| Credit card users hurt by squeeze
Nearly half of all shoppers seeking new credit cards are being refused, as a money squeeze begins to hit ordinary borrowers. The number of applications refused by card providers has risen by 17 per cent to an estimated 3.27 million in the past six months, figures released yesterday showed, while those who are granted a card are being forced to pay higher interest rates and charges. There have been 125 separate fee and rate increases over the past two months. Young people aged between 25 and 34 are most likely to be refused a card, according to Moneyexpert.com, the price comparison website. But financial experts said that people already struggling with debt would be hardest hit by the clampdown. Esther James, credit card analyst at Moneyfacts.co.uk, another financial website, said: "It seems as if the credit crunch is beginning to cause credit card chaos.
8.5% Fixed-Rate NextStudent PLUS Loan Gives Parents Mid-School Year Option to Help Their Children Pay for College
Unlike some student loans that have application deadlines early in the fall semester, Federal PLUS Loans give parents with college-aged children a financing option that they can apply for throughout the school year (depending on the final deadline set by the school's financial aid office). With fall semester ending and families gearing up their college budgets for spring, parents of undergraduates who need a little more financial help can take advantage of mid-year application with a PLUS loan from NextStudent, a leading Phoenix-based education funding company. PLUS loans (Parent Loans for Undergraduate Students) are non-need-based federal student loans designed to help creditworthy parents meet their undergraduate children's educational expenses. PLUS loans from NextStudent give families a low-interest option for college financing that serves as an alternative to dipping into the family savings or borrowing against a home.
Charges Dropped Against Arkansas Running Back Michael Smith
Prosecutors have dropped forgery and theft charges against Arkansas running back Michael Lee Smith, who was accused of using a stolen credit card.
Deputy Prosecutor Bill Jones says a co-defendant provided a sworn affidavit that cleared Smith. The prosecutor says he has nothing to dispute the sworn statement and, therefore, is not going to file charges.
The 20-year-old Smith was arrested September 23rd on second-degree forgery and theft-by-receiving charges. Razorback coach Houston Nutt suspended Smith from the team for a time but restored him to the roster. Smith is a reserve player behind Darren McFadden and Felix Jones.
In the criminal case, co-defendant Micah Kirschbaum of Greenland is charged with 12 counts of fraudulent use of a credit card and four counts of second-degree forgery.
Kangaroos faithful must fight
EXCUSE me for being stubborn, passionate, even conservative if you like, but I'd rather have my team get the wooden spoon every year than be moved 1600km northeast to Queensland, writes Geoff Poulter. Play the odd "home" game out of town, but never abandon Arden St, North's spiritual home over which the old Gasometer once kept a silent vigil. If North Melbourne -- I don't embrace the confusing Kangaroo name change -- is shifted to the Gold Coast without a chance for a fierce local campaign to consolidate, I'll quickly lose interest. I have been a North member, often in an advanced category, since the early 1970s when I lobbed from Tassie while, for credibility of independence, not advertising the fact too boldly when I held chief football writing posts with the Sporting Globe and Herald in the 1980s.
Former City Employee Gets Probation For Taking Cash
A former Bloomington City employee has been sentenced to 30 months probation on theft charges. 40-year old Lawanda Giles admitted using a city-issued credit card to obtain more than $3,000 in cash to pay personal expenses.She had faced the possibility of up to five years in prison.Restitution of the money by Giles was also part of the sentence handed down today. .
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