The Candid Yak Journal

Smart money moves, explained plainly.

A working journal of how American household finance actually moves: rates, rules, and the math behind the brochure.

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Latest story · Oct 30, 2026

Row of empty tan chairs along the windows of a quiet hospital corridor

Money & Life

Money & Life The Lead

That 'Obamacare Plan' Ad May Not Be Insurance. The FTC Just Warned 25 Marketers Before Open Enrollment.

Open enrollment for 2027 marketplace coverage starts November 1. On October 29, 2026, FTC staff sent warning letters to 25 health plan marketers and lead generators over ads that pass off limited benefit plans and medical discount programs as comprehensive insurance. A real marketplace plan caps your 2027 in-network costs at $12,000. The look-alikes cap what they pay, not what you pay.

Hank Mercer

Oct 30, 2026 3 min read

Recent stories

Credit Cards

Bilt Is Retiring 4% Bilt Cash at Your Card Anniversary. Do the Rent Math Before You Let It Go.

Bilt announced on October 27, 2026 that Flexible Bilt Cash mode, which pays 4% back in Bilt Cash on everyday spend, is retired at your card anniversary unless you opt out first. Opting out locks you in for good. Here's the spend-to-rent ratio that decides it.

Hank Mercer· Oct 28·3 min

Education

Cosigned a Private Student Loan? The Exit Is 12 On-Time Payments. One Hardship Forbearance Pushes It Back a Year.

Sallie Mae says 92% of its new private student loans this quarter came with a cosigner, and delinquencies and forbearance both ticked up. Cosigner release exists, but only the borrower can apply, and Sallie Mae's rules shut the door for 12 months after a hardship forbearance or a 30-day late payment. Here's the clock and how to keep it running.

Hank Mercer· Oct 28·3 min

Mortgages

Fannie and Freddie Waived a Fee for First-Time Buyers Like You. Lenders Kept About 60% of It.

A new NBER working paper finds mortgage lenders captured more than 60% of $1.5 billion in Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac fee waivers meant for lower-income first-time buyers in 2023 and 2024. The waiver is still live in 2026. Here's who qualifies, what it's worth, and how to make sure it lands in your rate.

Hank Mercer· Oct 28·3 min

Loans & Credit

Snap Finance Is Wiping Out $662 Million in Lease Balances. Only If You'd Already Stopped Paying.

A 17-state settlement signed October 21, 2026 makes Snap Finance forgive $662,102,518 on 303,223 lease-to-own accounts, about $2,184 each, and lets those customers keep the merchandise. The fine print: only 2017 to 2022 leases that Snap had already charged off and still held in November 2025. Paid on time? You get nothing back. Here's who's in and what to check.

Hank Mercer· Oct 28·3 min

Savings & Banking

SoFi's New Crypto Dollars Pay 4.40%. Its Savings Base Rate Is 3.30%. Hit Convert and the Interest Stops.

SoFi launched SoFi Earn (SOFIE) on October 22, 2026: a tokenized bank deposit paying a variable 4.40% APY with FDIC coverage and no direct-deposit hoops. Convert it to the SoFiUSD stablecoin and you give up both the interest and the insurance.

Hank Mercer· Oct 28·3 min

Credit Cards

Your Citi AAdvantage Card Fee Goes From $99 to $150 in January. Count Your Checked Bags Before It Renews.

Citi and American are raising the AAdvantage Platinum Select annual fee to $150 on January 24, 2027, and adding a $100 inflight credit and Walmart+. The perk that actually pays is still the free checked bag, and at American's $45 bag fee one solo trip a year no longer covers the card. Here is the math and the move.

Hank Mercer· Oct 27·3 min

Auto Insurance

Texas Lets the Dealer Charge $2,000 for GAP on a $40,000 Loan. Your Insurer's Version Runs About $4 a Month.

A dealer GAP waiver can legally cost up to 5% of what you finance in Texas and 4% in California, and it's financed at your loan rate. An insurer's loan payoff add-on runs about $4 a month. Here's the math, the one case where the dealer version wins, and the 30-day window to cancel for a full refund if you already signed.

Hank Mercer· Oct 27·3 min

Mortgages

Your Florida Property Tax Bill Is 4% Cheaper in November. That Beats Any Savings Account.

Florida knocks 4% off property taxes paid in November, 3% in December, and so on down to zero in March. On a $6,000 bill that's $240, roughly a 12% annual return for paying four months early. If you pay through escrow, Florida law says your lender has to grab it for you. Here's how to check.

Hank Mercer· Oct 27·3 min

Money & Life

Googled 'Passport Renewal Online'? The Top Ad Could Charge You $148 for a Form That's Free.

The FTC sued GovAssist and Entry on October 22, alleging their Google ads posed as the passport office, charged $119 to $499 for paperwork the State Department gives away, and took in at least $40 million from over 300,000 people. Renewing directly costs $130. Here's how to tell the real site from the ad, and what to do if you already paid.

Hank Mercer· Oct 27·3 min

Auto Insurance

Progressive Paid Your Texas PIP Bills Late? Claim Your 5% Plus Interest by January 19.

An $8 million settlement covers Texas Progressive PIP medical bills paid late between 2016 and June 2026. It pays 5% of each late bill plus 11.452% interest, needs no receipts, and only pays people who file. Here is who qualifies and the five-minute claim.

Hank Mercer· Oct 27·3 min

Education

One in Four Families With Student Loans Has the Cash to Pay Them Off Today. Should You?

We ran the Fed's new 2025 Survey of Consumer Finances data. A quarter of families with student debt hold enough in checking and savings to clear the whole balance (median owed: $10,400). The other three quarters owe a median $31,000 with $3,800 in the bank, and 21% of them fell 60+ days behind on a payment. Here's the math on paying it off, and who shouldn't.

Hank Mercer· Oct 27·3 min

Loans & Credit

Owe Bright Lending on a 2025 Loan? Its $15 Million Settlement Doesn't Cancel It. Older Balances Are Set to Go to Zero.

A federal judge preliminarily approved a class settlement over Bright Lending loans that ran as high as 598% APR. Unpaid balances on loans taken out from October 2020 through 2024 get cancelled, which plaintiffs' lawyers value at more than $300 million. Borrowers who paid off a loan split a $15 million fund, about $83 a person before legal fees. A loan from 2025 or 2026 that you still owe isn't cancelled. December 21 is the deadline to pick electronic payment or opt out.

Hank Mercer· Oct 26·3 min

Loans & Credit

A Credit-Builder Loan Helps If You Owe Nothing. In a CFPB Test, Borrowers Who Already Had Debt Saw Their Scores Go Down.

Credit-builder loans cost as little as $6 a year at a credit union. In a randomized study the CFPB funded, they lifted scores for people with no debt and lowered them, on average, for people who already had loans. 39% of borrowers missed at least one payment. Here's who should open one and who should skip it.

Hank Mercer· Oct 26·3 min

Credit Cards

Your Card Charges 22%. Your Checking Pays 0.07%. Four in 10 Families Carrying a Balance Could Have Paid It Off From Checking.

We ran the Fed's 2025 Survey of Consumer Finances: 44% of families carrying a credit card balance had at least that much sitting in checking alone, and a third would still have had $1,000 left after paying it off. At the 22.36% banks charge on cards that carry interest, here is what parking cash next to a balance costs, and when keeping the cushion is your call.

Hank Mercer· Oct 26·3 min

Money & Life

The FTC Shopped at Dollar General Four Times and Got Overcharged Four Times. Check Your Receipt Before You Leave.

On October 26, 2026 the FTC and 20 states sued Dollar General, alleging its registers routinely charge more than the shelf tag. State inspectors failed its stores up to 53% of the time. The overcharge is a few dollars a trip, which is exactly why it works. Here's how to catch it at the counter.

Hank Mercer· Oct 26·3 min

Solar & Energy

Your Solar Panels Make About Half an Average Month in December. In Chicago, That's $80 Off the 'Monthly Savings.'

We ran the Energy Department's free PVWatts model for an 8 kW home system in four cities. In Chicago, December produces 53% of an average month; in Seattle, 37%. The installer's 'average monthly savings' is a yearly number divided by twelve. Here is what December is really worth and how to tell a dark month from a broken system.

Hank Mercer· Oct 26·3 min

Mortgages

Your Home Policy Won't Cover El Niño Flooding. The Fix Takes 30 Days, and Congress Could Freeze It December 11.

NOAA puts the odds of a historic El Niño this fall at 83%, and California's insurance commissioner is telling homeowners and renters to buy flood coverage now. A new flood policy takes 30 days to start, and federal flood insurance sales stop if Congress misses its December 11 deadline. Here is the calendar math.

Hank Mercer· Oct 25·3 min

Solar & Energy

Connecticut Power Got 19% Cheaper. Your Solar Quote Probably Didn't Notice.

Connecticut's average residential electricity price was 24.51 cents per kWh in August 2026, down from 30.17 cents a year earlier, per EIA data released October 23. The rates behind it run through April 30, 2027, and part of the cut is paid with state bonds. If your solar quote was built on last year's bill, our math says it overstates your savings by about a fifth.

Hank Mercer· Oct 25·3 min

Credit Cards

Discover Now Pays $200 for $500 of Spending. It's the Cash Back Discover Won't Double.

As of late October 2026, the Discover it Cash Back card pays a $200 statement credit after $500 in purchases in the first 3 months, on top of Cashback Match. Discover's own terms say the match skips statement credits, so the $200 stays $200. A friend's referral link reportedly adds $100 more. Our first-year math on $1,000 a month in spending, and what the card is worth in year two.

Hank Mercer· Oct 25·3 min

Auto Insurance

Oklahoma Crash With No Injuries? Starting November 1, Nobody Has to Write It Down. Your Phone Is the Record.

Oklahoma HB 4143 takes effect November 1, 2026. It raises the police and driver crash report thresholds to $3,000, and adds a line that drops the report entirely when everyone swaps information, nobody is hurt and only vehicles are damaged. That exemption has no dollar cap. Here's what to collect before you drive away.

Hank Mercer· Oct 25·3 min

Education

A Debt Relief Firm Told You to Stop Paying Your Sallie Mae Loan? Your Cosigner Pays for That.

Sallie Mae's October 22 filing blames its rising charge-offs on third-party debt resolution firms pushing borrowers who could pay straight into default. With 92% of its new loans cosigned, here is what that advice really costs, the federal rule on upfront fees, and the call to make instead.

Hank Mercer· Oct 25·3 min

Mortgages

Trump's Automatic PMI Cancellation Skips the Mortgage You Already Have. Ask for It Yourself.

The October 22, 2026 executive order tells FHFA to build a pilot that cancels mortgage insurance automatically once your equity qualifies. Section 2 limits it to mortgages made after the pilot starts, a line the White House fact sheet leaves out. If you pay PMI today, here's the request that still works.

Hank Mercer· Oct 25·3 min

Savings & Banking

Your Brokered CD Has No Early-Withdrawal Penalty. Selling It This Fall Costs Nearly Three Times One.

The 5-year Treasury yield is up 1.17 points since February. If you bought a brokered CD at a brokerage this year and need the cash, you sell it at a discount, not at face value. On a $10,000 5-year CD, our math puts the hit near $444 before the dealer's markup, versus about $154 under a typical bank CD penalty.

Hank Mercer· Oct 24·3 min

Education

Moved a 401(k) to an IRA in 2025? Your Kid's FAFSA Counts It as Income Unless You Type In the Number

The 2027-28 FAFSA pulls 2025 tax data straight from the IRS, and a 401(k) or IRA rollover shows up there as untaxed income. The aid formula only subtracts the rollover amount you enter yourself. Skip it and a $60,000 rollover can add about $24,000 to your Student Aid Index.

Hank Mercer· Oct 24·3 min

Money & Life

Missed the 60-Day IRA Rollover Deadline? The IRS Fix Costs $10,000 Now and $3,500 Next May. Check the Free One First.

Miss the 60-day rollover window and the IRS taxes the whole check as a withdrawal. Asking for a waiver costs a $10,000 letter ruling fee today. A new IRS program announced October 22 cuts that to $3,500 starting May 1, 2027. Before you pay, check whether you qualify for the free self-certification.

Hank Mercer· Oct 24·3 min

Money & Life

Picking a Medicare Advantage Plan by December 7? CMS Found 44% of Directory Listings Wrong. Your Protection Starts in 2028.

CMS checked Medicare Advantage provider directories from 2022 to 2024 and found at least one error in 44.29% of location listings. A new law makes plans charge in-network prices when their directory misled you, but only from January 1, 2028. For the 2027 plan you pick this fall, a wrong listing is still your bill.

Hank Mercer· Oct 24·3 min

Savings & Banking

Schwab Pays $250 to Park $25,000 Until Christmas. Bring $49,999 and the Extra $24,999 Earns Nothing.

Schwab's Investor Checking bonus pays $250, $500 or $1,000 for new money deposited by November 10, 2026 and held through December 25. The account pays 0.01% APY. Our math against Ally's 3.20% savings rate: deposit exactly at a tier and the bonus works out near 7.9% a year. Deposit just under the next tier and it falls to about 4%.

Hank Mercer· Oct 24·3 min

Auto Insurance

State Farm and Farmers Are Cutting Connecticut Car Insurance Rates. Make Sure the Cut Lands on Your Coverage.

The Connecticut Insurance Department says 14 auto insurers filed rate decreases, led by Farmers Casualty at about 14% and State Farm at about 8.4%. Those are averages. The department's own 2025 numbers show how an average hides a liability increase, and most carriers aren't on the list.

Hank Mercer· Oct 23·3 min

Mortgages

Your Florida Home Insurer May Cut Your Premium if You Agree Never to Hire a Public Adjuster. Get the Dollar Figure First.

Florida's attorney general just subpoenaed an insurer over clauses that let it reject a whole claim if you hire a public adjuster. The homeowners version is optional and comes with a discount. On a hurricane claim, the adjuster's fee is capped at 10%, so the help only has to add about 11% to pay for itself.

Hank Mercer· Oct 23·3 min

Education

Grad Schools Now Price Tuition to Fit the Federal Loan Cap. Your Rent Doesn't Fit.

Since federal grad borrowing was capped on July 1, schools like UC Irvine and Santa Clara Law have cut prices to land under the limit. At Santa Clara, the cap no longer even covers tuition, leaving a first-year gap of about $37,160. Here are the three numbers to get from every program.

Hank Mercer· Oct 23·3 min

Loans & Credit

Can't Cover Three Car Payments From the Bank? Half the Families in That Spot Fell Behind on a Loan.

We ran the Fed's new 2025 Survey of Consumer Finances data. About one in five families with a car loan had less in checking and savings than three months of car payments, and 52% of them were behind on a loan payment in the past year. Families with a bigger cushion and almost the same payment: 19%.

Hank Mercer· Oct 22·3 min

Credit Cards

That $95 Annual Fee Isn't Final When It Posts. Here's Your Window to Get It Back.

Federal rules make card issuers warn you before an annual fee renews and reverse it if you cancel in time. Amex refunds it for 30 days after the statement. CFPB data shows big issuers charge a fee on 25% of their card plans versus 4% at smaller issuers. Here's the move before your anniversary.

Hank Mercer· Oct 22·3 min

Loans & Credit

That "Great Deal" Badge Rated the Price Before the Fees. New York City Says One Listing Was $3,995 Over Market.

New York City's consumer agency sued CarGurus, saying its Great Deal and Good Deal labels compare a dealer's asking price to market value while the fees, down payment conditions and add-ons sit in a disclaimer at the bottom of the listing. CarGurus says it will fight the case. Here is how to check any rated listing yourself before you drive to the lot.

Hank Mercer· Oct 22·3 min

Credit Cards

Credit Score 620 to 719? The Biggest Card Issuers' Median APR Is 28.49%. Smaller Banks and Credit Unions Charge 15.99%.

We counted the CFPB's latest card-terms survey. For new accounts opened by people with scores from 620 to 719, the median purchase APR across big-issuer card plans was 28.49%, against 15.99% at smaller banks and credit unions. On a $5,000 balance that's roughly $625 a year. Here's how to check which side of that line your card sits on.

Hank Mercer· Oct 22·3 min

Auto Insurance

Your Forgiven Accident Can Still Raise Your Rate. In New Jersey, Geico Got It Wrong 4,662 Times.

A New Jersey exam found Geico moved 4,662 drivers into a pricier affiliate after misapplying accident forgiveness, and refunded $0 of it until examiners showed up. Total refunds top $10.5 million, plus a $1.2 million penalty. Here is how to check your own renewal.

Hank Mercer· Oct 22·3 min

Money & Life

Got a Raise While on an ACA Plan? For 2026, There's No Cap on the Subsidy You Pay Back.

Starting with 2026 coverage, the dollar cap on repaying excess ACA premium tax credit is gone, and the IRS put it in its proposed rules on October 14. If your income came in above the estimate you gave HealthCare.gov, you owe back the full difference next April. Here is the math, and what to do before December 31.

Hank Mercer· Oct 21·3 min

Savings & Banking

The Fed Gave Ally a Quarter Point. Ally Gave Your Savings a Dime, Then Another Five Weeks Later.

The Fed raised rates a quarter point on September 16. Ally's savings account went from 3.00% to 3.10% APY, then to 3.20% by October 23. Updated October 28: the Fed held at 3.75 to 4%, two officials wanted another hike, and on $25,000 the gap to a 4.25% account is still about $263 a year. Here's the check to run now.

Hank Mercer· Oct 21·4 min

Savings & Banking

Your Bank's Money Market Account Averages 0.63%. The Biggest Money Market Funds Pay 3.71%. Same Name, Different Product.

The FDIC's October table puts the national average money market account at 0.63%, and big banks like Citibank and PNC pay 0.06% and 0.04%. Crane Data's index of the 100 largest money funds sat at 3.71% in mid-October, and government funds sold to regular investors averaged 3.43%. They share two words and almost nothing else. Here's how to tell which one you own and what the gap costs on $25,000.

Hank Mercer· Oct 21·3 min

Mortgages

Your Summer Pre-Approval Was Priced Near 6.66%. At 7.40%, the Same Payment Borrows About $29,000 Less.

Freddie Mac's average 30-year rate went from 6.66% on August 27 to 7.40% on October 15. A pre-approval is sized by a payment test, so the payment that carried a $400,000 loan in August carries about $371,000 now. Here's the math, and the two questions to ask your loan officer before you make an offer.

Hank Mercer· Oct 21·3 min

Education

Leaving SAVE on a Modest Paycheck? Missing the Plan Pick Turns a $100 Bill Into $405.

A JPMorganChase Institute study of 740,000 households finds only 37% of SAVE borrowers can still lower their payment on IBR or RAP, and they are mostly the lower earners. For them, defaulting into the Standard plan means a median $405 a month instead of $100. For the other 63%, the Standard plan already is the cheapest bill. Here is how to tell which side you're on.

Hank Mercer· Oct 21·3 min

Solar & Energy

Vermont Pays New Home Solar 15.7 Cents a kWh. Regulators Call That 5 Cents Too High.

A new Vermont home solar system earns about $0.1571 per kWh for excess generation. On September 9, the Public Utility Commission opened a rulemaking to pay net-metering systems 'based on the value they provide,' and it pegs comparable solar at about $0.105. Here's what that does to your payback, what the grandfathering promise covers, and the date that locks your terms.

Hank Mercer· Oct 21·3 min

Mortgages

California's New Smoke-Damage Law Starts January 1. The 13,000 Smoke Claims From the LA Fires Don't Get It.

AB 1795 makes California home insurers pay for smoke testing, inspect within 30 days, and keep paying living expenses until a smoke-damaged home is cleared. It only applies to claims that occur on or after January 1, 2027, and the full testing standards aren't due until 2028 and 2029. If your house took smoke in January 2025, here is what protects you instead, and the living-expense date to watch.

Hank Mercer· Oct 20·3 min

Auto Insurance

One in Four Car Repairs Now Skips Insurance. Run the $40 Test on Your $500 Deductible.

CCC's 2026 mid-year Crash Course update says self-pay jobs made up 26% of repair orders in the first half of 2026, averaging $1,941, and 28.4% of repairable collision claims now carry a deductible of $1,000 or more. Using ISO claim-frequency data, a jump from a $500 to a $1,000 deductible costs the average driver at most about $40 a year in expected out-of-pocket money. If your insurer knocks more than that off the premium, and you have $1,000 in cash, the higher deductible wins.

Hank Mercer· Oct 20·3 min

Credit Cards

Your Dentist Can't Sign You Up for a 32.99% Card in the Chair. In Connecticut, That Starts January 1.

Connecticut's Public Act 26-6 takes effect January 1, 2027. Doctors, dentists and vets can't fill out medical credit card applications for you, pitch them while you're sedated, or take a cut for pushing them. The deferred-interest math the law is about: miss a 12-month promo on $3,000 by $120 and you owe roughly $550 in back interest.

Hank Mercer· Oct 20·3 min

Education

In 11 States, College Grant Money Goes to Whoever Files the FAFSA First. Illinois Stopped Promising It After April 23.

The federal 2027-28 FAFSA deadline list says 11 states hand out at least one grant only 'while funds exist.' Last cycle Illinois stopped announcing its MAP grant, worth up to $8,400 a year, for anyone whose first FAFSA arrived after April 23. Your 2025 tax return is already done, so there's no reason to wait. File now and fix it later.

Hank Mercer· Oct 20·3 min

Money & Life

Your Parents' Biggest Scam Risk Isn't the Gift Card Call. It's the Investment Pitch, and It Runs Six Figures.

The FTC's October 19 report on fraud against people 60 and over: reported losses hit about $3 billion in 2025, five times 2020. Losses over $100,000 were 6% of their loss reports and 70% of the money. Investment scams found on social media took over $1 billion. Here's the conversation to have with a parent this week.

Hank Mercer· Oct 20·3 min

Loans & Credit

Six in 10 Payday Borrowers Skipped a Credit Application Because They Expected a No. We Ran the Fed's Numbers.

The Fed's 2025 Survey of Consumer Finances says 2.6% of families took a payday loan last year. We downloaded the public data: 60% of those families had passed on applying for credit because they expected to be turned down, against 13.5% of all families. Here is what that fear costs, and the free check to run before the next one.

Hank Mercer· Oct 20·3 min

Solar & Energy

ComEd Still Pays About $4,050 Toward a Home Battery. As of October 19, You No Longer Have to Take Hourly Pricing for It.

ComEd's revised battery rebate took effect October 19, 2026. It still pays $300 per kWh, about $4,050 on a 13.5 kWh battery, and it no longer locks your house onto a qualifying supply rate for the life of the battery. What's left is five summers of weekday 4 to 6 p.m. dispatch at $10 per kW. Here's the math and what to check before you sign.

Hank Mercer· Oct 19·3 min

Credit Cards

Your Card Statement Already Shows the Way Out. On $5,000 at 22%, the 36-Month Line Saves About $6,300.

Every credit card statement with a revolving balance has to print a Minimum Payment Warning box with a 36-month payment next to it. At the 22.36% average the Fed reported for August, a $5,000 balance paid at a common 1%-plus-interest minimum takes 19 years and about $8,240 in interest. The 36-month payment is about $192 and costs about $1,910. Here's how to read the box and what it leaves out.

Hank Mercer· Oct 19·3 min

Auto Insurance

An SR-22 Is a Form, Not a Policy. Let the Coverage Lapse Once and Your Insurer Has to Tell the State.

An SR-22 is a certificate your insurer files to prove you carry the state's minimum liability coverage, usually for three years after a DUI or an uninsured stop. The filing is cheap. The rules around it aren't: in Vermont the clock starts when your suspension ends, a lapse gets reported and your license suspended, Florida's DUI version requires $100,000/$300,000/$50,000 limits, and in California a DUI blocks the 20% Good Driver Discount for 10 years.

Hank Mercer· Oct 19·3 min

Loans & Credit

A $1,840 Texas Pawn Loan Costs $276 a Month. Borrow $1,841 and It's $46.

Texas sets pawn charges by loan size, and the rate applies to the whole loan, not just the slice above each line. For loans made from July 1, 2026 through June 30, 2027, anything from $276.01 to $1,840 can be charged 15% a month. One dollar more drops the whole loan to 2.5%. Here's the math, and why asking for a bigger pawn loan can cost you less.

Hank Mercer· Oct 19·3 min

Auto Insurance

Minnesota Makes Your Insurer Take 10% Off for a Four-Hour Course. California and Florida Only Say 'Appropriate.'

If you're 55 or older, state law in Minnesota, California and Florida makes your car insurer give you a discount for passing an approved driving course. Only Minnesota names a number: at least 10%. Ask your insurer for its percentage before you pay for the class.

Hank Mercer· Oct 18·3 min

Money & Life

Paid Resale for a Sold-Out Show? One Broker Allegedly Made $109 a Ticket on a Single Beyoncé Concert. The FTC Is Suing.

The FTC and Justice Department sued ticket broker REPS & Company on October 15, alleging it used thousands of accounts, virtual cards and proxy IP addresses to dodge ticket limits on more than 18.5 million tickets. By our math its average profit was $6.53 a ticket, but on one Beyoncé show it was about $109. Here's where the markup hides and how to avoid paying it.

Hank Mercer· Oct 18·3 min

Credit Cards

Paying Your Taxes by Card Inside Tax Software Costs 2.49%. Going Direct Costs 1.75%.

A new IRS rule, effective October 19, lets the agency take cards itself, but the law says the card fee gets passed to you either way. Today the IRS's own lists show 1.75% at Pay1040 and 2.49% or more inside tax software. On a $5,000 bill that's $37. Here's when the card is worth it and when it's dumb math.

Hank Mercer· Oct 18·3 min

Mortgages

Your Appraisal Came In Low? You Get One Appeal. Bring Five Home Sales, Not a Complaint.

A low appraisal on a $400,000 house can cost you $16,000 in extra cash at closing. Fannie Mae makes lenders give you one formal appeal, called a reconsideration of value, with up to five comparable sales. The appraisal report itself changes format for new reports submitted from November 2.

Hank Mercer· Oct 18·3 min

Solar & Energy

Massachusetts Won't Cash Out Your Solar Credits. You Have Until December 31 to Give Them Away.

If your Massachusetts solar system has banked more net metering credit than you'll ever use, the utility won't mail you a check, and if you close the account Eversource puts the leftover toward a surcharge everyone pays. A one-time transfer window under DPU case 25-117 runs through December 31, 2026. Here's who can take your credits and how to send them.

Hank Mercer· Oct 18·3 min

Money & Life

Adopted a Child Between 2020 and 2024? The IRS May Owe You Up to $5,000 Per Kid, and Most Families Don't Have to Ask

Treasury reversed course: for tax year 2025 only, unused adoption credit carried forward from 2020 to 2024 can count toward the refundable $5,000 per child. The IRS is fixing accounts automatically, but families who left the carryforward off their return may have to amend.

Hank Mercer· Oct 17·3 min

Savings & Banking

Your Bank of America Savings Earns the Bank 3.53%. It Pays You 0.04%.

Bank of America's third-quarter filing shows its spread on consumer savings deposits hit 3.53% after four straight quarterly increases. Its savings account pays 0.04%. On $10,000, that's about $353 a year the bank keeps before costs, and about $416 a year you'd gain by moving the money to a 4.20% account. Here's how to read the number and make the move.

Hank Mercer· Oct 17·3 min

Solar & Energy

One Solar Installer's Typical Price Was $2.40 a Watt. Another's Was $6.30. Get Three Quotes.

Berkeley Lab's 2026 data update ranked the top 100 residential solar installers by median price for 2025. The cheapest typical price was $2.40 a watt and the priciest $6.30. On the median 7.7 kW system, that's about $18,500 versus $48,500. With the federal credit gone, one quote is the most expensive mistake in solar. Here's how to shop it.

Hank Mercer· Oct 17·3 min

Education

Your Kid's Fall 2027 Student Loan Could Charge Interest From Day One. That's How the House Pays for a $50 Pell Raise.

The House spending bill for 2027 raises the maximum Pell Grant by $50, to $7,445, and pays for it partly by ending new subsidized student loans after July 1, 2027. Current borrowers keep them. On the full subsidized amount, our math puts the lost benefit at about $3,200 in interest before the first payment. Congress has until December 11 to fund the government again. Here's who it hits and what to do now.

Hank Mercer· Oct 17·3 min

Mortgages

Turned Down for Home Insurance in Texas? Half the Time, a Picture From the Sky Helped Decide

We ran Texas's raw HB 2067 data on homeowners policies. Insurers flagged aerial imagery on 108,380 of 208,919 declination notices, 51.9%. On nonrenewals, the top answer was 'Other, insurer's action,' the only reason on 42% of notices.

Hank Mercer· Oct 17·3 min

Loans & Credit

Texas Title Lenders Took 10,872 Cars in Three Months. The Fee That Gets You There Has No Cap.

New Texas regulator data shows 10,872 title-loan repossessions in the second quarter of 2026, about 120 cars a day, at a rate well above the state's historical norm. The broker fee on these loans is uncapped. A typical 30-day title loan runs about $19 per $100, and in 2024 Texas borrowers paid $686 million in title fees. Here's the math, and what to do before you hand over your title.

Hank Mercer· Oct 17·3 min

Loans & Credit

Your Pay-in-4 Costs 0%. For 77% of Families Using One, a Card Balance Next to It Costs 22%.

The Fed's 2025 Survey of Consumer Finances puts the typical buy now, pay later balance at $400. We ran the Fed's public data: 77% of families with a BNPL balance also carry a credit card balance, typically $4,000, against 40% of everyone else. At the Fed's 22.36% card rate, that's about $894 a year. The $400 is not the problem.

Hank Mercer· Oct 16·3 min

Savings & Banking

A Big Bank Closed Your Account With a Form Letter? Regulators Found All Nine of the Largest Did It. Here's Where to Complain.

