Los Angeles Times
By Nathan Olivarez-Giles
May 28, 2009
Charles Clow has some advice for the Obama administration on how to get the U.S. out of the recession.
Continue reading Contest teaches teens about economy, stock market.
May 2009 Archives
The San Francisco Chronicle
By James Temple
May 29, 2009
Providing small loans to help the poor start or expand businesses is an effective strategy for helping communities ravaged by the recession as well as expanding the overall economy, according to speakers at a conference Thursday.
Continue reading How microlending might help boost struggling economy.
The New York Times
By Scott Medintz
May 27, 2009
To hear some small-business owners talk, getting a loan remains all but impossible. And yet, many bankers claim that their small-business loan volume is up significantly. So, is the small-business credit crisis over or not?
Continue reading To Get a Business Loan, Know How the Bank Thinks.
Central Valley Business Times (California)
May 26, 2009
The growth of small and microbusiness lending remained positive during the first half of 2008, although the expansion was slower than in the previous year, according to a study by the Small Business Administration's Office of Advocacy and released Monday.
Continue reading Study ranks banks on small business lending.
The Enquirer (Cincinnati)
By Ray Cooklis
May 28, 2009
It's a bit of a hyperbole, but there's an essential truth in the saying that in our economy, you have to be rich to be poor.
Continue reading Lowering the high cost of being poor.
The New York Times
By Nicholas Kristof
May 27, 2009
It has become increasingly clear that the most important element of microfinance isn't lending, but savings. That lesson was taught to me by SEWA in India, Kashf in Pakistan and Grameen in Bangladesh. Only some poor people will benefit from the chance to borrow, but almost all will benefit from the chance to save.
Continue reading Putting the Microsavings in Microfinance.
The Chronicle Review
By Kevin Carey
May 27, 2009
A couple of weeks ago I published a column in The Chronicle more or less denouncing 529 college savings plans on the grounds that policy makers have used them to avoid the hard choices inherent to actually keeping college affordable while simultaneously inducing families to gamble away their hard-earned money in a casino run by a particularly mendacious house.
Continue reading The Case Against Helping Low-Income Families Save for College.
The Washington Post
By David M. Smick
May 24, 2009
There is a reason people say to beware what you wish for because you may get it.
Continue reading The Money In Our Mattresses.
The Washington Post
By Renae Merle
May 26, 2009
Federal Program For Loan Workouts Draws New Allies
The Obama administration is attempting to revive a stalled government foreclosure prevention program that could restore equity to hundreds of thousands of borrowers whose home values have plummeted.
Continue reading Face-Lift for Foreclosure Prevention.
The New York Times
By Ron Lieber
May 23, 2009
Every year around this time, longtime personal finance scribes run into the same challenge: writing an advice column for college graduates that is somehow different from all the other ones they have written before.
Continue reading Financial Wisdom From a New Graduate.
The Washington Post
By Kenneth R. Harney
May 23, 2009
The $8,000 federal tax credit for first-time home purchasers is about to morph into a ready-cash down payment source, thanks to a federal policy change.
Continue reading First-Time Home Buyers Can Turn Tax Credit Into Cash.
Los Angeles Times
By Eric Bailey and Patrick McGreevy
May 22, 2009
The governor suggests dismantling welfare programs for families and ending CalGrants for college students.
Continue reading Poor would be hard hit by state cuts.
San Francisco Chronicle
By Heather Knight
May 21, 2009
Juan Michel, a 53-year-old father of nine living in San Francisco's Mission District, was skeptical when a friend told him he could get free money for improving his family's life.
Continue reading $2,000 a year to help S.F. families improve.
Business Wire
May 21, 2009
Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke, FDIC Chair Sheila Bair and Civil Rights Icon Ambassador Andrew Young to Deliver Keynote Addresses
Continue reading First Global Financial Literacy Summit Announced by Operation HOPE.
