Online Resources has released the results of its second survey of U.S. households looking at how bill payment patterns are being affected by the "ongoing economic softness. The survey shows that Americans’ personal financial stability continues to decrease, as the mortgage crunch, rising energy costs and a decreasing savings rate hit more households."   » Continue Reading

The Federal Reserve reported today that consumer credit increased at a 7.2 percent overall rate in March 2008 - with revolving credit increasing at 7.9 percent for the month.

On the Credit Slips blog, in a post titled "MasterCard's Machiavellian Twist", Angie Letwin, soon to be Assistant Professor at the University of Texas Law School in Austin, writes about her recent paper titled "Beyond Usury: A Study of Credit Card Use and Preference Among Low-Income Consumers" and compares some of her conclusions about control features useful to consumers in managing their credit card use to the new features MasterCard recently introduced with its "inControl" commercial card product designed for corporate purchasing use. She hopes that "perhaps eventually this could lead to products that would help consumers control their own spending as well."

Bob Lawless writes on the Credit Slips blog: "The March 2008 bankruptcy data showed that the U.S. average filing rate went over 4,000 per day for the first time since the 2005 bankruptcy law's effective date."

Nancy Trejos writes for the Washington Post about college students and credit cards: "Decades ago, it wasn't until one had a career, a spouse, even a child that credit cards typically entered the picture. Now, once people turn 18, they are bombarded with credit card offers. College campuses have become breeding grounds for new consumers of credit, with companies using free T-shirts, sandwiches, even iPods to entice potential customers."

RBC has published the latest edition of its RBC CASH (Consumer Attitudes and Spending by Household) Index reporting that 'pessimism among U. S. consumers continues to spread as Americans' sentiments concerning the future turn particularly gloomy.'   » Continue Reading

The Federal Reserve has updated its G.19 Consumer Credit statistical release noting that 'consumer credit increased at an annual rate of 2-1/2 percent in February; revolving credit increased at an annual rate of 6 percent, and nonrevolving credit increased at an annual rate of 1/2 percent.'

The American Bankers Association has announced that consumer credit delinquencies in the fourth quarter of 2007 reached their highest levels since 1992. "The composite ratio, which tracks eight closed-end installment loan categories, rose 21 basis points to 2.65 percent of all accounts in the fourth quarter (seasonally adjusted)." The number of delinquent bank card accounts rose 20 basis points to 4.38 percent, but remains close to the five-year average of 4.40 percent according to the ABA.

Research analyst Kristie M. Engemann and economist Michael T. Owyang of the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis have published an article in the April issue of The Regional Economist titled "Extra Credit: The Rise of Short-term Liabilities".   » Continue Reading

TransUnion has published its analysis of trends in the credit card lending industry during the 4th quarter of 2007 - making it available on TransUnion.com. The company says this report is the first in a planned series of quarterly consumer lending sector analyses that TransUnion will publish on the site.   » Continue Reading

In a post titled "Credit Squeeze", Elizabeth Warren writes for the Credit Slips blog about Business Week's story about credit card issuers holding firm to interest rates.

The Federal Reserve has published its latest G.19 Statistical Release on Consumer Credit reporting that overall consumer credit increased at an annual rate of 3-1/4 percent in January while revolving credit increased at an annual rate of 7 percent.

Donald L. Kohn, Vice Chairman of the Federal Reserve, testified at a hearing of the Senate Banking Committee today about the condition of the US banking system. With respect to credit cards, Kohn commented: "the bankruptcy rate rose modestly over the first nine months of 2007 and could be a harbinger of increasing delinquency rates on other consumer loans. In view of this risk, Federal Reserve supervisors are monitoring these consumer loan segments for signs of spillover from residential mortgage problems, particularly in regions showing homeowner distress, and are paying particular attention to the securitization market for credit card loans."