The OCC's October 14 report on JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America, Citibank, Wells Fargo, U.S. Bank, Capital One, PNC, TD and BMO found ordinary customers closed out over allegations, a past arrest or poor reviews, often with letters that explained nothing. The CFPB opened its own review the same day. Here's how to file, and how to check your ChexSystems file.

Hank Mercer· Oct 16·3 min

Auto Insurance

Your Totaled-Car Check May Have a Line Called 'Projected Sold Adjustment.' In Colorado, Progressive Is Paying Some of It Back.

Progressive's $15.24 million Colorado settlement covers total loss claims valued with a Mitchell report that knocked a 'projected sold adjustment' off the comparable cars. Claimants get 68% of a set impact amount, about $374 on a $20,000 car in the larger class. Claims are due February 5, 2027. Everywhere else, find that line on your report before you accept the check.

Hank Mercer· Oct 16·3 min

Credit Cards

The Cheap Way to a Southwest Companion Pass Ends December 2. After That, It Takes $95,000 of Card Spending.

Starting January 1, 2027, Southwest card welcome bonuses stop counting toward the Companion Pass. A card approved by December 2, 2026 still gets the old treatment. In 2027, three companion trips take 95,000 tier points and unlimited trips take 140,000, at one point per card dollar. Check your 2026 total before you apply.

Hank Mercer· Oct 16·3 min

Auto Insurance

Turned Down for Car Insurance in Texas? The Top Reason Isn't Your Driving. It's Your Car.

Texas just published why insurers decline, cancel and nonrenew auto policies. We ran the raw April to June 2026 data: make and model was cited on 38.8% of 464,465 declination notices and was the only reason on one in four. More than half of nonrenewals gave one reason: 'Other, insurer's action.'

Hank Mercer· Oct 16·3 min

Money & Life

Sent Money to a Scammer From a Walmart Counter? An FTC Check Averaging $151 Is in the Mail. It Expires in 90 Days.

The FTC is mailing 65,022 checks worth more than $9.8 million to people who made eligible money transfers at Walmart between January 2015 and December 2024. That's about $151 each, from a $10 million settlement over transfers the FTC says cost people hundreds of millions. Cash yours within 90 days, and ignore anyone who asks for a fee.

Hank Mercer· Oct 16·2 min

Solar & Energy

A $95 Whole-Home Battery Sounds Too Cheap. Here's What Central Georgia EMC Members Trade for It.

Central Georgia EMC and Base Power will install a 39.2 kWh backup battery for $95 with no monthly fee, starting in 2027. The catch is a 12-year agreement, a $500 fee to pull it out early, and a co-op that drains it on hot afternoons. Here is how much backup you're promised.

Hank Mercer· Oct 15·3 min

Credit Cards

Your Small Credit Union Card Probably Charges a Foreign Transaction Fee. Most Big-Bank Cards Don't.

We counted the CFPB's latest card-terms survey. Among the 25 biggest issuers, 63% of card plans charge no foreign transaction fee. Among smaller issuers, 72% charge one, usually 1%. Store cards lean toward 3%. Check yours before a trip or an order from an overseas website.

Hank Mercer· Oct 15·3 min

Education

Your Kid's College Says Tuition Is Free. Housing and Food Still Run $20,000 to $25,000 a Year.

871 colleges now advertise free tuition for some students. A Brookings study finds most of it relabels aid lower-income families already got, and the non-tuition bill averages $20,000 to $25,000 a year. Here's who actually saves, and the question to ask before you count on it.

Hank Mercer· Oct 15·3 min

Loans & Credit

Your Lease Has an Interest Rate. Federal Rules Bar the Dealer From Calling It an APR.

A car lease charges interest, but Regulation M bars the dealer from calling it an annual percentage rate, and the Fed says the money factor usually isn't disclosed to you. Multiply it by 2,400 and you can compare it to a loan. On a typical deal, a small markup costs about $2,600.

Hank Mercer· Oct 15·3 min

Mortgages

Your Isaias Roof Damage Probably Won't Clear Your Hurricane Deductible. File the Claim Anyway.

Hurricane Isaias mostly broke roofs, fences and trees, and on a $300,000 Florida home a 2% hurricane deductible is $6,000. Plenty of Panhandle claims will pay nothing. Florida's own consumer office still says file every one, and state law backs it up: hidden damage, a deadline one year from landfall, and an insurer that can't drop you for an act of God.

Hank Mercer· Oct 14·3 min

Mortgages

No FEMA Aid Yet for Isaias Homeowners. Call Your Mortgage Servicer Anyway.

Updated October 18: Florida asked for a major disaster declaration on October 16, with FEMA Individual Assistance requested for eight Panhandle counties. That label unlocks Freddie Mac's 12-month disaster forbearance and FHA's foreclosure pause, and it isn't approved yet. Check whether your county is on the list, and ask your servicer for hardship help today.

Hank Mercer· Oct 14·3 min

Solar & Energy

The Company Behind Your SunPower Panel Warranty Is in Insolvency Court. Get Your Paperwork Ready Now.

Maxeon, which built SunPower-brand panels and took over their warranties after SunPower went bankrupt, has been run by court-appointed managers in Singapore since April. Its shares were delisted from Nasdaq on October 12. Your 25- or 40-year panel warranty hasn't been canceled, but it's now a claim against a company in insolvency. Here's what to gather and when to file.

Hank Mercer· Oct 14·3 min

Savings & Banking

Inflation Hit 3.7%. In the 22% Bracket, Your Savings Needs 4.74% Just to Stand Still.

September's CPI came in at 3.7% over the year. After federal income tax, a savings account has to pay 4.20% in the 12% bracket and 4.74% in the 22% bracket just to keep up. On $10,000, the 0.37% national average loses about $341 of buying power a year. The best savings rates and a six-month Treasury bill lose far less. Here's the math.

Hank Mercer· Oct 14·3 min

Money & Life

Claimed Social Security Early and Still Working? Past $25,560 in 2027, Your Checks Stop.

Social Security's 2027 earnings limit for early claimers is $25,560, up from $24,480. Earn more and it holds back $1 for every $2 over, in whole checks starting in January. You do get it back at 67, but the federal formula pays it back slowly: on a $1,500 check, about 15 years.

Hank Mercer· Oct 14·3 min

Credit Cards

A Thief With Your Card Number Can Spend Your Points on Amazon. Amazon Tells Your Bank, Not You.

Scammers are linking stolen card numbers to their own Amazon accounts and draining rewards points through Shop with Points, and Doctor of Credit reported a fresh wave of Chase victims on October 13. Your balance is the last place you'll notice. Here's where to look and what to ask for.

Hank Mercer· Oct 13·3 min

Education

Your Kid's College Just Cut Tuition in Half. Check Whether It Cut the Scholarship Too.

Tulsa, Carroll, Emory & Henry and others are slashing sticker prices by 40 to 54%. Private colleges already handed back 57.1% of the sticker on average, so for most families the bill barely moves. Here is who actually saves, and the one question to ask the aid office.

Hank Mercer· Oct 13·3 min

Loans & Credit

The 'No Credit Needed' Button at Checkout Isn't a Loan. Acima's Own Page Says It Can Cost Double.

Lease-to-own financing from Acima and Progressive Leasing shows up at furniture, tire and phone checkouts as 'no credit needed.' Acima says a full 12-month lease may cost more than double the cash price. On a $1,000 purchase, that's about $1,000 extra, against about $178 for a credit union payday alternative loan. Here's the math and the move.

Hank Mercer· Oct 13·3 min

Savings & Banking

Four in 10 Families Have No Savings Account at All. We Ran the Fed's Numbers on What That Costs.

The Fed's 2025 Survey of Consumer Finances came out October 9. We downloaded the public data: 43.5% of families hold no savings, money market or call account, so every dollar of cash sits in checking. Half of them couldn't cover one month of everyday spending. Here is the math and the 10-minute fix.

Hank Mercer· Oct 13·3 min

Auto Insurance

Dent a Holiday Rental and You Can Be Billed for the Days It Sat in the Shop. In New York, That Charge Is Banned.

Rental companies can bill you for repairs plus 'loss of use,' administrative fees and 'diminished value.' New York law bans the first two and caps the counter's damage waiver at $9 to $15 a day. A common Visa card benefit covers loss of use but excludes diminished value. Make two calls before you pick up the keys.

Hank Mercer· Oct 13·3 min

Money & Life

Treasury Opened a Trump Account for Your Kid on October 1. It Can't Deposit the $1,000 Until You Ask.

More than 60 million kids were auto-enrolled in Trump Accounts on October 1. The new rules say Treasury can't elect the $1,000 seed for you, and no family or employer money can go in until you claim the account. Here is what lands on its own and what doesn't.

Hank Mercer· Oct 13·3 min

Loans & Credit

A $5,000 401(k) Hardship Withdrawal Can Hand $1,600 to Taxes. A Third of the People Taking One Could Have Borrowed Instead.

Vanguard found that about a third of workers who took a 401(k) hardship withdrawal in 2025 had a plan loan available and nothing borrowed. With prime at 7%, a typical 401(k) loan runs about 8%, and the interest goes back into your own account. Here is the math, and the one way the loan can blow up.

Hank Mercer· Oct 12·3 min

Education

Your Leftover 529 Can Move Into a Roth. The 15-Year Clock Starts When You Open It, and Your State Can Still Bill You.

Up to $35,000 of unused 529 money can roll into your kid's Roth IRA free of federal tax, but only from an account open more than 15 years. California taxes the earnings and Indiana claws back 20%. Here's how to start the clock and what to ask your plan.

Hank Mercer· Oct 12·3 min

Credit Cards

Your Credit Card Treats a Sportsbook Deposit Like an ATM Withdrawal. That's $10 Up Front and Interest From Day One.

Card agreements count sports betting, money orders, crypto and person-to-person transfers as cash advances. We ran the CFPB's card data: 91% of big-issuer plans charge a cash advance fee and the median APR is 29.24%. Here's the math and the cheaper way to pay.

Hank Mercer· Oct 12·3 min

Solar & Energy

A Kansas Solar Crew Promised You'd 'Never Pay a Power Bill.' Evergy Charges $15.25 a Month Before You Use a Watt.

Kansas Attorney General Kris Kobach sued G3 Solar, saying its door-to-door crews promised no more power bills, dropped Evergy's name, and left homeowners in loans of up to 30 years with hidden finance charges reaching 35%. G3 is in bankruptcy. Here is what to do if you signed, and the Kansas rule that protects the next door it knocks on.

Hank Mercer· Oct 12·3 min

Auto Insurance

State Farm Fixed Your Washington Car Under Underinsured Motorist Coverage? About $625 Is Waiting. File by December 14.

An $8.82 million settlement covers Washington State Farm customers whose cars were repaired under underinsured motorist property damage coverage from 2019 to early 2026. The money is for the resale value a wreck knocks off a car. You get nothing unless you file a claim form.

Hank Mercer· Oct 12·2 min

Education

Student Loan Refi Rates Now Start Higher on Variable Than Fixed. Take the Fixed, or Don't Refi at All.

Two refinance lenders we checked now start their fixed rates below their variable rates, and the index variable loans float on has climbed since the Fed's September hike. Here is the math on refinancing a federal loan, who should never do it, and why the float is a bad bet right now.

Hank Mercer· Oct 11·3 min

Solar & Energy

Your Model Y Can Now Back Up Your House. Only If You Also Own an $8,200 Battery.

Tesla switched on Powershare home backup for the Model 3 and Model Y on October 6, but it only works through a Powerwall 3, only on cars ordered October 1 or later, and with no federal battery credit left in 2026. Here's who should call Tesla this week and who shouldn't buy anything.

Hank Mercer· Oct 11·3 min

Money & Life

Utilities Asked to Raise Your Bill by a Record $4.5 Billion This Summer. A Request Isn't a Yes.

Electric and gas utilities filed 64 rate increase requests in 28 states in the third quarter, the most money asked for in any third quarter on record, according to PowerLines. Jersey Central's request alone works out to about $170 a year per customer. Here's how to find out if your utility is on the list, and how to get your objection into the record before regulators decide.

Hank Mercer· Oct 11·3 min

Auto Insurance

A Tree Landed on Your Car in Isaias? Without Comprehensive Coverage, Your Insurer Owes You Nothing.

Hurricane Isaias came ashore near Destin as a Category 2 and knocked out power to more than 840,000 customers across Florida, Alabama and Georgia. Wind, flood and falling-tree damage to your car is paid only by the optional comprehensive part of your policy. Florida's legal minimum doesn't include it. Here's how to check what you bought and file the claim right.

Hank Mercer· Oct 10·3 min

Auto Insurance

Texas Says Car Insurance Is Getting Cheaper. More Insurers Filed Raises Than Cuts.

Texas says auto rate cuts since July 1 reach 4.4 million drivers. We counted the state's own filing list: 25 personal auto filings raised rates and 18 cut them. Here's how to find the exact company on your policy and see which list you're on before your renewal.

Hank Mercer· Oct 10·3 min

Solar & Energy

Counting on a USDA Grant for Solar on the Barn? Starting October 16, You Pay for All of It First and Get 25% at Most.

USDA's rewrite of the Rural Energy for America Program takes effect October 16, 2026. Farm and rural small business solar must now be built, paid for and running for a year before you can even apply. The grant drops to at most 25% of the cost, from up to 50%, and any panel system with a component made in China is out. Run your numbers with no grant before you sign.

Hank Mercer· Oct 10·3 min

Loans & Credit

Used Cleo for a Cash Advance? The FTC Is Sending You Money by PayPal Starting October 27.

The FTC is sending more than $15.8 million to 2,124,796 Cleo AI customers who paid for instant cash advances. PayPal payments start October 27, 2026, and you have 30 days to accept one. That works out to about $7.44 each on average. Here is how to claim it and what the fees were really costing you.

Hank Mercer· Oct 9·3 min

Credit Cards

The 'Average' Card Balance Is $8,000. The Typical One Is $3,100, and It's a One-Year Problem.

The Federal Reserve's 2025 Survey of Consumer Finances, released October 9, puts the median credit card balance at $3,100 for families who carry one and the mean at $8,000. The gap tells you which group you're in. At today's 22.36% average rate, $3,100 is gone in 12 months for $291 a month. Pay $100 a month and the same balance costs four times the interest.

Hank Mercer· Oct 9·3 min

Money & Life

The $90 Medicare Check Skips Everyone on Medicare Advantage. You Still Pay the Same $202.90.

The White House says most Part B enrollees get a one-time $90 rebate in October. CMS's own FAQ adds the line the fact sheet left out: Medicare Advantage members are not eligible, even though they pay the same Part B premium. Who gets the money, how to check for it, and why switching plans to chase it is bad math.

Hank Mercer· Oct 9·3 min

Mortgages

The Payment on a Median Home Ate a Record 33% of Median Income in 2025. At This Week's 7.40%, It's 35%.

The Federal Reserve's 2025 Survey of Consumer Finances, released October 9, says the mortgage and property tax on the median home took about 33% of median family income in 2025, an all-time high for the modern survey, up from 26% in 2022. We reran the Fed's own formula at Freddie Mac's October 8 rate of 7.40% and got 34.9%, before insurance. Here is how to run it on the house you actually want.

Hank Mercer· Oct 9·3 min

Savings & Banking

Ally's No-Penalty CD Pays 2.80%. Ally's Own Savings Account Pays 3.10%.

On October 8, 2026, Ally listed its 11-month No-Penalty CD at 2.80% APY and its savings account at 3.10%. The CD locks you into the lower rate and only lets you withdraw all of it at once. Here is when a no-penalty CD makes sense, and why it doesn't right now.

Hank Mercer· Oct 9·3 min

Money & Life

Paid Full Price for a HealthCare.gov Plan? A $500 Treasury Check Is in the Mail. Your 2027 Renewal Matters More.

The Treasury is mailing $500 paper checks to nearly 1 million HealthCare.gov enrollees in 30 states who get no premium subsidy, refunding what the White House calls over-collected exchange user fees. Here is who qualifies, why a paper check needs care, and why the November 1 open enrollment window is worth more than the check.

Hank Mercer· Oct 8·3 min

Credit Cards

Robocalls About Someone Else's Credit Card? Concora Credit Owes an Estimated $250 to $650 if You Claim by October 19

Concora Credit, the company behind subprime cards like Indigo, is paying $9.375 million over prerecorded calls to cellphones of people who never had an account. Claims close October 19, 2026. No postcard means a mail-in request with proof, so start this week.

Hank Mercer· Oct 8·3 min

Auto Insurance

The 'Excluded Driver' Form Means Something Different in Every State. In Florida It Can Wipe Out Your Liability Coverage.

Excluding a teen or a risky household driver by name is the fastest way to cut a car insurance bill. In New Jersey the exclusion only touches collision and comprehensive. In Florida it can strip liability and PIP. In Arizona it renews forever until your insurer agrees in writing to drop it. Read your declarations page before anyone borrows the keys.

Hank Mercer· Oct 8·3 min

Savings & Banking

Your Holiday Club Is About to Pay Out. Check What It Earned Before You Sign Up for 2027.

Credit union holiday clubs pay anywhere from 0.05% to 4.00% this year. On $50 a week, that's the difference between about 65 cents and about $52. Here's how to check yours before the November payout and what to do about the 2027 club.

Hank Mercer· Oct 8·3 min

Loans & Credit

A 17% Personal Loan With an 8.99% Fee Is a 24% Loan. Pay It Off in a Year and It's a 29% Loan.

Online lenders take the origination fee out of your loan before you see a dollar. Prosper's own example turns a 17.29% rate into a 24.19% APR and hands you $9,101 of a $10,000 loan. The fee doesn't shrink when you pay early, so paying it off in 12 months works out to about 29%. Compare APRs, size the loan for the fee, and price a no-fee option first.

Hank Mercer· Oct 8·3 min

Mortgages

A Short Sale Used to Wipe Out the Leftover Mortgage Tax-Free. Since January 1, the Forgiven Part Counts as Income.

The federal exclusion for forgiven mortgage debt on your main home expired for discharges after December 31, 2025, and the bill to bring it back hasn't moved since February 2025. If a lender forgives part of your mortgage this year through a short sale, foreclosure or principal cut, the IRS counts it as income. Insolvency is the exit, and your 401(k) counts against you.

Hank Mercer· Oct 7·3 min

Money & Life

Your Contact Lenses Were Advertised at $146 a Year. The FTC Says the Checkout Added a $273 'Taxes & Fees' Line You Had to Scroll to See.

The FTC, Utah and Nevada sued Lens.com on October 2, 2026, alleging a hidden, mandatory 'Taxes & fees' charge that routinely doubles the advertised price. One example in the complaint: a $146.32 one-year supply that checked out at $649.71. Your eye doctor has to hand you your prescription, so compare the final total, not the ad.

Hank Mercer· Oct 7·3 min

Solar & Energy

Massachusetts Is Taking the Solar Charge Off Your Electric Bill for Three Months. You're Still Paying It.

Governor Healey's energy emergency order moves $80 million in state money to cover the SMART solar program charge on residential and commercial electric bills from January to March 2027. By our math that's about $27 per account for the quarter. Here's what changes on your bill, what doesn't, and who actually pays.

Hank Mercer· Oct 7·3 min

Loans & Credit

Federal Law Caps a Credit Union's Payday Loan at 28% and a $20 Fee. Only 1 in 6 Federal Credit Unions Made One in the First Half of 2026.

Federal credit unions can make payday alternative loans of up to $2,000 at no more than 28% APR with a $20 maximum fee and no rollovers. We ran NCUA's June 30, 2026 call report data: 455 of 2,649 federal credit unions made any in the first half of 2026. Here's what the loan costs next to a payday loan, and how to find one.

Hank Mercer· Oct 6·3 min

Credit Cards

Discover's Secured Card Is Back Under Capital One. The $49 Deposit Isn't Your Choice, It's Your Grade.

Capital One reopened the Discover it Secured card after a four-month pause. The ad says deposits start at $49. The fine print says Capital One assigns $49, $99 or $200 based on your credit, the same tiers as its own Platinum Secured card. Here's what the deposit tells you, and why this is the better of Capital One's two secured cards.

Hank Mercer· Oct 6·3 min

Money & Life

Your Health Plan Has to Quote Your Price Over the Phone in 2027. Hospitals Just Got Warned About Half-Prices.

A final federal rule published October 6 makes health plans give your cost estimate, deductible progress and negotiated rate by phone, on the call, starting with plan years that begin on or after January 1, 2027. A day earlier, the FTC warned 24 big healthcare companies that a price quote missing physician or facility fees can be deceptive.

Hank Mercer· Oct 6·3 min

Education

Earn One Dollar Over $60,000 and Your RAP Student Loan Payment Jumps $50 a Month. A 401(k) Deposit Before December 31 Can Undo It.

The Repayment Assistance Plan doesn't work like tax brackets. Its percentage applies to all of your adjusted gross income, so crossing a $10,000 line raises your payment by $200 to $1,000 a year. If your 2026 income lands just over a line, a pre-tax 401(k) contribution before December 31 can drop you back under it.

Hank Mercer· Oct 6·3 min

Solar & Energy

Your Rooftop Solar Shuts Off When the Utility Cuts Power for Fire Risk. Check Your Battery's Reserve Before the Warning Text.

Grid-tied solar panels are built to switch off in an outage, so a Public Safety Power Shutoff turns them dark on a sunny day. PG&E has run shutoffs as recently as September 12 to 14, 2026, and its warnings can come 24 to 48 hours ahead. If you own a battery, that window is when you raise the backup reserve. If you don't, PG&E's backup power rebate pays up to $300 through December 31, 2026.

Hank Mercer· Oct 6·3 min

Auto Insurance

Your Credit Got Better. Your Texas Car Insurer Only Has to Re-Price You If You Ask.

A 2025 Texas law makes an insurer that prices on credit re-run your credit and re-rate your policy at renewal, once a year, if you ask. Otherwise it only has to refresh your credit every 36 months. Texas just added the right to the Consumer Bill of Rights insurers hand out starting January 1, 2027. You don't have to wait for the pamphlet.

Hank Mercer· Oct 6·3 min

Mortgages

California's Prop 37 Would Lend You 17% of a New Home's Price. It's a Second Mortgage, and Nobody Can Tell You the Rate.

Prop 37 on California's November 3, 2026 ballot lets CalHFA sell up to $25 billion in bonds for fixed-rate second mortgages covering up to 17% of a newly built home. You put 3% down from your own money and pay the state loan back monthly. Here's the math and the fine print.

Hank Mercer· Oct 5·3 min

Education

Your College Is Closing. Don't Sign the Teach-Out Until You've Priced the Loan Discharge It Can Cost You.

The One Big Beautiful Bill Act restored the 2020 closed-school discharge rules. To get federal loans wiped after a college closes, you must certify you haven't accepted a teach-out or aren't continuing in one, and there is no guaranteed automatic discharge for 2026 closures. FSA's own application still describes the looser 2022 rules.

Hank Mercer· Oct 5·3 min

Loans & Credit

The Average New-Car Loan Just Passed 10%. One Credit Tier Is Worth 10 Times the Fed's Hike.

Dealertrack's average new-car loan rate hit 10.17% in September 2026, the first reading above 10% in data going back to 2015. The Fed's quarter-point hike adds about $5.50 to a payment. Moving up one credit tier can save you $55 to $87 a month. Here's where the money is.

Hank Mercer· Oct 5·3 min

Mortgages

Oklahoma Votes November 3 on a 1.75% Property Tax Cap. If You're Buying, the Seller's Tax Bill Gets Even Less Useful.

State Question 847 would cut Oklahoma's cap on yearly homestead value growth from 3% to 1.75% starting with tax year 2027. On a $250,000 home in Wagoner County's own tax example, that's about $30 the first year and $163 by year five. The cap resets when a home sells, so buyers should budget taxes off the sale price.

Hank Mercer· Oct 5·3 min

Savings & Banking

A One-Year Treasury Bill Pays 4.62% and Skips State Tax. Your Best Savings Account Pays 4.34% and Doesn't.

The one-year Treasury bill still beats the best savings accounts and one-year CDs, and your state can't tax it. On $25,000 parked for a year, it beats a 4.40% CD by about $116 in a 5% tax state. The six-month bill slipped to 4.314% on October 5, so it now wins only after tax.

Hank Mercer· Oct 5·3 min

Auto Insurance

If Your Car Was Towed and Auctioned in California, the DMV May Be Holding Your Money. It Won't Tell You.

When a towed car sells at a California lien sale for more than the tow and storage bill, the leftover goes to the DMV. You have three years to claim it, and the DMV doesn't have to notify you. Newsom vetoed a bill on September 30 that would have moved unclaimed money to the state's unclaimed property program. Here is how to check by plate or VIN.

Hank Mercer· Oct 4·3 min

Money & Life

Paid for a Generic Drug Between 2009 and 2019? Claim Your Share of $475 Million by November 9, and Bring Proof.

Sandoz ($275 million) and Sun/Taro ($200 million) settled claims that they inflated generic drug prices. If you paid for one of 197 named generics from May 2009 through 2019, you can file by November 9, 2026, but you need one document per drug. A separate state attorney general fund runs to March 8, 2027.

Hank Mercer· Oct 4·3 min

Money & Life

Medicare Advantage Premiums Fall to $12 on Average. In 19 States They Go Up, and the Drug Cap Moves to $2,400.

CMS says the average 2027 Medicare Advantage premium drops to $12.00 from $14.37. Its own state fact sheets show the average rising in 19 states, 29 states losing plans, and the Part D out-of-pocket cap climbing to $2,400. Open enrollment runs October 15 to December 7.

Hank Mercer· Oct 4·3 min

Solar & Energy

New Jersey's Home Battery Incentive Pays $200 per kW on Paper. The State's Own Example Pays $540 a Year.

New Jersey's proposed Garden State Energy Storage Program would pay home battery owners up to $200 per kW a year for 10 years, but only at 100% performance. The BPU's worked example earns $540 a year. It opens around July 2027, and batteries already running before you apply don't qualify. Here is the math and what to do now.

Hank Mercer· Oct 4·3 min

Auto Insurance

New York's ZIP Code Ban on Car Insurance Starts in November. Two Words Mean Your Address Still Counts.

New York's new Insurance Law section 2341 bars auto insurers from using your ZIP code, job, education or homeownership as the sole basis for your rate, starting about November 23, 2026. Neighboring ZIP codes grouped into a rating territory are still allowed. Here is what changes and what to check on your renewal.

Hank Mercer· Oct 4·3 min

Education

Headed to NP, PA or Physical Therapy School? The Education Department Says You're Not a 'Professional,' and That Caps Your Loans at $20,500

Under the Education Department's May 2026 rule, only 11 listed fields count as professional degrees with a $50,000 annual federal loan limit. Nursing, physician assistant, physical therapy, occupational therapy, audiology and speech pathology students get $20,500. More than two dozen states and DC are suing; the case is in summary judgment briefing. Here is the gap math and what to ask before you accept an offer.

Hank Mercer· Oct 4·3 min

Credit Cards

Starting October 24, Your Purchases at Other Stores Can Be Used to Block Your Visa Fraud Claim

Visa's Compelling Evidence 3.0 rule lets a merchant block an online 'I didn't make this' dispute if your card has an undisputed purchase history that matches your device or IP address. From October 24, 2026, that history can come from other merchants, not just the one you're disputing.

Hank Mercer· Oct 4·3 min

Savings & Banking

A Credit Union CEO Stole $69 Million Over 15 Years. Her Members' Insured Savings Still Came Through. Check What Insures Yours.

Jackson Area Federal Credit Union was liquidated on September 30, two days after its former CEO pleaded guilty to a $69 million embezzlement. Members' share accounts moved to another credit union, still federally insured. Not every credit union carries that insurance: 87 use a private insurer. Here's how to check yours.

Hank Mercer· Oct 3·3 min

Credit Cards

Equifax Told You a Hard Inquiry Was 'a Factual Record.' That Brush-Off Could Be Worth $100 to $400 if You Claim by November 29.

Equifax will pay $30 million to settle four lawsuits over how it handled disputes of hard inquiries. About 3 million people are in the class, with estimated payments of roughly $100, $300 or $400 depending on the group. You need the claim number and PIN from your notice, and the deadline is November 29, 2026.

Hank Mercer· Oct 3·3 min

Mortgages

Moving to Florida? Amendment 3 Would Make You Wait Five Years for the $250,000 Homestead Break, Unless You Live There by December 31.

Florida's Amendment 3 goes to voters on November 3. If it passes with 60%, homesteads get a $150,000 non-school exemption in 2027 and $250,000 in 2028. Anyone who wasn't a Florida resident on December 31, 2026 gets $50,000 until their fifth year. Here's the math.

Hank Mercer· Oct 3·3 min

Loans & Credit

Your Car Lender Mails You a New Tax Form in January. Only One Name on the Loan Gets It, and Under $600 It Doesn't Have to Come at All.

The IRS posted final instructions on October 1 for Form 1098-VLI, the statement behind the car loan interest deduction. The form goes only to the loan's payer of record, skips loans with less than $600 of interest, and leaves out interest on rolled-in negative equity. Here's what to check when it lands.

Hank Mercer· Oct 3·3 min

Solar & Energy

Maryland Will Pay 30% of Your Home Battery, Up to $5,000. Install It Before You're Approved and You Get Nothing.

Maryland's FY27 home battery rebate opened September 24: 30% of the installed cost, capped at $5,000, first come first served from a $4 million pot. The rule that kills claims is simple. MEA has to approve your reservation before the battery goes on the wall.

Hank Mercer· Oct 3·3 min

Savings & Banking

Old Glory Bank Will Take a $500,000 CD. The FDIC Insures Half of It, and Just Called the Bank 'Significantly Undercapitalized.'

The FDIC made public a prompt corrective action directive against Old Glory Bank on September 25, citing a 2.69% leverage ratio. Insured deposits are safe up to $250,000 per depositor per ownership category. Uninsured money, and any CD set to auto-renew, needs a decision now.

