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There are substantial differences in the credit card offers that banks extend to different potential customers. Less-sophisticated borrowers receive offers with more back-loaded and hidden features, as well as more upfront rewards, visual distractions, and fine print at the end of the offer letter, according to Hong Ru and Antoinette Schoar in their new study, Do Credit Card Companies Screen for Behavioral Biases? (NBER Working Paper No. 22360). Banks also ratchet up these hidden features when their cost of funding increases, and when the credit risk of consumers is lower, which reduces the risk for the banks that customers default once they are hit with the unexpected charges. Hidden fees go up when state unemployment insurance benefits become more generous.
https://www.nber.org/digest/sep16/w22360.html
One more way in which Big Data is used against Little Guys.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday September 07 2016, @01:47PM
The parent didn't say they MADE $750 per month, just that they LIVED on that. Just because you make $XXX per year doesn't mean you need a X sq ft residence, new car etc. When you get over how others perceive your status, in other words, the stigma of "that is for poor people" and focus on optimizing what you get for your money, you will be pleasantly surprised on how much you can save. Cable TV is overrated and expensive, you will get used to the current seasons heat/cold, so keeping the thermostat at X degrees isn't necessary. This years gadgets don't offer much more than last years. Driving safely and maintaining property will keep your chances of an insurance claim low, so you don't need a .30 cent deductible. Unless you are disabled, riding a bike or walking is more fun, better for your health, and much cheaper than driving. Your local library has lots of books you haven't read yet. The internet has tons of free content to read, play, or watch that you have already paid for with your connection. Good clothes last a really long time. You can wear the same garment you didn't sweat in several times before washing. I can go on and on about how to cut costs. The point is, you need less than you think, and having the peace of mind of being able to handle a job loss, health problem, law suit, or major repair, and retiring young enough to be healthy enough to enjoy it is FAR more valuable than a fancy house, SUV, or gadget.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday September 07 2016, @02:05PM
Heh, at the time I was making close to that. A month where I made $900 was a good month (20 hr @ 12/hr). Maximum was 20hr/week for 4 weeks, so $960 (_minus_ taxes) was about the max.