In an article titled 'Inside the Mind Of a Debtor Nation', Washington Post Personal Finance columnist Michelle Singletary recommends Stuart Vyse's book "Going Broke: Why Americans Can't Hold On To Their Money". Vyse is Professor of Psychology at Connecticut College, in New London. 'We've created a new kind of poverty, Vyse says. We have people who should have adequate income but still struggle because they're laden with debt.'

TowerGroup has announced new research titled "Process and Data Risks in a Changing Economy: How Credit Card Issuers Can Protect Their Portfolios" that identifies critical steps credit card issuers can take to withstand the current credit storm, and recover more quickly when the economy normalizes.   » Continue Reading

Bankrate.com has published findings from a national poll of 1,014 consumers that examined attitudes toward consumer debt. Among the findings, "66 percent of Americans say debt is often the result of unfortunate circumstances beyond a person's control, while 60 percent say it is usually the result of bad decisions."

The Center for American Progress has published a new report titled "House of Cards" by Tim Westrich and Christian E. Weller. From the abstract: "As borrowing in the mortgage market slows, credit card borrowing is accelerating—a dangerous trend because borrowers still face weak income growth. That means the credit card market could eventually run into the same problems that now afflict the subprime mortgage market."   » Continue Reading

On the Credit Slips blog, Adam Levitin comments on the Federal Reserve's G.19 Consumer Credit Statistical Release (published monthly). He notes that "the G.19 statistic includes all balances outstanding, not just those that are accruing interest and fees--it includes balances from transactors, who pay off their statement at the end of the month, as well as revolvers."

Nancy Trejos writes for the Washington Post about how the recent interest rate cuts by the Federal Reserve have not made it any cheaper for consumers where credit card interest rates have remained high and "in many cases have even climbed." Last Thursday, Rep. Carolyn B. Maloney (D-NY) introduced the Credit Cardholders' Bill of Rights Act of 2008 (PDF). In a press release, Maloney said “A credit card agreement is supposed to be a contract, but in recent years cardholders have lost the ability to say no to unfair interest rate hikes and fees. This balanced, moderate bill simply levels the playing field between card companies and cardholders while fostering fair competition and free market values,” said Rep. Maloney. Here's a one page summary (PDF) of Maloney's bill.   » Continue Reading

In an article titled 'Credit-Card Pinch Leads Consumers To Rein In Spending', Robin Sidel, Sudeep Reddy and Jane J. Kim write for the Wall St. Journal about how consumers dramatically slowed their use of revolving credit card debit in December according to Federal Reserve data. At the same time, the threat of recession and rising unemployment could drive more consumers to use credit cards for everyday expenditures. 'For consumers who are in financial distress, paying for basic needs with plastic 'is the easiest way out of that box,' says Bryan Derman, a partner at Glenbrook Partners LLC, a Menlo Park, Calif., consulting firm that specializes in the payments industry.'

The Federal Reserve's latest G.19 Consumer Credit report is out and shows that growth in revolving consumer debt grew at only 2.7 percent in December 2007. For the year, revolving consumer debt grew at 7.8%.

In an article titled 'Economy Fitful, Americans Start to Pay as They Go', Peter Goodman writes for the New York Times about how many consumers are entering 'a period of involuntary thrift'. Goodman writes: 'The shift under way feels to some analysts like a cultural inflection point, one with huge implications for an economy driven overwhelmingly by consumer spending.'

Citigroup has announced a net loss for the 2007 fourth quarter of $9.83 billion with the results including a "$18.1 billion in pre-tax write-downs and credit costs on sub-prime related direct exposures in fixed income markets, and a $4.1 billion increase in credit costs in U.S. consumer primarily related to higher current and estimated losses on consumer loans."

Citi said that its "U.S. consumer credit costs increased $4.1 billion, comprised of $689 million in higher net credit losses and a net charge of $3.31 billion to increase loan loss reserves. ... The increase in credit costs primarily reflected a weakening of leading credit indicators, including increased delinquencies on 1st and 2nd mortgages, unsecured personal loans, credit cards, and auto loans."

