Tuesday, June 18, 2013

Latest southern Colorado news, weather and sports from FOX21 News

Money Matters: Five money warning signs
Posted: 10.05.2010 at 10:06 AM
0
Photo

When it comes to money matters, our Money Coach Bill Stanley said it's important to keep our eyes open -- there are potential problems everywhere.

Here are five areas in which he said we should really pay particularly close attention:

1) Company credit card -- "You might be partially or totally liable for the debt on a company credit card entrusted to you if your company doesn't pay the bill," Stanley said. "Be especially careful if you had to provide your financial information to get the card, or you pay the bill and are reimbursed by the company, or the card appears on your personal credit report." His advice: don't use a company credit card if you are liable to pay the bill.

2) The family home -- "If your elderly parents want to put your name on the title so the house will pass to you when they die, be careful -- the value of your part of the house is a gift from your parents to you," he said. "The IRS requires a gift form to be filed if the value is more than the $13,000 per individual annual gift exclusion (two parents $26,000 annual gift exclusion)." His advice: check with your tax preparer.

3) Credit card and mortgage statements -- "Review these carefully each month. Sometimes, a recurring fee will appear; it will be small and seemingly inconsequential, but it might be for something you ordered and don't know about," he said. "I had a client couple who showed me their mortgage statement. It had 'S&H Insurance' on it. When I asked what it was, they said they didn't know for sure, probably just some mortgage charge. It took me a half day of calling to find out it wasn't insurance at all -- it was a buying service they had inadvertently signed up for at $10 a month. It would have cost them $3,500 if the monthly charge had stayed on there until the house was paid off." His advice: question anything you don't understand.

4) Opt-in on credit card -- "Recent bank rule changes mean that if you want your bank to cover insufficient funds for your ATM or debt card, you must opt in and pay overdraft fees," Stanley said. "This new banking rule does not affect checks, online bill pay, and recurring check card purchases. You must know the rules." His advice: opt out to avoid overdraft fees.

5) Debit card -- "At my bank I will be charged 25 cents on a debit card purchase if I use a PIN number," he said. His advice: don't use a PIN.

Bill Stanley and Money Matters airs every Tuesday on FOX21 Morning News.
If you have a question for Bill, contact him directly:
 moneycoachbill@aol.com

Popular Stories
Thumbnail
Couple who died in Black Forest Fire identified
Travis Ruiz   |  Today at 5:35 PM  |  8 comments
Thumbnail
Continuing to give back, after losing her home
Sam Baranowski  |  Today at 8:00 AM  |  9 comments
Thumbnail
Wildfires burn north of Colorado Springs
FOX21 Continuous News Desk  |  2 hours, 20 minutes ago  |  14 comments
Follow FOX21
Get news and weather notifications on your phone by downloading the iPhone or Android app below
Sign up to get alerts and updates for breaking news, severe weather, and deals:
submit
ADVERTISEMENT
Special Features
Financial Services
Experts in financial planning
FOX21 Deals
Deals to area restaurants and businesses
KidsCast
Your 4th, 5th or 6th grade child can do the morning weather
Loud & Proud
Tell us what makes your school cool.
ADVERTISEMENT