The Wall Street Journal
By Constance Mitchell Ford and Shefali Anand
May 21, 2009
The financial turmoil that has weakened or destroyed some of Wall Street's most prominent companies is presenting an opportunity for some lesser-known firms, especially those owned by women and minorities.
Continue reading For Minority Firms, Crisis Opens Doors.
PBS
May 20, 2009
Paul Solman talks to behavioral economist Dan Ariely about how people make financial decisions and the intersection of morality and money in the economic crisis.
NPR
By Bradley Schiller
May 20, 2009
According to the Census bureau, more than 37 million people in this country are living in poverty. In urban areas, basic amenities such as groceries and gasoline cost significantly more than in the suburbs. Bradley Schiller is author of The Economics of Poverty and Discrimination. Schiller is joined by Danette Tucker, who recently lost her job, to discuss whether it actually costs money to be poor in the U.S.
CNN
By Les Christie
May 20, 2009
HUD plans to tweak $8,000 tax credit rules so first-time homebuyers can get instant down-payment assistance.
Continue reading $8,000 fast cash for first-time homebuyers.
Examiner.com
By Patricia Dorrell
May 20, 2009
An Individual Development Account (IDA) is a matched-savings program presently offered to mid- to low-income individuals who are willing to save to buy a home (and improve their credit), go to college or get vocational training, or start or expand a small business.
CNN
By Jessica Bruder
May 13, 2009
A software entrepreneur's startup aims to make personal finance an educational cornerstone for America's teens.
Continue reading Financial literacy through video games.
Indian Country Today
By Rob Capriccioso
May 20, 2009
A new study found that predatory lending practices disproportionately affect Native American families.
Continue reading Native Americans disproportionately affected by predatory lending.
Diversity Inc.
May 19, 2009
Black and Latino financial consumers remain "unbanked" and "underbanked" although use of financial services has increased, according to Synovate's 2008 U.S. Diversity Markets Report.
Continue reading Which Financial Services Do Blacks, Latinos Need?.
Savannah Morning News (Georgia)
By Deden Rukmana
May 20, 2009
The banking task force of Step Up Savannah and the City of Savannah has launched a new banking program, Bank On Savannah, designed to appeal to those who have no bank accounts.
Continue reading Helping the poor fight predators.
The Wall Street Journal
By Lauren Etter
May 19, 2009
Cash Shortage Hits Once-Thriving Sector as Downturn Saps Rural Lenders
The credit crunch is trickling down to the farm as agricultural lenders tighten credit standards, leaving some farmers short of money to feed their animals or put in crops as the planting season nears its end.
Continue reading Farms Start to Feel Credit Pinch.
CNN
By Julianne Pepitone
May 18, 2009
The latest survey of homebuilders' confidence reveals that tax credits, mortgage rates and market options are boosting sentiment.
Continue reading Homebuilders: 'Best conditions in a lifetime'.
USA TODAY
By Laura Petrecca
May 19, 2009
Launching a small business can bring big returns. But it's anything but easy money. Running a firm takes stamina, creativity, discipline -- and sometimes, even physical work.
Continue reading Teen entrepreneurs offer tips to aspiring peers.
Minority homeownership suffers in latest trend
By Matt O'Brien
May 14, 2009
Minorities gained the most but now have lost the most from a historic homeownership boom that turned to a bust.
Continue reading Minority homeownership suffers in latest trend.
Gov't expands housing plan, off to slow start
By Alan Zibel
May 15, 2009
With less than 24 hours on the clock, Rose Inman's foreclosure was postponed Thursday for 60 days. But after spending hundreds of dollars she couldn't afford to find an apartment and pack her things, the last-minute gesture comes too late she is moving out of her house overlooking Seattle's Puget Sound.
Continue reading Gov't expands housing plan, off to slow start.
The Wall Street Journal
By Sudeep Reddy
May 14, 2009
Retailers could get more aggressive about levying higher prices on customers using credit cards under a measure being considered in the U.S. Senate.
