Washington, D.C., United States (AHN) – Consumers decreased their credit card debt by 11 percent last year, with the average debt load declining in every state.

That information came from a report released Tuesday by credit tracking and financial education website CreditKarma.com. It analyzed data from more than 300,000 of its users.

“The new year typically inspires consumers to get in control of their finances, especially after the bout of holiday spending that occurred in December. Starting in January, you’ll see consumers start focusing on decreasing debt,” said Ken Lin, CEO of CreditKarma.com.

CreditKarma.com found that the average credit card balance was $6,576 in 2011, down from $7,404 the previous year.

However, that decline came in a climate of weak consumer confidence, which kept spending down as banks continued to tighten lending while slashing credit limits for many existing customers.

While credit card debt was down, so were credit scores.

Nationally, credit scores fell eight points to 660 in 2011 from the previous year.

States with the highest average credit scores are:

• California, Massachusetts and New Jersey — 679
• Washington — 675
• New York — 674

States with the lowest average credit scores are:

• Mississippi — 622
• Louisiana — 635
• Arkansas — 635
• South Carolina — 635
• West Virginia — 637

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NYC, NY, United States (AHN) – The rate for the 30 year fixed mortgage rate remained near 4 percent for the third consecutive week, according to Freddie Mac’s weekly survey.

Mortgage rates in general were little changed.

The 30-year fixed rate mortgage rate averaged 4 percent or the week ending Nov. 17, up slightly from 3.99 from the previous week, and below the 4.39 percent recorded a year earlier.

Rates on the 15 year fixed rate mortgages averaged 3.31 percent, up from 3.3 percent a week ago, and below the 3.67 percent recorded a year ago.

While the ailing housing market is showing some signs of life, mortgage rates are expected to stay low for an extended period.

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Charlotte, NC, United States (AHN) – Credit unions are benefiting from a hike on debit card fees imposed by Bank of America (BofA )on Sept. 29. They are taking advantage of the growing anti-bank sentiment across the country as evidenced by the Occupy Wall Street movements.

Another proof is the big jump in applications experienced by some credit unions for membership. In September, the National Association of Federal Credit Unions logged a 350 percent increase in Web traffic to its online credit union locator.

Besides capitalizing on the anti-bank sentiments, credit unions are highlighting their advantages such as no checking and debit card fee, no minimum balance requirements and quarterly paid dividends.

The advantage credit unions and community banks with less than $10 billion in assets have compared to banks are that these establishments are exempt from a new government rule that cut interchange of swipe fees which led banks to impose new fees.

Besides BofA, Suntrust also tacked in fees on debit cards, while Citibank phased out its free checking accounts.

To give the shift from banks to credit unions a bigger push, a Facebook group marked Nov. 5 as Bank Transfer Day when depositors are encouraged to close their bank accounts and transfer their savings to credit unions to avoid escalating bank fees.

This early, BofA is rethinking its plan to charge $5 a month for the use of their debit cards, according to reports. Although bank officials said there is no firm conclusion yet, a new plan being hatched would exempt customers who hold BofA credit cards, directly deposit their pay into the bank or hold a minimum balance from the $5 fee.

Previously, BofA said the fee would only be waived if the debit card holder has a minimum balance of $20,000.

The cardholder backlash is also causing other banks to reconsider plans to impose a fee. Wells Fargo canceled on Friday a test that would charge debit cardholders from Georgia, Nevada, New Mexico, Washington and Oregon $3 a month. JPMorgan also decided against imposing a $3 stand-alone debit card use fee per month.

U.S. banks are estimated to lose $6 billion from the mandated reduction in swipe fees.

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Washington, DC, United States (AHN) – A rising number of college graduates are filing for bankruptcy protection, says a study by the Institute for Financial Literacy scheduled for release on Tuesday.

In 2006, degree holders accounted for 11.2 percent of bankruptcy protection filers, the study found. By 2010, their proportion rose to 13.6 percent.

Similar trends were observed for holders of two-year associate degrees and graduate degrees. On the other end, high school diploma holders or college dropouts logged a decline in bankruptcy protection applications.

Leslie Linfield, executive director of the Institute, said the new trends challenged beliefs that an advanced education is almost a guarantee for economic success. Linfield said the recession indicated otherwise.

Bankruptcies in the U.S. dramatically rose after the 2008 financial crisis due to less consumer credit available after lenders tightened underwriting benchmarks and lowered loan limits.

Data from the Department of Education released on Monday showed that before students leave university some of them are defaulting on their student loans. For the fiscal year that ended on Sept 30, 2010, student loan defaults went up to 8.8 percent from 7 percent the previous year.

Financial difficulties faced by new graduates and students that led to the loan defaults were particularly felt among those enrolled at for-profit colleges and universities where the default rate in the first two years of payment zoomed to 15 percent from 11.6 percent.

For students enrolled in public educational institutions, the default rate climbed to 7.2 percent from 6 percent. At not-for-profit private institutions, the rate was 4.6 percent, up from 4 percent.

Deputy Education Secretary James Kvaal said there is a strong link between student default rates and joblessness rates..

