Websites
www.bankrate.com - great for mortgage and retirement calculators
http://finance.yahoo.com/personal-finance - daily articles on personal finance
www.mint.com - online budgeting tools unmatched by any other current site
www.thesimpledollar.com - personal finance blog
www.fidelity.com - low cost mutual fund leader
www.couponmom.com - online and in store coupons
www.billshrink.com - great for reducing credit card or cell phone fees
www.glassdoor.com - see if you are being paid what you deserve
www.annualcreditreport.com - see you free credit report from all three bureaus
www.myfico.com - learn all about credit and your score
http://www.myfdicinsurance.gov - learn about how your money is protected
http://money.cnn.com/pf - calculators, articles, rate information, and more
STATISTICS:
More than 90 percent of survey respondents believe they had the same amount -- or less -- debt as the average American. (Source: CreditCards.com survey, June 2007)Personal bankruptcies surged to more than 1 million filings in the United States in 2008, the most since a rewrite of bankruptcy laws took effect in 2005. (Source: American Bankruptcy Institute, January 2009)
Almost three in four surveyed say they don't bother reading the terms and conditions of their own credit cards. (Source: CreditCards.com survey, June 2007).
76 percent of undergraduates have credit cards, and the average undergrad has $2,200 in credit card. Additionally, they will amass almost $20,000 in student debt. (Source: Nellie Mae, "Undergraduate Students and Credit Cards in 2004: An Analysis of Usage Rates and Trends")
One-fourth of the students surveyed in US PIRG's 2008 Campus Credit Card Trap report said that they have paid a late fee, and 15 percent have paid an "over the limit" fee. (Source: U.S. PIRG, "Campus Credit Card Trap")
Average credit card debt among indebted young adults increased by 55 percent between 1992 and 2001, to $4,088.11. (Source: "Generation Broke: Growth of Debt Among Young Americans")
The average credit card indebted young adult household now spends nearly 24 percent of its income on debt payments, four percentage points more, on average, than young adults did in 1992. (Source: "Generation Broke: Growth of Debt Among Young Americans")
Among young adult households with incomes below $50,000 (two-thirds of young households), nearly one in five with credit card debt is in debt hardship-spending over 40 percent of their income servicing debt, including mortgages and student loans. (Source: "Generation Broke: Growth of Debt Among Young Americans")
Young Americans now have the second highest rate of bankruptcy, just after those aged 35 to 44. The rate among 25 to 34-year-olds increased between 1991 and 2001, indicating that this generation is more likely to file bankruptcy as young adults than were young Boomers at the same age. (Source: "Generation Broke: Growth of Debt Among Young Americans")In 2007, credit card balances made up 3.5 percent of the total debt for all U.S. families, including those with and without credit card debt. (Source: Federal Reserve Survey of Consumer Finances, February 2009)
The average credit card indebted young adult household now spends nearly 24 percent of its income on debt payments, four percentage points more, on average, than young adults did in 1992. (Source: "Generation Broke: Growth of Debt Among Young Americans")
Approximately 29 percent of low- and middle-income households with credit card debt reported that medical expenses contributed to their current balances. (Source: Demos.org, January 2007)
U.S. consumers racked up an estimated $51 billion worth of fast food on their personal credit and debit cards in 2006, compared to $33.2 billion one year earlier. (Source: CardData.com)
Our Favorite Local Businesses:
www.drichstoneworkllc.com - Masonry and landscaping contractor
www.mancusologan.com - Nick Mancuso, Attorney
www.brendahill.prudentialct.com/ - Realtor
www.birdseyesports.com - Sports video production company
www.simplyrepaired.com- Computer repair services
www.yourfinancialorganizer.net - Ann Adams, Personal Money Manager
www.nefghartford.com/ecard.cfm?ID=74530 - Rand Hopkinson, Financial Representative
www.accountingandtaxprep.com - Mike Brady, Accountant
www.adamelectricllc.com - Adam Hebert, Electrician
www.cthm.com/agent_details.aspx?AK=6481 - Sean Smith, Mortgage Specialist