Subject:

Personal Finance

  • Blogs

    May 16, 2012

    Mark Cuban Tackles America's Student Loan Bubble, Then Roots for It to Burst

    In addition to sports team ownership and a sideline in media impresario-ness, Mark Cuban is quite the blogger: dishing out advice to the Occupy movement, fulminating about patent law, apologizing for some casual homophobia. And a few days ago, he aired his views on the small matter of student loan d ... More >>

  • Blogs

    February 3, 2012

    Dallas City Hall Wants to Create Nonprofit to Help Uplift Education Sell Bonds for Expansion

    ​Speaking of Uplift Education and its planned expansion into Deep Ellum ...There's an intriguing item that just appeared on the Dallas City Council's consent addendum for next week's meeting, posted here. According to the doc, the city wants to create a nonprofit called the City of Dallas Educatio ... More >>

  • Blogs

    January 4, 2012

    Citibank Drops Suit Against DA Craig Watkins, Who Will Agree Not to Sue Them Either

    Last week was a bit embarrassing for Craig Watkins as his personal debt to Citibank became a public matter when The Dallas Morning News reported that he owed more than $15,000 in credit card bills, the latest in a history of financial whoopsies. The district attorney explained to Unfair Park that he ... More >>

  • Blogs

    November 23, 2011

    Record Store Day Comes Early This Year as Record Stores Celebrate Black Friday

    ​If you're reading this blog, it's likely you frequent a record store, and there are several good ones in the area to choose from.  But, if you didn't realize that purchasing music online is a mild sin, and if your record store of choice is the iTunes store or Amazon.com, you might be out of ... More >>

  • Blogs

    October 11, 2011

    City Hall Tells Dallas Occupiers to Get Insurance or Else. They're Leaning Toward "Or Else."

    ​At 1:20 this morning Boston police stormed an Occupy encampment in Boston Greenway park, hauled off more than 100 protesters in cable-tie cuffs and tore down their tents. Everybody in the Occupy Dallas encampment I talked to at about noon today was aware of what just happened in Boston. The ... More >>

  • Blogs

    August 15, 2011

    Uptick in Crimes Against Elderly, Payday Lenders Tarnish Some Locals' Golden Years

    Via.​A disheartening report by the Dallas Police Department shows that crimes against senior citizens have increased in the past year, with rates for July 2011 15 percent higher than during the same time last year. Lieutenant Herbert Ashford presented the numbers at this morning's Senior Affai ... More >>

  • Blogs

    April 25, 2011

    Before Council Takes Out a Payday Loan, Sneak a Peek at Possible New Regulations

    ​If nothing else, the timing's certainly good: Just three days after Mayor Dwaine Caraway branded mayoral candidate Mike Rawlings the "Payday Loan King" in a series of ads to which Rawlings later responded, the city council's Budget, Finance & Audit Committee is about to take up the subject of ... More >>

  • Blogs

    April 22, 2011

    Mayor Dwaine Caraway Refers to Mike Rawlings As "Payday Loan King" in New Radio Ad

    Photo by Sam MertenCaraway and Natinsky at the candidate's endorsement press conference last month​Moments ago, during Robert Ashley's show on KHVN-AM, an ad ran attacking mayoral candidate Mike Rawlings and his ties to Ace Cash Express -- though it never mentions Rawlings by name. The speaker: no ... More >>

  • Blogs

    April 22, 2011

    Rawlings Responds to Caraway's "Payday Loan King" Ads, Discusses Tenure on Lender's Board

    Photo by Mark GrahamMike Rawlings​Mike Rawlings called this evening to discuss, sort of, those ads in which Mayor Dwaine Caraway blasts the mayoral candidate as the "Payday Loan King," a reference to Rawlings's six-year stint on the board of directors of Ace Cash Express -- the very sort of high-i ... More >>

  • Blogs

    April 12, 2011

    New Anti-Poverty Coalition to Demand Dallas City Hall Zone Payday Lenders Out of Business

    ​Been trying to reach council member Jerry Allen ever since yesterday; no luck so far. But we know where he'll be at 3 today: in the Flag Room at Dallas City Hall, standing beside Dr. Frederick Haynes and Rev. Gerald Britt at an anti-payday lender press conference on behalf of the Anti-Poverty Coa ... More >>

  • Calendar

    March 17, 2011

    Feeling Horny?

    ​Been trying to reach council member Jerry Allen ever since yesterday; no luck so far. But we know where he'll be at 3 today: in the Flag Room at Dallas City Hall, standing beside Dr. Frederick Haynes and Rev. Gerald Britt at an anti-payday lender press conference on behalf of the Anti-Poverty Coa ... More >>

  • Blogs

    March 4, 2011

    Dallas-Fort Worth, Deep in Credit Card Debt

    ​Late Wednesday, we received in the in-box this list of 25 cities ranked by the average amount of credit-card debt its residents carryin their back pockets. At the top of the pops was San Antonio with $5,177, but, as you can see, Dallas wasn't far behind at No. 5; says credit-reporting agency Expe ... More >>

  • Blogs

    March 3, 2011

    Tiffany Derry Defends For-Profit Culinary Schools

    ​Dallas chef Tiffany Derry this week dove into the maelstrom surrounding financial assistance at for-profit colleges, arguing in an essay for The Hill that the government is threatening the culinary arts by withholding loans from students enrolled in career schools. The Department of Educatio ... More >>

  • Blogs

    January 12, 2011

    Craig Watkins's Legislative Wish List

    ​On the other side is a lengthy missive we just received from the Dallas County District Attorney's Office in which Craig Watkins outlines his to-do list for the new Legislative session. But you can probably guess what's top-of-the-pops with a D.A. seeking criminal system reforms: eyewitness ident ... More >>

  • News

    October 21, 2010

    What This Town Needs is Some Good Ward Heelers.