Hank Mercer· Oct 3·3 min

Loans & Credit

Took a Plain Green Loan in Minnesota? You Now Owe Only What You Borrowed, Minus Everything You've Paid.

Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison settled his lawsuit against online lender Plain Green on September 23, 2026. The lender charged rates approaching 700% and told borrowers state law didn't apply because a tribe owns it. Now it can collect only the original principal, with all interest canceled and past payments credited.

Hank Mercer· Oct 3·3 min

Mortgages

California Will Make Your Insurer Offer 50% Extra Rebuild Coverage. Starting 2028. The Bigger Gap Is the Number Underneath.

SB 876, signed September 27, 2026, bars California home insurers from writing or renewing a policy without offering extended replacement cost of at least 50% above the dwelling limit. The press release says the law takes effect January 1, 2027, but the bill text makes that offer operative January 1, 2028. And a new study of 74,070 California fire claims says the dwelling limit itself is usually too low. Here is what to check on your policy now.

Hank Mercer· Oct 2·3 min

Education

The FAFSA Ignores Your House. The CSS Profile Asks About It. Check Each School Before You Pay $16 to Send It.

The 2027-28 CSS Profile opened October 1. Unlike the FAFSA, it asks about your home and, for some colleges, your ex. The College Board's formula treats home equity as wealth, but schools like Stanford and Harvard say they leave it out. Here's how to find out which rule you're under, and how to file for free if your family earns $100,000 or less.

Hank Mercer· Oct 2·3 min

Education

A Tax-Credit Scholarship Can Pay Your Kid's Tutor Starting in 2027. Apply the First Year, Because Year Two Goes to Repeat Winners.

The IRS published proposed rules on October 1 for the new federal scholarship tax credit. In the 30 states that opted in, K-12 scholarships can cover tutoring, supplies, computers and private tuition, and Treasury says about 96% of kids clear the income test. Here's how the test works, why the first year matters, and what paperwork to keep now.

Hank Mercer· Oct 2·3 min

Auto Insurance

Florida Fender Bender Under $2,000? You No Longer Have to Call the Police. Your Insurer Still Wants Proof.

Since October 1, 2026, Florida drivers only have to notify police of a property-damage crash when the apparent damage is at least $2,000, up from $500. You still owe the state a written report within 10 days, and you're the one guessing the repair bill at the roadside. Here's what to collect before you drive away.

Hank Mercer· Oct 2·3 min

Auto Insurance

Michigan's Crash Paycheck Tops Out at $7,455 a Month. Earn Over $105,000 and the Rest Is on You.

Since October 1, 2026, Michigan no-fault work loss benefits pay 85% of your gross wages for up to three years, capped at $7,455 per 30-day period. Above roughly $105,000 a year, the cap bites, and a coordinated policy can make your disability coverage pay before your auto insurer does. Here is the math and what to check on your policy.

Hank Mercer· Oct 2·3 min

Solar & Energy

California Has a No-Cost Solar Program. It Isn't the One Knocking on Your Door.

If you own a home in one of California's most polluted census tracts and your income fits the CARE or FERA limits, a state program installs solar at low or no cost. It does about 550 roofs a year, your power bill now funds all of it, and a CPUC vote as early as October 8 keeps batteries out. Here's how to check.

Hank Mercer· Oct 1·3 min

Mortgages

Your Lender Is Holding Your Insurance Check. In California, It Owes You at Least 2%.

If your home was damaged and your mortgage lender is holding the insurance money until the rebuild is done, California law has required it to pay you at least 2% simple interest since August 29, 2025. A bill signed September 30, 2026 lets that interest go straight to you starting January 1, 2027. Here is how to check you are getting it.

Hank Mercer· Oct 1·3 min

Credit Cards

Your $99 IHG Card Is Going to $150. The New Perks Come in $25 Coupons That Expire Every Quarter.

On October 1, 2026 Chase and IHG raised the IHG One Rewards Premier card fee from $99 to $150, effective when existing cardholders renew in 2027. The free night certificate gets bigger, status drops from Platinum to Gold, and the new credits only pay if you eat at an IHG hotel every quarter. Here is the math on keeping it.

Hank Mercer· Oct 1·3 min

Savings & Banking

Your Bank Failed and Got Sold. That's a Rare Free Pass to Break Your CD.

Nano Banc of Irvine, California failed on September 25, 2026, and Sunwest Bank took the deposits. The FDIC says the buyer can change your CD rate, and you can withdraw without an early withdrawal penalty until you sign a new deposit agreement. Here is the math on walking, and why you shouldn't sign anything yet.

Hank Mercer· Sep 30·3 min

Loans & Credit

The Price on the Dealer's Website Can Be a Floor the Automaker Set. From Thursday, Maryland Dealers Can Say So.

Maryland's Jack Fitzgerald Price Transparency Act takes effect October 1, 2026. It stops automakers from punishing dealers who tell you, on their own website, that the listed price is the manufacturer's minimum advertised price and that they may sell for less. The automakers' own trade group told lawmakers those prices 'are not necessarily final prices.' Here is how to shop around it in any state.

Hank Mercer· Sep 30·3 min

Credit Cards

Starting Thursday, Maryland Landlords Have to Offer to Put Your Rent on Your Credit Report. Whether It's Worth $10 a Month Depends on the Score.

From October 1, 2026, Maryland landlords with six or more units have to offer to report your on-time rent to at least one credit bureau, for a fee of no more than $10 a month. Late payments can't go through this channel. Here is who the law actually covers, which credit scores count rent, and when the fee is worth paying.

Hank Mercer· Sep 30·3 min

Education

The New Student Loan Default Portal Pitches Consolidation and a 1% Rate Cut. The Fee Can Run 10 Times the Discount.

Treasury and the Education Department opened an online Defaulted Loans Support Center on September 30. The launch pairs consolidation with the 1-point auto pay discount. What it leaves out: consolidating a defaulted loan can add up to 18.5% in collection costs. Here is the math, and why rehab is still the better exit for most people.

Hank Mercer· Sep 30·3 min

Education

Your Fraud-School Loans Were Canceled Years Ago. Your Credit Report May Still Say You Owe Them, Plus Interest.

If your federal loans were wiped in a group discharge for Corinthian, ITT Tech, the Art Institutes, Westwood, Ashford or another for-profit chain, a September 24 lawsuit says the Education Department may still be reporting them as live, growing debt. A mortgage lender can count 1% of that balance as a monthly payment. Pull your reports this week.

Hank Mercer· Sep 29·3 min

Solar & Energy

A Connecticut Solar Contract Signed at Your Kitchen Table Dies in Three Business Days. From Thursday You Can Kill It by Email.

Public Act 26-16 writes residential solar into Connecticut's Home Solicitation Sales Act on October 1, 2026. You get three business days, a ten-business-day refund clock, and a finance company that cannot say the fight is with the installer. The rules about the door knock itself do not arrive until 2027 and 2028.

Hank Mercer· Sep 29·3 min

Auto Insurance

Hit the Deer and It's a Comprehensive Claim. Swerve Into a Tree and You've Bought a Collision Claim.

State Farm puts your odds of an animal collision at 1 in 145 this year, and the worst months are November, October and December. Hitting the deer usually lands on your comprehensive deductible. Missing it and hitting something else usually doesn't. Check both deductibles before the season peaks.

Hank Mercer· Sep 29·3 min

Loans & Credit

Iowa Raised the Legal Rate on a $10,000 Loan to 36%. The Lobby Behind It Called That a 'Cap.'

Since July 1, Iowa's licensed installment lenders can charge 36% a year on every dollar you borrow. Before, the ceiling dropped to 24% above $3,000 and 18% above $8,400. On a $10,000 loan over five years, the legal maximum interest went up about $2,800. Here is how to check the APR before you sign.

Hank Mercer· Sep 29·3 min

Auto Insurance

Your Insurer's Ad Budget Is an Expense Line in Your Rate. Texas Just Asked the Legislature to Take It Out.

On September 14 the Texas Department of Insurance told the governor that advertising costs should be barred from rate filings, and that insurers should have to tell you your renewal price 60 days ahead. Progressive's own annual report shows what the ad line is worth: 6.3 cents of every premium dollar in 2025.

Hank Mercer· Sep 29·3 min

Credit Cards

Your Credit Report Dispute Is Half as Likely to Get Fixed as It Was in 2024. At Experian, It's 1 in 9.

We counted it ourselves out of the CFPB's public complaint database. Over the same eight months, TransUnion's relief rate on credit reporting complaints fell from 87.8 percent to 40.6, Equifax from 64.7 to 41.4, and Experian from 26.3 to 11.3. Here is the dispute route that still works.

Hank Mercer· Sep 28·3 min

Savings & Banking

Your Discover Money Market Card Stops Working October 8. The Six-Withdrawal Cap Doesn't Move.

Discover's deposit agreement changes on October 8, 2026. The Money Market Account Debit Card gets deleted, ATM withdrawals go with it, and the account's rate becomes officially balance-based. The six-transaction monthly cap stays exactly where it is.

Hank Mercer· Sep 28·3 min

Education

Your Employer Can Put $5,250 a Year Straight on Your Student Loans, Tax-Free. Only 1 in 10 Does.

Section 127 lets an employer pay principal or interest on your student loan, to you or to the servicer, and the first $5,250 a year never counts as income. The January 1, 2026 expiration that scared HR departments off is gone, and the cap gets indexed to inflation starting in 2027. Two questions to ask during open enrollment.

Hank Mercer· Sep 28·3 min

Mortgages

Texas Just Asked Insurers to Pay You Back for a Stronger Roof. Alabama Has Required It Since 2009.

On September 16 the Texas Department of Insurance told every residential property insurer in the state to build meaningful premium discounts for impact-resistant roofs and other loss mitigation. It encouraged. It did not require. Here is what to ask for before you re-roof.

Hank Mercer· Sep 28·3 min

Auto Insurance

Your Connecticut Renewal Bill Has to Admit the Premium Went Up. The Explanation Only Comes If You Ask.

Public Act 26-69 gives Connecticut insurers twenty business days to explain a premium increase in terms an average policyholder can follow, starting January 1, 2027. It does not stop the increase: eight of the state's 76 personal auto rate filings last year were flex filings that needed no prior approval at all.

Hank Mercer· Sep 27·3 min

Money & Life

Heating Help Opens Thursday. Day One Isn't for Everyone, and the Federal Money Runs Through December 11.

LIHEAP applications open October 1, but Illinois is only taking them from four priority groups until November 1. The federal money behind the program is funded by a stopgap that expires December 11, and last year the final 10% did not reach states until April 20.

Hank Mercer· Sep 27·3 min

Loans & Credit

Maryland's New Loan Check Ban Starts Thursday. The Kind Most People Actually Get Is Exempt.

Maryland Chapter 316 takes effect October 1, 2026 and bars mailing a live check tied to an unsolicited offer of secured credit. The prescreened unsecured live check, the one the state's own regulator flagged, is carved out. Here is what the law covers and the opt-out that works in all 50 states.

Hank Mercer· Sep 27·3 min

Mortgages

A Section 184 Home Loan Costs $500 More per $100,000 on Thursday. Your Closing Date Is Not the Deadline.

HUD is raising the upfront loan guarantee fee on Section 184 Native American home loans from 1.00% to 1.50% for every Firm Commitment issued on or after October 1, 2026, refinances included. The trigger is the Firm Commitment date, not your closing. Here is the math and the one question to ask your lender.

Hank Mercer· Sep 27·3 min

Money & Life

A Family of Four Gets $29 More in SNAP on October 1. The Second Raise Is Hidden in the Deductions.

SNAP's fiscal 2027 cost-of-living adjustment takes effect October 1, 2026. The maximum for a family of four in the 48 states goes from $994 to $1,023, but the standard deduction and the shelter cap moved too, and those are worth about 30 cents on the dollar. In Hawaii the maximum goes down.

Hank Mercer· Sep 27·3 min

Loans & Credit

Your California Loan Cap Rises on November 1. At $10,000 It Disappears Completely.

California caps installment loans of $2,500 to under $10,000 at 36% plus the federal funds rate. The Fed's September 16 hike reaches that cap on November 1, lifting the ceiling from 39.63% to 39.88%. At $10,000 the code sets no ceiling at all.

Hank Mercer· Sep 26·3 min

Mortgages

Your Mortgage Payment Can Drop Over 20%. Your Balance Won't Move a Dollar.

FHFA's September 24 report shows 74.4% of Fannie and Freddie loan modifications cut the payment by more than 20% last quarter, and 63% did it by parking principal instead of cutting the rate. Parked is not forgiven. Here is what to ask before you sign.

Hank Mercer· Sep 26·3 min

Savings & Banking

The Fake Bank Ad Above the Real One Paid to Be There

The FTC voted September 24 to open a rulemaking on whether search engines and social platforms should answer for the impersonation ads they optimize. Consumers reported nearly $3.5 billion in imposter losses in 2025. Here is the move to make while the comment window is open.

Hank Mercer· Sep 26·3 min

Auto Insurance

Software Probably Set the Price on Your Totaled Car. You Have Until Tuesday to Tell Regulators What to Ask It.

State insurance regulators ran a 12-state pilot on insurer AI from March through September, and the audit tool built out of it is open for public comment until close of business September 29. When the NAIC last surveyed auto insurers, 50 of them used models to set settlement amounts and none used them to deny a claim.

Hank Mercer· Sep 26·3 min

Savings & Banking

The Treasury Bills Behind Your Stablecoin Pay 4%. Federal Law Says Your Cut Is Zero.

Stablecoin reserves sit in Treasury bills paying about 4%, and GENIUS Act section 4(a)(11) bars the issuer from passing any of it to you. On $10,000 that gap is roughly $400 a year. Updated October 23: the OCC's final rule, effective January 18, 2027, dropped the presumption that would have caught exchange 'rewards' paid through affiliates.

Hank Mercer· Sep 26·4 min

Education

Day 270 Is the Line. After It, Fixing Your Student Loan Takes Nine Months Instead of One Call.

Federal Student Aid's September 22 portfolio update puts about 1.5 million borrowers in late-stage delinquency, close enough to default that the Department flags them itself. Before day 270 you fix this with a plan change. After it, the law makes you earn your way back.

Hank Mercer· Sep 26·3 min

Mortgages

FHA Wants to Stop Killing Loans Over Peeling Paint and a Missing Stove. One Letter Grade Replaces the Whole List.

FHA posted a rewrite of its Minimum Property Requirements on September 22. Kitchen appliances, exterior paint, roof covering, attic and crawl space observations all come off the repair list. In their place: a minimum C4 condition rating, and a worn roof still stops your closing.

Hank Mercer· Sep 25·3 min

Credit Cards

A Second Credit Repair Refund Check Is in the Mail. Cashing the First One Is the Only Way to Get It.

The CFPB allocated another $117,058,683.11 to the Lexington Law and CreditRepair.com redress. Checks mail from late September through October 2026, but only to people who cashed their first check by June 30 and whose amount is $10 or more. No claim to file, 90 days to cash, and the scam version is already working.

Hank Mercer· Sep 25·3 min

Money & Life

The Energy Rule for New Manufactured Homes Died September 18. On the Cheapest Homes It Paid for Itself in 3.7 Years.

DOE says its 2022 energy standards for manufactured housing now have no legal effect, and it will not enforce them. By DOE's own math the single-section version cost $660 and saved $177 a year. HUD has until July 11, 2027 to write a replacement.

Hank Mercer· Sep 25·3 min

Education

Your School Has Until 8 a.m. Wednesday to Claim Last Year's Pell Money. Then the Window Shuts.

Federal Student Aid set a hard cutoff of 8 a.m. Eastern on September 30, 2026 for schools to report 2025-26 Pell Grant records. After that the school cannot draw down or adjust the funds. If your Pell was ever short, corrected late, or tied to a summer term, call the aid office before Wednesday.

Hank Mercer· Sep 25·3 min

Credit Cards

You Paid the Whole Balance and Still Got an Interest Charge. Your Bank Has a Name for It.

Residual interest is the charge that accrues between your statement date and the day your payment posts. At the 22.15 percent average APR the Fed recorded for cards assessed interest, a $3,000 balance quietly runs up about $38 in the three weeks you thought you were paid off. One phone call kills it.

Hank Mercer· Sep 25·3 min

Auto Insurance

Most Texas Insurers Can't Legally Surcharge Your Speeding Ticket. The State Just Asked to Change That.

In a September 14 memo to Governor Abbott, the Texas Department of Insurance says only county mutual insurers may assign a rate consequence for moving violations, and asks the Legislature to let every carrier do it. Here is what that means for your next ticket, and the better idea buried on the same page.

Hank Mercer· Sep 25·3 min

Loans & Credit

Handing the Keys Back Doesn't End the Car Loan. It Ends the Tow Fee.

A voluntary repossession saves you the pickup fee and almost nothing else. Fitch says lenders recovered 38.0 percent on defaulted subprime auto loans in July 2026. The other 62 percent is still your bill, and in most states the lender can sue for it.

Hank Mercer· Sep 25·3 min

Savings & Banking

The Person Draining Your Checking Account Can Work at Your Bank. Your Statement Starts a 60-Day Clock.

The OCC barred a former PNC branch banker for making unauthorized debits from multiple customer accounts, and a former U.S. Bank phone banker for embezzling about $329,088. Regulation E decides who eats an unauthorized debit, and the clock it runs on starts the day your statement goes out.

Hank Mercer· Sep 24·3 min

Mortgages

Three Lenders Just Lost the Right to Underwrite FHA Loans in Five Cities. Check Yours Before You Apply.

HUD published terminations of Direct Endorsement approval for Equity Prime Mortgage, American Financial Network, and Sun West Mortgage on September 23. The trigger is a default and claim rate more than twice the local average. HUD publishes that same number about every FHA lender, free, and almost nobody looks.

Hank Mercer· Sep 24·3 min

Solar & Energy

Your HOA Has 45 Days to Deny Your Solar Panels. In California, Silence Means Yes.

California Civil Code 714 gives a homeowners association 45 days to deny a solar application in writing. Miss it and the application is deemed approved. The board can only add $1,000 of cost or shave 10 percent of output before its rules stop counting as reasonable.

Hank Mercer· Sep 24·3 min

Auto Insurance

She Bought $25,000 of Crash Medical Coverage and Collected Nothing. Her Health Plan Paid First.

A Massachusetts appeals court ruled on September 4 that an auto insurer does not have to pay Medical Payments benefits on bills a health plan already covered. If you carry health insurance and a big MedPay limit, you are paying for a ceiling you cannot reach. Here is how to size it properly.

Hank Mercer· Sep 24·3 min

Education

Take the Work-Study Job. The Bookstore Job Quietly Bills Your Family Next Year.

Two campus jobs, same hourly wage, different aid next year. The 2026-27 federal aid formula subtracts Federal Work-Study earnings from your income before it does anything else. A regular campus paycheck gets no such line.

Hank Mercer· Sep 24·3 min

Money & Life

760,000 People Lost Marketplace Coverage on August 31. Nobody Sent Them a Checklist.

CMS canceled about 315,000 Marketplace enrollments covering more than 760,000 people, then froze new agent and broker registration through February 1, 2027. The press release explains the crackdown and never tells those 760,000 what to do. Two screens and one phone number, before Open Enrollment starts November 1.

Hank Mercer· Sep 23·3 min

Auto Insurance

You Pay $325 a Year Extra to Insure an EV. Or $936. The Disagreement Is Your Opening.

Two 2026 rate studies priced the electric-vehicle insurance penalty at 11 percent and at 42 percent. Meanwhile Mitchell's second-quarter data put the repair cost gap between battery-electric and gas cars at $729, a record low, down from $1,140 three months earlier. Your carrier is not going to hand that back on its own.

Hank Mercer· Sep 23·3 min

Savings & Banking

Your Legislature Passed a Bank Law for You. Whether It Reaches Your Bank Comes Down to a Charter.

On September 17 the FDIC board approved a proposed rule that would stop host-state laws from applying to out-of-state state banks whenever those same laws already do not apply to national banks. It hit the Federal Register September 22 and comments close November 23, 2026. The mechanism is not theoretical: it already took 2 percent escrow interest away in 14 jurisdictions.

Hank Mercer· Sep 23·3 min

Money & Life

You Get Three Years and Three Months to Fix an Error in Your Social Security Record. Looking for One Is Free.

Social Security published a new fee schedule on September 21 that applies to requests received on or after October 1, 2026. Most prices fell. The W-2 fee quietly went from one flat charge per request to $54 per document. Here is the free check to run first and the one-week window where the date you order matters.

Hank Mercer· Sep 23·3 min

Solar & Energy

Two Judges Have Now Brought $7 Billion in Solar Help Back to Life. If a Salesperson Tells You It's Yours, It Isn't.

Two federal judges, on September 18 and September 22, ruled that the EPA unlawfully killed Solar for All, the $7 billion program aimed at putting solar on more than 900,000 low-income homes. The second ruling covers the whole program. EPA is weighing appeals of both and its own website still says the program is dead. Here is what the savings actually work out to and the one call worth making.

Hank Mercer· Sep 23·3 min

Education

A Full Point Off Your Student Loan Rate Is Worth About $378 a Year. You Now Have Until December 31.

Updated September 30: the Education Department pushed the enrollment deadline for the 1-point auto pay discount from September 30 to December 31, 2026. The bigger discount still ends June 30, 2028, so every month you wait costs you about $31 on an average balance. Here is what it is worth, who it does nothing for, and how to turn it on.

Hank Mercer· Sep 23·3 min

Auto Insurance

Your Insurer Now Pays Out More for Injuries Than for Cars. Go Read the First Number on Your Policy.

CCC Intelligent Solutions found bodily injury took 52.3 percent of the dollars paid across injury and physical damage claims last year, up from 44.4 percent in 2022, with the average injury payout now above $30,000 per person. If your liability limit still starts with a 2, the gap is yours to pay.

Hank Mercer· Sep 22·3 min

Mortgages

Your House May Have Moved Into a Flood Zone This Summer. The 45-Day Clock Started Without You.

FEMA updated flood map boundaries over the summer, newly placing properties in more than 100 communities across 12 states into the high-risk zone. Federal law gives you 45 days to buy flood insurance before your lender buys a pricier policy for you, and nobody is required to call you first.

Hank Mercer· Sep 22·3 min

Mortgages

Your Lender Says the 2027 Loan Limit Is $850,000. Nobody Has the Data Until November 24.

Pennymac moved its conforming loan limit to $850,000 on September 16. Twelve other lenders sit at $845,000. FHFA sets the real number in late November off third-quarter home prices that do not publish until November 24. If your loan lands in that window, here is what to get in writing.

Hank Mercer· Sep 22·3 min

Loans & Credit

Navy Federal Denied Your Fraud Claim. Now It's Canceling the Loan, and There's $250 You Have to Ask For.

A federal settlement in Edey v. Navy Federal cancels unauthorized personal loans, refunds every payment, and deletes the credit reporting, all automatically. The extra $250 needs a claim form postmarked by November 29, 2026.

Hank Mercer· Sep 22·3 min

Credit Cards

Your Store Card Charges $1.99 to Mail You Your Own Bill. It Counts as a Purchase, at 34.99%.

Synchrony's own card agreements charge a $1.99 monthly Paper Statement Fee, apply it even when you already have the electronic copy, and treat it as a new purchase at a 34.99% store-card APR. That is $23.88 a year before interest. One login turns it off.

Hank Mercer· Sep 22·3 min

Savings & Banking

Your U.S. Bank Debit Swipe Is About to Hit Instantly. The Overnight Float Dies November 16.

U.S. Bank is changing its Transaction Posting Order so PIN debit purchases post in real time instead of waiting for the nightly batch. Good news for overdraft risk, bad news if you've been floating. Here is what changes and what does not.

Hank Mercer· Sep 22·3 min

Loans & Credit

Your Car's Biggest Yearly Cost Is $4,422. You Never Get a Bill for It.

AAA's 2026 Your Driving Costs study puts the cost of owning a new car at $12,863 a year, or $1,071.92 a month. Depreciation is the largest single line at $4,422, and no invoice for it ever arrives. Here is the full breakdown, and the two lines you actually control on the day you sign.

Hank Mercer· Sep 21·3 min

Credit Cards

Ever Had a Citi Premier? Citi Just Locked You Out of a $600 Bonus for Good.

Citi swapped the 48-month bonus rule on its Strata cards for the word 'ever.' If you held a Citi Premier at any point, even a card you closed years ago, the 60,000-point welcome offer on the Strata Premier is off the table permanently.

Hank Mercer· Sep 21·3 min

Solar & Energy

Your Solar Credits Can't Touch NV Energy's New Charge. It Starts January 1.

Southern Nevada gets a daily demand charge on January 1, 2027: 14 cents for every kilowatt of your highest 15 minutes of usage that day. Most customers come out about even. Rooftop solar owners are projected to pay $12 to $20 a month more, because net metering credits cannot be applied to the demand charge. Here is how to shrink your peak before it starts counting.

Hank Mercer· Sep 21·3 min

Savings & Banking

Your Savings Account Is Not Rationed to Six Withdrawals. We Read the Fee Schedules.

The Fed deleted the six-transfer limit from Regulation D in April 2020 and never put it back. We pulled the current fee schedules from Chase, Bank of America and Wells Fargo. None of the three charges an excess withdrawal fee anymore. The habit outlived the rule.

Hank Mercer· Sep 21·3 min

Education

Up to $2,500 of Student Loan Interest Comes Off Your Income. The New Plan Shrinks Your Number.

The student loan interest deduction is claimed before you itemize anything, and for 2026 it starts phasing out at $85,000 of income single, $175,000 joint. But only interest you actually paid counts, and RAP waives the interest you don't.

Hank Mercer· Sep 21·3 min

Education

Your Aid Covered More Than Tuition. The School Has 14 Days to Hand You the Rest.

Leftover financial aid is called a Title IV credit balance, and federal rule gives your school 14 days to pay it to you. The same rule says the school needs your written permission to spend it on anything past tuition, fees and campus housing, and that you can cancel that permission any time.

Hank Mercer· Sep 21·3 min

Auto Insurance

An Uninsured Driver Wrecked Your Car. Your Deductible Depends on Which Coverage Pays.

Two coverages can pay to fix your car after an uninsured driver hits it. Collision, where your deductible might be $1,000. Or uninsured motorist property damage, where Texas and Illinois cap the deductible at $250. Nobody at the claims desk volunteers the difference.

Hank Mercer· Sep 21·3 min

Money & Life

Two Winter Heating Forecasts Split on Gas. Both Say Oil Homes Get Hit Hardest.

Updated October 10: the federal Winter Fuels Outlook released October 6 has natural gas homes spending 8.8 percent less this winter, not 5.8 percent more as the energy assistance directors projected in September. Both forecasts put heating oil far ahead of every other fuel, at 21 to 31 percent more. Here is what each says, why they differ, and what to do before the first cold snap.

Hank Mercer· Sep 21·4 min

Solar & Energy

Your August Solar Numbers Look Broken. Chicago Lost 17% of Its Sunlight and Dallas Lost $3 to Dirt.

Solcast ran the August 2026 irradiance numbers for North America. Chicago came in 17% below average, Texas ran 10% above, and Dallas hit the worst late-August soiling in a twenty-year record. Here is what each of those is actually worth in dollars, and which one is worth a phone call.

Hank Mercer· Sep 20·3 min

Savings & Banking

Your Savings Account Pays 0.38%. The FDIC's Own Table Says 4.38% Wouldn't Be Out of Line.

The Fed raised its target range to 3.75 to 4 percent on September 16 and banks moved prime to 7.00% the next day. The FDIC's national average savings rate is 0.38%. One column over on the same table, the regulator prints a 4.38% cap. Here is what the gap costs you and the one transfer that closes it.

Hank Mercer· Sep 20·3 min

Money & Life

Your Fuel Card Charged a Late Fee on a Bill You Paid on Time. That Just Cost FleetCor $100 Million.

On September 17, 2026 FleetCor, now Corpay, and its CEO agreed to pay $100 million into a redress fund for small business customers. The FTC says the company charged late fees to people who paid on time and waited several billing cycles to start charging fees at all. Here is the trick, and how to check your own statements for it.

Hank Mercer· Sep 20·3 min

Auto Insurance

A New Bill Promises Lower Car Insurance. Its Text Never Mentions Premiums.

H.R. 10269, the Stop Auto Fraud Act of 2026, would make staging a crash and filing the claim a federal crime carrying up to 10 years. We read the two-page bill. It creates one offense, routes fines to the Highway Trust Fund, and does nothing about your rate. Here is the exposure that is actually yours.

Hank Mercer· Sep 20·3 min

Loans & Credit

Your Car Loan Is Being Sold. If It Were a Mortgage, Federal Law Would Hand You 60 Protected Days.

Truist is selling $5.5 billion of Regional Acceptance auto loans, substantially all of the unit's assets, with closing set for late third quarter or early fourth quarter 2026. Your rate and term survive the sale. Your payment routing is the part that can wreck your credit, and car loans get none of the transfer protections mortgages get.

Hank Mercer· Sep 20·3 min

Mortgages

Your Servicer Is Now Allowed to Tell You Your PMI Can Come Off. Nothing Makes It. Ask Anyway.

Fannie Mae Lender Letter LL-2026-07, effective September 16, 2026, lets servicers contact borrowers who may qualify to cancel mortgage insurance based on current property value. It permits the call. It does not require it. Here is the math, the two cancellation routes, and why you should ask instead of waiting.

Hank Mercer· Sep 19·3 min

Savings & Banking

Bank Branches Almost Stopped Closing This Year. 182 Banks Vanished Anyway.

The FDIC published its June 30, 2026 Summary of Deposits on September 18. Our tally of the data: net branch losses fell to 56, down from 2,440 four years ago, while the number of reporting institutions dropped by 182. Your branch is not closing. Your bank is being absorbed, and that starts a six-month clock on your deposit insurance.