The data supports an Institute for higher Education Policy study that found that for every borrower who defaults, there are two more who are behind in payments. Only 37 percent of borrowers who began to repay their student loans in 2005 managed to pay their loan fully and on time.

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WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) – The percentage of banks in the United States expressing a willingness to make consumer loans rose in the first quarter to its highest level since 1994, according to a survey released by the Federal Reserve on Monday. The Fed’s Senior Loan Officer Survey for January through March also found that several large banks eased lending policies on credit cards and auto loans. Consumers increased their demand for auto loans but not other types, the survey found. The trend toward easier standards and terms for commercial and industrial loans also continued in the first quarter, the survey found. The banks that eased standards on business loans cited increased competition and a less uncertain economic outlook. Demand for business loans also increased.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.

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Speaking at a General Electric plant in Schenectady, New York last Friday, President Obama asserted that “America is still home to the most creative and most innovative businesses in the world.” The President drew on themes expected in tomorrow’s State of the Union address of innovation and enterprise, expanding markets and job creation, as well as policies aimed at driving America’s economy and fueling our nation’s competitiveness. President Obama spoke about the challenges America faces to lift our country from the ditch, and the efforts of his administration to accelerate that climb. [A]s we continue to fight our way back from the worst recession in our lifetimes, is to harness this spirit, to harness this potential, the potential that all of you represent. Our challenge is to do everything we can to make it easier for folks to bring products to market and to start and expand new businesses, and to grow and hire new workers. And that’s why, as part of the tax cut compromise that I signed at the end of the year, we provided incentives for businesses to make new capital investments — and in fact GE is investing $13 million in advanced manufacturing at this plant, taking advantage of some of these tax breaks. We also extended a program that GE says its customers have used to invest $6 billion in clean energy production across this country — driving demand for the company’s wind turbines. And I saw one of those big turbines on the way in. So we know we can compete. Not just in the industries of the past, but also in the industries of the future.

The President also talked about the need to increase American exports and the positive effect it has on job growth: And that’s also why I fought hard to negotiate a new trade deal with South Korea that will support more than 70,000 American jobs. That’s why I traveled to India a few months ago — and Jeff was there with us — where our businesses were able to reach agreement to export $10 billion in goods and services to India. And that’s going to lead to another 50,000 jobs here in the United States.

The speech continued: So it’s a perfect example of why promoting exports is so important. That’s why I’ve set a goal of doubling American exports within five years. And we’re on track to do it. We’re already up 18 percent and we’re just going to keep on going, because we’re going to sell more and more stuff all around the world. When a company sells products overseas, it leads to hiring on our shores. The deal in Samalkot means jobs in Schenectady. That’s how we accelerate growth. That’s how we create opportunities for our people. This is how we go from an economy that was powered by what we borrow and what we consume — that’s what happened over the last 10 years. What was driving our economy was we were spending a lot on credit cards. Everybody was borrowing a lot. The Chinese were selling a lot to us. Folks were selling a lot to us from all over the world. We’ve got to reverse that. We want an economy that’s fueled by what we invent and what we build. We’re going back to Thomas Edison’s principles. We’re going to build stuff and invent stuff.

Check out the White House’s website dedicated to the State of the Union address. Starting Tuesday and throughout the week, there will be panels, Q&A’s with experts and top administration officials, and the first-ever YouTube interview on Thursday with President Obama. Don’t miss out!

Watch the President’s full speech in Schenectady.

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Is it truly feasible to apply for grants on the web and legally eliminate credit score card financial debt? You will certainly ask this question specifically if you happen to be in deep credit score card debt and your credit history score is shot to pieces and you have to have a solution. You can find government grants and debt relief solutions obtainable that may aid you regardless of your situation and regardless of how bad your credit score card debt is to help you eliminate credit card debt.

Once you obtain a grant, you aren’t liable to pay a single cent back towards the federal government. This is the principal cause why a grant is sought after by a lot of people. Unfortunately the individuals who have to have them the most, people in serious financial debt do not even know about them. The government doesn’t have any biases when they give funds. Even your credit rating rating isn’t looked at. If you could have a terrible credit rating score, debts up to your eyeballs and you’re behind with all your bills government grants will help you to eliminate credit card debt for good.

The only issue which will prevent you obtaining grant income is when you could have existing IRS issues. Now since a grant isn’t a loan, almost everybody is qualified to apply for one. You can find different standard qualifications or requirements required when applying for a grant on the web. Very first you could have to be a legal citizen of the United States. Secondly you need to be 18 years of age or above to get help to eliminate credit card debt.

There is certainly also no truth to the rumors that have been spreading that you require to own a business with employees so that you can obtain grant funds. These are all myths.

Some men and women come across it tedious practice and stressful too. You will find those which are complacent with just their applications since they’re stressed out by the entire procedure. Occasionally though for whatever explanation you’re unable to obtain a grant to eliminate credit card debt. This might be since the majority of the financial debt is on credit cards, which grants cannot be utilized to pay all of it, or for some cause your application is refused.

