Nashville area's consumer debt level ticks higher - The Tennessean

Nashville area's consumer debt level ticks higher The Tennessean Americans' real wages rose by a scant 0.9 percent while inflation rose by 3.2 percent last year. For the year, the savings rate dipped to 4.4 percent from 5.3 percent in 2010. Still, the average American has reduced credit card and personal debt (such ... and more »

Credit Score Zealots Pursue Fool's Errand to Get Over 800 - BusinessWeek

Credit Score Zealots Pursue Fool's Errand to Get Over 800 BusinessWeek About 18 percent of 200 million consumers in the US with credit scores, or 36 million Americans, had credit scores of 800 or higher in 2011, according to estimates from FICO. More than 75 million had scores of at least 750 while the median credit score ... and more »

Vice President Joe Biden Gives Speech in Tallahassee - WCTV

Vice President Joe Biden Gives Speech in Tallahassee WCTV He's talking about what the Federal Government is doing to help America's students get an affordable college education. Eyewitness News was at the Florida State University Basketball practice facility where Vice President Joe Biden and Under Secretary ... and more »

US edges toward recovery without help from housing - Globe and Mail

Globe and Mail

US edges toward recovery without help from housing Globe and Mail During the bubble years of the early to mid-2000s, “we just got so enthralled with the notion that house prices do not fall, that we way overshot the mark – in quantity, prices, risk scores, credit availability and everything else. and more »

Global Consumer Confidence Increases One Point to 89 in Q4 2011, While ... - MarketWatch (press release)

Global Consumer Confidence Increases One Point to 89 in Q4 2011, While ... MarketWatch (press release) The US consumer confidence index rose six points from 77 to 83 and China gained four points to 108, making it the sixth most optimistic country globally, up from eighth place in the previous quarter. Confidence in Germany, the world's fourth largest ... and more »

Startups Size Up Loan Candidates With Algorithms Rather Than FICO Scores - Bloomberg

Startups Size Up Loan Candidates With Algorithms Rather Than FICO Scores Bloomberg For more than 40 years, banks have counted on FICO scores to determine the credit worthiness of American consumers. Now a handful of entrepreneurs in California say it's time for a smarter way to size up borrowers. Los Angeles-based ZestCash Inc., ... Alternative Lenders Parse the Subprime Market with Google-Like Data AnalysisAmerican Banker (subscription) all 5 news articles »

Looser Credit Standards Boost Car Sales - Smartmoney.com (blog)

Looser Credit Standards Boost Car Sales Smartmoney.com (blog) Borrowers with less-than-perfect credit scores are finding they have more access to car loans than they did a year ago. Subprime lending – for consumers with 550 to 619 scores (based on the so-called PLUS score range of 330 to 830) – accounted for ... and more »

March Madness 2012: Breaking Down All the Conference Races - Bleacher Report

Bleacher Report

March Madness 2012: Breaking Down All the Conference Races Bleacher Report We all look for the Cinderella story of the year and, for the most part, that story comes out of a mid-major conference, which means we need to look beyond those big conferences and give credit where credit is due. There are some heated conference ... and more »

States where citizens carry the most mortgage debt - msnbc.com

States where citizens carry the most mortgage debt msnbc.com The state's average credit card debt of $7533 per person is the fifth-highest. Residents, however, have been able to pay some of these massive debts on time, as Coloradans also boast one of the best average credit scores in the country.

Current Mortgage Rates Today – Bank of America and Citibank Raise Rates - Best Syndication

Best Syndication

Current Mortgage Rates Today – Bank of America and Citibank Raise Rates Best Syndication The final rate will depend on the location of the home and the credit score of the borrower. There will also be regional variations. The average 15-year fixed rate mortgage increased three bps to 4.484 percent. Bank of America raised their rate five ... and more »