    ​On the other side is a lengthy missive we just received from the Dallas County District Attorney's Office in which Craig Watkins outlines his to-do list for the new Legislative session. But you can probably guess what's top-of-the-pops with a D.A. seeking criminal system reforms: eyewitness ident ... More >>

  • Blogs

    July 6, 2010

    Four Months After Hubbie Pleaded Guilty to Tax Evasion, Realtor Eleanor Sheets Joins In

    Eleanor Mowery Sheets and husband Nicky​Again, this is Candy Evans's beat -- why, just today she noted over on D's DallasDirt that the former manse of Eleanor and Nicky Sheets is selling at half off the original asking price after it failed to move at an IRS auction in February. Nevertheless, this ... More >>

  • Music

    April 1, 2010

    Mount Righteous

    Mount Righteous (Self-released)

  • News

    March 18, 2010

    Dallas May Get Soaked by Soaring Insurance Premiums if the City Keeps Dawdling on Fixing the Levees

    Mount Righteous (Self-released)

  • Blogs

    March 18, 2010

    Premium Content: While We Argue Over a Word, a Risk Still Runs Through the City

    George Gimarc sent us this photo. Taken in April 1957.​Got a little e-mail debate going with Frank Librio, the spokesman for the city of Dallas, which I thought I should share with the Friends of Unfair Park. Always good to get a second opinion. Maybe people will agree with Frank that I have been ... More >>

  • Blogs

    February 2, 2010

    New Federal Program Aims to Help Student Debtors, But Is it Too Late?

    ​DeSoto resident Pamela Bradley, who once worked for the city of Dallas, feels cheated by the education system. She was raised to believe that education leads to better jobs, so she got a master's degree and started a Ph.D. program. But now Bradley finds herself in this disheartening position ... More >>

  • Blogs

    January 25, 2010

    Debt Collectors Consider Trading "Knee-Breaking" Techniques for "Empathy Training"

    Hal Samples Craig Cunningham​Craig Cunningham of Dallas has an interesting way of dealing with debt collectors: He sues them, as documented in this week's paper version of Unfair Park. While only a small number of debtors file such lawsuits, the debt collection industry isn't waiting for su ... More >>

  • News

    January 21, 2010

    Better Off Deadbeat: Craig Cunningham Has a Simple Solution for Getting Bill Collectors Off His Back. He Sues Them.

    Hal Samples Craig Cunningham​Craig Cunningham of Dallas has an interesting way of dealing with debt collectors: He sues them, as documented in this week's paper version of Unfair Park. While only a small number of debtors file such lawsuits, the debt collection industry isn't waiting for su ... More >>

  • News

    October 29, 2009

    No Justice: We've Bailed Out the Banks. When Do We Go After the Crooks Behind Our Financial Collapse?

    Hal Samples Craig Cunningham​Craig Cunningham of Dallas has an interesting way of dealing with debt collectors: He sues them, as documented in this week's paper version of Unfair Park. While only a small number of debtors file such lawsuits, the debt collection industry isn't waiting for su ... More >>

  • Blogs

    February 16, 2009

    As City Hall Sets "The 'Price' of Dallas Government," a Very Big Budget Deficit Awaits

    At Wednesday's Dallas City Council briefing, there will be yet another Budget Workshop -- the fourth of many in advance of the September 23 due date for next fiscal year's budget. In the doc prepared for the council, City Manager Mary Suhm describes the process of "Setting the 'Price' of Dallas Gov ... More >>

  • News

    January 15, 2009

    What Does a Credit Report Have to Do With Fighting Crime?

    At Wednesday's Dallas City Council briefing, there will be yet another Budget Workshop -- the fourth of many in advance of the September 23 due date for next fiscal year's budget. In the doc prepared for the council, City Manager Mary Suhm describes the process of "Setting the 'Price' of Dallas Gov ... More >>

  • Blogs

    January 14, 2009

    Crime-Ridden Apartments, Credit Reports and Cops

    If you haven't carefully checked the fine print in the city's proposed high-crime apartment ordinance, which the Dallas City Council will take up today, you might have missed this little gem: Apartment owners whose properties become too crime-ridden according to the city's calculations will be requi ... More >>

  • Blogs

    January 6, 2009

    Dallas Observer's Parent Company Announces Pay Cuts and Layoffs

    Twice today I've been asked about several posts on The Latest Word, one of our sister blogs out of Denver, referring to layoffs and pay cuts taking place throughout the Village Voice Media chain. The Dallas Observer, of course, is among the 15 papers in the chain, formerly known as New Times Inc.Spe ... More >>

  • Blogs

    August 8, 2008

    It’s Friday! Time for, um, Foreclosure Talk?