There is certainly one more motive too. Grants commonly take a while to method and for numerous individuals they need to have the dollars yesterday with debtors banging on the doors and calling at all hours. In this case the other solution is with credit history card debt consolidation. The very best way to handle this is via a reputable on-line firm that can assist you. They will assist dealing with your creditors and even get some of the debt wiped out and whatever you owe there can be a solution for your issues. You can get help and eliminate credit card debt for good.

Princeton, New Jersey, United States (AHN) – Government economists are revamping the economic models they use after being surprised by the recession that started in December 2007, Federal Reserve Board Chairman Ben Bernanke said Friday.

“From now on, we are going to be much more attentive to the system as a whole,” Bernanke said.

He spoke at Princeton University in New Jersey, where he described what went wrong to cause the recession and how the federal government plans to prevent similar crises in the future.

“Our system simply did not catch those problems,” Bernanke said.

He was referring to economic forecasting models that focus on major financial institutions to predict what will happen with the U.S. economy.

The models consist of mathematical calculations based on data about how various industries are performing.

The models used to make predictions overlooked the impact of money markets and how investment banks handled their customers’ money, Bernanke said.

Instead, the forecasting models focused on traditional banks, which operate under tight government regulation.

Private investment firms operate under looser regulations.

Sweeping reform legislation approved recently by Congress seeks to eliminate any loopholes that allow private firms to jeopardize the U.S. economy, Bernanke said.

There will be no more financial firms that are “too big to fail” without dragging down the rest of the economy, he said.

Instead, government regulators have new procedures to prevent the firms from failing or to control the losses they might bring to their investors.

He urged economists to develop better economic forecasting models.

The models used by the government now do a good job of predicting how the economy will perform in good times.

“The standard models were designed for these non-crisis situations,” he said.

However, “the complexity of our economic system” created too many unknowns about when a crisis would occur, Bernanke said.

When economists were asked after the recession started why they failed to predict the crisis, they responded that, “They did not know what they did not know,” Bernanke said.

He discussed an announcement this week by the National Bureau of Economic Research, which declared the U.S. recession ended in June 2009.

The report was widely ridiculed because of an unemployment rate that remains at recession levels and foreclosures that are forcing millions of Americans out of their homes.

“All that means is the economy is no longer contracting,” Bernanke said.

Economic growth remains slow and is likely to continue at a slow pace.

“Recoveries that follow a financial crisis tend to be slower than other recoveries,” said Bernanke, who is considered an expert on the Great Depression of the 1930s.

The U.S. economy faces ongoing struggles because of the national debt and “entitlements” such as Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid, he said.

Because of an aging population that will become eligible for the entitlements and government overspending, the federal debt “will become unsustainable in a few decades,” Bernanke said.

He suggested no new solutions to the debt problem.

However, he did say the Obama administration’s response to the recent recession averted a greater disaster.

“It could have been much worse,” Bernanke said. “We avoided what could have been a global meltdown.”

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New York, NY, United States (AHN) – The U.S. government has granted $434 million to the Philippines for investments in roads, community development projects and improvements in the country’s tax collection efforts under a five-year economic compact that aims to fight poverty.

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton and Philippine President Benigno Aquino III presided at the grant signing held at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel in New York City.

The grant was signed by Millennium Challenge Corp. (MCC) CEO Daniel Yohannes and Philippine Finance Secretary Cesar Purisima.

“This compact we were signing was created by and for the people of Philippines. Reflecting the policies articulated by President Obama at Millennium Development Goals Summit, this is a results-focused program promoting sustainable economic growth. This example of country-designed solutions strives to move the poor from poverty to prosperity,” Yohannes said in a statement.

The MCC agreement provides $214.4 million to construct and repair about 140 miles (220 kilometers) of a highway that traverses 15 municipalities to improve access to markets and services for farmers, fishers, and small businesses in some of the poorest provinces in the country.

Another $120 million is allocated to expand Kalahi-CIDSS, a development project that empowers communities by encouraging their participation in poverty-reducing activities. It will provide community grants to support building of critical infrastructure such as water systems, clinics, and schools.

The project allows poor communities to design and manage projects they need to increase their incomes and improve their lives.

A $54.3 million fund seeks to computerize and streamline business processes to bolster the effectiveness of tax collection and reduce opportunities for corruption.

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Los Angeles, CA, United States (AHN) – Bart Simpson’s voice is being sued by an insurance company over her late fiancés unfinished work. Nancy Cartwright, who lends her voice to the yellow-skinned character from “The Simpsons,” has been hit with a $260,000 lawsuit.

According to the suit obtained by TMZ, the American Safety Casualty Insurance Company alleges that Cartwright’s fiancé, Stephen Brackett, was hired through his construction company to fix up the Off the Vine Restaurant in 2008.

ASCIC issued the insurance policy to Brackett for the work, and Cartwright agreed to cover the insurance company’s costs if anything went wrong.

But Brackett only did a portion of the work and “diverted contract funds” to the Church of Scientology. Both he and Cartwright were members. But when the project was halfway done, he committed suicide and his construction company closed down.

The insurance firm claims it had to shell out $260,000 to complete the project, and that the voice actress refused to cover the expenses as was stated in their contract.

ASCIC is seeking $260,011.49 for the loss plus attorney’s fees and other expenses, RadarOnline.com reports.

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