US Consumer Confidence Rises

As retailers gear up for the holiday shopping season, they are likely to see some happy shoppers. US consumer confidence has reached its highest level since September 2007. The Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan reading for the October sentiment index reached 83.1, up from a previous level of 78.3. This reading surpassed economist’s expectations by a…

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What is QE3 and Does it Matter to You or the Economy?

On September 13, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke announced that the Fed would undertake a new program to stimulate the U.S. economy. The move was immediately dubbed “QE3” by pundits and columnists. But what is it and how is QE3 likely to affect you and the rest of us? “QE,” as you probably know, stands…

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Buying vs. Renting

For people of a certain age who remember taking out a home mortgage at 15% to 18%, the astonishingly low rates that banks are charging today are a little hard to believe. The chart below, taken from statistics collected by the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation for 15-year and 30-year fixed-rate mortgages, tells the story:…

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