Hank Mercer· Sep 19·3 min

Loans & Credit

If Your Car Insurance Lapses, Your Lender Buys a Policy That Doesn't Cover You

Force-placed auto insurance costs 13% to 14% of what you still owe, about $1,775 a year, and the CFPB says it protects only the lender. One bank placed it 37,000 times it should not have and repossessed 1,005 cars over the charges.

Hank Mercer· Sep 19·3 min

Mortgages

A Lump Sum Into Your Mortgage Won't Lower Your Payment. One Phone Call Does.

Send your servicer $50,000 and your monthly bill doesn't move by a dollar. Ask for a recast and on a five-year-old 3.25% loan the same $50,000 cuts the payment $243.66 a month, rate untouched. Refinancing that balance at this week's 6.95% would raise your payment instead. Chase charges nothing for a recast and doesn't advertise it.

Hank Mercer· Sep 19·3 min

Education

Your Fall Transcript Decides Your Spring Aid, and the Rule That Kills It Isn't Your GPA

Federal law makes your school test three things in December: grades, the share of credits you finish, and how long you have been enrolled. Withdrawals count as attempted. One bad term can take two perfect ones to undo.

Hank Mercer· Sep 19·3 min

Auto Insurance

Your Insurer Made a Low Total-Loss Offer. From That Day, the Storage Lot Bills You.

Two state regulators say the same thing out loud: storage fees stop being the insurer's problem the day it makes an offer on your totaled car. In Texas a licensed lot can charge $22.85 a day for any part of a day. Your rental ends one or two days after that offer too. Move the car, then fight the number.

Hank Mercer· Sep 19·3 min

Savings & Banking

Your Bank Can Take Money Out of Your Savings to Cover Your Loan. For a Credit Card, It Can't.

The right of offset lets a bank pay itself out of your deposit account when you fall behind on a loan at the same bank, with no court order. Federal law blocks it for credit card debt and nothing else. Credit unions get a stronger version, and the two-month Social Security shield does not cover it.

Hank Mercer· Sep 18·3 min

Auto Insurance

California Charges You More for Being Single. Your Insurer Has Until July 2027 to Stop.

Marital status has been an optional auto rating factor in California since 1996. Commissioner Lara proposed ending it on September 16: no rate plan filed after October 25 can use it, and every insurer has to file without it by July 1, 2027. Consumer Watchdog puts the gap at $56 to $100 a policy.

Hank Mercer· Sep 18·3 min

Loans & Credit

If Credit Acceptance Wrote Your Car Loan, Your Balance Could Hit Zero on November 2

Attorneys general in 41 states settled with subprime auto lender Credit Acceptance on September 17. Roughly $634 million in balances get wiped and $60 million goes out as checks. You do not have to file anything, and nobody legitimate will charge you a fee.

Hank Mercer· Sep 18·4 min

Credit Cards

Your Card Rate Went Up Thursday. On the Balance You Already Owed.

The Fed raised its target range to 3.75 to 4 percent on September 16 and banks moved prime to 7.00% the next day. Two exceptions in Regulation Z mean the increase lands on your existing balance with no notice and no opt-out. The 25 basis points are small. What they kill is the plan you built around a rate cut.

Hank Mercer· Sep 18·3 min

Education

Your College Is Getting a Late Pile of Grant Money This Week. Ask If Any Is Yours.

Federal Student Aid finishes handing out supplemental FSEOG money by September 30 and tells schools by the end of the month. FSEOG is a grant, not a loan, and the school picks who gets it. Send one email the first week of October.

Hank Mercer· Sep 18·3 min

Solar & Energy

Your Panels Got a Second Set of Tariffs. Customs Is Already Collecting Them.

On September 16 Commerce finalized antidumping and countervailing duties on solar cells from India, Indonesia and Laos, and the combined rates run past 200%. Cash deposits are being collected now. The ITC votes October 14 and orders land November 2. The number that decides what this costs you is not the duty rate. It is whether your contract has an escalation clause.

Hank Mercer· Sep 18·3 min

Money & Life

Signed Up to Sell Amway and Ended Up With a Garage Full of It? $225 Million Is Coming Back.

The FTC and Washington state filed a proposed order against Amway on September 17, 2026. Nearly all of the $225 million goes to people recruited by World Wide Group and Leadership Team Development who lost money. The bigger fix is a rule that makes sellers prove they sold something.

Hank Mercer· Sep 17·3 min

Loans & Credit

Paying Off the Car Early Might Save You Nothing. One Word in the Contract Decides.

A simple interest car loan rewards early payoff. A precomputed one refunds you by formula, and federal law only forces the fair formula above 61 months. CFPB complaints about the end of a car loan just passed complaints about getting one.

Hank Mercer· Sep 17·3 min

Education

At 500 Colleges, 4 in 10 Borrowers Aren't Paying. Look Yours Up Before You Sign.

The Education Department published a nonpayment rate for every school in its loan portfolio. Five hundred came back at 40 percent or worse, and 424 of those are for-profit colleges. The file is free and it takes two minutes to check your school.

Hank Mercer· Sep 17·3 min

Credit Cards

Your Credit Limit Is Not Yours. The Bank Can Cut It to Zero and Tell You After.

Card issuers can shrink your limit any time, with no warning, and the damage lands on your credit score rather than your statement. Two rules in Regulation Z limit what it can cost you. Almost nobody uses them.

Hank Mercer· Sep 17·3 min

Auto Insurance

You Paid a Deductible for Somebody Else's Mistake. There Is a Clock on Getting It Back.

If another driver hit you and you claimed on your own collision coverage, your insurer is supposed to chase your deductible and hand it back. Texas gives it exactly one year. Here is how to find out where yours is.

Hank Mercer· Sep 17·3 min

Mortgages

Five Million Home Loans Under 4% Are Legally Yours to Take Over. The Catch Is the Cash.

FHA, VA and USDA mortgages are assumable. We pulled FHFA's own loan database: 43% of them carry a rate under 4%, and 57% have so much equity the buyer has to write a six-figure check. Here's when the math actually works.

Hank Mercer· Sep 16·3 min

Loans & Credit

That $85 Doc Fee Belongs in the Advertised Price. Now the FTC Has Sued a Dealer Group Over It.

FTC staff published pricing FAQs for auto dealers on September 15, 2026. On October 8 the FTC settled with Greenway, a Florida dealer group it says charged over 92% of buyers an average of $3,354 over the advertised price. Here is how to use both at the desk.

Hank Mercer· Sep 16·3 min

Money & Life

Paying the Medical Bill Yourself? The Price Is Supposed to Reach You in Writing First.

The No Surprises Act makes providers hand self-pay patients a written good faith estimate before care. If the bill lands at least $400 above it, a federal reviewer decides what you owe, and collections stop while it runs. Most people never ask for the estimate.

Hank Mercer· Sep 16·3 min

Mortgages

Your Mortgage Got Sold. For 60 Days, Paying the Wrong Company Can't Be Held Against You.

Regulation X gives you a 60-day window after a servicing transfer where an on-time payment to the old servicer can't be treated as late for any purpose. Here is how to use it before the late fee lands.

Hank Mercer· Sep 16·3 min

Credit Cards

Your $49 Navy Federal Card Costs $95 on November 2. You Can Reject the Fee, and That Closes the Account.

Navy Federal is nearly doubling the Visa Signature Flagship Rewards annual fee. Federal law gives you until 11:59 p.m. Eastern on November 1 to reject the change, but rejecting kills the card. Here's the math on all three doors.

Hank Mercer· Sep 16·3 min

Savings & Banking

Deposit a Check Today. $275 of It Is Yours Tomorrow.

The federal minimum a bank has to release the next business day went from $225 to $275 on July 1, 2025, along with four other Regulation CC thresholds. The CFPB's own consumer page still prints the old numbers. Here is what your bank actually owes you, and why available never means cleared.

Hank Mercer· Sep 16·3 min

Education

Drop Your Classes Before Your Term Hits 60% and the School Bills You Back. After It, You Owe Nothing.

Federal law splits your term at the 60% point. Withdraw before it and you keep only the aid that matches the days you attended. Here is how to find your date and what the school can charge you.

Hank Mercer· Sep 16·3 min

Loans & Credit

Your Lender Will Let You Skip a Car Payment. The Interest Doesn't Skip.

Ask your auto lender to defer a payment and you will probably get a yes. Philadelphia Fed researchers found extensions rising and redefaults running about 50% above pre-2020 levels. Here is what to ask before you accept one.

Hank Mercer· Sep 15·3 min

Credit Cards

Your Extra Payment Has to Attack Your Highest Rate. Your Minimum Goes Wherever the Bank Wants.

Federal law tells your card issuer to send everything above the minimum payment to your highest-rate balance first. It says nothing at all about the minimum itself. On a card carrying a 0 percent promo plus regular purchases, that gap runs about $200 a year.

Hank Mercer· Sep 15·3 min

Auto Insurance

Your Delivery App Covers the Driver You Hit. It Never Pays to Fix Your Car.

Uber's own page says its coverage does not pay for repairs to your car or for your injuries at any period of a delivery. A passenger trip carries at least $1 million. A food order carries $500,000. Here is the endorsement to ask for by name.

Hank Mercer· Sep 15·3 min

Savings & Banking

Treasury Tied $12.7 Billion to Crypto Investment Scams. The Biggest Money Moved Through Regular Banks.

FinCEN reviewed 33,904 suspicious activity reports and found $12.7 billion tied to digital asset investment scams. Money transmitters filed more than half the reports. Banks filed about 41 percent and carried a billion dollars more. Here is what the numbers say about how the money actually leaves, and the one demand that ends the argument.

Hank Mercer· Sep 15·3 min

Education

Your First Student Loan Lands Three Weeks After Everyone Else's. Nobody Moved Your Rent.

Colleges had to reprogram their systems for the federal loan rules that took effect July 1, and first-time borrowers are getting paid last. Austin Community College put first-time borrower loans at September 14 to 18 while continuing borrowers got theirs by September 3. Here are the two things to ask the bursar this week, in writing.

Hank Mercer· Sep 15·3 min

Credit Cards

Your Chargeback Is an Alarm Bell. A Payment Processor Just Paid $12 Million for Muting It.

The FTC says Humboldt Merchant Services ran payments for more than 1,000 shell merchants while chargebacks sat almost 10 times above what the card brands call excessive, then moved the accounts onto low-risk card numbers so the monitoring would not catch them. A federal judge entered the order on September 11. Here is why your written dispute matters more than the refund.

Hank Mercer· Sep 15·3 min

Auto Insurance

Another Driver's Crash Landed on Her Insurance File. Four Disputes Didn't Move It.

Geico agreed to pay $1.65 million to about 7,200 people who disputed bad claims data on their C.L.U.E. auto report. The lawsuit says Geico confirmed the plaintiff wasn't the driver and left the accident on her file anyway. Here is what the law actually requires of your insurer, and the October 20 deadline.

Hank Mercer· Sep 15·3 min

Money & Life

Every Non-Bank ATM Fee You Paid Since 2007 Just Became a Claim Form

Visa and Mastercard will pay $167.5 million to settle a 15-year antitrust case over independent ATM surcharges. If a non-bank machine charged you between October 2007 and August 2026, you can file without a receipt. Claims close February 10, 2027.

Hank Mercer· Sep 15·3 min

Solar & Energy

Your Solar Loan Has a Payment Increase Built Into Month 18. The Tax Credit That Was Supposed to Cover It Is Gone.

Most solar loans quote you a payment that assumes you will drop about 30% of the balance onto the principal within 18 months. That lump sum was the federal tax credit, and the IRS killed it for anything placed in service after December 31, 2025. Here is how to find out whether your loan has the jump in it.

Hank Mercer· Sep 15·3 min

Solar & Energy

Virginia's Solar Contract Rules Start January 1. Sign This Fall and You Get Three Days, If You Get Anything.

From January 1, 2027, a Virginia residential solar contract has to be written, has to spell out the production estimate and the electric-rate assumption behind the savings pitch, and carries a five business day cancellation right. Until then the old rules apply, and they only reach deals pitched at your door.

Hank Mercer· Sep 15·3 min

Savings & Banking

Your Bank's Next Federal Exam Just Moved Six Months Further Out. Only Your Uninsured Money Cares.

Three federal banking agencies raised the cutoff for an 18-month on-site exam cycle from $3 billion in assets to $6 billion, effective September 14. About 188 more institutions qualify, bringing the total to 4,016. Your insured deposits are untouched. Here is the ten-minute check for the part of your balance that is not.

Hank Mercer· Sep 14·3 min

Loans & Credit

A Cloned Dealership Site Takes Your Deposit. The Only Thing That Saves You Is How You Paid.

The FTC says scammers are copying real car dealership websites down to the logos and the listings, then asking for a wire. Federal law protects a card payment. It does not protect a wire. Run this test before you send a dollar.

Hank Mercer· Sep 14·3 min

Education

Your $2,500 College Credit Stops at $4,000 of Bills. Check What You've Paid Before You Prepay Spring.

The American Opportunity Tax Credit is built on the first $4,000 you pay a college in a calendar year, and the IRS counts payment dates, not billing dates. Paying the spring bill in December is worth $250 to some families and nothing at all to others. Here is how to tell which one you are.

Hank Mercer· Sep 14·3 min

Mortgages

Your Escrow Analysis Is Coming. It Bills This Year's Insurance Increase Twice.

Home insurance is on track to average $3,057 by the end of 2026, up 4% after a 12% jump in 2025. When your servicer runs its annual escrow analysis, your payment rises by roughly double what your bills rose, because you backfill last year's shortage and fund next year at the same time. Here is the math and the one call that cuts it in half.

Hank Mercer· Sep 14·3 min

Credit Cards

Your Fidelity Card Stops Covering Your Purchases on January 1. Nobody Has to Mail You a Notice.

Purchase Security and Lost Luggage Reimbursement end on the Fidelity Rewards Visa Signature on January 1, 2027. The announcement is one sentence on page 2 of a 19-page PDF, and the 45-day notice rule does not cover perks. Here is what you lose and the call to make before December.

Hank Mercer· Sep 14·3 min

Mortgages

That Postcard From a Company You've Never Heard Of Is Worth About $75. You Have Until November 6.

SitusAMC processes mortgage files for the biggest banks in the country. Its November 2025 breach exposed Social Security numbers, and the $5.3 million settlement pays about $75 with no proof required. Claims close November 6, 2026.

Hank Mercer· Sep 14·3 min

Money & Life

Your Health Insurer Quit. If You Do Nothing by December 15, the Marketplace Picks Your Next One.

At least a dozen insurers are leaving the ACA Marketplace after 2026, across more than 20 states. If your company is one of them and you take no action, HealthCare.gov re-enrolls you with a different insurer. New network, new drug list, new deductible. Here is the calendar.

Hank Mercer· Sep 13·3 min

Loans & Credit

A Car Loan Is the Easiest Yes Since 2015. The Rate Went Up.

Auto credit access rose for a fifth straight month in September to its highest level since April 2015, and roughly three of four applications get approved. Look at how that yes got built: a record 31.8% of loans now run past 72 months, down payments are the thinnest since 2022, and the average contract rate went up, not down, to 11.22%. Approval is not a price quote, and the gap between credit tiers on the same used car is about $7,200.

Hank Mercer· Sep 13·3 min

Savings & Banking

Your Brokerage Wants 10 Business Days to Sit on Your Withdrawal. If You Are 65, the Ask Is 145.

FINRA filed SR-FINRA-2026-018 with the SEC on August 20. A new rule would let your firm delay any adult's transfer for 10 business days on a reasonable belief of fraud, and stretch the existing senior hold from 55 business days to 145. Comments close September 30.

Hank Mercer· Sep 13·3 min

Auto Insurance

North Carolina Gives You 30 Days to Answer the DMV Instead of 10. The Letter Still Isn't Optional.

From October 1, North Carolina drivers get 30 days to respond to a liability insurance termination notice instead of 10. Answer it with a clean record and it costs nothing. Ignore it and you are looking at a revoked plate, a civil penalty of $50 to $150, and a $50 restoration fee.

Hank Mercer· Sep 13·3 min

Solar & Energy

Texas Now Makes Your Utility Prove a Solar Fee Before the State Approves It. El Paso's Landed Six Months Early.

House Bill 912 took effect September 1, 2026. In the parts of Texas outside ERCOT, the Public Utility Commission has to make a utility file a comprehensive cost-benefit analysis before it can change what your panels earn. El Paso Electric's solar charge was approved in February.

Hank Mercer· Sep 13·3 min

Education

Your Kid's School Will Float the Spring Bill for $25. Parent PLUS Wants $265 and 9.07%.

Spring 2027 tuition payment plans are opening now, and the cheapest tier closes first. On a $6,000 semester bill, the school's interest-free plan costs $25. Parent PLUS costs $265 in fees and $9,552 by the time it is paid off. Run the comparison before you sign the loan.

Hank Mercer· Sep 13·3 min

Savings & Banking

Your Bank Can't Fire the Company That Runs Its Software. On September 11, Three Regulators Said That's Your Problem Too.

The Fed, FDIC, and OCC issued a joint statement on core service providers, the handful of vendors that run account processing for most community banks and credit unions. They named opaque pricing, retroactive back billing, undefined exit fees, and contract terms that block outside products. And they said those vendors can be held liable like a bank.

Hank Mercer· Sep 12·3 min

Money & Life

On October 1, a D.C. Hospital Payment Plan Maxes Out at 3% of Your Monthly Income. Your Hospital Already Owes You the Application.

The Medical Debt Mitigation Amendment Act switches on October 1, 2026: free care at or below 200% of the poverty line, discounts to 500%, payment plans capped at 3% of monthly income, interest capped at 3% a year, and no collection call for 180 days. Outside D.C., federal law already makes your nonprofit hospital hand you the same paperwork.

Hank Mercer· Sep 12·3 min

Mortgages

Your FHA Loan Gets Two New Credit Scores on January 1. Running All Three Can Only Hurt You.

From January 1, 2027, FHA will score your loan with VantageScore 4.0 or FICO Score 10T, not just Classic FICO. VantageScore counts on-time rent. Classic FICO ignores it. But if your lender submits more than one model, every one of them has to come back Accept. Here is the question to ask before they pull your credit.

Hank Mercer· Sep 12·4 min

Loans & Credit

The Finance Office Says It Got You a Credit Union Loan. On September 8, the Cap on That Business Came Off.

NCUA just deleted the rule limiting how many dealer-originated car loans a credit union could buy from any one outside servicer. The old ceiling was 50% of net worth, rising to 100%. A credit union loan arranged at the dealership is not the same product as one you get yourself.

Hank Mercer· Sep 12·3 min

Education

Your 20-Year-Old Student Loan Just Reset to 5.98%. A New One Costs 6.52%.

If your federal student loan was first disbursed before July 1, 2006, it does not have a fixed rate. It resets every July 1 against the 91-day Treasury bill, and the Education Department published this year's numbers on September 10. Here is what you are paying, where the ceiling sits, and why locking it in costs more than it looks.

Hank Mercer· Sep 12·3 min

Credit Cards

The Dealer Ran Your Credit. A Vendor You Never Picked Lost It. Claim Closes September 22.

700Credit runs the financing check at auto, RV, boat, and motorcycle dealerships. Attackers got into it in October 2025 and took names, birth dates, and Social Security numbers for about 5.8 million people. There's $50 waiting, or up to $2,500 with proof, and eleven days to file.

Hank Mercer· Sep 11·3 min

Savings & Banking

The Bank Can End Your CD Early. You Can't. That's What the Extra Yield Buys.

A callable CD gives the issuing bank the right to terminate it. You never get the same right. The Fed's rate-setting committee meets September 15 and 16, and the SEC's own investor publication spells out what happens to your rate when rates fall. Two questions to ask before you sign.

Hank Mercer· Sep 11·3 min

Solar & Energy

Your Power Bill Climbs Through 2027. You Won't Use a Single Extra Kilowatt-Hour.

Updated October 24 with the federal outlook released October 6 and actual prices through August. The average residential electricity price goes from 17.30 cents in 2025 to 18.68 cents in 2027 while average household usage ends where it started. The whole increase is price. Two regions take more than three times the hit New England does, and state actuals show New Hampshire up 15% while Connecticut fell 9%.

Hank Mercer· Sep 11·3 min

Mortgages

Renting Out Your Old House to Buy the Next One? On November 1, the Lease Stops Counting.

Fannie Mae rewrote its rental income rules. Lease agreements are no longer permitted for a departing residence, so your lender prices the old house off market comps instead. Here's the math, the six-month reserve trap, and what to check before you apply.

Hank Mercer· Sep 11·3 min

Loans & Credit

Hybrid Buyers Have the Cheapest New-Car Payment in the Country. $75 a Month Under Gas.

Experian's second-quarter data puts the average new hybrid loan payment at $646 a month against $721 for a gas vehicle. That gap is not a discount anyone will hand you. The fuel math is the part that actually pays, and here is how to price it before you sign.

Hank Mercer· Sep 11·3 min

Auto Insurance

Your Insurer Can Put Non-Original Parts on Your Car. From October 1, Utah Makes It Tell You in Writing.

Utah Code 31A-22-319 now requires an aftermarket crash parts notice at issuance and at every renewal, for policies issued on or after October 1, 2026. The notice is informational only. The sentence that costs you money is on the repair estimate, and the legislature excused the state from enforcing that part.

Hank Mercer· Sep 11·3 min

Solar & Energy

Nothing on Your Roof Just Became Illegal. Ask What Inverter Your Quote Uses Anyway.

The FCC put foreign-made solar inverters on its Covered List in July, then narrowed it in August. Its own fact sheet says your installed unit and every previously approved model are untouched. The part that reaches your wallet is the replacement you buy in year ten.

Hank Mercer· Sep 10·3 min

Education

Your Kid's Fall Loan Is Locked at 6.52% for Life. Yours, as the Parent, Is 9.07%.

Federal Student Aid published the 2026-27 federal student loan rates on September 10, about ten weeks after the money started going out. Undergrads get 6.52%, parents get 9.07%, and one Treasury auction in May set both of them for the life of the loan.

Hank Mercer· Sep 10·3 min

Mortgages

FHA Killed Loans Over 100 Feet of Dirt. Your County Health Department Decides Now.

FHA has waived its own well distance rules for existing homes. If the county says the well is fine where it sits and the water test passes, the appraisal condition that used to end these deals is gone. Two documents get you there.

Hank Mercer· Sep 10·3 min

Auto Insurance

The FTC Wants Apps to Admit They Price You Off Your Data. Your Car Insurer Is Exempt, Because You Can Already Ask.

A proposed FTC enforcement policy statement would make businesses disclose when your personal data sets your price. Insurance is carved out, and the FTC's reason is that insurance law already makes your insurer tell you. In California that includes the names and addresses of whoever supplied the data.

Hank Mercer· Sep 10·3 min

Money & Life

A Collector Is Calling You in New York City. Say You Dispute It and They Have 60 Days or They Stop.

NYC's SHIELD rule took effect September 1. You can dispute a debt at any time, out loud, on the phone. No 30-day window. The collector has to stop and produce real proof in 60 days or mail you a letter saying it cannot. Keep that letter.

Hank Mercer· Sep 10·3 min

Education

Chasing PSLF? The New RAP Plan Won't Let You Buy Back a Single Month.

PSLF Buyback lets you pay for months you sat in deferment or forbearance and get the credit anyway. The regulation carves out one plan by name: the Repayment Assistance Plan. If your servicer is making you pick a plan this month, price that in.

Hank Mercer· Sep 10·3 min

Auto Insurance

Your Car Insurance Quote Is Priced Off a Seven-Year File You Have Never Read. The Copy Is Free.

Before an insurer quotes you, it pulls your C.L.U.E. report: seven years of claims, the amount paid, and who was at fault. Errors on it quietly raise your premium. Here is how to get your free copy, what to check line by line, and how to dispute it.

Hank Mercer· Sep 9·3 min

Money & Life

Your Check Casher Reports You at $1,000 in El Paso and Albuquerque. In Phoenix, That Just Stopped.

FinCEN renewed its order forcing money services businesses to file a federal report on cash transactions of $1,000 or more and verify your ID. The renewal covers five Texas counties and three in New Mexico through March 1, 2027. Arizona and California quietly came off the list.

Hank Mercer· Sep 9·3 min

Loans & Credit

The Finance Desk's First Question Is the Trick. The FTC Named It 'Payment Packing.'

A federal case accused a dealer group of asking buyers what monthly payment they wanted, then stuffing add-ons into the gap. On September 3 the FTC pulled that case out of the courtroom, the step that happens when a settlement lands. Give the out-the-door price instead.

Hank Mercer· Sep 9·3 min

Loans & Credit

The 'Optional' Tip on Your Paycheck Advance App Averaged More Than $280 a User. Maryland Deletes the Button on October 1.

Maryland's Senate Bill 94 bans earned wage access apps from accepting a tip, or even offering the option, starting October 1, 2026. The state counted $35 million in fees on 5.5 million advances. Here is what that tip screen actually costs and how to zero it out wherever you live.

Hank Mercer· Sep 9·3 min

Solar & Energy

The New Solar Pitch Wants 70% Up Front. You Don't Own the Panels for Six Years.

Prepaid leases are filling the hole the dead homeowner tax credit left behind. The discount is real. The year-six handoff the pitch calls a $0 transfer is the part the contract prices at fair market value.

Hank Mercer· Sep 9·3 min

Savings & Banking

Your TreasuryDirect Password Stops Working October 28. The Fix Opens Sunday.

Treasury is moving TreasuryDirect logins to ID.me. You can switch starting September 13, and the old password dies October 28. Your bonds are safe either way. What you lose is the door.

Hank Mercer· Sep 9·3 min

Credit Cards

The Cheap Balance Transfer Fee Runs Out Months Before the 0% Does

Citi's balance transfer cards charge 3 percent if you move the debt inside the first four months and 5 percent after that. BankAmericard only gives its intro rate to transfers made within 60 days. On $8,000, that timing is worth $160, and the transfer itself can take 10 days to process.

Hank Mercer· Sep 8·3 min

Savings & Banking

Your One-Year CD Renews Itself Into 1.71%. The Law Lets the Bank Tell You the Day Before.

Federal law makes a bank give 30 days notice before a CD longer than a year renews itself. On a one-year CD, the rule says only that the notice come before maturity. The FDIC national average 12-month CD pays 1.71 percent. Find your maturity date this week.

Hank Mercer· Sep 8·3 min

Auto Insurance

You Brightened the Photo So the Dent Would Show. Your Insurer Logs That as an Edit.

Verisk asked 1,000 consumers which edits to a claim photo are acceptable. 52% said adjusting brightness. Insurers now run those files through detection software that has a rejection lane, and 53% of them think most people altering claim media have no idea it can count as fraud.

Hank Mercer· Sep 8·3 min

Solar & Energy

Colorado Springs Is Giving Solar Customers Two Rate Options. Both Cost About $38 More a Month.

City Council approved the new net metering rates on September 22. Sign a net metering agreement before April 1, 2027 and you keep today's prices until 2032. The utility's own filing says the cost shift it is fixing costs a non-solar customer $21 a year.

Hank Mercer· Sep 8·3 min

Mortgages

Catching Up on an FHA Loan Puts a Second Lien on Your House. FHA Is Testing a Version Without One.

FHA's draft Reinstatement Advance Payment rule would stop recording a subordinate mortgage every time a partial claim brings a borrower current. Same zero interest, no second lien, and a new repayment schedule at the end of your loan. Feedback closes September 18, 2026.

Hank Mercer· Sep 8·3 min

Education

The Federal Cap Left a Hole in Your Law School Bill. Two Schools Now Lend at 5% and 7.5%.

Professional student borrowing got capped at $50,000 a year on July 1. Kansas and WashU responded by becoming the lender. Both rates undercut the 8.07% federal loan, and neither loan counts for PSLF or income-driven repayment.

Hank Mercer· Sep 8·3 min

Credit Cards

The Card Reader Asks If You Want to Pay in Dollars. That Screen Costs About 5%.

Dynamic currency conversion marks up the exchange rate by roughly 5 percent in Europe, and it does not spare you your card's foreign transaction fee. Visa's own rules say the terminal is not allowed to pick the currency for you.

Hank Mercer· Sep 8·3 min

Mortgages

Home Prices Rose 2.1% Last Year. You Are Not Going to Appreciate Your Way Out of PMI.

The FHFA index released August 25 puts U.S. house price growth at 2.1 percent over the year to Q2 2026. The federal PMI cancellation clock runs on your original purchase price anyway, and the appraisal shortcut Fannie Mae offers sets a harder bar than the free route.

Hank Mercer· Sep 8·3 min

Money & Life

Your Bank Can Tell You Why It Froze Your Account. Five Regulators Just Put That in Writing.

On September 2 the Fed, FDIC, NCUA, OCC and FinCEN said secrecy rules never stopped a bank from telling you which transactions triggered a freeze or a closure. It does not force your bank to talk. It does take away the excuse.

Hank Mercer· Sep 7·3 min

Solar & Energy

California Stops Exempting New Solar From Property Tax on January 1. The Bill to Extend It Died in a Committee in May.

California's property tax exclusion for new solar systems is repealed January 1, 2027. Your system has to be finished before then, not just signed for. Here is what the break is actually worth, and why that number should not stampede you into a bad solar loan.

Hank Mercer· Sep 7·3 min

Loans & Credit

The IRS Will Deduct Your Paint Protection. It Won't Deduct the Debt You Rolled In From Your Last Car.

Final IRS rules published September 8 lock in which parts of a car loan qualify for the new interest deduction. Dealer add-ons count. Negative equity from your trade-in does not, and it drags down every interest payment you make.

Hank Mercer· Sep 7·3 min

Savings & Banking

Leave Your Savings Alone Long Enough and the State Takes It. Interest Doesn't Count as Touching It.