In an article titled 'High-End Cards Fall From Grace', the Wall St. Journal's Robin Sidel and David Enrich report on last week's news from American Express and Capital One about increasing delinquencies in their credit card portfolios. Later this week, other major issuers will report financial results - including JP Morgan Chase, Citigroup. Another very large issuer, Bank of America, will be reporting financial results next week.

Over the weekend, the New York Times' Floyd Norris reported on last week's Federal Reserve report about the recent surge in growth in consumer revolving debt.

Jessica Silver-Greenberg writes for Business Week that "rates of delinquency for credit-card holders rose in November, according to a study by RiskMetrics Group, a financial research organization" - with the pace of deterioration increasing from prior months.

Discover's latest US Spending Monitor paints a gloomy outlook for consumer fiannces going into 2008: "For the first time since June, less than a majority (49 percent) expected to have money left over after paying their monthly bills. Furthermore, December marked the fourth consecutive increase in the number of consumers expecting to have no money left over after paying monthly bills, topping out at more than 39 percent. Of those who had money left over, 27 percent had less left over than the previous month, a Monitor high, and a number that has also increased four months in a row."   » Continue Reading

The Federal Reserve's latest G.19 Consumer Credit report earlier today that revolving credit increased at an annual rate of 11-1/4 percent in November 2007, a significant uptick from months earlier in 2007.

In an article titled 'The Coming Credit-Card Crunch,' Aleksandra Todorova writes for SmartMoney about an expected spillover from the subprime mortgage crisis to credit card debt. According to Todorova, 'credit-card debt, like mortgages, is sold to investors in the form of asset-backed securities. The more consumers default on credit cards, the more these investors have to lose and, much like the situation with mortgage-backed securities, they may start shying away from these investments.'

TransUnion's TrueCredit.com has commissioned GfK Roper Public Affairs & Media to assess Americans' thoughts about their finances at the turn of the New Year. "The survey found that in 2007, one in four (25 percent) of all Americans missed making one or more on-time bill payments, with the bulk of those delinquencies occurring on Utilities (12 percent), Credit Cards (12 percent) and Medical Services (11 percent). Meanwhile, only 17 percent choose paying down debt as their top resolution for 2008, down notably from 22 percent in last year's survey."   » Continue Reading

Online Resources Corp. has released results of a recent survey of U.S. households and billers regarding the effect of the current mortgage crisis on bill payment and collection patterns. According to ORCC, the survey shows that fallout from the mortgage sector is spilling over into the broader economy, impacting companies across industries and their ability to collect payments.   » Continue Reading

Adam J. Levitin has a commentary published in today's Chicago Tribune titled "Complex Pricing of Credit Cards Should Be Simplified" in which he argues that the complicated pricing structure of credit cards makes it virtually impossible to determine the potential costs of carrying a balance. He believes that the complexity "helps explain the soaring growth of American credit card debt, now approaching $1 trillion." Levitin notes that while he qualifies "as a savvy and dedicated reader of financial contracts, but frequently I cannot calculate with certainty the costs of carrying a credit card balance, and my calls to card issuers' 800-number servicing lines have done nothing to clarify matters."

AP writers Rachel Konrad and Bob Porterfield write that "Americans are falling behind on their credit card payments at an alarming rate, sending delinquencies and defaults surging by double-digit percentages in the last year and prompting warnings of worse to come." Their story is based upon a review of the SEC filings of securitized credit card debt "representing about 325 million individual accounts."

Grianne Gilmour, Rebecca O'Connor and Christine Seib report for The Times in London on the impact rising credit card rates may have on consumers in the UK. "Rising credit card rates will add pressure to over-stretched households struggling to cope with increased mortgage payments and higher utility bills."