Continue reading Paying With Cash Could Soon Pay Off.
The Wall Street Journal
By Conor Dougherty
May 14, 2009
The recession has reduced the growth rate of U.S. Hispanic and Asian populations, the Census said Wednesday, slowing the spread of diversity in American suburbs and exurbs.
Continue reading Downturn Slows Growth of Hispanics, Asians in U.S..
The Washington Post
By Renae Merle
May 14, 2009
In the two months since it launched, the Obama administration's foreclosure prevention plan has outperformed the government's previous attempts, offering more than 50,000 homeowners lower-cost mortgages.
Continue reading More Homeowners Getting Aid, but Demand Keeps Rising.
Birmingham News (Alabama)
By Roy L. Williams
May 9, 2009
Reginald Gatson has never cut hair, but after hearing a presentation from the owner of Etheridge Barber & Style shop this year, the Wenonah High School junior now wants to run his own shop one day.
MyNC.com (North Carolina)
By Josh Green
May 12, 2009
Ask a kindergartener about the recession, about credit card interest or the FDIC and you'll probably get a blank stare or a shrug.
Continue reading Entire School Gets Savings Accounts.
Los Angeles Times
By Tiffany Hsu
May 13, 2009
The roller-coaster ride of the real estate market over the last 15 years has soared higher and plunged deeper for minorities nationwide than it has for whites, according to a study of homeownership released Tuesday.
Continue reading Housing swings hit minorities.
The New York Times
By David Segal
May 11, 2009
It's unlikely that any group of professionals is happier to highlight the dullness of their work than small-town bankers.
Continue reading We're Dull, Small Banks Say, but Have Profits.
The Huffington Post
By Steve Mariotti
May 13, 2009
As the whirlwind of news surrounding the vast global economic crisis continues, I stopped to reflect on why providing an entrepreneurship education to low-income youth matters so much, especially now.
Continue reading Looking to Entrepreneurship Education During the Economic Crisis.
The Journal Times (Wisconsin)
By Tracy L. Nielsen
May 10, 2009
Community issues stemming from personal, economic and environmental factors are growing increasingly complex and more difficult. More and more, hard-working individuals and families are unable to get ahead financially.
Continue reading United Way takes family-based approach to reducing poverty.
The Financial Times
By Clive Crook
May 11, 2009
The most ambitious US presidency in living memory hardly needs to extend its list of tasks, you might think. Yet the country's long-term economic prospects turn on something that is all too easy to neglect, just as it has been neglected in the past.
Continue reading America's classroom equality battle.
Forbes.com
By Jonathan Morduch
May 11, 2009
With the right tools, impoverished investors have the most to gain.
Continue reading Portfolio Management For The Poor.
The New York Times
Editorial
May 8, 2009
The soaring dropout rate is causing the United States to lose ground educationally to rivals abroad and is trapping millions of young Americans at the very margins of the economy.
Continue reading The Dropout Crisis.
USA TODAY
By Peter Orszag
May 11, 2009
Administration targets ineffective programs and health care costs.
To build a new foundation for economic growth and change for the future, we can't afford to waste taxpayer dollars. That's why the president is taking on the No. 1 driver of our deficit, spiraling health care costs, this year.
Continue reading Opposing view: 'A good start'.
The Washington Post
By David Brooks
May 7, 2009
The fight against poverty produces great programs but disappointing results. You go visit an inner-city school, job-training program or community youth center and you meet incredible people doing wonderful things.
Continue reading The Harlem Miracle.
The Salt Lake Tribune
By Cathy Mckitrick
May 8, 2009
Manufactured housing puts homeownership within reach for many who otherwise could only afford to rent their own living space. And now, recession-driven incentives make this housing option even more attractive.
Continue reading Manufactured housing gets a boost.
The Boston Globe
By Jenifer B. McKim
May 11, 2009
Thomas Quinn did something that most people who lose their homes to foreclosure can only dream about: He bought back his family's Hyde Park house.