Banks hand dormant accounts to the state after three to five years of no customer-initiated activity. The interest your bank posts every month is not activity. Pennsylvania alone is sitting on more than $5 billion, average claim over $1,000.

Hank Mercer· Sep 7·3 min

Education

Your Aid Award Runs on 2024 Income. The Appeal That Fixes It Falls Apart When ChatGPT Writes It.

If your household lost income after you filed the FAFSA, federal law lets a school reopen your numbers. Aid officers say they can spot the chatbot-written appeal, and one consultant says a letter he wrote by hand moved a student more than $40,000. Here is what to send instead.

Hank Mercer· Sep 7·3 min

Auto Insurance

Flood Cars Are Moving Back Onto the Lots. The Free VIN Check Sees Only the Insurers Who Joined.

The National Insurance Crime Bureau warned buyers on August 13 that flood-damaged cars are re-entering the used market. Its free VINCheck is worth running. The $10 federal database is the one every insurer and salvage yard is required by law to feed.

Hank Mercer· Sep 7·3 min

Loans & Credit

Your Lease Already Names the Price to Buy Your Car. Dealers Charge More Anyway.

New York made 15 Nissan dealerships refund $4.5 million for padding lease buyouts with junk fees, then made the finance arm cover all 45 stores in the state. The purchase price is in your contract. Here is how to check it before you sign.

Hank Mercer· Sep 7·3 min

Money & Life

The Government Pays 3.49% on Its Debt. You Pay 6.71% on a Mortgage.

Federal debt crossed $40 trillion on September 3, and the interest bill hit $931 billion in ten months, up 11%. Washington is on the same rolling-rate treadmill you are, and it gets to the money first. What that means for what you pay.

Hank Mercer· Sep 7·3 min

Solar & Energy

Your Solar Credits Expire Once a Year. The Utility Buys the Leftovers for Two Cents.

Rooftop solar customers get one real bill a year, the annual True-Up, and the average California household owes about $600 on it. Any credit you banked and did not spend gets reset to zero. Find your True-Up month before it lands.

Hank Mercer· Sep 7·3 min

Auto Insurance

90,000 Drivers Lost Their Lowball Total-Loss Case. The Woman Who Filed It Still Got $4,000.

A federal appeals court blocked 90,000 State Farm policyholders from suing as a class over how their totaled cars were valued. The named plaintiff used the appraisal clause in her own policy instead and collected more than $4,000. That clause is in your policy too.

Hank Mercer· Sep 7·3 min

Credit Cards

Your Electric Bill Can Pay 5% Starting October 1. Discover Only Counts It If You Push the Button First.

Discover's Q4 2026 bonus categories are utilities, restaurants, and entertainment: 5% back on up to $1,500 from October 1 through December 31. Activation is open now, the bonus is not retroactive, and two pieces of fine print decide whether your bills actually qualify.

Hank Mercer· Sep 6·3 min

Savings & Banking

Your EE Bond's Guaranteed Doubling Is Worth 3.53% a Year. A 20-Year Treasury Pays 5.25%.

Series EE savings bonds sold through October 31 carry a 2.40% fixed rate and a promise to double at year 20. That promise works out to 3.53% a year, and the same government was yielding 5.25% on its 20-year note on September 4.

Hank Mercer· Sep 6·3 min

Mortgages

Farmers Just Widened Its California Bundling Discount to 22%. Your Renewal After September 15 Decides If You Get It.

California approved Farmers' new homeowners rating plan at a 1.5% statewide average, effective September 15, 2026, for nearly 915,000 homeowners. The home and auto package discount goes from 15% to 22%. The discount is worth more than the increase, and you have to be in the right column to get it.

Hank Mercer· Sep 6·3 min

Credit Cards

Your Dispute Is the Only Alarm the Payment System Has. This One Rang at 89% and Nobody Moved.

The FTC says processor Nuvei ran more than $30 million for an offshore tech support scam from 2017 to 2023 while watching chargeback rates hit 89.75% in a single month. It settled for $4.85 million on September 4.

Hank Mercer· Sep 6·3 min

Education

Your Perkins Loan Gets a New Servicer on December 1. The Notice Went to Colleges, Not to You.

Federal Student Aid is moving federally held Perkins loans from ECSI to GCR Servicing by December 1, 2026. Updated September 23: a second announcement finally gave borrowers a timeline. Goodbye letters around November 1, consolidation requests frozen November 15 to mid-December, and you have to re-establish your auto-draft with the new servicer yourself.

Hank Mercer· Sep 6·4 min

Money & Life

Amazon Ran a Hidden Markup Through Its Ad Auction for Seven Years. The FTC Says You Paid It.

The FTC and 22 states sued Amazon on August 31 over a secret surcharge buried in its advertising auction. The agency's own filing says the higher costs were largely passed on to shoppers. Here is what the numbers show and how to shop around the Sponsored row.

Hank Mercer· Sep 5·3 min

Mortgages

The ARM Is Saving Buyers $284 a Month Right Now. The Government's Own Example Shows the Year-8 Bill.

Updated October 2026: the 5/1 ARM contract rate is 6.43% against 7.49% on the 30-year fixed, and one application in ten is now an ARM. On $400,000 that gap is about $284 a month. Here is the math, and the four lines on your Loan Estimate that decide whether to take it.

Hank Mercer· Sep 5·3 min

Loans & Credit

The Lot That Says Yes Has 16 Times as Many Cars in Repossession. The Fed Counted.

A $15,000 used-car budget now buys an 8.7-year-old car with 98,000 miles, and the dealer who also writes the loan is often the only lender left saying yes. Federal Reserve economists finally measured what those loans cost: 25.39% interest, 5% of balances in active repossession, and payments due every two weeks.

Hank Mercer· Sep 5·3 min

Auto Insurance

Florida Drivers Are Getting Checks. Yours Goes to the Last Address Your Insurer Has.

Dairyland's $30 million dividend started landing this week. USAA sent $500 million, Progressive is crediting close to $1 billion, and an actuarial report says Floridians paid almost $3 billion less in premiums in 2025. A dividend is not a rate cut. Collect both.

Hank Mercer· Sep 5·3 min

Loans & Credit

A Forgotten $1,200 Card Bill Took Her Truck. Massachusetts Just Moved to Void 6,500 Debts Like It.

A proposed settlement filed September 2, 2026 would forgive about 6,500 Massachusetts debts with a stated balance near $53 million, vacate judgments, release liens, and return seized cars. The part that matters everywhere else is how those debts got that far.

Hank Mercer· Sep 5·3 min

Solar & Energy

Adding Panels to Your Old Solar Array Can Cancel a 20-Year Rate Lock. The Line Is 1 kW.

If your California system got permission to operate before April 15, 2023, your export rate is locked for 20 years. PG&E's own FAQ says you can grow the system by 10% or 1 kW, and that what happens past that is unclear. Get the number in writing before you sign an expansion contract.

Hank Mercer· Sep 5·3 min

Money & Life

The Cap on a Bad Medical Year Goes to $12,000 in January. It's Not on the Premium Line.

The federal ceiling on what your health plan can make you pay out of pocket rises to $12,000 for one person and $24,000 for a family in 2027, up 13.2% in a single year. It applies to job-based plans too, not just the marketplace. Read that line before you read the premium.

Hank Mercer· Sep 5·3 min

Education

Your School Can Now Cap Your Federal Loan Below the Legal Limit. Nothing Says It Has to Warn You.

A June 26 Dear Colleague Letter gave colleges the authority, effective July 1, 2026, to set lower annual federal loan limits program by program. The letter names no notice requirement and no appeal. Two questions to put to your aid office in writing before you sign.

Hank Mercer· Sep 5·3 min

Auto Insurance

One in Three Drivers Can't Cover What They Hit. If You Insure Two Cars, Ask About Stacking.

The Insurance Research Council counts 15.4 percent of drivers uninsured and 33.4 percent uninsured or underinsured. If you have two cars on one policy in a state that allows stacking, you can combine your uninsured motorist limits. Most people are never offered it.

Hank Mercer· Sep 5·3 min

Money & Life

Texas Just Gave You the Right to Repair Your Electronics. The Phone in Your Pocket Doesn't Qualify.

House Bill 2963 took effect September 1. Manufacturers now have to sell parts, tools and repair manuals to independent shops on the same terms they give their own authorized providers. Section 2 limits all of it to models that first went on sale in Texas on or after that date, and manufacturers get a full year after launch to comply.

Hank Mercer· Sep 5·3 min

Mortgages

Your FAIR Plan Premium Jumps 29.1% on October 15. Get a Private Quote First.

California approved a 29.1% average rate increase for the FAIR Plan, effective October 15, 2026. Nine of the state's top ten home insurers have agreed to write in wildfire areas again. Before you renew the most expensive policy in the state, ask.

Hank Mercer· Sep 4·3 min

Solar & Energy

You Can Get a Solar Credit Without Owning a Roof. The Energy Department Wrote the Fine-Print Test for It.

Community solar is the version of solar for renters, condo owners, and bad roofs. You don't buy panels, you buy a promise about a bill credit. DOE publishes the four contract terms that decide whether the promise is any good.

Hank Mercer· Sep 4·3 min

Savings & Banking

Adding a Beneficiary at Your Credit Union Multiplies Your Insurance. On December 1 It Stops at Five.

Share insurance is $250,000 per member, but a payable-on-death account multiplies that by each beneficiary you name. The NCUA's trust accounts rule takes effect December 1, 2026 and caps the math at five names and $1,250,000.

Hank Mercer· Sep 4·3 min

Education

The FAFSA Stopped Counting Your Family Business. On a $250,000 Shop, That's $14,100.

Starting with the 2026-27 award year, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act takes the net worth of a family-owned business, the farm you live on, and a family fishing operation back off the FAFSA. Your income still counts. Here is what to do before the 2027-28 form opens October 1.

Hank Mercer· Sep 4·3 min

Credit Cards

Your Credit Score Probably Went Up 16 Points Last Year. Nobody Called to Tell You.

FICO's Fall 2026 report says the national average score held flat at 714. That flat number is two opposite stories cancelling out: about 3.2 million people with a student loan delinquency lost an average of 38 points, and everyone without one gained 16. If you are in the second group, you are being priced like you are still in the first.

Hank Mercer· Sep 4·3 min

Savings & Banking

Starting October 1, a Maryland Bank Can Sit on Your Own Withdrawal for 25 Business Days

Maryland's Vulnerable Adult Banking Protection Act takes effect October 1, 2026. If you are 65 or older, your bank can delay a disbursement it suspects is exploitation, hold it up to 25 business days, and claim immunity for doing it. Here is the one thing to set up before then.

Hank Mercer· Sep 4·3 min

Credit Cards

Your Free PenFed Travel Card Starts Costing $95. You Don't Get It Back Once It Posts.

PenFed stops waiving the Pathfinder card's $95 annual fee for Honors Advantage members on September 28, 2026. The benefits didn't change. Here's the math and the deadline to decide.

Hank Mercer· Sep 4·3 min

Auto Insurance

The Other Driver's Insurer Picked Your Rental Car. Two Drivers Say They Got Stuck With the Last $92.

A class action filed August 21 alleges Allstate booked rentals for people its policyholders hit, then paid less than the rental actually cost. You never bought their policy, so their daily rate cap is not your ceiling.

Hank Mercer· Sep 3·3 min

Money & Life

Delaware Just Put Data Centers on Their Own Electric Rate. Your State Probably Hasn't.

Delaware signed a four-bill package on August 26 forcing large energy users to pay their own grid costs and, within ten years, generate their own power. Eight other states have some version. If yours is not on the list, the next rate case decides who pays.

Hank Mercer· Sep 3·3 min

Mortgages

Your Escrow Paid You 2 Percent in 14 States. On June 18 It Started Paying Nothing.

The OCC ruled that federal law overrides state interest-on-escrow laws in 14 states and territories. If a national bank services your mortgage, the interest stopped on June 18. Ten states sued on August 11.

Hank Mercer· Sep 3·3 min

Education

Nine Days to Fix Your FAFSA for This School Year. On September 12 the Number Freezes.

Corrections to the 2025-26 FAFSA close September 12 at 11:59 p.m. Central. The Education Department's own notice says a submission rejected on deadline day cannot be reprocessed. Fix it this weekend, not on the 12th.

Hank Mercer· Sep 3·3 min

Loans & Credit

You Paid Off the Car. Missouri Gives the Lender Five Business Days to Let Go, and $500 If It Doesn't.

A Missouri appeals court just revived a class action over a lien released 19 days after payoff. Under state law you do not have to prove the delay cost you anything. The damages run $500 to $2,500 per lien.

Hank Mercer· Sep 3·3 min

Loans & Credit

New York Says You Don't Owe Debt Somebody Forced You Into. Only If It Started After June 17.

New York's coerced debt law took effect June 17, 2026. Send the right notice and the creditor has to stop collecting and tell the credit bureaus. Two catches the headlines skipped: it is prospective only, and the house and car are carved out.

Hank Mercer· Sep 3·3 min

Solar & Energy

The Solar Pitch That Skips the Credit Check Puts a Lien Ahead of Your Mortgage

PACE financing rides on your property tax bill, which is why it can outrank your mortgage and stall a sale or refinance. Since March 1, 2026 the lender owes you a Loan Estimate and an ability-to-repay check. Ask for both.

Hank Mercer· Sep 3·3 min

Auto Insurance

"Underwriting Guidelines" Stopped Being an Answer in Texas. The Real Reason Now Arrives Without You Asking.

House Bill 2067 struck the words on request out of the Texas Insurance Code. If a Texas insurer declines, cancels, or nonrenews your auto or home policy, it owes you a written statement of why, unprompted. Two holes in the rule are worth knowing about.

Hank Mercer· Sep 3·3 min

Savings & Banking

Washington Just Rewrote What Counts as Your Bank Behaving Badly. The Test Is Now Whether the Bank Gets Hurt.

The OCC and FDIC finalized a rule defining an unsafe or unsound practice around material harm to the bank's own financial condition. It took effect in the Federal Register on September 1 and applies November 2, 2026. Examiners are told to prioritize financial risk over process. Your complaint just got more important.

Hank Mercer· Sep 2·3 min

Solar & Energy

California Just Legalized Plug-In Solar. Don't Buy the Kit Until You Know Who's Home at Noon.

Governor Newsom signed SB 868 on September 30, 2026. Starting January 1, 2027, a certified plug-in solar device up to 1,200 watts needs no utility approval and carries no utility fee, though your utility can ask you to fill out a short online registration. You still get nothing for the power you export, so the payback depends on who is home at noon.

Hank Mercer· Sep 2·3 min

Credit Cards

Your State Banned Medical Debt From Your Credit Report. A Texas Judge Just Said It Can't.

On August 10, 2026, a federal court in Texas struck down that state's medical debt credit reporting ban as preempted by the Fair Credit Reporting Act. Fifteen states have the same kind of law. Here is what still actually protects you.

Hank Mercer· Sep 2·3 min

Credit Cards

Your Credit Report Can Say You Went Bankrupt With No Bankruptcy On File. About 57,000 People Just Got Paid for It.

TransUnion agreed to an $8.31 million settlement over bankruptcy remarks stamped on credit accounts with no matching public record. Claims close October 30, 2026. The bigger lesson is that this error is invisible until you pull the report.

Hank Mercer· Sep 2·3 min

Loans & Credit

Your Leased Car Keeps Going Back to the Shop. In Arizona, on September 12, That Becomes the Manufacturer's Problem.

Arizona HB 2323 adds lessees to the definition of consumer under the state's lemon law. The general effective date for this session is September 12, 2026. Four failed repairs on the same defect, or 30 days out of service, is the trigger. Send written notice first.

Hank Mercer· Sep 1·3 min

Solar & Energy

Arizona Cut What Your Panels Earn Again Today. Your Rate Is Set the Day You Apply, Not the Day You Sign.

APS and Unisource now credit rooftop solar 5.55 cents a kilowatt-hour for exports, down from 6.17. That is the seventh straight annual cut at the legal maximum, and the rate attaches to your interconnection request.

Hank Mercer· Sep 1·3 min

Education

Washington Set the Bar for Your Degree: Beat a High School Diploma. About 825,000 Students Are in Programs That Don't.

The Education Department's earnings accountability rule cuts federal loans off from programs whose graduates don't out-earn people who never enrolled. It won't refund anyone. Use its homework before you sign this fall's paperwork.

Hank Mercer· Sep 1·3 min

Savings & Banking

Only $250,000 of Your Money Is Insured. One Question at the Bank Covers the Rest.

The FDIC's September 1 rule raises how much a bank can hold in reciprocal deposits, the plumbing that spreads a big balance across a network of banks so all of it stays insured. Ask what the network account pays before you move a dollar.

Hank Mercer· Sep 1·3 min

Mortgages

The Fed Chair Took "Wait for the Cut" Away From You. Then the Fed Hiked. Price Your Mortgage at 7.40%.

At Jackson Hole on August 28, Kevin Warsh said forward guidance should be limited in normal times and that inflation running at 3.7 percent means the Fed still has work to do. There is no rate schedule to wait for. On September 16 the Fed did not cut, it hiked. On October 8 Freddie Mac put the 30-year at 7.40%, the highest since November 2023 and 110 basis points above a year ago. Here is what the waiting already cost.

Hank Mercer· Sep 1·6 min

Auto Insurance

Washington Just Banned the Photo-Only Car Claim. From October 18, You Can Make Them Come Look.

A rule signed August 18 stops Washington insurers from requiring you to accept a phone-photo damage estimate, and puts a five business day clock on written answers. The line forcing them to explain why they paid less than your shop's estimate is the one with teeth.

Hank Mercer· Sep 1·3 min

Savings & Banking

Everyone Told You to Lock In a CD Before Rates Fell. CD Rates Went Up Instead.

The average CD yield climbed from 3.03 percent in February to 3.56 percent in August, the opposite of the near-unanimous January forecast. Updated September 17: the Fed hiked. The target range is now 3.75 to 4 percent, the Fed pays banks 3.90 percent on reserves, and the national average savings account pays 0.38 percent. The five-year CD still pays five basis points more than the six-month. Act accordingly.

Hank Mercer· Aug 31·5 min

Auto Insurance

Your Windshield Stopped Being Glass. That's Why the Bill Is $1,500.

AAA puts full windshield replacement at $250 to $1,500 or more, and recalibrating the camera mounted behind the glass typically adds about $360. Comprehensive usually covers it, three states may waive the deductible, and one line item on the estimate decides how smoothly the claim goes.

Hank Mercer· Aug 31·3 min

Loans & Credit

Zero Percent Financing Is About to Be Everywhere. It Usually Costs You the Rebate.

Cox Automotive says 4.1 percent of new-vehicle loans booked at zero percent in July, and dealers clearing 2026 leftovers are expected to push rate deals instead of cash back. Get both offers in writing on the same car, then compare totals, not payments.

Hank Mercer· Aug 31·3 min

Solar & Energy

Your Maryland Solar Payback Hangs on 3,000 Megawatts. Community Solar Has Already Lined Up 2,911 of Them.

Maryland's one-for-one net metering ends July 1, 2027, or the moment the state hits a 3,000 megawatt cap, whichever comes first. The Public Service Commission says the community solar pipeline alone is about 2,911 megawatts. What locks your rate in is your interconnection queue position, not the date on your contract.

Hank Mercer· Aug 29·3 min

Education

Win a Big Enough Scholarship and Your $7,395 Pell Grant Disappears. Ask for Two Numbers This Week.

Starting with the 2026-27 award year, non-federal grants and scholarships that equal or exceed your cost of attendance make you ineligible for a Pell Grant. Not reduced. Ineligible. Here are the two numbers to get from your aid office before the money is disbursed.

Hank Mercer· Aug 29·3 min

Auto Insurance

California Will Make Your Insurer Sit Down With a Mediator Over Your Car Claim. The Insurer Pays for It.

If your claim tops $7,500 and at least $2,000 is in dispute, California runs a free mediation program for auto physical damage claims and the carrier covers the cost. Almost nobody uses it. Here is the sequence that gets you there.

Hank Mercer· Aug 28·3 min

Loans & Credit

The Letter After a Repo Has Two Words in It. One Costs You the Whole Balance, the Other Costs You the Missed Payments.

Federal law gives you the right to redeem a repossessed car by paying everything you owe. Reinstating, paying only what you missed, is a state-law right and not every state has it. Auto loans entered serious delinquency at the highest rate since 2010 last quarter, so read the notice before the clock runs.

Hank Mercer· Aug 28·3 min

Savings & Banking

The Bank CD Beat the Treasury for About a Month. Now the Treasury Wins Before Your State Even Takes Its Cut.

In August the best three-year CDs paid 4.50% and the three-year Treasury paid 4.25%. After the Fed's September hike, the Treasury is at 4.91% and the best three-year CD pays 4.80%. Treasury interest skips state income tax, so it now wins in every state. The FDIC's average three-year CD still pays 1.36%.

Hank Mercer· Aug 27·3 min

Education

The College Bill Went Up $3,182 in One Year. Loans Covered Almost None of It.

Sallie Mae's 2026 survey puts the average family's college spend at $34,019, up 10% in a year. Borrowing paid for 22% of it. Family income and savings paid 49%. The student debt argument is loud, and it is aimed at the wrong number.

Hank Mercer· Aug 27·3 min

Money & Life

A Hotel Can Charge You More Because You're Flying to a Funeral. Nobody Has to Tell You.

The FTC's August 19 policy statement spells out how companies use your data to set your personal price, and proposes that they have to say so. It stops short of a ban. Comments close September 18, and Maryland and Connecticut start enforcing their own rules October 1.

Hank Mercer· Aug 27·3 min

Solar & Energy

You Bolted $31,000 to Your Roof. Your Insurance Policy Never Found Out.

Rooftop solar rides on your dwelling coverage, and that limit was set before the panels existed. In 2026 you paid full price for the system with no federal credit behind you, which makes the gap between what you own and what you insured the widest it has ever been.

Hank Mercer· Aug 27·3 min

Mortgages

The Bank Grant Aimed at Buyers Like You Is Gone. The One Based on Your Income Isn't.

Eight federal agencies pulled the 2022 guidance behind special purpose credit programs on August 25. Big banks had already shut theirs down. Income-based and state down payment help is untouched, and that is where the real money always was.

Hank Mercer· Aug 27·3 min

Savings & Banking

Your Kid's Trump Account Can Hold One Kind of Fund. The 0.1% Fee Cap Has a Hole in It.

Treasury and the IRS proposed the investment rules on August 20. Index funds tracking U.S. stocks, fees under 0.1%, no bonds, no sector funds, no ESG. The cap does not cover what the trustee charges you. Comments close October 20.

Hank Mercer· Aug 27·3 min

Credit Cards

For Three Weeks in 2022, Equifax Handed Lenders the Wrong Score. Go Find Your Paperwork.

Equifax has agreed to pay $100 million over a coding error that miscalculated credit scores between March 17 and April 8, 2022. About 4 million people were caught in it, and roughly 300,000 had a score off by 25 points or more. There is no claim form yet. Here is what to have ready when there is.

Hank Mercer· Aug 26·3 min

Education

Pay Your PSLF Bill One Day Late and It No Longer Counts. Move Your Autopay This Week.

The 15-day cushion that used to catch a late Public Service Loan Forgiveness payment is gone as of July 1, 2026. The regulation was never amended. The Education Department changed a webpage. Here is the five-minute fix, and the one thing not to do instead.

Hank Mercer· Aug 26·3 min

Solar & Energy

Your Solar Lease Payment Starts on a Calendar. Your Panels Start When the Utility Says So.

A Tampa homeowner's panels have been dark since March because his installer went bankrupt before enrolling the system with the power company. His lease payments start in September anyway. Two free phone calls tell you whether you are in the same position.

Hank Mercer· Aug 26·3 min

Mortgages

Part of Your Home Insurance Bill Is a Bet on Whether You'll Shop. Texas Just Moved to Ban It.

Updated September 30: TDI's September 14 memo to the governor treats price optimization as already illegal, but admits insurers can use new rates the day they file them, before anyone reviews them. What that means for your renewal, and what to do about it wherever you live.

Hank Mercer· Aug 26·5 min

Credit Cards

Your Pay-in-4 Costs Nothing. One in Nine Users Still Got an Overdraft Fee.

The Federal Reserve just put a number on the hidden cost of buy now, pay later: 11% of users had a payment trigger an overdraft or NSF fee, rising to 18% among people who can't cover a $100 emergency. One in five used it for groceries. Here is the ten-minute fix.

Hank Mercer· Aug 25·3 min

Loans & Credit

On October 1, California Buyers Can Hand a Used Car Back. Today That Right Costs Up to $250.

SB 766 gives you three days to cancel a used car purchase priced at $50,000 or less, starting October 1, 2026. Right now you have to buy a shorter version from the dealer. Here is what changes, what the walk-away fee is, and the mileage number that voids the whole thing.

Hank Mercer· Aug 25·3 min

Auto Insurance

A Layoff Can Add Thousands to Your Car Insurance Bill. You Can Ask Your Insurer to Ignore It.

Insurers price your policy partly on a credit-based insurance score. Kansas puts it in statute and Texas puts it in its insurance rules: if a job loss, a divorce, identity theft, or a death in the family is what wrecked your credit, you can demand an exception. The request is written and the window is short.

Hank Mercer· Aug 25·3 min

Loans & Credit

You Borrowed One Number and Owe a Bigger One. The Gap Has Line Items You Can Cancel.

Storefront installment lenders pack optional insurance and memberships into the amount financed, then charge you interest on them for the life of the loan. One lender booked $121.7 million in a single year on those products. Here is how to find yours, cancel it, and ask for the interest back too.

Hank Mercer· Aug 25·3 min

Solar & Energy

In Arizona, Nobody Has to Check Your Roof Before Bolting Panels to It. That Changes September 12.

Arizona's SB 1419 makes a solar contractor evaluate your roof before installing and pay for roof damage the installation causes. The Legislature lists September 12, 2026 as the general effective date for this session's laws, and the statute text still reads the old way. Here is how to write the protection into your contract now.

Hank Mercer· Aug 22·3 min

Auto Insurance

Maryland Mailed 79,000 People a Letter About Their License Plate. Ignoring It Costs $7 a Day.

Maryland SB 111 takes effect October 1, 2026. After an official notice and a 60-day grace period, an out-of-state plate on a Maryland-garaged car runs $7 a day up to $420, then booting, towing and impoundment. The fine is the cheap part. Here is what your insurance policy says about it.

Hank Mercer· Aug 22·3 min

Auto Insurance

Your Totaled-Car Check Is Missing a Line. In Most States, They Owe You the Sales Tax.

Updated October 15: the USAA Michigan deadline has passed, but State Farm's Louisiana purchasing-fees settlement takes claims through October 19, 2026, at a flat $28.39 a vehicle. A total loss payout is supposed to cover the tax and transfer fees on the replacement car. Here is how to check your own line items.

Hank Mercer· Aug 22·3 min

Loans & Credit

You Paid Twice for the Word 'Certified.' One Dealer Just Paid $4 Million for It.

The FTC and Connecticut settled with Manchester City Nissan on August 19, 2026 over charging buyers a fee to certify cars it had already advertised as certified pre-owned. The $4 million goes back to customers. The line item is on other people's paperwork too.

Hank Mercer· Aug 21·3 min

Solar & Energy

Your Solar Lender Has Seven Days to Send the Payoff Number. In Connecticut, Silence Now Costs It $250.

Connecticut Public Act 26-16 takes effect October 1, 2026. Solar lenders and lease providers get seven days to produce a payoff statement or transfer documents after a written request, or they owe you a $250 credit. Here is why that one document decides whether your closing happens on time.

Hank Mercer· Aug 21·3 min

Money & Life

You Googled Your Utility Bill and a Middleman Took the Payment. The FTC Just Fined doxo $2.1 Million.

The FTC says doxo used search ads and biller logos to look like the official payment page, then added undisclosed delivery fees and recurring subscriptions. Check twelve months of statements for charges you never meant to make.

Hank Mercer· Aug 21·3 min

Loans & Credit

Your Car Loan Ended Early. Part of That GAP Premium Is Yours, and Nobody Will Mail It to You.

If you paid off, refinanced, traded, or totaled a financed car, you likely have an unearned GAP refund sitting with your lender. Colorado's attorney general has clawed back over $23.5 million for nearly 132,000 people on exactly this. Here is how to ask for yours.

Hank Mercer· Aug 21·3 min

Mortgages

If You Bought a House Through an Agent, You're Owed Part of $120 Million. File by October 27.

A $120.3 million antitrust settlement covers homebuyers who paid a broker commission on an MLS-listed home, with class periods reaching back as far as 2006. Here is who qualifies, what paperwork you need, and the October 27, 2026 deadline.

Hank Mercer· Aug 21·2 min

Education

Your Forgiveness Counter Has Been Dark Since April 2025. The Number Is Still There, at This URL.

The Education Department pulled the income-driven repayment payment counter off StudentAid.gov on April 28, 2025 and called it temporary. Nearly sixteen months later it is still missing for many borrowers. The raw count never went anywhere, and you can pull it up in about thirty seconds.

Hank Mercer· Aug 21·2 min

Savings & Banking

Nobody Is Going to Cap Your Overdraft Fee. You Can Switch It Off Yourself.

Congress killed the $5 overdraft cap in 2025 and fees at the biggest banks went back up. Federal law still lets you revoke overdraft coverage on debit cards and ATM withdrawals at any time. Here is how to do it, and the two things it does not cover.

Hank Mercer· Aug 21·3 min

Savings & Banking

One Person's Appeal Just Put Your Capital One Payout a Year Out. Fix the Rate Yourself.

A single objecting class member appealed the $425 million Capital One 360 Savings settlement on June 18. Class counsel says payments and the promised rate increase are now substantially delayed, potentially over a year. You do not need a court order to stop earning 1 percent.

