FINANCIAL HOUSEKEEPING | Shop for the best credit card deals
Credit issuers change their terms all the time. You may have picked the best available card when you signed up for it, but it might be average or worse today. More likely, you let the card issuers pick you, by sending an offer that you accepted, without actually seeing if it’s the best available.
There are several websites that let you examine card deals and decide which type of card – fixed rate, low-fee, rewards card and more – is right for you.
Before accepting a card offer you get in the mail or by telephone – and any time you are concerned that your own cards may not be so great anymore – check out cardweb.com, bankrate.com or creditme.com to do some comparison shopping.
SHORT COURSE | House call
In a brokerage account, a house call occurs when the customer’s equity in a margin account is below the maintenance level. The maintenance level is the minimum value of cash and securities that the customer must have on hand to borrow on margin; if the value of the account falls below maintenance, the broker must call the client asking for more cash or securities.
If the client fails to deliver the requested additions to their margin account, his or her holdings will be liquidated.
At most brokerage firms, the house maintenance level is actually higher than what is required by regulatory guidelines.
