September 2014

Ready To Reenroll In Online Health Insurance?

Submitted by Gary Parkinson on September 30, 2014, 10:51 am

The online health insurance exchanges are scheduled to reopen for enrollment in just over a month.  The Federal Health Department says Americans will have more options when the enrollment goes live once again, and consumer health advocates believe more choices will help “keep premium prices down.”

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Mixed Housing Data In August Reinforces Long Recovery

Submitted by Justin Leung on September 29, 2014, 10:38 am

The outlook for housing across the country was mixed in August based on the latest reports.  Sales of new single detached homes improved to their highest level in six years, but the volume of activity on existing properties declined for the first time since the spring.

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Insurance Institute of Michigan Proposes New Anti-Fraud Authority

Submitted by Lucy Zemljic on September 28, 2014, 1:26 pm

The Insurance Institute of Michigan has proposed a $2 fee for every vehicle in the state, to fund an authority that would clamp down on auto insurance fraud. This comes after a proposal put forth by the Insurance Institute of Michigan.

Facebook Helps Crack Insurance Fraud Case

Submitted by Cliff Ritter on September 27, 2014, 1:15 pm

One Phoenix, Arizona woman probably shouldn’t have posted those photos to Facebook.

Maria Apodaca Simmons made a claim on her Travelers Insurance policy in June 2013. She said that she’d supposedly lost her wedding rings while on her honeymoon, swimming in the Pacific Ocean. Simmons collected $26,500 from Travelers Insurance Co. for her claim.

Only a few months later in October, she made another claim, this time on her husband’s wedding band - a $14,000 claim. This one, she explained, was also lost swimming in the ocean.

Last Week's Pop in Mortgage Rates Followed By Modest Drop

Submitted by Thomas Sigsworth on September 26, 2014, 6:56 pm

After rising at their fastest pace in a year, mortgage rates dipped slightly this week, according to new numbers released today by Freddie Mac. The mortgage entity said 30-year fixed rates averaged 4.20 percent, down from 4.23 percent last week.

“Mortgage rates were slightly changed with the rate on the 30-year fixed mortgage down three basis points,” Frank Nothaft, chief economist of Freddie Mac, said in a statement.

Rates on 15-year mortgages also ticked down, dropping to 3.06 percent from 3.08 percent.

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Former NFLer Jimmy Hitchcock Off To Prison For Mortgage Fraud

Submitted by Gary Parkinson on September 25, 2014, 1:06 pm

Charges of domestic and child abuse are hammering the reputation of the NFL this football season.  But mortgage fraud will tarnish the status of one former NFLer who was sentenced to 46 months in federal prison on Tuesday.

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Massive Insurance Fraud Crackdown Arrests 27 In Pennsylvania

Submitted by Gary Parkinson on September 24, 2014, 11:39 am

Authorities made sweeping arrests across Pennsylvania this week targeting residents alleged to have committed insurance fraud.  Charges were laid against 29 individuals living in different corners of the state, and 27 arrests were completed by the end of the day Tuesday.

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Did Managed Competition Lower Massachusetts Car Insurance Costs?

Submitted by Gary Parkinson on September 23, 2014, 10:59 am

The state of Massachusetts introduced what it called managed competition to the state’s car insurance industry in the spring of 2008.  Managed competition was vouched for by the office of the state’s insurance commissioner, which argued that the new system would reward responsible drivers with lower rates as well as provide insurers flexibility to introduce new products.

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Housing And Mortgage Market Sustained By Bank Of Mom And Dad

Submitted by Justin Leung on September 22, 2014, 11:47 am

The US housing market is recovering at a modest rate as the economy continues to rebound from the global recession that began in 2008.  But many experts say that the rate of recovery in housing is only maintaining its strength due to the so called ‘bank of mom and dad.’

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New Study Shows Where Dental Premiums are Highest and Lowest

Submitted by Cliff Ritter on September 21, 2014, 1:29 pm

A new survey by HealthPocket examines the insurers and states with the highest and lowest dental insurance premiums. The study found that the average monthly dental insurance premium was $31.81 – that is, for adults purchasing stand-alone coverage on a government exchange.