8 Things You Need To Know About FDIC And Your Accounts
July 15, 2008
With the recent failure of IndyMac Bank people are asking: how safe are my deposits and what exactly is insured. FDIC has a wonderful web site, but the 8 things you need to know are:
- Deposits for an individual are insured up to $100,000.
- Joint deposits for 2 individuals are insured up to $200,000.
- Retirement Accounts such as an IRA are insured up to $250,000.
- Business Accounts are insured up to $100,000.
- Having multiple accounts at branches of the same bank does NOT increase your insurance.
- Having different deposit accounts at the same bank does not increase your coverage. All of your individual accounts are added together.
- If you have a loan that is secured with a c.d. or other deposit account, the FDIC may be able to satisfy the loan first. What’s left of your deposit account will be insured up to above stated limits. This is the “doctrine of offset” and is not a rule.
- Brokerage accounts are NOT insured by the FDIC. However certain accounts held at a brokerage firm may be insured, such as cash accounts. You need to check with your broker.
This chart by FDIC explains by example common questions concerning joint accounts:
If you still have questions, FDIC has an interactive site that will calculate for you the insurance coverage of your accounts.
We are in troubling economic times. It is important to know how to protect your wealth.
John Newcomer
Produce The Note “How-To”
June 19, 2008
The Mortgage Meltdown
Fight Foreclosure: Make ‘Em Produce The Note!
Produce the Note - Steps To Follow:
Using the “produce the note” strategy is something all homeowners facing foreclosure can do. If you believe you’ve been treated unfairly, fight back. We have created templates for a legal request, a letter to your lender and a motion to compel to help you through the process. Read more
Blumenthal Blasts Feds on Lending Abuses
April 30, 2008
Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal criticized federal regulators for standing in the way of state efforts to combat subprime lending abuses.
“Federal agencies have been AWOL and even more insidiously the federal government has increasingly blocked states from prosecuting cases against these kinds of predatory lenders,” Blumenthal told a Senate panel Tuesday.
Fight Foreclosure: Make ‘Em Produce The Note!
April 4, 2008
If your home is currently in foreclosure, there may still be a chance to save it. As a result of lenders buying and selling mortgages your note could have changed hands several times over the course of the loan. But where is the actual note? In some warehouse somewhere? Make ‘em prove they own the debt they say you owe.
UPDATE: We’ve posted steps to follow to get your lender to produce the note. Also there are documents you can download to help in this process.
Foreclosure “Work-out” Myth
March 31, 2008
The foreclosure work-out myth is being promoted by mortgage lenders right now, with catchy names like Countrywide’s “HOPE” program and the EMC “Mod Squad,” but it’s time to expose the hoax. Lenders are falling over themselves to make federal lawmakers believe they’re working with borrowers to avoid default. They cry, “We lose money, too, when we foreclose on a home!” It’s all about chilling the call for tougher regulations. “We’ll do the right thing, promise.”
Unfortunately, it’s smoke and mirrors all over again, just like the predatory loans that got us into this problem in the first place. The reality we’re seeing day after day is that lenders, despite their promises, are once again not living up to their end of the deal. They’re not really working with borrowers. Instead, they put homeowners into unworkable work-out plans, and get a few more thousand dollars out of them, before dropping the ax anyway. Families are being driven out of their homes unnecessarily. It’s just wrong, and it hurts the entire community.
What’s in it for them? Why won’t they work with borrowers? Read more
Countrywide’s Mortgage Meltdown
March 28, 2008
Countrywide’s Hurricane Victims
March 28, 2008
Investigators Seeking Former Sallie Mae Employees
March 24, 2008
Over at the consumer investigative law firm, James - Hoyer, investigators are searching for former Sallie Mae employees. After receiving hundreds of complaints from student borrowers, an investigation was launched and recently a class action suit filed in U.S. District Court in Connecticut. The suit alleges that one of the nation’s largest student loan lenders is charging minority applicants higher interest rates than non-minority students. If you are a former employee of Sallie Mae, you can contact James - Hoyer here or call them at 1-800-651-2502.
Countrywide Made Racist Sub-Prime Loans?
February 6, 2008
Seems Countrywide Financial has been up to more than just reneging on promises they made to Hurricane Rita and Katrina Victims. According to an insider that contacted consumerist.com Countrywide Home Loans appeared to have a different underwriter in place if the customer service rep denoted a minority race when inputting loan application information. Read more
Subprime Probe Launched by FBI
January 30, 2008
With all of the current attention being paid to the subprime-mortgage lending crisis it really comes as little surprise to find 14 Companies on the FBI table for investigation into their lending practices. And while they didn’t directly identify the companies under criminal investigation, the did say they are looking into allegations of fraud in various stages of the mortgage process from companies that bundled the loans into securities to the banks that ended up holding them.
Sounds like good start… and it’s about time! Read more>>
Banding Together and Fighting Back!
Get your Mortgage Crisis message to your State Attorneys General Office. Read more »CWN Contact Form
Want to contact one of our columnists, or send a message to the CWN staff? Click here »
Recalls and Product Safety News- Sony Recalls Notebook Computers Due to Burn Hazard
- Wolf Appliance Recalls Gas Ranges Due to Burn Hazard
- Pendants and Candle Charms Recalled Due to Risk of Lead Exposure
- Optave Inc. Recalls Action Baby Carriers Due to Fall Hazard
- Cordless Screwdrivers Recalled by Menards Due to Fire and Burn Hazards
- Worldwise Inc. Recalls Retractable Dog Leashes; Metal Clasp Can Break and Cause Facial and Body Injuries to Dog Owners
