economy: Millions of people are not using their credit cards
- 11/30/10 04:22 AM
I read an interesting article this morning on Yahoo! News that pointed to a significant decline in the number of people who are not using credit cards. In fact, currently about 62 million people use credit cards, compared to about 70 million people last year. Although this decline is attributed in part to increase in debit card usage, which in recent years have surpassed credit cards "in both number of transactions and volume," there are other dynamics at play, and that got me thinking. One reason for decline in credit card users is that banks are not extending credit to individuals who appear … (4 comments)
economy: Why Some Buyers Are Still Waiting
- 11/22/10 03:14 AM
This morning I read an article in the latest issue of REALTOR magazine, by Lawrence Yun, NAR's chief economist (and an economist for all who are in the industry) about why some buyers are still waiting to buy homes. Given that we are experiencing record-low mortgage rates nationally, it's crucial to understand why such conditions are not contributing to more home sales. Mr. Yun's article cited three factors, and while most of us may be familiar with them, it's refreshing talk about them to understand the forces in the marketplace. The first factor that's deterring buyers is the availability of credit. Which varies across the … (4 comments)
economy: Nearly Eight in 10 Americans Still Believe Buying a Home Makes Good Financial Sense
- 10/19/10 07:48 AM
Despite challenges in the housing market and the economy, nearly eight in 10 Americans still believe buying a home makes good financial sense. This is according to the National Association of Realtor's (NAR) 2010 Housing Opportunity Survey. "The survey, which measures how affordable housing issues affect consumers, also found job security concerns to be the highest in eight years of sampling, with 70 percent of Americans saying that job layoffs and unemployment are a big problem in their area; eight in 10 cite these issues as a barrier to homeownership." Key findings of this survey: More than two-thirds of those surveyed … (6 comments)
I read an interesting article this morning on Yahoo! News that pointed to a significant decline in the number of people who are not using credit cards. In fact, currently about 62 million people use credit cards, compared to about 70 million people last year.
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