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HomeMay the Road Rise Up to Meet You
Posted by Larry Doyle on April 3rd, 2010 7:26 AM |
I have told countless people that my real goal with Sense on Cents is for anybody and everybody who comes to this site to feel more informed or more educated on financial, economic, or market-related issues when they leave.
This weekend is a time for family and friends. I hope you have the opportunity to spend time with your immediate or extended loved ones appreciating the most priceless of all assets: quality relationships.
If you have some downtime and want to navigate Sense on Cents, there are lots of different ‘trails’ here including Newsworthy articles, Financial Primers (right sidebar), Economic All-Stars (left sidebar), Career Planning materials, past shows of No Quarter Radio’s Sense on Cents with Larry Doyle, or utilize the ever expanding library of past commentaries by referencing your desired topic in the search window in the upper right.
If you care to mention to your family and friends, “You know, I have come across this pretty cool site called Sense on Cents,” I’d be most grateful.
No Quarter Radio’s Sense on Cents with Larry Doyle will return next Sunday evening.
If you are traveling, please be safe.
Thanks for your continued support. I will leave you today with perhaps the most cherished of Irish blessings:
May the road rise up to meet you.
May the wind be always at your back.
May the sun shine warm upon your face;
the rains fall soft upon your fields and until we meet again,
May God hold you in the palm of His hand.
LD
Consumer Financial Protection Agency or Sense on Cents
Posted by Larry Doyle on June 17th, 2009 9:27 PM |
A large initiative embedded in President Obama’s financial reforms is the launching of the Consumer Financial Protection Agency. Why does President Obama feel it is necessary to launch such an agency? For the very same reason I was compelled to launch Sense on Cents earlier this year.
The Wall Street Journal provides insights on this agency in writing, A New Consumer Agency With Enforcement Teeth:
President Barack Obama’s proposed regulatory revamp includes sweeping changes to help consumers make informed decisions about financial products, save for retirement and get better investment advice.
A centerpiece is the creation of a Consumer Financial Protection Agency with authority to write and enforce rules across a slew of financial products.
Firms would also have to offer “plain vanilla” versions of products — such as a mortgage that does not include prepayment penalties and has predictable payments — along with their other offerings. The goal is to make it easier for consumers to shop around without worrying about hidden fees.
“The new agency is about making consumer credit markets work,” said Elizabeth Warren, chairman of the Congressional Oversight Panel, which oversees the government’s Troubled Assets Relief Program. Ms. Warren had proposed the idea of a financial-products safety commission in an article published in the journal Democracy in 2007.
“It’s not possible for a customer to compare three or four credit-card products and determine which one is the cheapest and which one poses the least risk,” Ms. Warren said. “This agency is about changing that.”
Consolidating the job of consumer oversight into one agency could help resolve consumer disputes more quickly and effectively.
Clearly the financial industry has not had the interests of consumers at heart. Why are so many investors dissatisfied with their banks, brokers, and financial planners? The financial companies and individuals did not protect the customers. More often than not, brokers and bankers themselves were ill equipped to understand the dynamics at work within products, the market, or the economy. (more…)