Hank Mercer· Aug 20·3 min

Mortgages

That 'Debt-Free' Cash for a Share of Your House Is a Mortgage Loan. Three States Just Said So.

Minnesota settled with Unlock Partnership Solutions on August 7 over home equity agreements the attorney general calls illegal mortgage loans. Eighty-six Minnesota homeowners gave up about 33 percent of their equity. Here are the nine numbers to demand before you sign one.

Hank Mercer· Aug 20·3 min

Education

Your New College Threw Out Credits You Already Paid For. Washington Just Priced That at $3,600.

A rule the Education Department proposed on August 20 would make schools presume your transfer credits count, put any refusal in writing, and give you 15 days to appeal. The Department's own math says the current system costs the average transfer student about $3,600.

Hank Mercer· Aug 20·3 min

Auto Insurance

Skipping Two Months of Car Insurance Saves You $376 and Costs You Up to $1,575

Nearly three in ten drivers say they would cancel or suspend coverage if their bill climbed another 10%. The gap follows you for three to five years. Raise the deductible instead.

Hank Mercer· Aug 19·3 min

Credit Cards

Your Fraud Dispute Got Denied Because the Thief Had Your Address. Ask to See the Proof.

Card issuers are reversing fraud credits on the strength of a card number, an address, and an email. Federal law puts the burden on them, not you, and gives you the right to see the documentation. CFPB relief on card complaints has fallen from 32 percent in 2024 to 25.5 percent this year.

Hank Mercer· Aug 19·3 min

Solar & Energy

One Page Missing From Your Florida Solar Contract Puts Every Finance Charge Back on the Table

Florida law has required a separate, separately signed disclosure page on residential solar contracts since 2017. A TV investigation reviewed four sets of homeowner contracts and found it in two. Here is what the page has to say, and what the statute lets you recover when it is not there.

Hank Mercer· Aug 19·3 min

Education

You Front-Loaded Your Credits. That's Why Your Grad PLUS Loan Just Got Denied.

The Education Department told schools on August 12 to measure grandfathered Grad PLUS eligibility by credit hours completed, not time enrolled. Full-time students who packed in coursework early are getting cut off mid-degree. Ask your aid office which formula they used.

Hank Mercer· Aug 19·3 min

Loans & Credit

If the Contractor Handed You the Loan Papers, the Lender Owns His Mess Too. It's in All Caps on Your Contract.

The FTC Holder Rule makes whoever holds your loan answerable for what the seller did. Michigan's attorney general just sued a solar company and its finance partners over 1,600 homeowners and $22 million in buried fees. Go find the paragraph.

Hank Mercer· Aug 19·3 min

Solar & Energy

The $12,000 Solar Bill Nobody Warns You About Becomes $225 in Massachusetts This Fall

Massachusetts regulators finalized a plan replacing surprise transformer upgrade charges with a flat $225 interconnection fee, covering up to $10,000 of grid work for Eversource and National Grid customers. If your quote has a transformer line item, don't cancel. Ask about the timing.

Hank Mercer· Aug 19·3 min

Auto Insurance

Nobody May Have Checked Whether Your Repaired Car's Crash Sensors Still Work. Ask Who Pays for the Scan.

A class action filed in Montana alleges State Farm refuses to pay for pre- and post-repair scans at independent body shops. The state told insurers in 2024 that paying for a scan at their own shop and not yours is illegal steering. Here is the move at your next claim.

Hank Mercer· Aug 19·3 min

Mortgages

Your Claim Check Is Late. That Delay Earns Home Insurers $8.8 Million a Day.

A Weiss Ratings analysis for the Consumer Federation of America put a number on claim delay: $8.8 million a day for home insurers, $52.3 million a day across all property and casualty lines. Late payment is now the largest complaint category at state insurance departments. Here are the two moves that start a clock.

Hank Mercer· Aug 18·3 min

Money & Life

The Federal Cushion Under Your Drug Plan Premium Ends December 31. Watch the Drug List, Not the Premium.

CMS is ending the Part D Premium Stabilization Demonstration after this year. The 2027 base beneficiary premium is capped by law at a 6% rise, so plans have to find the money somewhere else. That somewhere else is your formulary.

Hank Mercer· Aug 18·3 min

Loans & Credit

You'll Get Approved for That Consolidation Loan. Probably Not for the Full Amount.

Lenders wrote 6.4 million new personal loans last quarter, up 19.5% from a year earlier, and balances hit a record $281 billion. But loan counts grew faster than dollars, which means the average approval is shrinking. A partial consolidation is worse than none.

Hank Mercer· Aug 18·3 min

Mortgages

Your Assessment Comes With a 30-Day Clock to Fight It. Three in Four Homeowners Never Start It.

Sixty-four percent of homeowners were shocked by their last property tax bill, and 57% of the ones who never appealed didn't know they were allowed to. Only 3% to 5% file. Between 30% and 50% of those win a reduction.

Hank Mercer· Aug 18·3 min

Education

Your PSLF Count Dropped. Screenshot It Before You Do Anything Else.

Borrowers are watching years of Public Service Loan Forgiveness credit vanish from StudentAid.gov, one from 103 payments to 88. On August 18 the Education Department confirmed some of those rescissions were deliberate, not a glitch. It still won't say how many people are affected or whether the credit comes back.

Hank Mercer· Aug 18·4 min

Loans & Credit

You Can Cut Your Car Payment Without Selling the Car. Only 111,000 People Did It Last Quarter.

Experian data puts the average auto refinance at 2.24 percentage points off the rate and $81 a month back in your pocket. A refi company claims $162. Both are real money, and the loans that save most are the ones nobody checks.

Hank Mercer· Aug 17·3 min

Solar & Energy

Solar Pencils at 52 Cents a Kilowatt-Hour. At 18 Cents, Run the Math Again.

The 30% federal solar credit died January 1. Hawaii added 3,429 rooftop systems in the six months after. The reason is the power bill, not the incentive, and your own rate per kilowatt-hour is the number that decides your payback.

Hank Mercer· Aug 17·3 min

Education

Every Month You Spend on RAP Is a Month IBR Won't Count. Check Your Payment Total Before You Switch.

Student loan payment history flows from IBR, ICR, and PAYE into the new Repayment Assistance Plan. It does not flow back. If you are years into a 240-payment IBR clock, switching to RAP costs you more than the cheaper monthly bill saves.

Hank Mercer· Aug 17·3 min

Savings & Banking

Banked at SunTrust in Georgia? Claim Your Overdraft Money by September 14.

A 16-year lawsuit argued that overdraft fees on small debit transactions are interest, and Georgia caps interest. Truist is paying up to $240 million. No receipts needed, and the claim window closes September 14, 2026.

Hank Mercer· Aug 17·3 min

Credit Cards

That "Save Your Rewards" Petition Is Funded by the Banks Collecting the Fee

Swipe fees cost the average household about $1,200 a year, baked into prices you never see itemized. The industry has spent roughly $200 million to keep them, and some of that money paid for the petitions running on travel and points sites this summer.

Hank Mercer· Aug 17·3 min

Auto Insurance

Your Washington Insurer Can't Drop You for a Missed Payment Right Now. That Ends September 30.

An emergency order from Washington's insurance commissioner suspends late fees, reinstatement fees, and nonpayment cancellations for property and auto policies in wildfire zip codes through September 30, 2026. The nonrenewal clause matters more than the fee waivers.

Hank Mercer· Aug 17·3 min

Auto Insurance

Your Car Was Repaired. It's Still Worth Less. Fifteen States Let You Bill the Other Driver's Insurer.

A repair fixes the car. It does not fix the price. Courts in fifteen states recognize a claim for the value your car lost just by having a wreck on its record, and it goes to the at-fault driver's carrier, not yours. Georgia is the one state that makes your own insurer pay.

Hank Mercer· Aug 16·3 min

Credit Cards

Equifax Counted One Debt Twice. Claims Close September 1, and the $600 Number Assumes You Won't File.

Equifax will pay $2.2 million for reporting the same collection account more than once. About 37,000 people got the letter and have until September 1 to claim. Everyone else should check their own file for the same error.

Hank Mercer· Aug 16·3 min

Loans & Credit

Nobody Is Auditing Your Car Loan Markup Now. Ask for the Buy Rate.

On August 7 the FTC dropped disparate-impact claims and loosened the fair lending terms on three auto dealer settlements. The dealer rate markup those cases exposed is still legal and still invisible. Here is how to price it yourself.

Hank Mercer· Aug 16·3 min

Money & Life

If Your Kid Used a Google Play App Before Turning 13, You Have Until September 14 to Claim

Google and AdMob will pay $8.25 million over children's data collected through Google Play apps since April 2015. Estimated payouts run $40 to $200, and that estimate only holds because almost nobody files.

Hank Mercer· Aug 16·3 min

Solar & Energy

Four Ways to Pay for Solar. Two of Them Make Your Panels Worth Zero at Appraisal.

Same panels, same roof, same output. Fannie Mae's Selling Guide sorts rooftop solar into four financing buckets, and in two of them an appraiser is told to credit the panels with nothing. Ask which bucket you are in before you sign.

Hank Mercer· Aug 16·3 min

Mortgages

If You're Behind on an FHA Loan, You Are the Part of the Data That Got Worse

The Mortgage Bankers Association's second-quarter survey, out August 13, shows overall mortgage delinquency down 7 basis points. One line under it, the 90-day rate rose, foreclosure inventory rose, and FHA serious delinquencies jumped 2.27 percentage points in a year. Here is the 120-day clock and the two calls to make before it runs out.

Hank Mercer· Aug 15·3 min

Loans & Credit

The Collector Rules You Were Promised for September 1 Now Start January 1. Debt Bought Before Then Dodges the Best Part.

New York City pushed its SHIELD debt collection rule back four months, to January 1, 2027. The three-contacts-a-week cap will cover everyone. The verification freeze, the part with real teeth, will not cover debt a buyer purchased before that date.

Hank Mercer· Aug 15·3 min

Education

Paying Ahead on RAP Cancels the $50 the Government Adds to Your Loan. One Call Keeps It.

The new Repayment Assistance Plan waives unpaid interest and puts up to $50 a month against your principal. Both attach to an on-time payment, and paying early erases the due date those benefits hang on. Here is the call to make before you send extra money.

Hank Mercer· Aug 15·3 min

Solar & Energy

Your Solar Quote Gets About $900 Worse on December 4. Not 40%.

A new Section 232 proclamation puts a 38-cent-per-watt price floor and a 15% tariff on imported solar panels starting December 4, 2026. The panel price jump is real. On a typical 8 kW system it works out to roughly $900 to $1,900, not the number a salesman is about to quote you.

Hank Mercer· Aug 15·4 min

Auto Insurance

Cancel a Texas Car Policy After September 1 and They Have to Give All of It Back

Texas regulators killed the short rate cancellation clause on personal auto and home policies. From September 1, your insurer refunds every unused dollar, calculated pro rata, within 15 business days.

Hank Mercer· Aug 15·3 min

Savings & Banking

Your Vanguard Cash Account Was Set to Drop to 3.10%. It Went to 3.50% Instead. Still Not the Top.

Updated October 5, 2026: the 0.25% boost on Vanguard's Cash Plus Account ended September 30, but the Fed's September hike got there first. Cash Plus lists 3.50% APY effective October 2. No-strings savings accounts pay up to 4.34%. On $30,000 the gap is about $250 a year.

Hank Mercer· Aug 15·3 min

Auto Insurance

45% of Auto Injury Claims Closed Without a Payment. The Easiest Way to Become One Is a Driver Who Isn't on Your Policy.

A Wall Street Journal analysis found insurers closed about 45 percent of auto liability and medical claims without paying last year, up from 35 percent a decade ago. Pull your declarations page and check who's listed.

Hank Mercer· Aug 14·3 min

Loans & Credit

Your Bank Still Charges Less for 72 Months Than 60. The Longer Loan Still Costs About $1,200 More.

Updated October 8: Federal Reserve data released October 7 shows the average 72-month new car loan at commercial banks at 7.17% in August, still below the 60-month rate of 7.54%. Both rates rose and the gap widened. Here is the interest math on a $40,000 loan.

Hank Mercer· Aug 14·3 min

Credit Cards

Your Old Charge-Off Is Sticking Around Twice as Long as It Used To. Check the Clock.

The scary 12.8 percent credit card delinquency figure is mostly stale charged-off debt, per the New York Fed. Over 23 million people carry one, and the seven-year reporting clock starts earlier than most think.

Hank Mercer· Aug 14·3 min

Money & Life

The FTC Started Paying Out $23.8 Million on Grubhub. If Yours Comes by PayPal, You Have 30 Days.

The FTC is sending payments to 640,038 drivers and diners over Grubhub's deceptive earnings claims and blocked accounts. Checks expire in 90 days, PayPal payments in 30. Nobody will call to remind you, and anyone who asks for a fee is a scammer.

Hank Mercer· Aug 14·3 min

Solar & Energy

Your Generac Solar System Has a Claim Attached to It. The Window Shuts August 24.

A $15 million settlement covers Generac PWRcell owners over SnapRS parts the suit says can overheat and fail. Claims close August 24, 2026, and the documented-loss buckets pay far more than the default slice.

Hank Mercer· Aug 14·3 min

Education

Taking 9 Credits This Fall? Your Federal Loan Gets Cut to Match. The Award Letter Won't Say So.

New Education Department rules cut annual Direct Loan limits in proportion to how far below full-time you enroll, starting with loans for periods beginning on or after July 1, 2026. A freshman at half time drops from $5,500 to $2,750.

Hank Mercer· Aug 13·3 min

Savings & Banking

Your 401(k) Can Hold a No-Penalty Emergency Fund. Nine in Ten Big Plans Aren't Even Considering It.

A pension-linked emergency savings account lets you pull cash out of your 401(k) with no hardship paperwork and no 10% penalty, and your employer's match rate applies to it. Almost no plan sponsor has built one. Here is the email to send.

Hank Mercer· Aug 13·3 min

Savings & Banking

Schwab Is Taking FDIC Insurance Off Your Cash on September 8. It Was Paying You 0.01% Anyway.

Schwab is moving sweep cash out of FDIC-insured Bank Sweep and into Schwab One Interest, which carries SIPC coverage instead. The yield stays at 0.01% APY. One phone call opts you out, and a different move fixes the real problem.

Hank Mercer· Aug 13·3 min

Mortgages

USDA Raised Its Income Deductions. For Three Kids That's $60. Here's When $60 Buys You a Zero-Down Mortgage.

USDA increased the dependent deduction to $500 and the elderly household deduction to $550, effective immediately. The dollars are small. The eligibility line they sit next to is a cliff, and the underwriting system is already using the new numbers.

Hank Mercer· Aug 13·3 min

Education

There's Pell Money for Short Job Training Now. Only 21 Programs in the Country Are Approved for It.

Updated October 4: federally approved Workforce Pell programs went from 2 to 21 in late September, spread across six states, while dozens of state-approved programs still wait on Washington. Ask your school which approval it actually has before you sign anything.

Hank Mercer· Aug 13·4 min

Auto Insurance

If Your State Has Always Had Cheap Car Insurance, 2026 Is Coming for You

The 6% national price cut of 2025 is over. Insurify's mid-year report has full-coverage rates rising in 27 states already and projects 32 by December, and the increases are landing hardest where insurance used to be cheap. Kentucky drivers went from $58 under the national average to $65 over it.

Hank Mercer· Aug 12·3 min

Mortgages

Behind on an FHA Loan? You Get Two Passes on a Trial Payment Plan. Not Three.

FHA Mortgagee Letter 2026-08 makes a third failure to accept a trial payment plan an automatic failure, and servicers have to be running it by September 21. The part worth reading twice: what counts as accepting is a payment, not your signature.

Hank Mercer· Aug 12·3 min

Credit Cards

You Searched for a Debt You Owe. The First Result Wasn't Your Creditor.

The FTC just got a court to halt a credit repair operation it says bought Google ads to intercept people looking up their own debts, then took nearly $200 million in illegal fees. Everything it sold, you can do free.

Hank Mercer· Aug 12·3 min

Loans & Credit

The 0% Balance Transfer Isn't Coming. The Nonprofit Version of Debt Help Costs $37 to Start.

Fewer than 12% of big-bank card accounts got a promotional APR last year, the lowest since 2021. Meanwhile a record number of people are entering nonprofit debt management plans, where the average setup fee is $37 and the monthly fee is $26.

Hank Mercer· Aug 12·3 min

Solar & Energy

Your Texas Solar Contract Has a Five-Day Kill Switch. On September 1, the Salesman Gets a License Number.

Texas already gives you five business days to cancel a residential solar sale with no penalty, and if the seller lined up your lender, the loan has to be canceled too. On September 1, salespeople finally have to register with the state.

Hank Mercer· Aug 12·5 min

Credit Cards

Your Priority Pass Stops Working at Chase Lounges Saturday. Use the Visit You're Owed.

On August 15, Chase Sapphire Lounges leave the Priority Pass and LoungeKey networks. If your Priority Pass came with a non-Chase card, your free annual visit and the $75 walk-in rate both disappear. Sapphire Reserve holders get a small upgrade instead.

Hank Mercer· Aug 11·2 min

Auto Insurance

GEICO Is Cutting Rates for 1.3 Million Florida Drivers. It Won't Say by How Much, or When.

Updated October 29: Florida's top five auto insurers now show a -12.6% indicated rate change for 2026, up from -8% in August, and USAA just cut 7% on 498,000 policies with county numbers attached. We still can't find GEICO's cut sizes. Here is how to find out what your number actually is.

Hank Mercer· Aug 11·4 min

Solar & Energy

Your State Says Plug-In Solar Must Be Certified. The Word on the Box Is 'Compliant.'

Eight states have legalized balcony solar and the laws lean on one safety standard, UL 3700. Some of the products racing to market say they meet it rather than showing that a lab checked. Here is how to tell the difference before you buy.

Hank Mercer· Aug 11·3 min

Loans & Credit

Your Car Loan Is Legally Capped at 6% While You're Activated. Nine in Ten Never Claim It.

If you took out a loan before your active-duty orders, federal law caps the rate at 6% and refunds what you overpaid. The CFPB found fewer than 10% of eligible auto loans ever got the reduction. Here is the letter that fixes it.

Hank Mercer· Aug 11·3 min

Money & Life

Apple Got $2.2 Billion Back. You Paid the Tariff and You're Getting Nothing.

The Supreme Court struck down the broadest tariffs, and the government now owes importers roughly $166 billion. Apple, Amazon and Nike have collected. The households that paid an estimated $1,000 in higher prices last year are not on the refund list. Here is what to actually watch.

Hank Mercer· Aug 11·3 min

Loans & Credit

California Car Buyers: On October 1, the Advertised Price Becomes the Real Price.

SB 766 takes effect October 1, 2026. Dealers must show the total price on any ad for a specific car, tell you in writing that add-ons are optional, and stop charging for add-ons that do nothing. Washington wrote this rule first and lost it in court on a paperwork technicality.

Hank Mercer· Aug 10·5 min

Savings & Banking

Buying I Bonds Before October 31? Waiting Until November Is Now Worth About $1,650.

September inflation locked the inflation half of the November I bond rate at 4.08% a year. With the fixed rate also headed up from 0.90% to about 1.30%, a November bond should pay around 5.41% to start, against 4.26% for one bought in October. Over 30 years on $10,000, the fixed-rate gap alone is worth roughly $1,650 after inflation.

Hank Mercer· Aug 10·4 min

Credit Cards

The Fuel Discount on Your Kroger Card Dies the Second You Activate the New One

U.S. Bank is converting every Kroger co-brand credit card to a Smartly Visa between now and October. Your balance and APR come along. The 5 percent grocery bucket, the 5 cents a gallon, and the free Boost membership do not. Here is the math and the three moves to make first.

Hank Mercer· Aug 10·3 min

Education

Your Servicer Says You're 12 Months Behind. Your Government File Says You Owe Nothing.

MOHELA has been telling borrowers in forbearance that they are critically past due, in one case by $6,226.92. StudentAid.gov shows no payment owed on the same loans. Do not pay it, and do not wait for it to fix itself. Screenshot both screens today. Updated September 2: nine senators have given MOHELA until September 10 to say how many people got these notices and when it will tell them.

Hank Mercer· Aug 10·4 min

Education

Leaving SAVE? The Order You Switch In Decides Whether Your Unpaid Interest Joins Your Principal.

SAVE to RAP directly is not a capitalization event. SAVE to IBR and then IBR to RAP is, because Congress wrote that trigger into the statute and no regulation can waive it. On $6,500 of unpaid interest, the round trip costs about $420 a year forever.

Hank Mercer· Aug 10·2 min

Solar & Energy

Your Utility Found the Part of Your Solar Bill the Panels Can't Touch

States took 45 separate actions on residential fixed charges and minimum bills in one quarter, more than they took on community solar. That flat monthly fee is the line your installer's payback math assumes never moves. Here is how to check the assumption before you sign.

Hank Mercer· Aug 10·3 min

Loans & Credit

Stretching to 84 Months Doesn't Make the Car Cheaper. It Costs About $3,600 More.

Updated October 2 with Edmunds' third-quarter data: a record 25.5% of financed new-vehicle buyers signed for 84 months or longer, the average loan hit $44,664, and down payments fell again to $5,554. Here is the interest math at 60, 72, and 84 months on the average loan.

Hank Mercer· Aug 9·3 min

Mortgages

Your HOA Can Take Your House Over Unpaid Dues. Those Filings Just Jumped 40%.

HOA-related foreclosure filings hit 6,376 properties in the first quarter, up nearly 40% in two years and rising faster than mortgage foreclosures. Associations are running out of money and out of patience. Here is what to do the week a notice arrives.

Hank Mercer· Aug 9·3 min

Mortgages

Your Home Insurance Renewal Still Went Up 10.6%. This Is the First Year Shopping It Actually Works.

Only 11.7% of homeowners renewing in the first half of 2026 got a price cut, a new Matic report says. But quotes per shopper are up 27% in a year, which means carriers will finally answer the phone. Here is the move.

Hank Mercer· Aug 9·3 min

Auto Insurance

New York Traded Away Part of Your Crash Claim. The Premium Cut Is Due August 31.

Albany narrowed who can sue after a car accident and what they can collect. DFS is making insurers show the savings in every pending rate filing by August 31. One side of that trade already took effect. The other is still a promise.

Hank Mercer· Aug 9·3 min

Savings & Banking

Put $2,000 Into Retirement in 2027 and Washington Adds $1,000. Your Employer Can Refuse It.

Treasury and the IRS released the Saver's Match rules on August 7. A 50% federal match on the first $2,000 you save, up to $1,000 a year, starting with 2027 contributions. Four rules decide whether you actually get it.

Hank Mercer· Aug 9·3 min

Auto Insurance

Nearly One in Four Crashes Now Totals the Car. A Number in Your State Code Decides, Not You.

Total loss frequency hit a record 23.1% of claims in 2025, and it runs 45.3% on cars 13 years and older. Your insurer is not making a judgment call, it is doing arithmetic against a threshold. Here are the three moves that change what your check looks like.

Hank Mercer· Aug 9·3 min

Credit Cards

Your AAdvantage Executive Fee Goes to $695. The Lounge Membership It Replaces Goes to $1,400.

Updated October 26: Citi added a $200 yearly inKind dining credit to the AAdvantage Executive card on October 25, and the first $100 expires December 31. The August refresh math still holds: the fee went to $695 while a standard Admirals Club membership went to $1,400. Here is the math and the dates to check.

Hank Mercer· Aug 8·3 min

Loans & Credit

There's a $13,330 Down Payment Sitting in Your Driveway. Don't Hand It Over Blind.

Edmunds says the average positive equity on a trade-in hit a record $13,330 in the second quarter, and it is mainstream cars driving it, not luxury. Here is what that equity is actually worth against a 5.9% loan, and the easiest way to lose it.

Hank Mercer· Aug 8·3 min

Education

The Education Department Says Some Student Loan Payments Came Out Wrong. Silence Does Not Mean Pending.

Borrowers are getting an email saying their income-driven repayment application produced an incorrect payment and they have to reapply. The line that will catch people: if your servicer never confirmed it, the application was canceled, not queued. Here is the two-minute check.

Hank Mercer· Aug 7·3 min

Money & Life

Your 2026 Overtime Tax Break Now Lives or Dies in One Box on Your W-2

The IRS deleted the estimate-it-yourself option on August 6. For 2026 overtime, your deduction is capped at whatever your employer puts in box 12, code TT. Ask payroll now, not in February.

Hank Mercer· Aug 7·3 min

Savings & Banking

That 9% CD Pays You About $67. The Boring 4.5% One Pays $244.

Credit unions are advertising 9% and 6.5% CD rates this August. Read the deposit limit before you get excited. Here is why the headline APY is a coupon, why CD rates are quietly drifting up, and the term you should not lock right now.

Hank Mercer· Aug 7·3 min

Auto Insurance

Florida Did Not Kill PIP. If Someone Told You to Drop It, That Advice Costs $150 and Your Plate.

A repeal bill died in committee on March 13, 2026. Law firms, one insurance agency, and AI search results have been telling Florida drivers otherwise. Here is what you are still required to carry, and the 14-day rule that quietly decides whether your coverage pays.

Hank Mercer· Aug 6·3 min

Education

A Court Ordered Your Student Loan Erased. Over a Thousand People Are Still Waiting. Check Your Email.

Updated October 19: borrowers' lawyers have asked a federal judge to hold the Education Department in contempt over 1,051 overdue Sweet settlement discharges and refunds, with a hearing set for November 5. The Department now argues some missed deadlines are not a material breach, and that tax refunds and wages seized for older FFEL loans are not refundable payments. Here is how to tell whether your relief actually landed.

Hank Mercer· Aug 6·3 min

Solar & Energy

Your North Carolina Solar Quote Says 'Act Before December 31.' That Isn't Your Deadline.

Duke Energy's Net Metering Bridge rider is capped by a yearly headcount, not a calendar date. The December 31, 2026 date in your quote belongs to somebody else's account, and the quota can close in March.

Hank Mercer· Aug 5·3 min

Auto Insurance

Illinois Just Made Your Insurer Prove Its Rate Hike. You Get Nothing Until July 2027.

Two bills signed August 4 give Illinois regulators the power to review home and auto rates and order rebates. The advance-notice rules are the part that actually helps you, and none of it takes effect for eleven months.

Hank Mercer· Aug 5·3 min

Loans & Credit

Your Pay-in-4 Has No Rate Ceiling. New York Just Proposed One: 16%, Fees Included.

New York's proposed buy now, pay later rules would cap the all-in cost at 16%, hold penalty fees to $8, and hand you credit-card-style billing-error rights. Comments close September 14.

Hank Mercer· Aug 5·3 min

Mortgages

If You're Behind on a VA Mortgage, Catching Up Now Costs 0%. Your Servicer Has Until November to Offer It.

The VA Partial Claim Program moves your missed payments into a second lien with no interest and no monthly payment, and leaves your original rate alone. You can't apply directly. Here's how to make your servicer do it.

Hank Mercer· Aug 5·3 min

Solar & Energy

Your Home Battery Can Earn About $1,000 a Season. Most Owners Never Enroll It.

Massachusetts paid $5.4 million to 5,251 residential battery owners for the 2025 season. That is roughly $1,028 each, for letting the utility borrow power on the hottest afternoons. With the 30% federal battery credit gone, this is the number carrying the math.

Hank Mercer· Aug 4·3 min

Auto Insurance

New York Insurers Have to Tell You Why Your Bill Went Up. Starting August 24.

Insurance Law Section 2356 takes effect August 24. Over 10% and the explanation arrives unprompted with the bill. Under 10% and you have to ask, then they have 20 days. It covers auto and homes, and DFS says the reasons have to be specific.

Hank Mercer· Aug 4·3 min

Solar & Energy

Your Solar Warranty Is Two Warranties. One Dies the Day Your Installer Does.

Roughly 100 solar companies have closed, and a lawyer working these cases says one lender testified 40% of its installers are gone. The manufacturer warranty survives that. The workmanship warranty printed on the same quote does not.

Hank Mercer· Aug 4·3 min

Education

Your IDR Forgiveness Now Comes With a Tax Bill. On $40,000, Figure $8,800.

The shield that made income-driven student loan forgiveness tax free expired at the end of 2025. If your discharge lands this year, the IRS treats it as income. PSLF is still exempt, and one settlement may cover you.

Hank Mercer· Aug 3·3 min

Loans & Credit

Your State Capped Small Loans at 36%. A 195% Lender Found the Off Switch.

OppFi wants to buy a national bank before Rhode Island's rate cap takes effect. A 1978 Supreme Court doctrine would let it keep charging 160% anyway. Comments are open at the FDIC, OCC and Federal Reserve right now.

Hank Mercer· Aug 3·3 min

Solar & Energy

Ask for the Cash Price. Your 1.99% Solar Loan Is Hiding $5,700.

Solar lenders charge the installer 15% to 30% of your system cost to fund that cheap rate, and it goes straight into the price you sign. One question at the kitchen table pulls it into the open.

Hank Mercer· Aug 3·3 min

Solar & Energy

The 30% Solar Credit Died. The Other 30% of Your Quote Is Paperwork.

The average US home solar project runs about $31,000, and roughly a third of that is permitting and paperwork, not panels. Florida went after that number instead of the tax credit, and its installs are running 62% ahead of last year.

Hank Mercer· Aug 3·3 min

Education

Your State Will Lend You What Washington Won't. Read What You're Giving Up.

Federal grad borrowing capped at $20,500 a year on July 1, and five states are expanding their own loan programs to fill the gap. A state seal is not a federal loan: no PSLF, no income-driven repayment, and rates that run to 10.5%.

Hank Mercer· Aug 3·3 min

Auto Insurance

Letting Your Insurer Watch You Drive Is Worth $120 to $324 a Year. Not 40%.

