One child’s bedroom set: $1,300.

Having our check declined in front of everyone at Babies “R” Us: totally humiliating.

This is exactly what happened to my wife and I last weekend.

We have perfect credit, money in the bank, have never bounced a check or been late on a payment. And, we had well more than enough money in the account to cover the check.

So why was our check declined?

The store manger pinned it all on Certegy, the check clearing company.

A call to Certegy’s automated system gave me a less-than-justifiable reason: “As a preventative measure, we were unable to authorize your check because it did not meet our check acceptance criteria based on our risk models. Certegy carefully analyzes patterns of check writing activity….”

It continued to say that “these situations are rare.”

An agent said they had no further information. The company’s web

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From King Jaffe Joffer in “Coming to America,” to the voices of Darth Vader in the “Star Wars” films and Mufasa in “The Lion King,” James Earl Jones has spent his professional life firmly implanting himself into the basic foundations of pop culture. Most recently Jones has been co-starring alongside Vanessa Redgrave in “Driving Miss Daisy” on Broadway. The show runs through April 9. 

James Earl Jones

Photo by Annabel Clark

What were some of the things you did to make a living when you were an aspiring actor?

My dad had a floor sanding business, and I would cover him when he was away. I got good at it, but also screwed up a few times. I would sand through the veneer, not knowing the difference between the veneer and real wood. Michael Conrad (the “Hill Street Blues” actor), had an apartment in the Village. Without knowing each other, he hired me and my dad to do his floor.

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When you don’t pay the bills owed upon an automobile note, the car company has no choice but to repossess the vehicle. When you miss a succession of mortgage payments, there’s sooner or later bound to be a foreclosure payment tacked upon the door. However, what happens if you spent to your credit card limit on dinners out or plane travel or any number of different goods and services that cannot be so easily replaced? For that matter, what if the credit card debt was employed to pay for health care or medical needs? At this point, debt settlement solutions could well be the answer for both you and the lenders.

Unfortunately, the settlement negotiation industry has come under increasing scrutiny and negative publicity of late, and too many Americans who may well benefit from the services of debt settlement solutions providers instinctively turn away from the program without even investigating just what the method could mean for their own household finances. Mos

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Dear Dr. Don,
I bought Series EE savings bonds for my daughter beginning in 1994 through 2008. Who can I talk to about what to do with them: a tax adviser, attorney, financial consultant or a Treasury Department representative? I can’t find any usable information on the websites.
– Sterling Savings

Dear Sterling, 
Perhaps you’re looking at the wrong websites. Along with Bankrate’s features on savings bonds, including a few Dr. Don columns, the place to go is the TreasuryDirect website. It’ll provide you with all the details about savings bonds — short of offering investment advice.

Bankrate can help you find the best CD rates nationally and in your area.

I recommend starting out by putting them all into the Savings Bond Wizard.

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People with large amounts of debt opt for filing bankruptcy when they do not find other alternative means of repayment. However, different programs of credit card debt consolidation have exceeded the trend of filing for bankruptcy. There were a number of reasons why people were disappointed by the earlier choice. It has not only hindered the prospects with the full financial default, but it has also affected their properties over the same time. And when it comes to property, then there is not only limited to monetary losses, but it is also a major emotional setback simultaneously. Therefore, people turned their attention to various debt consolidation programs, as the debt relief opportunity quickly came to occupy the minds of millions of creditors.

To be honest, both bankruptcy and debt consolidation have their individual advantages and traps. Read more…

2011 Credit Union Checking Study

While most people gain access to a credit union through their employer, there are other ways to join the nonprofit financial institutions: All it takes is a little research. For example, if you attend a specific church or live in a certain community, you might have access.

Watch the video:
Free checking thrives at credit unions.

“If a consumer wants to choose to conduct their financial services through a credit union they can usually find one to join,” says John McKechnie, director of public and congressional affairs at the National Credit Union Administration, the Alexandria, Va., government agency that regulates credit unions.

Unlike banks that are open to anyone, laws require credit unions to have a defined field of membership, which means you’ll have to be a member of that group to access the credit union and its services. Read more…

Addison Avenue Federal Credit Union invites its members to take full advantage of the money in the bank opportunity through their Dividend Rewards Checking account which has a best interest rate of 2.07% APY for balances through $25,000 if the monthly requirements are satisfied. Portions of the balance above $25K earns 0.42% APY. The base interest rate is 0.05% APY.

The monthly requirements to enjoy the best interest of this best checking account are the following:

• Make at least 12 purchases using the debit card
• post a direct deposit or a recurring auto debit
• Opt for electronic statements over paper bank statements

This checking account is a free checking so account holders do not have to worry about fees and minimum balance requirements.

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Reports from the twelve Federal Reserve Districts indicated overall economic activity continued to expand at a modest to moderate pace in January and early February according to the latest Beige Book released by the Federal Reserve.

Overall real estate sales and construction remained at low levels across all districts with Richmond, Atlanta, and Chicago Districts reporting a slight improvement while activity was mixed across New England. New Yorker reported that the housing market was stable with some areas of improvement, while demand was unchanged in San Francisco.

Philadelphia, Kansas City, and Dallas described recent activity as sluggish, and St. Louis reported sales continued to decline.

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When traveling, I do my best to stay in the cheapest hotel possible. As long as it has a bed and a bathroom, that’s all I need to be comfortable.

I understand, though, that many travelers enjoy a more polished hotel experience.

Names like Hilton, Marriott and Hyatt are synonymous with class, comfort and overall satisfaction. And each of these chains has developed its own rewards credit card for loyal customers.

If you stay at hotels often, these cards are great options for perks and free nights.

Everyone else may want to consider a cash back credit card for their day-to-day spending.

Here’s what the three cards offer:

The Citi Hilton HHonors Visa Signature Card rewards consumers with a free hotel stay after accumulating as few as 7,500 points.

Cardholders earn 30,000 bonus points after spending $600 within the first four months of card ownership.

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