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Credit Cards: How to Avoid Getting Tricked This Holiday Season |
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“‘Give it a try the numbers can be scary,’ says Bills.com president Ethan Ewing: ‘The minimum monthly payment is a costly way to pay down your balance, and can effectively lock you into a lifetime of debt.’” |
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December 8, 2011 |
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Credit Cards: How to Avoid Getting Tricked This Holiday Season |
| “The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau says 70 percent of consumers surveyed say they have noticed new credit card disclosures on their bills. But fewer than one-third say this caused them to make bigger payments or stop charging up their cards.” |
| December 5, 2011 |
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Credit cards: How to avoid getting tricked this holiday season |
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“The federal CARD Act, which took effect in 2010, is responsible for the disclosures we now see on credit card statements — how long it will take to pay off a balance if you pay the minimum as well as how much you'd have to pay monthly to retire your debt in three years. There are also plenty of online calculators out there, such as what you can find on Bills.com, that let you change scenarios to see just how much a difference a bigger (or smaller) payment can make.” |
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December 2, 2011 |
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Spend Wisely this Holiday Season |
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“"Credit cards have their place in your holiday shopping strategy," says Ewing, adding that credit cards offer convenience and in some cases provide warranty protection and discounts. Ewing says another reason to use credit cards is to accumulate rewards points, though he cautions that some rewards programs are better than others.” |
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November 28, 2011 |
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Millionaire Corner Profile of Bills.com |
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“Somewhere between a smart relative and a financial planner is Bills.com (“Simple money help”), a free one-stop online resource created for people to get answers to everyday money questions, ranging from managing debt and establishing a budget to finding mortgage and insurance rates.” |
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October 20, 2011 |
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Web Tools for an Effective Debt Diet |
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“If your problem is figuring out the best debt payoff strategy, try the Debt Coach on Bills.com. It is a swift set-up, and free. Using a drag-and-drop menu, you set your debt priorities: Is it more important to pay less each month; get out of debt fast, etc.? Debt Coach then suggests solutions, ranging from different payments to debt settlement.” |
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October 17, 2011 |
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How Steve Jobs Changed the Way We Spend Money |
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“The iPhone and iPad have completely upended the balance of power in the world of personal finance," says Brad Stroh, CEO of personal finance web site Bills.com. "Consumers now have access to real-time rates, account balances and budget spend at their fingertips -- all on a device in their pocket." Yet on the flip side, the iPhone and iPad allow us to spend money anytime -- and that can be devastating for anyone trying to rein in spending.” |
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October 6, 2011 |
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How much can cutting coffee, dinners out and cigarettes save? |
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“...if you're like me, forgoing that morning cup of Joe sounds more grim than getting a tooth pulled, and remembering to make a batch at home every day is a lost cause. But what about cutting back on dinners out? Trimming your own bangs? Or shaving a few dollars off the grocery bill per week? A simple tool called My Savings Machine from Bills.com helps people estimate how much can be saved by shedding a few minor expenses over the long haul.” |
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September 27, 2011 |
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Cutting Back (But Not on Coffee!) To Save Money |
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“A new tool from Bills.com, called My Savings Machine, provides a fast, fun way to calculate your savings in different categories over time. You click on the category you want to analyze (coffee, cigarettes, groceries, etc.), select an anticipated interest rate and slide the marker over to your chosen time period. Voila: An actual number.” |
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September 26, 2011 |
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Seemingly inexpensive habits can add up quickly |
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“Inexpensive habits like coffee or soda may seem harmless, but the expense of those items can add up over time. News 4 found a Web site that tracks your spending and shows how much you can save by cutting out things like unused gym memberships or car washes.” |
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September 16, 2011 |
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My Savings Machine |
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“If you're a visual person (and I'm thinking many of us must be since we're addicted to Pinterest!) you might enjoy tweaking your budget by making use of My Savings Machine. My Savings Machine allows you to input savings in various categories and choose the interest (were you to invest the money, instead) and length of time, to see how much money you could save.” |
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September 14, 2011 |
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Visualize Your Savings |
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“I thought... My Savings Machine tool was a great way to talk to kids about money. It's clear, simple and easy to maneuver. If you have a teen who's looking at saving for a car, have him consider the areas he might be able to save in. Can he cut out one movie a month? a latte? cut some snacks? If so, he can immediately put the weekly amount saved in each category into the "machine" and see how much he'll have to put towards his car by the end of the year. It's actually kind of fun to play around with.” |
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September 14, 2011 |
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Save or Spend? Cool New Tool Calculates the Cost |
