Analysis
Three years after credit card reform, consumers save millions but see fewer rewards and more fees
It seems difficult to believe that, only a few years ago, credit card companies could change your interest rate any time they wanted or charge you a late fee if your payment arrived after sunrise on the due date.
They also could peddle credit cards to college students who had no income and could charge you fees if you wanted to pay your bill online or by phone.
How times have changed.
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Experts say little can be done to keep attackers from slowing down websites; PNC is the latest bank hit
On a day when another large bank dealt with a cyberattack, banks and security experts said there’s little that can be done to prevent an assault on any website.
PNC Bank said Thursday that customers reported problems logging in to their accounts because the company’s site was bombarded with outside traffic aimed at causing a slowdown.
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Delay in Cuyahoga property tax bills could cause some to miss out on deduction this year
Thousands of Cuyahoga County residents who received their property tax bills later than usual may not be able to deduct the payments on their 2012 income tax returns.
The county started sending out 225,000 tax bills on Dec. 24 — seven to 10 days later than usual — because it had to wait for the state to finalize tax rates. Payments must be made or postmarked by Jan. 24, but only payments made or postmarked by Dec. 31 can be deducted on income taxes.
The average half-year tax bill in Cuyahoga is $1,427, so the deduction is worth almost $357 to the average homeowner in the 25 percent tax bracket.
Cuyahoga County has complicated the issue by giving out information that isn’t quite correct.
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Cost of auto insurance rises for those with minimum coverage; changes may lower premiums for everyone else
The last time Ohio raised its minimum requirement for auto insurance liability coverage, Richard Nixon was president and eight-track tape players were the hot new option for cars.
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Small manufacturing businesses are borrowing to buy equipment; banks say lending is up 15-20 percent from last year
For years, Pat Christopher has been debating whether to borrow more than $700,000 to buy a new piece of machining equipment for his Solon manufacturing business. This year, he’s pulling the trigger. Now, instead of outsourcing some of the work needed to make turbine blades, Christopher Tool will be able to keep the jobs in-house. Christopher, president of the 61-year-old family business, believes the risk of borrowing the money will be worth it, particularly since business is booming. “Our game plan going forward is to stay on top of technology. We feel that’s the only way we’re going to compete forward,” he said.
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