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■ Credit-card offers
Ask David
Horowitz
Get proper “closure”
Phony foreclosure schemes
I’ve received numerous complaints from people
who think they’ve been scammed by phony foreclosure rescue companies. They’re not alone: The FBI
has been looking into these cases, and so far nearly
4,000 incidents have been reported.
According to the Federal Trade Commission, the
scams advertise guarantees and high success rates to
mislead consumers about their services; charge
upfront fees that legitimate nonprofit organizations
do not charge; and use names or look-alike Web sites
to appear to be a nonprofit or government agency.
Don’t be scammed! Remember that official government sites end with “.gov.” Some scams try to
confuse people by using addresses that include a
dash or slash in front of “gov” or end in “.us,” or using
names that sound similar to legitimate programs.
Be suspicious of unsolicited offers that look like
government forms, or have logos that resemble government seals. These offers suggest recipients may be
eligible for a modification program to save their
homes under a government program. Also beware of
misspellings, dire warnings and references to government programs you can’t access without their help.
Check out sections on the company’s Web page
called “Who we are” or “About us” that describe the
company, and read its privacy policy. If you can’t
validate a company or if the privacy policy sounds
suspicious, it’s likely a scam.
Beware of sites that contain only a single page
where you fill out personal information to submit
for a referral. Also, the use of magazine, newspaper
and TV logos could just mean the company paid for
advertising.
Be leery of promises of any sort. Walk away
from any attempt to collect fees, and be wary of
promises of a “free consultation” or a “money-back
guarantee.”
Remember, there are legitimate nonprofit organizations that work with government agencies to
provide free help for distressed homeowners. Contact
the federal government’s Hope Now program at
1-888-995-HOPE, or visit
www.hopenow.com to find
legitimate assistance.
MY TENANT hired a plumber
on December 26, 2008, to
have a 4-inch bathroom faucet installed. He didn’t get
an estimate first, and the bill
came to $451.06. The tenant
then submitted the bill to me
for reimbursement, and I was
shocked by the amount. I’ve
contacted the company
many times, with no response as to why it cost so
much. What are my rights?
Willa
Los Angeles, CA
those days of easy credit offers helped to fuel the current credit crisis, and banks are now pulling back
from easy access to credit for unqualified borrowers.
But according to government statistics, qualified,
responsible account users are also taking a hit, as
fewer offers are being issued that would allow cardholders to consolidate or lower interest rates. Statistics
show that not only are U.S. households receiving far
fewer offers for credit cards, but increasingly the
offers they do receive are cards carrying an
annual fee. During the first quarter of
2009, U.S. households received
372.4 million offers, a dramatic 67
percent drop from the 1,131.6 million offers received during 2008. Plus,
27 percent of offers carried an annual
fee, which is up from 18 percent
one year ago.
Also disappearing are “no
fee” reward/rebate and non-reward/rebate card solicita-tions. Banks are charging
annual fees in exchange for
cards that carry perks and
rewards, and interest rates
are rising steadily.
Experts say that if
you’re looking to cut payments and interest rates,
doing it through balance
transfers may no longer be
an available solution. It may
be time to concentrate on
spending less and paying
down more each month,
instead of looking for ways
to float the balance. C
AMY CAN TRELL
David Horowitz is a leading consumer advocate.
His “Fight Back!” commentaries are heard daily on
the Jones Radio Network. For stations and times,
check the radio page at
www.fightback.com.
If you did not authorize
your tenant to arrange for this
repair, you may not be obli-
gated to reimburse him. It
would depend upon such fac-
tors as ( 1) specific terms of
the rental agreement; ( 2) if it
was an emergency or safety
violation or an “elective”
repair; ( 3) if it could have
waited until your reg-
ular plumber could
do the job or until
you could get an
estimate from a
new service com-
pany; and ( 4)
your cooperation
as a landlord to
fix a legitimate
problem.
In terms of the
fee, calling for a
repair on the day after
Christmas, when many
shops are closed and
parts may be hard to
obtain, could trigger holi-
day rates. Premium rates
could also apply if your
tenant insisted on same-
day service.
If you must reimburse
the tenant, demand an item-
ized bill from the plumber. If
the company doesn’t cooper-
ate, file a grievance with
California’s Contractors State
License Board.
Disappearing credit-card offers
Remember when your mailbox was full of lowor no-interest credit-card offers? Experts believe that
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