Telematics works for about two thirds of drivers who try it. One in ten pays more. Nobody advertises either number, and only 24% of users read what they handed over.

Hank Mercer· Aug 3·3 min

Education

The 2027-28 FAFSA Is Open to Everyone, a Week Ahead of October 1. If You Filed in Beta, Do Not File It Again.

Federal Student Aid put the 2027-28 FAFSA live to the general public on September 23, beating the October 1 deadline in law for the second year running. The beta window is closed and fafsa.gov is the only door now. Anything you submitted during beta is already an official record, so resubmitting is the one mistake to avoid.

Hank Mercer· Aug 2·4 min

Money & Life

Louisiana Banned That Debit Card Fee on Saturday. One Letter Gets Your Money Back.

Senate Bill 254 took effect August 1, 2026, banning Louisiana retailers from charging you extra to pay with a debit card. Credit cards are not covered. Here is the notice-and-cure process that turns a fee too small to fight into a refund.

Hank Mercer· Aug 2·3 min

Money & Life

Your Landlord's Free Month Is a $218 Rent Increase You Agreed To Next Year

Apartment concessions hit an average 11.1% discount in June 2026, the deepest in more than 25 years, and nearly 2 in 5 Zillow listings carry one. Take the deal. Then change its shape, because a move-in discount resets at renewal and the reset looks exactly like a rent hike.

Hank Mercer· Aug 2·3 min

Solar & Energy

Your Solar Lease Payment Climbs 2.99% a Year. The Power Bill It Replaces Climbs 2.8%.

Leases and PPAs are the only way a federal solar credit still reaches your roof in 2026. One clause in the contract decides whether the deal works, and it is not the monthly payment.

Hank Mercer· Aug 2·2 min

Money & Life

If You Live in California, One Form Clears Your Data From 600 Brokers Starting Saturday.

California's Delete Request and Opt-Out Platform hits its enforcement date August 1, 2026. Every registered data broker must start processing DROP requests or eat a $200-per-consumer-per-day fine. This is the one privacy button worth pressing this year, if you live in the state.

Hank Mercer· Jul 29·3 min

Mortgages

Your Home Equity Just Lost Ground for the Twelfth Month Straight. Nobody Wrote That Headline.

S&P Cotality Case-Shiller for May came in at 1.1% year over year, released July 28. Inflation ran three points higher. Vegas, Seattle, and Denver are down in nominal dollars too. The 'housing always goes up' math from 2022 is not the 2026 math.

Hank Mercer· Jul 29·3 min

Money & Life

The DOT Just Gave Airlines Another Year to Skip Your Refund When Your Flight Number Changes.

On July 7, the Department of Transportation extended, through July 2027, its pause on enforcing the rule that treats a renumbered flight as a cancellation. If your new flight leaves close to the original time, you probably will not get an automatic refund. Here is when the refund right still applies, and what to do the moment your flight number moves.

Hank Mercer· Jul 29·3 min

Savings & Banking

Your Bank Just Failed. Your Money Is Fine. Here Is Why.

Kentland Federal Savings and Loan, the smallest standalone bank in America, was shut by the OCC on July 10. Depositors lost nothing. That is not luck. It is the FDIC's $250,000-per-depositor guarantee doing exactly what it is designed to do. Here is what the limit really means and the one thing to check this week.

Hank Mercer· Jul 29·3 min

Auto Insurance

Louisiana Auto Rates Are Finally Dropping. Yours Won't Drop by Itself.

More than 20 carriers have filed rate cuts in Louisiana since tort reform took hold. State Farm cut 5.9 percent on a million policies. Progressive Security cut 6.6 percent on 270,000. Louisiana Farm Bureau went nearly 12 percent. The catch: none of that lands on your renewal unless you shop it.

Hank Mercer· Jul 29·3 min

Credit Cards

Penalty APR: The 29.99 Percent Trap the Late Fee Fight Doesn't Cover

Everyone is arguing about whether credit card late fees go back to $32 or stay at $8. The other punishment for a slipped payment can hit 29.99 percent APR and stick around for months. Here is what penalty APR actually is, when it kicks in, and how to get it off your account.

Hank Mercer· Jul 29·3 min

Money & Life

You'll Get Fewer 1099s Next Spring. You Still Owe the Same Tax.

The One Big Beautiful Bill Act raised the reporting threshold for Form 1099-NEC and 1099-MISC from $600 to $2,000 for payments made after Dec 31, 2025. Congress did not lower your tax bill. It just lowered the number of forms proving you had income. Here is how to track this year so April 2027 is not a mess.

Hank Mercer· Jul 26·3 min

Savings & Banking

Your Bank Will Not Call and Ask You to Move Your Money

Americans lost about $1 billion to bank impersonators in 2025 alone, part of a record $3.5 billion in imposter-scam losses. The FCC issued a rare July 23 advisory and its guidance is one sentence: banks will never call and ask you to move your money to protect it. Here is the two-second fix and the four setups to do this week.

Hank Mercer· Jul 26·3 min

Money & Life

Book Your Expedia Hotel by Monday. Tuesday, Half Your Rewards Vanish.

Expedia and Hotels.com are cutting One Key on July 28. Blue members (which is most people) lose half their hotel earnings, everyone loses flight rewards, and the Hotel Price Guarantee is gone with no replacement. Trips booked before Tuesday keep the old rate. Here is what to do this weekend.

Hank Mercer· Jul 26·3 min

Savings & Banking

Fidelity Just Raised the Retirement Healthcare Number 7.5%. Your HSA Is Probably in Cash.

Fidelity's latest estimate says a 65-year-old retiring in 2026 will spend $185,500 on healthcare in retirement, the biggest single-year jump the report has ever printed. Meanwhile 40% of HSA holders let the balance sit in cash. That is one of the three tax breaks taken and two thrown away.

Hank Mercer· Jul 26·3 min

Money & Life

Back-to-School Will Cost You $864 This Year. Half of That Is Skippable.

NRF's July 14 survey has the average K-12 family on the hook for $863.86 this back-to-school season, a record. Only $146 of that is supplies. The other $718 is what parents decide to buy around back-to-school, and most of it is optional.

Hank Mercer· Jul 25·3 min

Credit Cards

You Are Probably Overpaying on Your Credit Card. A Five-Minute Call Fixes It.

A May 2026 LendingTree survey of 2,000 U.S. cardholders found that 84% who asked their issuer for a lower APR got one, averaging a 6.3-point cut. Just 23% ever asked. On a $6,000 balance, that cut is $378 a year off your interest bill.

Hank Mercer· Jul 25·3 min

Money & Life

Gas Just Jumped 15 Cents in a Week. Four Moves That Actually Cut Your Bill.

AAA's national average hit $4.09 on July 23, up from $3.94 seven days earlier, as Strait of Hormuz volatility pushes crude near $90 a barrel. The typical driver eats $72 a year on that jump. Here is how to claw most of it back.

Hank Mercer· Jul 25·3 min

Education

Your Student Loan Payment Might Unlock a 401(k) Match. Ask HR.

SECURE 2.0 Section 110 lets employers count qualified student loan payments as if they were 401(k) contributions, matched at the same rate. Adoption is thin, but Comcast, Kraft, Workday, News Corp, and Abbott offer it. If you just got moved off SAVE and are paying student loans again, this is the five-minute question your benefits portal owes you.

Hank Mercer· Jul 25·3 min

Money & Life

The Free Tool That Got You Your Money Back Just Got Harder to Use. File Now.

The CFPB has quietly narrowed its consumer complaint portal in 2026: identity checks, pre-filing warnings, and as of August 14, no more published complaint narratives. Here is what changed, why the 15-day bank response deadline still matters, and where to file when the CFPB is not enough.

Hank Mercer· Jul 24·3 min

Credit Cards

Your Chase Freedom Flex Phone Insurance Ends September 20. If You Have a Claim, File It This Week.

Chase quietly killed the $800 cell phone protection benefit on the Freedom Flex, effective September 20, 2026. Here is exactly what changes, what replaces it, and which cards still carry the coverage.

Hank Mercer· Jul 24·3 min

Mortgages

If You Gave Up on Buying This Spring, First-Time Buyers Just Took Back a Third of the Market

First-time buyers grabbed 33% of existing-home sales in June, up from 30% a year ago, as bidding fever broke. Prices are still at a record $440,600 and 30-year rates sit at 6.58%. But the competition dropped. If you got out-bid this spring, the door cracked open.

Hank Mercer· Jul 24·3 min

Education

One New Federal Loan This Fall Kills Your IBR, PAYE, and ICR. All of Them.

Take out any new Direct Loan on or after July 1, 2026 and every federal loan you already have flips to RAP or Tiered Standard only. IBR, PAYE, ICR access is gone. Consolidation triggers the same trap. Here is the move before Fall disbursement.

Hank Mercer· Jul 24·3 min

Loans & Credit

Financing a Car This Year? You're Paying the Bank an Extra $1,500.

Credit unions averaged 5.75% APR on a 60-month new car loan in the most recent NCUA data. Banks averaged 7.49%. On a $30,000 loan, that spread is worth roughly $1,500. Here is the shop you're skipping.

Hank Mercer· Jul 23·2 min

Money & Life

Your Direct Express Card Is Getting Reissued. Real Letter, Real New Card. Every Call About It Is a Scam.

The Treasury is moving 3.4 million Direct Express cardholders from Comerica Bank to Fifth Third over the next several months. The real change arrives as a mailed letter and a new card. Anything else, a call, a text, an email asking you to verify your card number or Social Security number, is a scammer riding the switch.

Hank Mercer· Jul 23·3 min

Money & Life

Airlines Just Got Permission to Hide Bag Fees From You Again. Check Before You Book.

On July 2, the Department of Transportation formally undid the 2024 rule that made airlines show checked-bag, carry-on, and change fees on the first page of search results. The disclosure is dead, the fees didn't go away, and a family of four with one bag each just added about $360 to a round-trip that never appeared on the search page.

Hank Mercer· Jul 23·3 min

Credit Cards

That 15% Off at the Register Costs You 30% Forever

Retail store cards charge an average 30.14% APR, per Bankrate's most recent survey. General-purpose cards average 20.94%. If a cashier offers you a discount for opening one this August, do the math before you say yes.

Hank Mercer· Jul 23·2 min

Credit Cards

Chase Quietly Put $50 on Your Marriott Boundless. You Have Until December 31 to Use It.

Chase added a $100 airline statement credit to the Marriott Bonvoy Boundless card for 2026, split into two $50 halves. The second-half window opened July 1 and closes December 31. Existing cardholders had to enroll manually. Confirm your enrollment and route your next airline booking direct.

Hank Mercer· Jul 22·3 min

Credit Cards

If You Carry a Sapphire Reserve, Chase Just Handed You Marriott Gold. Book Direct or the Fast Track Dies.

Chase Sapphire Reserve and J.P. Morgan Reserve cardholders can enroll for three free months of Marriott Bonvoy Gold Elite between July 1 and September 30. Stay three paid nights during the trial and status runs through February 2028. Book through Chase Travel and the nights don't count.

Hank Mercer· Jul 22·3 min

Mortgages

The Line of Buyers Behind You Just Got Shorter. Ask for the Concession.

NAR pending home sales fell 5.4% in June, the sharpest drop in six months and the lowest June on record. Existing single-family inventory is at a 10-year high. If you can qualify at 6.5%, this is your window to negotiate.

Hank Mercer· Jul 22·3 min

Auto Insurance

State Farm Owes You About $100. It Started Paying on August 18.

State Farm's $5 billion auto dividend was announced in February, sat still for six months, and began going out on August 18, 2026. About 49 million vehicles are in line for 4% to 10% of what they paid in 2025. Here is how a real notice reaches you, and why your renewal quote won't move.

Hank Mercer· Jul 22·4 min

Money & Life

Paid for Tinder in California While Over 29? Elect Your Payment by August 18.

A $60.5 million California class action settlement is paying back Tinder Plus and Tinder Gold subscribers who were charged more because they were over 29. The deadline to pick your payment method is August 18, 2026. No claim form. Real money.

Hank Mercer· Jul 22·3 min

Money & Life

Time your laptop for the tax-free weekend. Skip most of the rest.

Florida's back-to-school sales tax holiday runs July 20 to August 20. On pencils, 6% is pocket lint. On a $1,500 laptop, it's real money.

Hank Mercer· Jul 21·3 min

Loans & Credit

The CFPB just narrowed how you can fight a loan denial. Here's what still works.

As of July 21, disparate impact is out of federal ECOA claims. Your Fair Housing Act, state law, and CFPB complaint routes are still on the table.

Hank Mercer· Jul 21·2 min

Mortgages

If You're Buying a Condo, the Easy Underwriting Path Ends August 3

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac retire Limited and Streamlined Review on August 3, 2026. Every conventional condo loan application dated on or after has to clear Full Review, which pulls HOA financials, reserve studies, and litigation history. Here's the move if you're mid-shop.

Hank Mercer· Jul 21·3 min

Mortgages

Florida Homeowners: Your Insurance Renewal Just Got Cheaper. Check Your Number Before You Celebrate.

Citizens Property Insurance is cutting multiperil rates 8.8% and wind-only rates 5.5% at renewal starting July 1, the first personal-lines cut since 2015. Security First, Heritage, and Peninsula are following. Here is what to actually check.

Hank Mercer· Jul 21·3 min

Money & Life

Handy Told Workers They'd Make $45 an Hour. About 1 in 10 Ever Did. The FTC Is Mailing Refund Checks.

The FTC is sending $2.7 million in refund checks to 62,893 people who worked on the Handy platform (now Angi Services). Cash yours within 90 days of the date on the check.

Hank Mercer· Jul 21·3 min

Money & Life

Your Tomatoes Cost 20% More Than Last Year. That's the July 2025 Tariff.

One year after the Trump administration ended the US-Mexico Tomato Suspension Agreement, fresh tomatoes are up 20% and lettuce is up 32% at retail. Here's what the 17% duty actually did to your grocery bill, and the swap that undoes most of it.

Hank Mercer· Jul 21·3 min

Mortgages

If You're Buying a Condo This Summer, Your HOA's Insurance Deductible Can Kill Your Loan

A new Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac rule effective July 1, 2026 caps the per-unit deductible on a condo master policy at $50,000, and it makes an HO-6 borrower policy mandatory when there is any per-unit deductible. Here's what to check before you sign.

Hank Mercer· Jul 20·3 min

Mortgages

Your Homeowners Insurance Just Got a Cheaper Roof Option. It Isn't Always the Right Move.

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac now let you buy homeowners insurance with Actual Cash Value coverage on the roof instead of full Replacement Cost Value. The premium drops. So does what the insurer pays if your roof gets torn off. Here's when each is smart.

Hank Mercer· Jul 20·3 min

Money & Life

If You're Charging Groceries This Month, the Fed Just Said So Out Loud

The Federal Reserve's July 15 Beige Book noted that lower-income households are adding credit card debt to pay for essential goods, food pantry demand keeps rising, and household stress is widening. If your card balance is up because of groceries, three moves this week.

Hank Mercer· Jul 19·3 min

Money & Life

The Federal Complaint Portal That Cuts Checks Is Still Open. File Yours This Week.

The CFPB deleted 15 years of reports in May and says it can no longer maintain the Consumer Complaint Database as it exists today. The Submit a Complaint portal still works. Here's how to use it before that changes.

Hank Mercer· Jul 19·3 min

Money & Life

Medicare Just Cut Your Weight-Loss Drug Bill to $50

A Medicare demonstration launched July 1, 2026 covers Wegovy, Zepbound, and Foundayo at a flat $50 monthly copay for an estimated 3.8 million eligible Part D beneficiaries. Two catches to know before you call your doctor.

Hank Mercer· Jul 19·2 min

Mortgages

Home Prices Hit a Record High in June. Not in Seattle. Not in San Jose. Not in Portland.

Redfin's July 13 report put the U.S. median sale price at an all-time high of $408,776. But three West Coast metros are actually falling year over year, and three others are up 8 to 9%. The national number is not your market.

Hank Mercer· Jul 19·3 min

Credit Cards

Americans Just Paid Down Credit Cards for the First Time in 18 Months. Here Is Your Move.

The Fed's July 8 consumer credit report shows revolving credit fell $5.3 billion in May, the biggest one-month drop since November 2024. Tax refunds drove most of it. Card APRs are still 19.57%. If your balance did not shrink last month, here is what to do this week.

Hank Mercer· Jul 18·2 min

Credit Cards

You Have 12 Days to Turn 60,000 Chase Points Into 120,000 IHG Points

Chase Ultimate Rewards to IHG One Rewards runs at a 100% bonus through July 30, 2026, then drops to 70% through August 31. Here is the exact math and when this deal is not for you.

Hank Mercer· Jul 18·3 min

Mortgages

The Big Five Home Insurers Paid Zero on 44% of Claims Last Year. Pull Your Policy This Weekend.

Wall Street Journal analysis: State Farm, Allstate, Liberty Mutual, USAA, and Farmers paid nothing on 44% of resolved homeowner claims in 2024, up from 36% a decade earlier. Here is the deductible math to check before your next storm.

Hank Mercer· Jul 18·3 min

Mortgages

Housing Starts Jumped 19% in June. Almost None of It Was Houses.

Census released June housing starts Thursday: 1.43 million annualized, +19% month over month. Read the split and it flips. Multifamily jumped 76%. Single-family fell 0.2% for the third month running. If you were waiting for supply relief for buyers, keep waiting.

Hank Mercer· Jul 18·2 min

Money & Life

Retail Sales Rose 0.2% in June. Grocery, Clothing, and Health Aisles All Fell.

The Census Bureau's June retail report ran +0.2% on the headline. Split by category, groceries fell 0.4%, clothing fell 0.3%, and health and personal care fell 0.8%. Autos and online carried the number. If you have been cutting essentials to make the month work, you're not alone. Three moves that give real ground back.

Hank Mercer· Jul 18·3 min

Credit Cards

'No Interest for 12 Months' Isn't the Same as 0 Percent APR. The Word That Costs You 32 Percent.

If a store financed a purchase this year with 'no interest if paid in full,' you might not be on a 0 percent APR card. You may be on deferred interest, where missing the deadline by a dollar bills you for interest going back to receipt one. Here is how to spot the trap and how to get out of it.

Hank Mercer· Jul 18·3 min

Loans & Credit

The Rule That Stops Payday Lenders From Draining Your Bank Account Is Next on the CFPB's Chopping Block.

The CFPB's July 2026 regulatory agenda flags a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking to reconsider the last part of the 2017 payday lending rule still standing. That last part is the 'two strikes' payment rule. If it goes, so does the stop on repeat overdraft fees from bounced payday debits.

Hank Mercer· Jul 17·3 min

Money & Life

If Someone in Your House Is on Insulin, the FTC Just Capped What CVS Can Charge You

The FTC's July 14 settlement with CVS Caremark caps out-of-pocket insulin at $25 a month for members of the plans it manages and forces the country's largest pharmacy benefit manager to stop tying its fees to drug list prices. Consumer savings: up to $8.5 billion over 10 years, plus another $4.5 billion in point-of-sale rebates.

Hank Mercer· Jul 17·3 min

Money & Life

The Travel App That Promised 'No Hidden Fees' Just Set Aside $35 Million for Its Hidden Fees

The FTC settled with Hopper on July 2 for $35 million over pre-selected 'Tip' and 'VIP Support' charges hidden under the app's Swipe to Book button. If you booked on Hopper before mid-2023, some of that money has your name on it. Here is how to find it and how to spot the same trick on every other travel app.

Hank Mercer· Jul 17·3 min

Loans & Credit

A $15,000 Personal Loan Costs Almost $6,000 More at 619 Credit Than at 720. Know Your Score Before You Apply.

NerdWallet's July 1, 2026 rate tracker puts average personal loan APRs at 14.49% for excellent credit and 26.36% for bad credit. On a $15,000 five-year loan that's almost a $6,000 gap in total interest. A 30-day credit sprint before you sign is real money.

Hank Mercer· Jul 17·3 min

Credit Cards

Amazon Prime Day Just Made June's Retail Report Look Fine. If You Charged It, Watch the Statement Close Date.

The Commerce Department says June online sales jumped 1.9 percent on the back of Amazon Prime Day. What that number leaves out is your credit card's statement close date. At the current 22 percent average APR on cards accruing interest, carrying a $500 Prime Day charge one extra month costs about $9.

Hank Mercer· Jul 17·2 min

Money & Life

If You Get SSI, That July 31 Deposit Is Not a Bonus. It's Your August Payment.

Two SSI payments will land in July 2026: one on July 1 and one on July 31. The second is not extra money. It's your August payment arriving a day early because August 1 falls on a Saturday and the Social Security Administration doesn't cut checks on weekends. Spend it in July and August 1 arrives with an empty account.

Hank Mercer· Jul 17·3 min

Mortgages

Locking a Mortgage in the Next Two Weeks? Ask About a Float-Down Before Warsh Talks.

Fed Chair Kevin Warsh cut the FOMC statement in half at his first meeting and refused to answer forward-looking questions. He does it again on July 29. Industry economists say that means bigger, sharper mortgage rate swings on the day. If you are inside a lock window, that is the argument for a float-down.

Hank Mercer· Jul 17·3 min

Money & Life

Amazon's FTC Refund Cap Just Went From $51 to $200, and Nobody Has to Claim It.

On September 17, 2026 the FTC announced a revised order: the per-person cap rises from $51 to $200, millions more Prime members qualify, and every future payment goes out automatically with no claim to file. New payments start October 1. Here is who is covered and how to tell a real payment from the scam version.

Hank Mercer· Jul 16·5 min

Credit Cards

Chase Is About to Kill the Freedom Flex's Best Sleeper Perk. You Have 66 Days to Move Your Cell Bill.

The Chase Freedom Flex is losing its $800 cellphone protection benefit on September 20, 2026. If your wireless bill is on autopay to that card, your coverage stops on that date. Here is the move, and the small silver lining.

Hank Mercer· Jul 16·3 min

Mortgages

The Great Realtor Commission Cut Didn't Happen. Ask Anyway, and 93% of You Get One.

Two years after the NAR settlement, average real estate commissions rebounded to 5.70%, above the 2024 low. The good news: 93% of sellers who asked for a lower rate got one. Most sellers never asked. Here is the exact ask, with the math.

Hank Mercer· Jul 16·3 min

Money & Life

The Subscription You Can't Cancel Gets Easier in NYC on October 1. Everywhere Else, You're Still on Your Own.

New York City's Click-to-Cancel rule takes effect October 1, 2026, and a separate junk-fees proposal is out for public comment. If you sign up with one click, you cancel with one click. Here is what changes for New Yorkers and why the rest of the country is watching.

Hank Mercer· Jul 16·3 min

Credit Cards

Big Banks Just Told the Market Your Credit Is Fine. Believe Them.

Wells Fargo, Bank of America, and JPMorgan reported Q2 earnings this week. Consumer credit metrics improved, not deteriorated. If you've been waiting for lending to tighten before applying for anything, the wait is the mistake.

Hank Mercer· Jul 15·3 min

Mortgages

Your 3-Day Refi Safety Valve Is on the Chopping Block. Comment Window Closes August 10.

The CFPB is asking whether to kill the right of rescission on rate-and-term and cash-out refinances, and whether to swap the 3-day closing disclosure rule for a looser materiality standard. Comments are due August 10, 2026. If you plan to refinance, here is what changes and how to tell the CFPB what you think.

Hank Mercer· Jul 15·3 min

Savings & Banking

The June CPI Just Killed the July Rate Hike Talk. Your HYSA Rate Isn't Moving.

June inflation cooled to 3.5% and gave the Fed the cover it needed to hold July 28-29. Nothing you pay or earn is moving in the next two weeks. Here is the one move to make anyway.

Hank Mercer· Jul 15·4 min

Credit Cards

Discover Cardholders: You Have Two Weeks to Grab 5% on Airfare Before the App Moves

Discover it Cash Back's Q3 2026 rotating category includes flights and public transportation, the first time airline tickets have made the list. Cap is $1,500 in combined spend for $75 back. Activation is not retroactive, and the account starts moving to Capital One's app on July 27. Here is the move.

Hank Mercer· Jul 15·3 min

Mortgages

Wall Street Just Got a Leash on Single-Family Homes. What That Does to Your Bid.

The 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act became law on July 11. Institutional investors that own 350 or more single-family homes can no longer buy new ones. Here is what that changes for a first-time buyer in a Sun Belt starter market.

Hank Mercer· Jul 15·3 min

Money & Life

Your 2027 Social Security Raise Is 3.6%. Medicare Hasn't Taken Its Cut Yet.

September inflation landed October 14 and locked the 2027 COLA at 3.6% under the Social Security formula, the high end of the forecasts. That is $36 a month for every $1,000 of benefit, starting with January payments. The 2027 Medicare Part B premium, projected at $209.50, comes out of it next.

Hank Mercer· Jul 15·5 min

Credit Cards

The $795 Reserve Blew Up. The $95 Sapphire Preferred Just Got Its Best Bonus in 17 Years.

Chase quietly loaded the Sapphire Preferred with 3x on gas, doubled the hotel credit, added Global Entry reimbursement, and kept the $95 fee. The 100,000-point sign-up bonus is only the third time in the card's history.

Hank Mercer· Jul 14·3 min

Mortgages

Half of Home Sellers Are Writing You a Check. Yours Won't Come If You Don't Ask.

Nearly half of U.S. home sellers gave the buyer a concession in May 2026, the highest May share Redfin has ever recorded. Nashville sellers wrote a check in 75.5% of deals. Here is what to ask for, when, and how to get it in writing.

Hank Mercer· Jul 14·3 min

Money & Life

Your Business Miles Just Got Worth 3.5 Cents More. If You Actually Log Them.

The IRS bumped the standard business mileage rate to 76 cents mid-year, effective July 1. Rare mid-year hike, real money for gig workers and the self-employed, only if the log survives an audit.

Hank Mercer· Jul 14·2 min

Auto Insurance

New Jersey Drivers: Your Auto Renewal Is About to Be 10% Uglier. Shop It This Week.

New Jersey is projected to see the biggest state-level auto insurance hike in the country this year at 10.46%, driven by a two-phase increase in mandatory liability limits. Even clean-record drivers get hit.

Hank Mercer· Jul 14·2 min

Education

If You're Chasing PSLF, File the Employment Certification This Week.

The PSLF 'substantial illegal purpose' employer rule was vacated by two federal courts on June 30, 2026, one day before it was to take effect, and the Education Department confirmed on September 22 that it is stripping the attestation off the form. On October 21 and 22, 2026, the government dropped its appeals, leaving the courts' rulings in place. Filing your Employment Certification Form is still the move.

Hank Mercer· Jul 14·4 min

Money & Life

Fixing a Credit Report Error Just Got Slower. Here's the New Order of Operations.

As of late June, the CFPB will discontinue your credit-reporting complaint if you did not first dispute the item directly with Equifax, Experian, or TransUnion and wait 45 days. The extra step is a hassle. It is also the door that actually pushes the bureaus to correct or delete. Here is the exact two-step to run this week.

Hank Mercer· Jul 13·3 min

Money & Life

If You Get a Hospital Bill in Virginia, the Collection Playbook Just Changed

Virginia's Medical Debt Protection Act took effect July 1. No interest for 90 days, cap at 3 percent after, no home foreclosure, no personal-property lien, no wage garnishment if you qualify for financial assistance. Here is what the law does, and the one move that works whether or not you live in Virginia.

Hank Mercer· Jul 13·3 min

Money & Life

If the IRS Just Hit You With a Penalty for a 2025 Return, Don't Pay Yet

The IRS announced Automatic Exemption from Penalty (AEP) on July 8 in IR-2026-83. It replaces First Time Abate for anyone with a clean three-year record. The phase-in is messy, so notices are still going out. Here's the two-minute call that wipes the penalty.

Hank Mercer· Jul 12·3 min

Money & Life

Your Paycheck Advance App Is About to Get New Rules. Here's What EarnIn and DailyPay Can't Charge You For.

A federal bill just cleared the House Financial Services Committee that names four things EWA apps can't do to you: no credit reporting, no debt collection, no late fees, and no fee-only option without a free path. If your app is already doing any of those, that's the tell.

Hank Mercer· Jul 12·3 min

Money & Life

If a Landlord Rejected You Over a Background Check, Read the Report First

The FTC just fined tenant screening giant RentGrow $2.25 million for reports that counted the same criminal case two, three, four times. If you were denied a rental, you have 60 days to pull the report free and 30 days to dispute errors. Here's the move.

Hank Mercer· Jul 12·3 min

Education

If You're on SAVE, Your 90-Day Clock Probably Hasn't Started. Don't Panic-Switch.

The Education Department told 7 million SAVE borrowers to pick a new plan in 90 days. The clock starts when your servicer notifies you, not July 1. Updated October 19: miss the 90 days and you get one final 30-day notice before the servicer picks a plan for you, and your auto-pay follows the new, higher bill. Find the date on your notice before you do anything else.

Hank Mercer· Jul 12·6 min

Money & Life

Your Dependent Care FSA Just Grew By $2,500. If Your Employer Says So.

The pre-tax cap on a dependent care FSA jumped from $5,000 to $7,500 for 2026, the first raise since 1986. It saves a 22 percent bracket family around $740. But your employer has to opt in, and half of them are dragging their feet. Here's the ask for HR.

Hank Mercer· Jul 10·3 min

Auto Insurance

If You Drive in Nevada, Your Auto Bill Is About to Jump. Shop This Week.

Eleven insurers just got the green light to raise Nevada auto rates through the summer. Allstate goes up 8 percent on July 7. American National General goes up 20.9 percent on July 28. Here is who is hiking, when, and what to do before the renewal letter shows up.