The Miami Herald
By Cindy Krischer Goodman
May 9, 2009
Low-income single mothers in South Florida are learning to help themselves escape poverty and achieve the goal of owning a home by mastering the art of saving a little bit at a time.
Continue reading Low-income mothers learn financial skills to realize their dreams.
The Associated Press
By Darlene Superville
May 8, 2009
President Barack Obama on Thursday discussed ways to improve the education system with the unlikely political trio of New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, the Rev. Al Sharpton and former House Speaker Newt Gingrich.
Continue reading Obama meets with Sharpton, Gingrich, Bloomberg.
The Dallas Morning News
By Steve Brown
May 8, 2009
Falling home prices and lower interest rates have made homeownership more affordable for Dallas residents.
Continue reading Homeownership grows more affordable in Dallas.
The New Yorker
By Ryan Lizza
May 4, 2009
Can Peter Orszag keep the President's political goals economically viable?
A few weeks ago, Peter Orszag, President Obama's trim, apple-cheeked budget director, stretched out in the green room of what has become, in recent years, the locus of reliably liberal sensibility in this country--the midtown studios where Jon Stewart tapes "The Daily Show."
Continue reading Money Talks.
The Washington Post
By Binyamin Appelbaum
May 7, 2009
Long-awaited results of the government's stress test of 19 major banks show that nearly all, including several that verged on collapse during the financial crisis, now have enough money to weather the recession, the Obama administration plans to announce this afternoon.
Continue reading Stress Test Finds Strength in Banks.
The New York Times
By David M. Herszenhorn
May 7, 2009
The Senate on Wednesday approved a bill that would expand federal efforts to prevent mortgage foreclosures, shield mortgage service companies from lawsuits if they participate in federal loan modification programs, and give renters of foreclosed properties at least 90 days' notice before eviction.
Continue reading Senate Approves Measure to Reduce Home Foreclosures.
The Associated Press
By Duncan Manfield
May 7, 2009
From its bamboo floors to its rooftop deck, Clayton Homes' new industrial-chic "i-house" is about as far removed from a mobile home as an iPod from a record player.
Continue reading Clayton 'i-house' is giant leap from trailer park.
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel (Wisconsin)
By Ben Poston and Bill Glauber
May 5, 2009
One in seven children in Wisconsin and nearly 11% of the state's population - more than a half-million people - lived in poverty in 2007, according to a University of Wisconsin-Madison report released Monday.
The Wall Street Journal
By Ruth Simon and James R. Hagerty
May 6, 2009
The downturn in home prices has left about 20% of U.S. homeowners owing more on a mortgage than their homes are worth, according to one new study, signaling additional challenges to the Obama administration's efforts to stabilize the housing market.
Continue reading House-Price Drops Leave More Underwater.
Houston Chronicle
By Bradley Olson
May 6, 2009
Amid volatile energy prices and dire predictions about the worldwide impact of climate change, efforts to make residential homes more eco-friendly have blossomed in recent years, but so far have been available almost exclusively to the wealthy.
Continue reading Doors open to eco-friendly homes.
KARK 4 News (Arkansas)
May 5, 2009
Noting that Arkansas's working families and businesses are fighting valiantly to survive the current economic crisis, U.S. Senator Blanche Lincoln on Tuesday announced her "Arkansas Plan" of tax cuts that will help them get ahead.
Continue reading Arkansas Senator Pushing Tax Cuts Package.
NPR
By Wendy Kaufman
May 6, 2009
The Ford Foundation is trying to save neighborhoods beset by home foreclosure. The nation's second largest philanthropy, will pour $50 million into a program designed to get houses off the books of financial institutions and into the hands of homeowners.
Listen to the complete story here
The New York Times
By Rachel L. Swarns
May 6, 2009
The fund would offer financial support to nonprofit and community groups that focus on education, health care and economic mobility, among other issues, officials say.