Business Week's cover story by Michael Mandel this week is titled "The Consumer Crunch" and reviews the issues facing the economy as a result of tightened consumer credit. "What comes next could be scary—the largest pullback in consumer spending in decades, perhaps as much as $200 billion to $300 billion, or 2%-3% of personal income. Reduced access to credit will combine with falling real estate values to hit poor and rich alike."

Demos has published a new report titled "Borrowing to Make Ends Meet: the Rapid Growth of Credit Card Debt in America" that says "American families are using credit cards to bridge the gaps created by stagnant wages and higher costs of living and balances have grown dramatically since 1989."   » Continue Reading

In an article titled 'The $915B bomb in consumers' wallets', Peter Gumbel writes for Fortune about increasing concerns that credit-strapped consumers may accelerate the delinquency rates for US credit card issuers. He suggests looking at the experience in the UK - saying it's about 18 months ahead of the US in the current credit cycle. He notes that "credit card delinquencies and charge-off rates in Britain have risen as much as 50%".

The Payment Cards Center of the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia has published a new Discussion Paper titled "Where Is the Missing Credit Card Debt? - Clues and Implications" by Jonathan Zinman, an assistant professor of economics at Dartmouth College and a visiting scholar with the Payment Cards Center.   » Continue Reading

Saying that he saw a "state of disequilibrium when it comes to consumer protection for credit cards", Comptroller of the Currency John C. Dugan said today that "consumers should be given the opportunity to “opt out” of certain credit card rate increases and be given the alternative of paying off the card balance at the old rate."   » Continue Reading

The American Bankers Association reports today that credit card loan delinquencies fell slightly in the second quarter of 2007, according to its Consumer Credit Delinquency Bulletin. "Late payments on credit cards were 4.39 percent of all accounts in the second quarter, compared to 4.41 percent in the first quarter of this year (seasonally adjusted). The ABA report defines late payments as 30 days or more overdue."   » Continue Reading

In an article titled 'Credit card companies pursue subprime borrowers", the International Herald Tribune publishes Robert Gavin's story from the Boston Globe on the marketing efforts of some credit card issuers targeting subprime consumers for credit cards. According to Gavin, "subprime customers, charged higher rates than those with better credit, are more likely to make minimum payments, maintaining balances that generate interest revenue for card issuers..."

Susan Chandler writes for the Chicago Tribune about the potential spill-over effects of the mortgage crisis on the ability of consumers to repay their credit card debt. She quotes Harvard law professor Elizabeth Warren: "Families have been making up the shortfall with credit and someday, perhaps someday very soon, the credit music will stop."

In article titled "Credit Cards Rates Rise for Some With Poor Credit", Scott Mayerowitz reports for ABC News that "several credit card companies in recent weeks have started to jack up rates for some customers, and other lenders are tightening standards for auto and personal loans."

James Scurlock, author of Maxed Out: Hard Times, Easy Credit and the Era of Predatory Lenders and the documentary film Maxed Out, writes for the Huffington Post about the current credit crisis in subprime mortgages. He says that "as the refi cash stops flowing, it is a mathematical certainty that people will be forced to stop paying the credit card bill as well."

John Crudele writes for the New York Post about one of the more interesting effects in the current credit cycle: why aren't people falling behind in paying their credit card bills? He says "going against conventional wisdom, people are handling their credit-card bills much better than their mortgage payments."

Federal Reserve vice chairman Donald L. Kohn and Karen E. Dynan, a Fed economist, have written a paper titled "The Rise in U.S. Household Indebtedness: Causes and Consequences" (PDF) that, according to David Leonhardt writing for the New York Times, "says that consumer debt soared over the last six years mainly because of the rapid increase in housing prices. The research suggests that consumer spending may slow down over the next few years."

Katherine M. Porter, Associate Professor at the University of Iowa's College of Law, has written an article titled "Bankrupt Profits: The Credit Industry's Business Model for Postbankruptcy Lending" that "examines what the credit industry's behavior toward recently bankrupt families reveals about its internal profit models and the likely causes of consumer bankruptcy."

