The National Association of Consumer Advocates, of which I am a member, suggests the following tips when you’re financing the purchase of a new vehicle. Keep your current vehicle until the amount you owe on the loan is less than the resale value of the vehicle. It’s best to wait until the entire loan has been paid off before trading it in. Before you shop for a car, get prequalified for a loan at a credit union or bank. TakeRead more

A new report (The Other Foreclosure Crisis) by the National Consumer Law Center (NCLC) sheds light on the growing risk to homeowners of delinquent property taxes. According to the report, annual property tax delinquencies now reach almost $15 billion nationally and the number of homeowners at risk of losing their homes to tax sales is growing. The report cites studies showing one in four households have an underwater mortgage and nearly 40% of families have recently experienced unemployment, foreclosure, mortgageRead more

Rules issued by the Federal Reserve Board place several limitations on the ability of credit card companies to charge fees and issue credit cards. These restrictions, which went into affect two years ago, impose more fairness on credit card billing. A summary of some of these limitations is following: Interest rates cannot generally increase in the first year after a credit card account is opened and increases to the interest rate on new transactions after the first year can onlyRead more

Credit and debt collection scams are becoming more and more sophisticated. It’s hard to tell the difference between legitimate debt collection efforts and scammers waiting to take your money. The Federal Trade Commission offers these signs of a scam: The caller claims to be with a government agency or law enforcement. Law enforcement never gets involved in private debt collection and the circumstances under which they might be involved after a judgment has been entered are rare. Don’t make paymentRead more

Complaints about debt collectors are on the rise throughout the country. It’s not uncommon for a consumer to feel they’ve been harassed by creditors and debt collectors. There are some basic rights that all consumers have when dealing with a debt collector. Here are some of these basic rights: A debt collector can’t call you at inconvenient times or places unless you agree to the calls. They also can’t contact you at work if you’ve told them either orally orRead more

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC), the government agency charged with protecting consumers against fraud, lists some important ways to avoid being a victim of fraud. Con artists often insist that people wire money because it’s nearly impossible to get the money back or trace where it goes. Don’t wire money to strangers or to anyone who requires that payment be made through a wire transfer. Don’t fall for sales pitches that sound too good to be true, like “97% successRead more

Until July 2009, Iowa victims of many fraudulent, unfair or deceptive practices had little recourse. Unlike almost every other state in the nation, Iowans had no right to sue to seek damages for most claims. They could sue for some fraudulent activities but faced burdensome legal requirements, like showing that the defendant had the intent to deceive and that there was clear and convincing evidence of the fraud. The plaintiff also had to pay all their own attorney’s fees, evenRead more

Federally insured student loans are subject to enhanced debt collection procedures that aren’t available to creditors and debt collectors of private student loans or to any other type of debt. For instance, the federal government can offset tax refunds student loan borrowers might be getting if they’re in default on their student loans. Before the offset can occur the Department of Education must send borrowers a written notice of the intent to take the refund. A borrower can raise defensesRead more

Despite the special protections given to student loan debt ( i.e. different discharge rules in bankruptcy, different garnishment rules, etc.), collection agencies that collect either federal or private student loans are still subject to both federal and Iowa fair debt collection laws. A debt collector that reveals private information to a third party, communicates with a borrower at inconvenient times of the day, telephones repeatedly with the intent to harass the borrower, contacts a borrower at work without permission, makesRead more

Welcome to the Iowa Consumer Rights blog for Nancy Thompson. I’m an attorney who has nearly 30 years experience advocating for consumers. We pursue fair debt collection violations by creditors and debt collectors, fair credit reporting violations by creditors and credit bureaus and consumer fraud violations by a variety of entities like debt settlement companies, creditors and others. This blog will help provide some basic information about the many difficulties facing Iowa’s consumers. If you have a consumer problem thatRead more