Posted June 30, 2009 - 13:34 by Xin Lu
Personal Finance, Real Estate and Housing, Consumer Affairs
On May 1st a new set of home appraisal rules called the Home Valuation Code of Conduct was put into effect by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac in order to distance realtors and mortgage brokers from appraisers. This was put in place because during the housing bubble appraisal fraud was rampant and some appraisers felt pressured by realtors and brokers to hit the desired numbers. How is this affecting consumers?
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Posted January 9, 2009 - 02:23 by Xin Lu
Personal Finance, Frugal Living, Shopping, Consumer Affairs
Recently the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act is making headlines because it required that all products (including clothes) made for children 12 and under be tested for lead and a unpronouceable toxic plastic additive called phthalates. Additionally, retailers must check that their products were not part of a recall. What does this mean for your everyday life?
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Posted July 24, 2008 - 15:05 by Xin Lu
Personal Finance, Consumer Affairs, Real Estate and Housing, Taxes
In my last article I wrote about the one aspect of the $300 billion dollar housing bailout that I thought made sense, but the full text of the bill known as H.R. 3221 is over 700 pages so it is too complex to discuss in any one blog post. Today I shall highlight some of the more questionable and dangerous aspects of the bill.
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Posted July 23, 2008 - 16:21 by Xin Lu
Personal Finance, Consumer Affairs, Real Estate and Housing
The United States House of Representatives just passed a massive mortgage bailout bill that includes many changes to the Federal Housing Administration and the Government Sponsored Enterprises. One particular change in the bill is that seller-funded down payment assistance through a third party is now prohibited in obtaining FHA loans. This in direct response to the unscrupulous behavior of many seller funded down payment assistance charities that sprang up in the past decade.
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Posted July 21, 2008 - 21:40 by Xin Lu
Personal Finance, Career and Income, Consumer Affairs
On July 24th, 2008, the Federal minimum wage in The United States will increase from $5.85 per hour to $6.55 per hour in accordance to the 2007 amendment to the Fair Labor Standards Act. This is a 70 cent or approximately 12% increase from last year. Are You getting a pay raise?
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