Christopher Peterson of the University of Florida - Levin College of Law has written a paper titled "Usury Law, Payday Loans, and Statutory Slight of Hand: An Empirical Analysis of American Credit Pricing Limits" (PDF).   » Continue Reading

The Credit Slips blog reports on six research papers to be presented at the upcoming conference "Recent Developments in Consumer Credit and Payments" sponsored by the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia on September 20-21.

Consumers are maintaining their existing credit card relationships rather than rolling outstanding balances over to other cards, according to research recently conducted by Auriemma Consulting Group. The research found that "only 15% of credit card holders had transferred a balance in the past year, and 43% of those respondents said their last balance transfer was for an amount of $2,000 or less. Besides not carrying credit card balances in the first place--so not having anything to transfer--the most frequently cited reason respondents gave for not moving the amount they owed from one credit card to another was satisfaction with their current interest rate."   » Continue Reading

Anne Kate Smith interviews James Scurlock, author of Maxed Out, for Kiplinger.com. Turns out he started out wanting to make a movie about why Americans are so overweight - but then changed to "the other addiction we all have: debt".

The Payment Cards Center of the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia has published "Collecting Consumer Debt in America" (PDF) by Bob Hunt, senior economist in the Research Department of the Philadelphia Fed. In the paper, "Hunt explored how creditors and their agents attempt to collect past-due consumer debt, particularly unsecured debt. Creditors have a number of remedies open to them, but their effectiveness is limited by the fact that consumers can file for bankruptcy. Even outside of bankruptcy, consumers enjoy a variety of legal protections, including some they may not be aware of."

The Federal Reserve reported its monthtly G.19 Consumer Credit statistics today for the month of May 2007. Consumer credit increased at an annual rate of 6-1/2 percent in May. Revolving credit rose at an annual rate of 9-3/4 percent, and nonrevolving credit rose at an annual rate of 4-1/2 percent. Revolving credit outstanding now totals $894.8 billion.

The American Bankers Association's Consumer Credit Delinquency Bulletin reports that credit card loan delinquencies declined the first quarter of 2007 to 4.41 percent of all accounts compared to 4.56 percent in the fourth quarter of 2006 (seasonally adjusted).   » Continue Reading

According to the latest Experian study on the subprime lending market, subprime consumers -- those with an Experian credit score of 620 or lower -- are more likely to be 30 days or more late on their mortgage payments than on their unsecured bankcard obligations. As consumers have historically paid mortgage debt over bankcard debt, this finding represents a significant departure from conventional behavior.   » Continue Reading

The Federal Reserve's latest G.19 report on Consumer Credit in the US reports that revolving credit outstanding declined at an annual rate 0f -0.5% during April to $887.2 billion.

Loren Steffy, business columnist for the Houston Chronicle, writes about his observations on the use of credit in America from watching the movie Maxed Out, "a documentary about consumer debt by filmmaker James D. Scurlock that will be released on DVD in early June."

Consumer Action and American Express have announced plans to expand their jointly developed credit card education program called "Credit Cards: What You Need to Know." The program is centered on a training module with a curriculum and educational brochures, translated into five languages, that are distributed to the more than 9,000 community-based organizations within Consumer Action's network to educate consumers about how to best choose and use credit cards.   » Continue Reading

The Federal Reserve released its latest monthly G.19 Consumer Credit statistics yesterday showing that US consumer revolving debt (primarily credit card-related) great at an annual pace of 9.2 percent to $888.2 billion.

Last Thursday, the Washington Post's Personal Finance columnist Michelle Singletary had an online chat with her readers and James Scurlock, author of "Maxed Out: Hard Times, Easy Credit and the Era of Predatory Lenders" and the feature length documentary movie "Maxed Out".