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“The greatest thing about having a tool like this provide the math is you can see what would happen if you cut back, rather than cut out, your costly habits,” says Kathy Kristof, of CBS MoneyWatch, describing the new Bills.com My Savings Machine tool. |
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September 14, 2011 |
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New Online Tools Help Manage Credit, Debt and Expenses — for Free |
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“Debt Coach from Bills.com offers side-by-side options for getting out of debt, including a cost-benefit analysis of refinancing, debt counseling, and different payment strategies. It also reveals — in a first for consumers, says CEO Brad Stroh — the concession or settlement rates that credit card companies use if you decide to make a deal to pay off your balances.” |
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May 14, 2011 |
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In debt? Weigh your options |
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“Bills.com has partnered with Experian to create DebtCoach, which pulls credit reports for consumers, organizes all of a their debts in one place and recommends the best option to eliminate debt, based on a comparison of the total costs of each debt-busting method.” |
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May 12, 2011 |
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A Tool to Weigh Debt Payment Options |
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“A new tool from Bills.com can pull your actual credit card balances from the credit bureau Experian to analyze your debt. It then provides detailed options for getting rid of it, customized to your situation. The tool, called Debt Coach, also offers what Bills.com says is previously unavailable information on so-called "concession" or "settlement" rates...” |
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May 11, 2011 |
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Brad Stroh builds an entrepreneurial culture to grow Bills.com |
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“After graduating from Amherst College, Brad Stroh went to work for a venture capital firm. Then he went to work for another one, and then another. Through his experiences as an investor, Stroh saw firsthand the struggles of financial startups and entrepreneurial companies. By the time Stroh and fellow Stanford MBA Andrew Housser co-founded Bills.com in 2005, he well understood the challenges and risks associated with building a new business from the ground up.” |
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April 1, 2011 |
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Bills.com Outlines Five New Rules Of Home Equity Loans |
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“Smart Money recently reported an increasing willingness of banks to extend home equity loans and a resulting rise in home equity borrowing. This is good news on the part of good credit homeowners who have enough equity to help them eliminate other forms of debt or other financial matters. A leading resource for free personalized money help, Bills.com has recently issued its Five New Rules of Home Equity.” |
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March 19, 2011 |
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Banks Less Stern on Home Equity Loans |
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“As banks start in on to broaden loans to consumers with good credit scores, attracting on equity may possibly be a competent progress by means of appropriate preparation and cautious contemplation. "The come back of home equity lending is a positive sign for the economy and a relief for many homeowners searching for ways to reduce credit card debt or finance a renovation," said Virginia Sullivan, Vice President of Consumer Education at Bills.com. "However, it is no longer the panacea that it once was — only the best credit customers will qualify and homeowners need to carefully consider the long-term implications of rising rates and inflation.” |
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March 18, 2011 |
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Google Mortgage Comparison Ads Convert Best, Says Report |
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“As far as highest growth in the mortgage vertical, Zillow lead the industry in 2010, followed by LoanBright and Bills.com.” |
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March 17, 2011 |
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The Three Worst Things You Can Say to a Mortgage Lender |
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“Before you meet with your mortgage lender, open your mouth and regret the words that spill out, take a look at our list of the three worst things you could say to a mortgage lender.” |
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March 1, 2011 |
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5 Credit Card Tricks for 2011 |
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“Credit card offers are hitting mailboxes again. But before you respond to the temptation to load up your wallet with more plastic, you should know that a lot has changed over the past year either in response to the year-old CARD Act or the ongoing credit crunch. There are five new tricks to getting and managing credit in 2011, says Virginia Sullivan, vice president of consumer education at Bills.com.” |
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February 23, 2011 |
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Sticking To A Budget When Prices Go Up: Rising prices pose a challenge |
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“Been to the supermarket lately? If so, you probably know that your grocery budget doesn't buy what it did a few months ago. Other consumer staples also seem to cost more. "This slow creep in prices, while sometimes imperceptible to you in the grocery aisle, can have a huge impact on your monthly budget over time," said Virginia Sullivan, VP of Consumer Education at Bills.com.” |
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February 2, 2011 |
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Five Critical Credit Card Rules for 2011 |
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“As you and your fellow consumers increasingly use credit cards, Bills.com wants to help prevent you from falling back into a credit card trap, which — if you're like most consumers — have been climbing out of for the better part of three years.” |
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February 25, 2011 |
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With many Americans taking home more money than they realize, here's how to make it work for you |
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“Virginia Sullivan, vice president of consumer education at Bills.com, said consider buying items that will make you happy, but also return value, such as an energy-saving appliance for your home.” |
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February 9, 2011 |
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