annual National Consumer Protection Week, which highlights consumer protection and eduction efforts across the country, will take place from March 2 through March 8. This year’s theme is “Financial Literacy: A Sound Investment”. It is meant to encourage consumers to take steps to build a firm financial foundation. Many federal, state and local governements and national consumer organizations are trying to raise awareness of the importance of financial education and literacy.
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Filed under: Consumer Protection
Posted on February 12th, 2008 by Sonya Smith-Valentine, Valentine Legal Group
My prior consumer law blog had an unfortunate accident. Somehow while attempting to upgrade my blog, I managed to lose all of my prior posts. I tried for awhile to recapture the posts but began to realize that they were lost for good. So I am beginning again. Just as before, I will post information and news that is important for consumers on this blog. Hope you find the information helpful.
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Filed under: Uncategorized