Gerri Willis writes for CNN Money about techniques consumers can use to increase their credit scores - "the best way to improve your credit score in the short term is to pay off the high balances on your credit card - that can raise your FICO score 60 to 70 points overnight."

The Get Rich Slowly blog has an interesting post titled "What’s It Like to BORROW Money with Prosper?" written by Tricia (who also writes her own blog titled Blogging Away Debt) describing her experiences as a borrower using Prosper.com to find other folks willing to lend her money. She describes her experience seeking to borrow $3,500. She posted a starting interest rate she was willing to pay of 12%. As it turns out, lenders competed for her business and she ended up getting an interest rate of 9.9% from a group of 13 Prosper lenders.

In today's San Francisco Chronicle, Elizabeth Corcoran reviews the book "Maxed Out - Hard Times, Easy Credit and the Era of Predatory Lenders" by James D. Scurlock. Corcoran writes "figuring out exactly what constitutes too much borrowing is like figuring out when you've had too much to drink. Scurlock would like to see the government regulate and warn consumers about too much borrowing, much as it regulates hard liquor and cigarettes."

Last weekend, Joe Garofoil reviewed the movie version of Maxed Out.

"Do we really want to be in perpetual debt?" asks James D. Scurlock, author and director of "Maxed Out," in a conversation with personal finance columnist Michelle Singletary talking about consumer credit card debt.

Joe Garofoil writes a movie review for the San Francisco Chronicle of Maxed Out - a documentary opening the week about consumer debt in America. "It's a cautionary tale seldom told on film, and one sure to resonate with Bay Area residents whose grip on living in the region is bound by easy credit."

In an article titled 'Deep in Debt, Deeper in Denial" on Yahoo! Finance, Laura Rowley writes about credit card debt - soon to be featured in the documentary movie "Maxed Out" that opens nationwide next week.   » Continue Reading

PlasticEconomy.com is tracking the consumer credit card debt of a number of consumers who have signed up for their service and who periodically provide their outstanding balance, minimum payment amount, interest rate, and due date for the credit cards they hold. Among other things, they report on the level of household credit card debt and the average APRs charged on a state by state basis. As of this morning, this data is based on information totaling almost $2 million in credit card debt.

Walecia Konrad writes for Bankrate.com about results from a recent survey of 1,014 adults conducted for Bankrate by GfK, Roper Public Affairs and Media. The survey found that "twenty-five percent worry about how they are going to pay their credit card bills each month and 28 percent feel guilty about how much money they are putting on their cards."

John Leland writes for the New York Times about several blogs that help consumers work their way out of credit card debt - by talking about it online. The blogs include BloggingAwayDebt.com, Poorer Than You!, and We're in Debt.

Donald P. Morgan of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York has published a staff report titled "Defining and Detecting Predatory Lending" (PDF). From the abstract: "We find that in states with higher payday loan limits, less educated households and households with uncertain income are less likely to be denied credit, but are not more likely to miss a debt payment. Absent higher delinquency, the extra credit from payday lenders does not fit our definition of predatory. Nevertheless, it is expensive."

Robert Schroeder reports for MarketWatch that the US Senate Banking Committee is planning to hold a hearing this Thursday titled “Examining the Billing, Marketing, and Disclosure Practices of the Credit Card Industry, and Their Impact on Consumers.”   » Continue Reading

Saying that "a society is seriously out of whack when legalized loan sharks are encouraged to close in on those who are broke and desperately ill", New York Times columnist Bob Herbert writes about the credit card industry in his column today titled "Your MasterCard or Your Life". Herbert cites a recent report by Demos and the Access Project titled "Borrowing to Stay Healthy: How Credit Card Debt Is Related to Medical Expenses" that pointed out how frequently credit cards are used for medical-related debts. He concludes by saying "we need to protect financially vulnerable patients from a credit card universe in which there are no legal limits on fees or interest, and where the abuse of customers is the norm."