Hank Mercer· Jul 10·3 min

Auto Insurance

New York Just Made It Harder for Your Auto Insurer to Raise Rates Quietly

The state's Department of Financial Services told carriers on July 1 to bake reform savings into every pending rate filing, or the rate hike gets denied. On September 9 DFS proposed the regulation itself: from November 27 every upward rate change needs sign-off first, and rate cuts come with a written explanation. Here is what changes for you and how to spot it on your renewal.

Hank Mercer· Jul 10·3 min

Money & Life

Tariffs Aren't Done Hitting Your Wallet. The Fed Just Put a Number on It.

The New York Fed's July 8 report says nearly half of tariff-paying companies still have price hikes queued up. Manufacturers of laptops, cars, and appliances are leading the pipeline. Here's the split and the move to make this quarter.

Hank Mercer· Jul 10·3 min

Credit Cards

The $8 Credit Card Late Fee Is Dead. Turn On Autopay Before Your Next Slip Costs $32.

The CFPB filed a Request for Information on July 7 that quietly confirms the $8 late-fee cap is gone for good. Fees are back to $32 first offense, up to $41 after that. Autopay is your cheap, boring fix.

Hank Mercer· Jul 9·3 min

Mortgages

If Your Louisiana Home Insurer Wants to Drop You, the Warning Just Doubled to 60 Days

Louisiana Act 182 took effect July 1. Homeowners, auto, residential and commercial property carriers now have to give 60 days written notice before a cancellation, non-renewal, rate hike, deductible change, or coverage cut. Non-payment still triggers 10 days. Here's what to do the day the letter arrives.

Hank Mercer· Jul 9·3 min

Mortgages

Your Mortgage Requires Three Credit Reports. The Bureaus Just Raised the Price 40 Percent.

Updated October 23, 2026: the FHFA director now says he is studying one or two credit reports instead of three for Fannie and Freddie loans, but nothing has changed yet. Here is the line item to check on your loan estimate and why you should not wait on this to buy or refinance.

Hank Mercer· Jul 9·4 min

Mortgages

Your 6.4% Refi Window Closed This Week. Here Is What Actually Moved.

Freddie Mac hit a seven-week low of 6.43% in early July. By August 6 the 30-year was at 6.69%, a fifth straight weekly rise and the highest since July 2025. If you were waiting for 6%, wait longer. If you were in a lock, know your options.

Hank Mercer· Jul 9·3 min

Mortgages

Your PMI Is Deductible Again in 2026. If Your AGI Is Under $110K, Track Every Payment Now.

The One Big Beautiful Bill Act made the mortgage insurance premium deduction permanent for premiums paid on or after January 1, 2026. Historically it saved qualified homeowners about $1,454 a year. The income phaseout starts at $100,000 and ends at $110,000.

Hank Mercer· Jul 9·3 min

Savings & Banking

If You Got Scammed on Zelle, One Word Decides Whether You Get Refunded

Since June 30, 2023, banks on the Zelle network have had to reimburse victims of a specific kind of scam. Every other scam, they will deny. Here is the exact wording that gets your money back, and where to escalate now that the CFPB pulled out and state AGs took over.

Hank Mercer· Jul 9·3 min

Money & Life

Your Power Bill Is Up 25% in Four Years. Data Centers Are Winning.

The average U.S. residential electricity rate hit 18.83 cents per kWh in April 2026, up 7.3 percent year over year. Commercial use is projected to pass residential in 2027 for the first time on record, driven by AI data centers. Two moves that actually lower your bill.

Hank Mercer· Jul 8·3 min

Money & Life

The IRS Won't Mail Your Refund Anymore. Fix It Before You File.

Executive Order 14247 ended paper IRS refund checks on September 30, 2025. If you leave the banking fields blank on your return, the refund gets stuck. Here is the move.

Hank Mercer· Jul 8·3 min

Money & Life

Your 2027 Medicare Bill Goes Up $6.60. The Eight Years After Are Ugly.

The 2026 Medicare Trustees Report projects a $209.50 Part B premium for 2027, the smallest bump since 2023. Buried in the same report: eight years of hikes averaging more than double that pace. What to do with your 2025 income now, before IRMAA locks in.

Hank Mercer· Jul 8·3 min

Savings & Banking

The 4.20% Savings Account Everyone Wanted Stopped Taking New Customers. Four Others Haven't.

Newtek Bank paused new applications for its 4.20% APY savings account, citing exceptional demand. Real, open accounts still pay 4.10% to 4.50%. If your money sits at 0.38%, move it this week.

Hank Mercer· Jul 8·3 min

Savings & Banking

Your 401(k) Catch-Up Just Lost Its Tax Deduction. If You Earn $150K.

A 2026 IRS rule quietly forced high earners to route all 401(k) catch-up money into Roth. Half the year is gone. Here is who it hits, the exact tax math, and the check you need to run on your plan today.

Hank Mercer· Jul 7·3 min

Credit Cards

Chase Freedom Cardholders: 5% Back at the Pump Ends September 30

The Q3 2026 rotating category on Chase Freedom and Freedom Flex is gas, EV charging, and transit through September 30. Cap is $1,500 in combined spend, so $75 back at the ceiling. Activation is not automatic. Skip the click and drop to 1%.

Hank Mercer· Jul 7·3 min

Money & Life

Your 2027 Social Security Raise Starts Getting Locked In Next Week.

Independent analysts now peg the 2027 COLA at 4.7%. The July CPI report drops July 15 and is the first of three months that set the official number. Here is what to watch, and what to do now.

Hank Mercer· Jul 7·3 min

Loans & Credit

One in Fifteen Subprime Car Loans Is Two Months Behind. That's the Warning.

Fitch says subprime auto loans just hit their worst delinquency rate since 1994. Prime borrowers are fine. The dealer's still going to try to sell you an 84-month loan. Here is the move.

Hank Mercer· Jul 7·3 min

Credit Cards

If You Pay $895 for Amex Platinum, Your Lounge Just Shrank

New Amex Centurion Lounge rules take effect Wednesday, July 8, 2026. Guests must be booked on your same flight and layover access caps at five hours. Here is what that means for the fee and when to switch cards.

Hank Mercer· Jul 6·2 min

Mortgages

The Second-Lien Boom Is Back. Here's When Tapping Your Equity Is Smart, and When It's Dumb Math.

Homeowners pulled $47 billion of equity in Q1 2026, mostly through second liens at 7.46% HELOC rates. Second-lien first-quarter volume just hit an 18-year high. Here is when it is the right move and when it isn't.

Hank Mercer· Jul 6·2 min

Auto Insurance

Your Auto Insurance Bill in 2026 Depends On One Thing: Your Zip Code

The national auto insurance average is nearly flat this year. Underneath it, 19 states are going up and 13 are going down. Oregon and Maryland renewals are running 14 to 21 percent higher. Vermont and Mississippi drivers are pocketing 6 to 13 percent less. Here is where you land and what to do about it.

Hank Mercer· Jul 5·3 min

Money & Life

Splitting Your Rent Through an App Costs You Up to $600 a Year

Flex and Livble let you break rent into weekly or bimonthly chunks. The fee runs up to $50 a month. A Democratic congressman just asked the CFPB to look into it. Whether it does or not, the deal is a bad one for you.

Hank Mercer· Jul 5·2 min

Money & Life

Your 2027 ACA Premium Ask Is In: A Median 15%, Stacked on Last Year's 58% Jump.

Every state has filed. Across 276 insurers in all 50 states and DC, the median proposed 2027 marketplace increase is 15%, with 51 insurers asking for more than 25%. That lands on top of the 58% average premium payment jump enrollees already ate in 2026. Here is what to check before your renewal letter arrives.

Hank Mercer· Jul 4·4 min

Savings & Banking

Your Budgeting App Just Lost Its Free Ride to Your Bank Data

The CFPB rule that let apps like Rocket Money, YNAB, and Monarch pull your Chase or Wells Fargo balance for free is being rewritten. Banks are already charging. Expect prices up, free tiers gone, or connections that break without warning.

Hank Mercer· Jul 4·3 min

Money & Life

The Surprise Fee at Checkout Is Now Illegal in Connecticut. Four States, Same Playbook.

A new Connecticut law effective July 1, 2026 makes advertising a price that hides mandatory fees a per se violation of the state's Unfair Trade Practices Act. California, Minnesota, and Colorado already have theirs. Here is what covers you, what doesn't, and how to file.

Hank Mercer· Jul 4·2 min

Credit Cards

Your Discover Card Moves to Capital One's App on July 27. Set Up a Login Now.

The Discover it Cash Back, Miles, Chrome, Secured, and Student cards move to Capital One's website and app in waves. The first went July 27, 2026. The next has new terms on October 16 and moves October 19. Same card number for you. New numbers for your authorized users. Two 5% categories gained, one redemption trick lost on October 15 at 5 p.m. ET.

Hank Mercer· Jul 4·4 min

Money & Life

The IRS Might Owe You a Pandemic-Era Refund. You Have Six Days to File.

A November 2025 court decision, Kwong v. United States, says the IRS should not have charged late penalties or interest on returns filed between January 20, 2020 and July 10, 2023. The window to preserve your refund claim closes July 10, 2026.

Hank Mercer· Jul 4·3 min

Education

The Feds Are Handing Out a 1% Student Loan Rate Cut. Take Five Minutes and Claim It.

The Department of Education stacked an extra 0.75% on top of the old 0.25% auto-pay discount, effective July 1, 2026. Updated September 30: the enrollment deadline moved from September 30 to December 31, 2026. The discount still ends June 30, 2028, so waiting only shortens it.

Hank Mercer· Jul 4·4 min

Credit Cards

Chase Sapphire Reserve Now Costs $795. Do the Math Before You Renew.

Chase raised the Reserve annual fee from $550 to $795, a 45% jump, and existing cardholders are hitting the new price at their 2026 renewals. Here is how to decide whether to keep it or downgrade for $700 back.

Hank Mercer· Jul 3·3 min

Savings & Banking

The Best Account in the Tax Code Just Got Easier to Use

Two changes in the One Big Beautiful Bill opened HSA access to bronze plan holders and direct primary care patients starting January 2026. The IRS also just bumped the 2027 contribution limits. Here is what changed and the move to make now.

Hank Mercer· Jul 3·3 min

Money & Life

The IRS Now Takes 20 Months to Fix a Stolen Refund. Sign Up for an IP PIN Before November.

The National Taxpayer Advocate's June 24 report calls IRS identity theft delays 'unconscionable.' Half a million cases pending, average wait about 20 months, average refund $3,275. An IP PIN blocks the fake return in the first place. Enroll now.

Hank Mercer· Jul 3·3 min

Savings & Banking

Grandma Just Got a Break on Trump Account Contributions. The IRS Won't Make You File a Gift Tax Return. Watch the Five Strings.

The IRS issued a gift tax safe harbor June 29 for cash gifts to Trump Accounts. Stay under $19,000 per kid and follow the rules, you skip Form 709. Miss one condition and every 2026 gift you made goes on the return.

Hank Mercer· Jul 3·3 min

Money & Life

If You Wired a Home EV Charger by Monday, Claim Your $1,000. If Not, You Missed It.

The federal home EV charger tax credit closed June 30, 2026. Installs in service on or before that date still qualify for 30% back up to $1,000 per port, if the address is in an eligible census tract. Installs after are on their own.

Hank Mercer· Jul 2·3 min

Credit Cards

The Fed Hiked and Says It Probably Isn't Done. Your 0% Balance Transfer Window Is Closing.

In June the Fed's dot plot flipped from a cut to a hike. On September 16 the hike arrived, prime went to 7.00%, and the September projections put the end-2026 rate at 4.1%. Updated October 11: the Fed's latest data has the average rate on card balances at 22.36%, most officials expect another increase by year end, and the next decision is October 28. The balance transfer math now saves about $690 on $6,000.

Hank Mercer· Jul 2·3 min

Money & Life

Your State Skipped the $1,700 Scholarship Tax Credit. You Can Still Claim It. Married, It's $3,400.

The Federal Scholarship Tax Credit starts January 1, 2027 and cuts your federal tax bill dollar for dollar. Updated October 2: the IRS proposed rules say you can give to a qualifying scholarship group in any participating state no matter where you live, and a married couple filing jointly can claim up to $3,400 if each spouse gives. Thirty states are in.

Hank Mercer· Jul 2·3 min

Mortgages

Your Flood Insurance Deadline Just Moved From September 30 to December 11. Stop Paying to Renew Early.

Congress passed a stopgap on September 1 that runs to December 11, 2026, and NFIP authorization moved with it. If you were rushing a renewal to beat September 30, you have ten more weeks. Here is what actually happens in a lapse, and why December is the harder date.

Hank Mercer· Jul 2·5 min

Education

Parent PLUS Just Got Rougher in Three Ways. If Your Kid Starts College This Fall, Redo the Math.

Starting July 1, 2026, Parent PLUS loans cap at $20,000 a year and $65,000 per child, the rate is 9.07%, and income-driven repayment is gone. The quote you got in April does not match what you can borrow in August.

Hank Mercer· Jul 2·3 min

Money & Life

The 10% Import Surcharge Ends July 24. Your T-Shirt Should Ease. Your Laptop Will Not.

The Section 122 tariff, the 10% surcharge riding on nearly every US import since February, is scheduled to expire July 24, 2026. Apparel, textiles, and leather should ease at the register. Electronics, appliances, and autos will not. Here is the shopping move.

Hank Mercer· Jul 2·3 min

Credit Cards

Chase Sapphire Preferred Now Sends Points to Hyatt at 4:3. Bilt Joins It January 1, Leaving One 1:1 Route.

Since October 1, 2026, Chase Sapphire Preferred and Ink Business Preferred points move to Hyatt at 4:3. Bilt cuts to 4:3 on January 1, 2027, with no premium-card exception. After that, only the $795 Sapphire Reserve keeps 1:1.

Hank Mercer· Jul 1·3 min

Money & Life

If You Own a Home in a High-Tax State, Your Tax Break Just Quadrupled

The SALT deduction cap jumped from $10,000 to $40,000 for 2025 and $40,400 for 2026. A homeowner in the 24% bracket with $30,000 in state and local taxes saves about $7,200. Here is who qualifies, who gets phased out, and the move to make before the fall.

Hank Mercer· Jul 1·3 min

Savings & Banking

Every Kid Born Since 2025 Has a Free $1,000 Waiting July 4. Here's the Catch.

Trump Accounts launch July 4, 2026, with a $1,000 government seed for every U.S. child born from 2025 through 2028. You get 18 years of tax-deferred index-fund growth. The catch is at withdrawal, and a 529 still beats it for college.

Hank Mercer· Jul 1·3 min

Mortgages

If You Rent, Your Mortgage Application Just Got a New Score to Work With

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac accept VantageScore 4.0, which counts on-time rent payments. Classic FICO ignores rent. Updated October 5: from October 1 a VantageScore is priced on the same grid as a FICO, ending a 20-point haircut. What the switch means for renters trying to buy, and the two questions to ask your lender.

Hank Mercer· Jul 1·4 min

Mortgages

If You Own in Florida, Shop Your Renewal. If You Own in California, Brace.

The same home insurance policy is going opposite directions in 2026. Florida's biggest carriers filed rate cuts. California's State Farm locked a 17% hike, and the FAIR Plan adds 29% in October. Here is the move in each state.

Hank Mercer· Jun 30·3 min

Savings & Banking

Your Overdraft Fee Was Supposed to Be $5. Banks Just Bumped It Back to $20.

The CFPB cap that would have made the typical overdraft fee $5 got killed by Congress. Banks like BMO are already raising their fees back to $20 and shrinking the no-fee cushion. Here is the move.

Hank Mercer· Jun 30·3 min

Mortgages

NOAA Called for a Quieter Hurricane Season. Your Coastal Insurance Bill Didn't Listen.

NOAA's 2026 Atlantic forecast came in below normal. Coastal homeowners still pay a $4,500-a-year 'hurricane tax' in Florida and Louisiana, plus a 5% named-storm deductible. Here is why the forecast won't move your premium and the moves that actually will.

Hank Mercer· Jun 30·3 min

Education

The Student Loan Garnishment Pause Didn't End July 1. You Got More Time Than Anyone Promised.

We said in June that the pause on wage garnishment and tax refund seizures was about to run out. It didn't. The Education Department never set an end date and has announced no restart. Here is the corrected picture, plus the rehab rule that changed in your favor.

Hank Mercer· Jun 30·3 min

Loans & Credit

Your New Car Loan Interest Is Tax-Deductible Now, If the Car Was Built Here

A new federal deduction lets you write off up to $10,000 a year in car loan interest, but only on new, US-assembled vehicles, and the real savings are a few hundred dollars, not the loan. Here is who qualifies and the move to make before you sign.

Hank Mercer· Jun 29·3 min

Money & Life

If You Have Kids, Your Refund Just Got $200 Bigger. Per Kid.

OBBB raised the Child Tax Credit from $2,000 to $2,200 per kid and lifted the refundable cap to $1,700. Most parents earning under $200,000 get the full bump. Mixed-status families lose access entirely under a new SSN rule.

Hank Mercer· Jun 29·3 min

Mortgages

A HELOC Now Costs More Than a Fixed Home Equity Loan. The Fed Says It Isn't Done.

The average HELOC is 7.54% and the average fixed home equity loan is 7.50%, per Curinos. The Fed hiked in September, prime is 7%, and most officials expect another hike by year end. If you need a lump sum from your house, the fixed loan is the better trade.

Hank Mercer· Jun 29·3 min

Mortgages

Your Mortgage Rate Is Locked. Your Payment Isn't. Insurance Just Hit a Record High.

Even on a fixed-rate mortgage, the taxes and insurance in your escrow keep climbing. Home insurance hit an all-time high in 2025, growing faster than the average mortgage payment as a whole. Here is the one piece you can actually shop, and how.

Hank Mercer· Jun 29·2 min

Savings & Banking

Treasury I Bonds Pay 4.26% Through October. Worth Buying?

The May-October I bond rate is 4.26% with a 0.90% fixed rate locked for 30 years. For a high-tax-state saver with cash beyond their emergency fund, the after-tax math beats a top HYSA. For everyone else, it is close.

Hank Mercer· Jun 29·3 min

Money & Life

If You Work for Tips or Overtime, You Just Got a Tax Break. It's Not 'No Tax.'

New federal deductions let tipped and overtime workers write off up to $25,000 in tips and $12,500 in overtime on the 2025 return. It is real money, but it is a capped income-tax deduction, not the tax-free pay the slogan promised. Here is what counts and the move to make.

Hank Mercer· Jun 29·3 min

Credit Cards

Your 'Pay in 4' Is Starting to Show Up on Your Credit Score

Buy now, pay later used to be invisible to the credit bureaus. That is changing, and 41% of users were late at least once last year. Here is what it means once your Klarna and Affirm splits start counting.

Hank Mercer· Jun 24·3 min

Savings & Banking

Your Bank's CD Pays 1.73%. The Best One Pays 4.50%. Same Risk.

The national average one-year CD pays 1.73% while top banks pay about 4.5% for the same federally insured deposit. Updated October 11, 2026: the Fed hiked in September and most officials expect another hike by year end, so here is why the one-year still beats the five-year.

Hank Mercer· Jun 24·3 min

Education

Headed to Grad School? Federal Loans Get Capped on July 1.

Grad PLUS is ending and new federal loan caps start July 1, 2026: $20,500 a year for grad students, $50,000 for professional students. If your program costs more, here is the gap you now have to plan for.

Hank Mercer· Jun 24·3 min

Mortgages

The Refi Surge Is Over: Applications Hit Their Lowest Since 2025. Here's the One Number That Says If You're Still Next.

Updated October 11: refinance applications are 56% below a year ago and at their lowest level since 2025, with the MBA's 30-year rate at 7.49% and Freddie Mac's at 7.40%. The break-even math still decides it: closing costs divided by monthly savings. Here is how to know if a refi still pays for you.

Hank Mercer· Jun 24·3 min

Loans & Credit

Trading a 22% Card for a 12% Loan Saves $1,800. The Trap Is What Comes Next.

Updated October 10: Bankrate's average personal loan rate is 12.54% and the Fed's latest data has card accounts that pay interest at 22.36%. The September rate hike moved your card rate, not a loan you already signed. Consolidating still saves about $1,800 on $10,000 over three years, but only if the fee is small and the cards stay at zero.

Hank Mercer· Jun 24·3 min

Mortgages

A 15-Year Mortgage Costs $807 More a Month and Saves $308,000. Your Call.

With the 15-year fixed near 5.79% and the 30-year near 6.48%, the shorter loan saves six figures in interest but demands a bigger monthly check. Here is the math on a $400,000 loan and how to decide.

Hank Mercer· Jun 23·2 min

Auto Insurance

Your Car Insurance Finally Stopped Climbing. That's Exactly When to Re-Shop.

Updated October 15: the government's car insurance index is 5.0% below a year ago, but it ticked up 0.1% in September after three straight monthly declines, while repair prices climbed 5.8%. Progressive kept $11.30 of underwriting profit per $100 of premium last quarter. The soft market has room in it. Shop before it closes.

Hank Mercer· Jun 23·4 min

Loans & Credit

One in Three Trade-Ins Is Underwater. Don't Roll That Debt Into Your Next Car.

A record share of car buyers owe more than their trade-in is worth, and most are rolling the gap into 84-month loans. Here is what that costs, and why covering the gap beats financing it.

Hank Mercer· Jun 23·2 min

Credit Cards

Your Credit Card Is Charging You 22%. The Fed Just Pushed In the Same Direction.

The rate on card balances that carry interest rose to 22.36% in August, per the Fed's October 7 release, after the Fed raised rates on September 16 instead of cutting them. Card balances shrank, the rate didn't. Here is the move.

Hank Mercer· Jun 23·3 min

Savings & Banking

The Rate Cut Got Canceled. Your Savings Should Be Earning 5%, Not 0.38%.

The Fed just erased the 2026 rate cut everyone was waiting for. That is good news for your savings, and a reason to stop leaving cash at the big-bank average.

Hank Mercer· Jun 23·2 min

Education

If You're on SAVE, Your Student Loan Payment Changes This Summer. Here's the Move.

SAVE is over and 7.5 million borrowers get a 90-day window starting July 1 to pick a new plan. The new RAP plan caps runaway interest, but some bills go up. Don't let the plan get chosen for you.

Hank Mercer· Jun 23·2 min

Mortgages

Your Mortgage Rate Didn't Move When the Fed Held. It Won't Move Wednesday Either.

The federal funds target range has sat at 3.50 to 3.75 percent since December 2025, and at the last meeting three voters wanted it higher, not lower. Meanwhile the 30-year fixed rose to 6.76 percent in the week before the September meeting. Here is why those two facts fit together, and what to do if you are buying or refinancing in the next 60 days.

Hank Mercer· Apr 28·3 min

Loans & Credit

If You Are on SAVE and Buying a House, Your Lender Just Got Stricter

Fannie Mae's April guidance forces mortgage underwriters to impute student loan payments even when your SAVE payment is $0. For some borrowers, that knocks $45,000 off the maximum loan amount. Here is what to bring to the application.

Apr 28·3 min

Auto Insurance

What Auto Insurance Actually Costs in 2026, by Age, State, and Record

If you are paying more than your peers, the numbers below will tell you. Average auto insurance premiums by age, state tier, and driving record in 2026, with the specific rate hit from a DUI, at-fault accident, or speeding ticket.

Apr 27·4 min

Auto Insurance

California Drivers: Your Auto Policy Has to Get Bigger by May 1

California's auto liability minimums jump from 15/30/5 to 30/60/15 on May 1, 2026. If your policy is still on the old numbers, here is what to update, what it costs, and whether uninsured motorist coverage is worth adding while you are in there.

Apr 27·3 min

Credit Cards

If You Were Counting on Chase 5/24 Workarounds, Two Quiet Changes Just Killed Them

Chase's 5/24 rule still governs most Sapphire and Freedom applications, but two 2026 changes rewrote how cards are counted. Authorized user cards now count. Business card backend checks got tighter. Here is the new playbook.

Apr 26·4 min

Credit Cards

Your Chase Sapphire Points Just Got Worse for Singapore and Air France

Chase trimmed Ultimate Rewards transfer ratios for KrisFlyer and Flying Blue to 1:0.9 in Q1 2026. If you were saving for those, you are paying 10% more in points. Here is the new math and where to send the points instead.

Apr 26·3 min

Savings & Banking

If You Have $50,000 in Savings, April Cost You $90 Without You Noticing

The median top HYSA rate dropped 18 basis points across the market in April. Two banks held. Here is the dollar impact at every balance level and the move worth making this week.

Apr 26·3 min

Solar & Energy

Your 30% Solar Tax Credit Is Gone. The Only Way to Get It Now Is to Not Own the Panels.

The residential solar credit ended for anything placed in service after December 31, 2025. The IRS says so in one sentence. Here is what is actually left in 2026, and where the 30% went.

Hank Mercer· Apr 25·3 min

Savings & Banking

Your HYSA Probably Got Cheaper in April. Here Are the Two Banks That Held.

Marcus Marquette and Bask Bank held their HYSA rates at 4.90% or better through April. Synchrony cut twice. If your bank is sliding, move the money before the next cut.

Apr 25·4 min

Savings & Banking

If You Retired Before 70, You Have a Roth Window. Most Retirees Waste It.

Between early retirement and required minimum distributions is the lowest-tax window of your life. If you do not convert traditional IRA money to Roth here, you pay it later at a worse rate. The 2026 math and a simple decision framework.

Apr 25·3 min

Education

If You Filed FAFSA This Year, Five Changes Quietly Moved Your Aid

Year two of the simplified FAFSA changed how grandparent 529s, family farms and small businesses, sibling adjustments, and blended families are counted. Some get more aid, some less. Here is what shifted and how to appeal when it does not match your situation.

Apr 24·5 min

Loans & Credit

When Term-Life Laddering Actually Beats a Single 30-Year Policy

If you bought a 30-year, $1 million term policy at 35, you may be overpaying for coverage you stop needing at 50. Laddering can cut total premium by 36%. Here is the math, and the cases where one big policy still wins.

Apr 23·4 min

Mortgages

If a Builder Is Offering You a Cheap ARM, Read Page 2 First

Builder-funded buydowns on 5/6 ARMs are back in 2026, and the cheap intro rate is hiding a reset most buyers will not see coming. Here is how to read page 2 of the Loan Estimate, the three numbers that matter, and when an ARM actually wins.

Apr 22·4 min

Money & Life

Your $200 Grocery Bill Is Real. The CPI Numbers Are Hiding Why.

Social media is full of shock posts about $200 grocery hauls. The CPI food data says inflation has normalized. Both can be true. Here is how unit prices, shrinkflation, and basket substitution are masking the real cost, and three moves that recover $1,000-$2,000 a year.

Apr 22·4 min

602 articles on the desk · newest Oct 30

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Auto Insurance

75 stories

Texas Lets the Dealer Charge $2,000 for GAP on a $40,000 Loan. Your Insurer's Version Runs About $4 a Month.
Progressive Paid Your Texas PIP Bills Late? Claim Your 5% Plus Interest by January 19.
Oklahoma Crash With No Injuries? Starting November 1, Nobody Has to Write It Down. Your Phone Is the Record.

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Loans & Credit

73 stories

Snap Finance Is Wiping Out $662 Million in Lease Balances. Only If You'd Already Stopped Paying.
Owe Bright Lending on a 2025 Loan? Its $15 Million Settlement Doesn't Cancel It. Older Balances Are Set to Go to Zero.
A Credit-Builder Loan Helps If You Owe Nothing. In a CFPB Test, Borrowers Who Already Had Debt Saw Their Scores Go Down.

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Savings & Banking

70 stories

Retailers Say Killing the Debit Swipe Cap Will Lower Your Prices. Last Time the Fee Fell, 1.2% of Stores Cut Theirs.
SoFi's New Crypto Dollars Pay 4.40%. Its Savings Base Rate Is 3.30%. Hit Convert and the Interest Stops.
Your Brokered CD Has No Early-Withdrawal Penalty. Selling It This Fall Costs Nearly Three Times One.

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Credit Cards

75 stories

Bilt Is Retiring 4% Bilt Cash at Your Card Anniversary. Do the Rent Math Before You Let It Go.
Your Citi AAdvantage Card Fee Goes From $99 to $150 in January. Count Your Checked Bags Before It Renews.
Your Card Charges 22%. Your Checking Pays 0.07%. Four in 10 Families Carrying a Balance Could Have Paid It Off From Checking.

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Education

72 stories

Left an Art Institute, Le Cordon Bleu or Virginia College Without a Degree? Washington Made Your Loans Dischargeable in 2025. Now It's Saying No.
Cosigned a Private Student Loan? The Exit Is 12 On-Time Payments. One Hardship Forbearance Pushes It Back a Year.
One in Four Families With Student Loans Has the Cash to Pay Them Off Today. Should You?

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Solar & Energy

57 stories

Your Solar Panels Make About Half an Average Month in December. In Chicago, That's $80 Off the 'Monthly Savings.'
Connecticut Power Got 19% Cheaper. Your Solar Quote Probably Didn't Notice.
Vermont Pays New Home Solar 15.7 Cents a kWh. Regulators Call That 5 Cents Too High.

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Mortgages

84 stories

Zillow Will Cover Your 3.5% FHA Down Payment. Refinance or Move Before Year Five and You Pay It All Back.
Fannie and Freddie Waived a Fee for First-Time Buyers Like You. Lenders Kept About 60% of It.
Your Florida Property Tax Bill Is 4% Cheaper in November. That Beats Any Savings Account.

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Money & Life

96 stories

That 'Obamacare Plan' Ad May Not Be Insurance. The FTC Just Warned 25 Marketers Before Open Enrollment.
Let Your ACA Plan Auto-Renew? Starting With 2028 Coverage, Your Subsidy Wouldn't Renew With It.
Googled 'Passport Renewal Online'? The Top Ad Could Charge You $148 for a Form That's Free.

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