Tania Chen
More Money Monday roundup: Top hospitals & a mutual-fund firing
Personal finance from around the Web:
- The Leapfrog Group, an organization comprising large corporations and public agencies that buy health benefits on behalf of their employees, has released a list of what it calls the 45 top hospitals in America. Is yours on the list? [The Leapfrog Group]
- There's turmoil at the $110-billion investing firm TCW Group: The two longtime co-managers of the top-performing TCW Total Return Bond fund (TGLMX) are out the door. Chief investment officer and fixed-income star Jeffrey Gundlach was fired; Philip Barach is said to have resigned. [The Los Angeles Times]
- Where do your tax dollars go? To defense, Social Security and health care, mostly. [Economix]
- Barnes & Noble's new electronic book reader, the Nook, goes on sale today. But don't rush out to buy one — compared to Amazon's Kindle, the Nook is "achingly slow," says Bloomberg's Rich Jaroslovsky. "Might-as-well-go-pour-yourself-a-cup-of-coffee slow." [Bloomberg]
- New tax rules next year will let more higher-income taxpayers have access to a Roth IRA. Learn how to maximize the benefit. [The Wall Street Journal]
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More Money Monday roundup: One-day JetBlue sale & mortgage mess do-over
Personal finance from around the Web to get your week started:
- Take advantage of a one-day sale from JetBlue to get some great travel deals Monday. But whatever airline you fly next, Luggage Limit helps you minimize baggage fees. [It's Your Money/Lifehacker]
- Bank of America today launched a program called Credit Card Clarity Commitment — what it says is an easy-to-understand list of terms and conditions for each account. [Charlotte Business Journal]
- A sign of times to come? Not only did shoppers spend less on Black Friday, but also a new survey reports that consumers plan to rely on cash instead of credit during this shopping season. [Reuters/ The New York Times]
- Health reform: It's not dead yet. Here's the latest look at how different House and Senate proposals stack up. [US News & World Report]
- Second time may not be the charm: The Obama administration's new plan to reduce mortgage payments and stop foreclosures isn't likely to work. And at Straight Talk About Mortgages and Real Estate, Tom Vanderwell talks rising mortgage rates. [WalletPop]
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More Money Monday roundup: Cheap turkey and delinquent credit cards
Personal finance from around the Web to get your week started:
- The delinquency rate on bank-issued cards dropped 6 percent between June and September, according to credit-reporting agency TransUnion. The company cites the unemployment rate, limited credit, and higher interest rates as the main cause of cutting the delinquency rate. Still, it's too early to tell how new credit card regulations and holiday retail sales will affect credit behavior in the long run. [AP via GoogleNews]
- Christmas came early this year! Because of falling produce prices, the American Farm Bureau estimates that this year's Thanksgiving dinner should be 4 percent cheaper than last year's. The average cost of stuffing 10 people with a Thanksgiving dinner shakes out to a grand total of $42.91. [It's Your Money]
- Kaiser Health News, a nonprofit health-policy news service funded by the Kaiser Family Foundation, Kaiser Permanente, one of the largest managed care systems in the nation, has released a consumer guide to the health care overhaul. The report answers most, if not all, of your basic questions about insurance and presents possible changes in an easily comprehensible manner. [Kaiser Health News]
- After last month's embarrassing data loss, T-Mobile is jumpstarting a slick Sidekick offer with cheaper phones and a longer contract. But is it worth it? Reports in the UK suggest T-Mobile staff selling off customer information to the highest bidder. [Wallet Pop]
- Thanks to the expiring tax credit, home sales competely exceeded last month's expectations as first-time buyers pushed seasonally-adjusted resales up 10.1%, according to the National Association of Realtors. Set to run out at the end of this month, Congress renewed it earlier and expanded the policy. Not everyone, however, is impressed with the numbers coming out of the NAR. [NPR via AP, The Big Picture]
- "Twilight's" vampiric sequel "New Moon" experienced a blowout monster weekend sucking in a total of $258.8 million in box offices worldwide. Regardless of age, women came out to cheer for their supernatural team of choice, putting "New Moon" third on the all-time domestic chart. Apparently, women do like older men — well, as long as they're 118 years old and have sharp teeth. [EconomPic]
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More Money Monday roundup: Health insurance lobbyists & debit card scam
Personal finance from around the Web to get your week started:
- UnitedHealth Group, the nation's largest health insurance carrier, sent an email to 75,000 employees urging them to protest against government-run health care. The incident is one of many campaigns led by major insurers to recruit company employees as political advocates in the debate over health reform. [Washington Post]
- A new debit card identity theft scheme is popping up in California, Missouri, Wisconsin, and other states. The thefts are largely tied to Hancock Fabric stores, in which debit card information and pin numbers are stolen and money is withdrawn from the account. Authorities estimate around a $40,000 loss for banks. [The Consumerist]
- Reports from the Commerce Department confirm that retail sales rose 1.4 percent in October because of rebounding auto sales. While sales look favorable for the upcoming holiday season and Black Friday discounts, economists are concerned that the boost is a sign of "double dip" recession. [NPR]
- Digitizing money is an increasingly tangible concept. Programs like ShopSavvy allow shoppers to buy an item on their phone just by taking a picture. PayPal and eBay have taken huge steps in phone sales — users can pay medical bills or pick up coffee with a click of a button. In Japan, wireless carriers are offering a cellphone banking system over a secure network. [The New York Times, BusinessWeek]
- Did your landlord install individual electric meters in your complex? It turns out that individual meters are not only legal, but also encouraged by municipal organizations because it allows the landlord to seek permission to exclude electricity and reduce rent accordingly. [Bucks]
- Most of the Federal Reserve's efforts to relieve the economy have helped Wall Street, but they haven't helped improve the unemployment rate, which now stands at 1t for the 10.2% unemployment rate. Despite the 62% boost in stocks, officials are still wary of the stagnant job growth needed to revive the economy. [Bloomberg]
Follow More Money on Twitter at http://twitter.com/moremoneyblog.
More Money Monday roundup: Bad checks & online brokers
Personal finance from around the Web to get your week started:
- Always read the fine print: the House approved a landmark plan that would cost $1.1 trillion over 10 years and extend coverage to 36 million unsinured Americans. Now what? Find out how the bill will actually affect consumers. [The Consumerist]
- Modeled after New York Magazine's "Sex Diaries," "Money Diaries" is an ongoing collection of stories that track the spending habits of real people over the period of seven days. What are your thoughts on the single mom with bad habits and bad checks? [I Will Teach You to Be Rich]
- Shopping around for a new stock broker? Christmas came early. Digerati gives you the cheat sheet on their favorite online stock brokers, along with limited-time promotions for new account holders. [Digerati Life]
- The recession takes it tolls in office politics. A behavioral-economics look at how employees have to carry the weight of laid-off co-workers. [Marketplace]
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