Continue reading Mrs. Obama Announces New Fund to Aid Nonprofits.
The New York Times
By David Streitfield
May 5, 2009
Is this what a bottom looks like?
Continue reading Where Home Prices Crashed Early, Signs of a Rebound.
The Wall Street Journal
By Raymund Flandez
May 5, 2009
Many small-business lenders are seeing signs of a thaw in the secondary market for loans backed by the Small Business Administration.
Continue reading Small-Business Credit Sees Thaw.
The New York Times
By Marcelle S. Fischler
May 3, 2009
James J. Vilardi plans $70,000 worth of repair work to a three-bedroom Cape on Searing Street, one of four foreclosed homes boarded up on an otherwise tidy block in Hempstead, N.Y.
Continue reading Affordable Homes, via Foreclosures.
The Washington Post
By Kenneth R. Harney
May 2, 2009
For the housing market, it's the equivalent of financial alchemy, and it's hot: Turning the $8,000 federal home-purchase tax credit, which normally can't be spent until you get your refund, into cash today, available for your down payment and closing costs.
Continue reading Paying Tax Credit Forward Would Get More Buyers In the Door.
New Mexico Independent
By Patricia Anders
May 4, 2009
What's known to social policy wonks as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program " perhaps better known as the food stamp program " has served as a national safety net for many years, providing assistance to low-income households that meet certain income and asset eligibility criteria to buy food.
Continue reading New Mexico is leaving federal money (and food) on the table.
Albuquerque Journal (New Mexico)
By Jane Mahoney
May 3, 2009
Tax incentives and rebates are among the benefits for builders or homebuyers who use energy saving construction methods, high-efficiency mechanical systems and products designed to reduce a home's impact on the environment.
Continue reading Energy-Efficient Homes Can Pay Off for Homeowners.
The Wall Street Journal
By Karen Blumenthal
May 3, 2009
This spring's college grads are heading out into a world where jobs are tough to come by. The economic outlook is uncertain and all the older people they know are feeling the pain of stock-market losses.
Continue reading Five Money Lessons for New College Grads.
The Columbus Dispatch (Ohio)
By Simone Sebastian
May 2, 2009
Studying at an Ivy League school seemed impossible to Sebastian Restrepo.
His parents were Colombian immigrants. His father worked at McDonald's. He was happy to go to whatever in-state school accepted him.
The New York Times
By Gretchen Morgenson
May 2, 2009
High school seniors, thrilled at receiving fat envelopes from the colleges of their choice last month, must now figure out how to pay for the privilege of attending these institutions. For many, this will mean a journey into private student loan land, where financial fog and fine print reign.
Continue reading Students' First Lesson: Beware Loans' Fine Print.
The Washington Post
By Margaret Spellings
May 4, 2009
Student achievement results from the "nation's report card" published last week show that we are on the right track. Since enactment of the bipartisan No Child Left Behind Act, which called for all students to be on grade level in reading and math by 2014, students have been making progress in reading and math in elementary and middle school.
Continue reading 'No Child' in Action.
Financial Times
By Dean Karlan and Jonathan Zinman
April 29, 2009
The US government and the Federal Reserve are spending billions of dollars to jump-start credit markets and restore access to liquidity for businesses and households.
Continue reading How government can guide small borrowers.
Telegram & Gazette (Massachusetts)
By Matthew Bruun
May 1, 2009
Taking a family on vacation, paying for day care and controlling credit card debt are not foremost topics on the minds of most high school students.
Continue reading Financial literacy course fascinates students.
The New York Times
By Jacques Steinberg
May 1, 2009
Each afternoon this spring, Brennan Jackson, an A-student who ranks near the top of his high school class, has arrived at his guidance counselor's office to intercept the latest scholarship applications, as if they were a newspaper landing on his front stoop.
Continue reading Goal Is College. Hurdle Is Finding Financial Aid.
