Credit Cards – What is the “Universal Default Clause”?Written by Charles Essmeier
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or a utility bill could cause your credit card interest rate to go up. This, in turn, could hurt your credit score. There is currently nothing in Federal law that prohibits this practice; law only requires that lenders disclose it in writing. Credit card companies justify this by saying that customers that make late payments to anyone increase risk for all lenders. Nevertheless, many, if not most, credit card customers are unaware that such policies exist.
Not all credit card companies have such a policy; in fact, most do not. Customers who are not interested in having interest rates of their credit card tied to their ability to pay their phone bill on time would be advised to read fine print in their credit card statement. If such a policy exists, you could either complain to your credit card issuer about it or shop around for another credit card. The lesson to be learned here is a valuable one – when you receive your credit card bill or a notification that your credit card billing terms have changed, take a moment to read fine print.
©Copyright 2005 by Retro Marketing. Charles Essmeier is the owner of Retro Marketing, a firm devoted to informational Websites, including End-Your-Debt.com, a site devoted to debt consolidation and credit counseling, and HomeEquityHelp.net, a site devoted to information regarding home equity loans.
| | Structured Settlements – Should You Sell Yours?Written by Charles Essmeier
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to pay you a lump sum, in cash, in exchange for you signing over your future annuity payments to them. Be aware that any party that offers to buy your annuity is interested in doing so for investment purposes. They wish to make money on transaction, and for them, that profit will be spread over long time that it takes to receive all of payments that constitute settlement. Once you combine factors of time, interest, inflation, and buying party’s profit, you will find that offer made to you will seem quite small. The amount you receive will be an amount equal to present day value of settlement, minus whatever sum investors require for their profit on transaction.
You should also know that some states prohibit sale of structured settlements, that some insurance companies who handle annuities prohibit sales to a third party, and that you will probably need to go to court to arrange sale. In addition, there may be tax considerations involved in sale, and taxes due on large sums of money are not insignificant. If you are interested in selling your structured settlement, you will definitely want to discuss sale with an attorney and a tax advisor beforehand.
While structured settlements are designed to benefit those who receive them, there are times when it may be desirable or necessary to sell them. If you are considering selling your settlement, make sure that you weigh all of your options carefully. Once you agree to sell, you cannot get it back.
©Copyright 2005 by Retro Marketing. Charles Essmeier is the owner of Retro Marketing, a firm devoted to informational Websites, including StructuredSettlementHelp.com, a site devoted to structured settlements and HomeEquityHelp.net, a site devoted to home equity loan information.
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