As health care costs continue to rise faster than incomes, families are turning to credit cards to pay for medical care, according to new research by Demos and the Access Project in a report entitled "Borrowing to Stay Healthy: How Credit Card Debt Is Related to Medical Expenses" (PDF).   » Continue Reading

Ann Carrns reports for the Wall St. Journal on the "just ask for it discount" that some consumers are getting from their credit card issuers by calling customer service and requesting a lower interest rate. Carrns cites one recent survey that conclude the odds were good - "more than 75% of those who asked to pay less said they got their rate reduced."

Bankrate.com's Ellen Cannon has been posting on her Plastic Rap blog about the recent publication by the U.S. Census Bureau of its 126th Statistical Abstract of the United States - and some of the numbers regarding Americans, their debts, and their use of various payment methods and online bill payment based upon age.

The Federal Reserve Board and the Office of Thrift Supervision have announced the availability of a revised Consumer Handbook on Adjustable-Rate Mortgages (the CHARM booklet), which provides information to consumers about the features and risks of such loans. In recognition of the growing use of nontraditional mortgage products that allow borrowers to defer payment of principal and sometimes interest, the agencies have substantially revised the CHARM booklet to include discussions about "interest-only" and "payment option" mortgages.   » Continue Reading

Online Resources has published a new study of web-based collections and payments that demonstrates the growing adoption of the Web channel for debt collection.   » Continue Reading

The latest Federal Reserve G.19 summary of consumer credit for the month of October is now available - showing a 4.1 percent annualized increase in revolving credit - to a total of $863.4 billion. Non-revolving debt declined at a 3.3 percent rate.

The Community Financial Services Association of America (CFSA), a national trade group of responsible payday advance companies, has issued a press release "dismissing a report by the Center for Responsible Lending (CRL) as misleading and lacking perspective."   » Continue Reading

David Lazarus writes for the San Francisco Chronicle about consumer debt levels in the US - with $12.3 trillion in total consumer debt outstanding or $2.4 trillion if mortgages aren't included, according to the Federal Reserve which reports this data on a monthly basis. Lazarus goes on to remind consumers to be careful using their credit cards this holiday season - which he says "are the only consumer product for which the terms of sale can change after you sign a contract."

Experian Consumer Direct has announced the results of a recent National Score Index study showing a 16.9 percent decline from 2001 to 2006 in the rate at which consumers are opening new credit accounts and a 12.6 percent rate at which late payments of 90 days or more are increasing. The national average credit score is 675 -- 7 points lower from 2001 when it was 682.   » Continue Reading

PricewaterhouseCoopers has published "Precious Plastic 2007 - Consumer Credit in the UK", a study of the UK consumer credit market. The PwC research concludes that "credit card margins continued to fall in 2006, as the industry came under unprecedented scrutiny from the Office of Fair Trading (OFT), the Competition Commission and the Financial Services Authority."   » Continue Reading

GE Money has announced that, "in an effort to educate consumers with need-to-know information about credit, budgeting, mortgages and protection against identity theft, Everyday Money (www.everydaymoney.org) launched today. Everyday Money is a consumer-friendly web site written in uncomplicated language. It contains dynamic, user-friendly interactive tools to help consumers learn about and improve their everyday interactions with money and finances."   » Continue Reading

Richard Piersol writes for the Lincoln (NE) Journal Star about the experiences of local credit counselors who conclude that "it’s not so much wild spendthriftiness and irresponsible abuse of credit card debt" that leads to personal bankruptcy - rather, "medical costs from health troubles almost always lead to misfortune in employment and loss of income. Then comes bankruptcy." A new report from the Nebraska Appleseed Center for Law in the Public Interest titled "Debt Trends in Nebraska" (PDF) examines some of the issues in more detail.

Elizabeth Razzi writes for the Chicago Tribune about what she says is the "coming credit crunch" - "a perfect storm of rising mortgage rates, dis