    Twice today I've been asked about several posts on The Latest Word, one of our sister blogs out of Denver, referring to layoffs and pay cuts taking place throughout the Village Voice Media chain. The Dallas Observer, of course, is among the 15 papers in the chain, formerly known as New Times Inc.Spe ... More >>

  • Blogs

    August 7, 2008

    Dear "Delusional" in Dallas ...

    Twice today I've been asked about several posts on The Latest Word, one of our sister blogs out of Denver, referring to layoffs and pay cuts taking place throughout the Village Voice Media chain. The Dallas Observer, of course, is among the 15 papers in the chain, formerly known as New Times Inc.Spe ... More >>

  • Blogs

    November 27, 2007

    Dallas to Lose $4 Billion in 2008? Man, That Sounds Bad.

    Twice today I've been asked about several posts on The Latest Word, one of our sister blogs out of Denver, referring to layoffs and pay cuts taking place throughout the Village Voice Media chain. The Dallas Observer, of course, is among the 15 papers in the chain, formerly known as New Times Inc.Spe ... More >>

  • Blogs

    November 26, 2007

    Supreme Court Will Let Dallas Man's 401(k) Lawsuit Move Forward

    Twice today I've been asked about several posts on The Latest Word, one of our sister blogs out of Denver, referring to layoffs and pay cuts taking place throughout the Village Voice Media chain. The Dallas Observer, of course, is among the 15 papers in the chain, formerly known as New Times Inc.Spe ... More >>

  • Blogs

    November 16, 2007

    Yes, Carlos, Sure, They're Out to Get You

    Twice today I've been asked about several posts on The Latest Word, one of our sister blogs out of Denver, referring to layoffs and pay cuts taking place throughout the Village Voice Media chain. The Dallas Observer, of course, is among the 15 papers in the chain, formerly known as New Times Inc.Spe ... More >>

  • Blogs

    October 4, 2007

    Should One Deduction Lead to Another?

    Twice today I've been asked about several posts on The Latest Word, one of our sister blogs out of Denver, referring to layoffs and pay cuts taking place throughout the Village Voice Media chain. The Dallas Observer, of course, is among the 15 papers in the chain, formerly known as New Times Inc.Spe ... More >>

  • Blogs

    March 6, 2007

    Maxed Out: Or, Give the Guy Some Credit

    Twice today I've been asked about several posts on The Latest Word, one of our sister blogs out of Denver, referring to layoffs and pay cuts taking place throughout the Village Voice Media chain. The Dallas Observer, of course, is among the 15 papers in the chain, formerly known as New Times Inc.Spe ... More >>

  • Blogs

    October 11, 2006

    Mo' Money, No Problems

    Twice today I've been asked about several posts on The Latest Word, one of our sister blogs out of Denver, referring to layoffs and pay cuts taking place throughout the Village Voice Media chain. The Dallas Observer, of course, is among the 15 papers in the chain, formerly known as New Times Inc.Spe ... More >>

  • News

    September 22, 2005

    Poor and Pitiful

    a

  • News

    September 8, 2005

    The Big Squeeze

    Thinking about taking out a payday loan? Think again, sucker.

  • Resolution Guide

    January 15, 2004

    To Save Cash

    Thinking about taking out a payday loan? Think again, sucker.

  • News

    November 20, 2003

    Flipped Out

    Troubling questions about real estate transactions dog a former Cowboy's business

  • News

    November 6, 2003

    Grave Robbers

    Even in the great beyond, no one is safe from identity theft

  • Best of Dallas

    September 25, 2003

    Best Mark Cuban Decision

    Establishing the Fallen Patriot Fund

  • News

    April 11, 2002

    House of Cards

    Enron's collapse may have been engineered from the top, but low-level employees played parts, too

  • Best of Dallas

    September 20, 2001

    Best Daily Newspaper Columnist

    Scott Burns, personal finance columnist, The Dallas Morning News

  • News

    December 7, 2000

    Mall Rats

    Thieves stole Ronnie Wilson's name, and now she's having an identity crisis

  • News

    April 13, 2000

    Buzz

    Silence is not golden; Feed the sharks

  • News

    September 4, 1997

    Hard knocks

    A school's closing leaves a Dallas woman $10,000 in debt for a worthless education

  • News

    August 8, 1996

    Own a piece of the sod

    Their boss invested the retirement fund in real estate, and employees wound up with dirt

  • News

    August 1, 1996

    Congressional hopeful Jerry Frankel has ideas, brains, and GUTS.

    Dick Armey will eat his lunch.

  • News

    June 8, 1995

    Tales From The Crypt

    Fort Worth's famous undertaker, the Rev. Gregory Spencer, has buried a lot of friends-- and made a lot of enemies. Now he claims someone wants him six feet under

  • More >>
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