Joshua Heckathorn

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Joshua Heckathorn

Joshua Heckathorn is a credit expert and has been featured on CNNMoney, FOX Business, Yahoo Finance, The Street, and many other national publications during the past twenty years.  He received a Bachelor of Science in Management (Finance) from Brigham Young University's Marriott School of Business and earned his MBA from Seattle University.

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Recent Blogs

Citi mtvU Platinum Select Visa Card for College Students

March 24th, 2009 by Joshua Heckathorn

citimtvu

I wish credit issuers had been innovative enough to release credit cards like Citi's mtvU Platinum Select Visa Card when I was in undergraduate school. I don't even remember having access to rewards program as a first-time credit card holder, not to mention a program that would reward me well for the all things I did every day as as student.

Forgiven Debt Now Tax-Free for Many Homeowners

March 18th, 2009 by Joshua Heckathorn

Under normal circumstances, debt forgiveness results in taxable income. Not a fun position to be in if you're the original debtor. However, in December 2007, Congress passed the Mortgage Forgiveness Debt Relief Act in an effort to provide tax relief for struggling homeowners by temporarily lifting this rule for debts forgiven on primary residences. More recently, in October 2008, Congress extended the relief to include debt forgiven in calendar years 2007 through 2012 as well. So, if you have restructured your home loan and reduced the amount owed, or had debt forgiven as part of a foreclosure during this time, it's important to remember that you may no longer owe taxes on that amount.

Citi Forward Card Rewards Financial Responsibility

March 11th, 2009 by Joshua Heckathorn

Citi Forward Card

I've heard a lot of hype during the last few days about Citi's new Forward card, so I thought I would take a closer look at what benefits the card really offers to consumers. I must admit that after a quick review of the details, it seems as though the card can actually be quite rewarding. And it has no annual fee! I especially like that part of the deal.

Amex Offers Cash to Get Rid of Customers

February 24th, 2009 by Joshua Heckathorn

American Express won't share the juicy details behind how it chose the select few, but Reuters recently reported that the credit card giant is actually offering some U.S. cardholders $300 to pay off balances and close their accounts. My, how things have changed, eh? A short time ago credit issuers were stepping all over each other trying to become the card of choice in everyone's wallet, and now they're willing to pay cash to just get out before the economy gets any worse.

Fannie and Freddie Twist the Knife in Our Backs

February 17th, 2009 by Joshua Heckathorn

Operating under federal control and still burning through cash like it's going out of style, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have decided it's the perfect time to twist the knife in our backs and make it even more costly to get a home loan in this horrific lending environment. Effective April 1st, the dynamic duo plan to implement a new set of mandatory loan fees based on tighter down-payment and credit scoring rules.

Perfect timing guys! Just what our economy needs to pull itself out of this seemingly never-ending slump. And while I can understand their desperate need for additional revenue-generating fees, it just doesn't make any sense to penalize future buyers that come to the table with solid credit scores and sizable down payments for the sins of the past. That's not going to improve the situation for anyone but Fannie and Freddie.

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