David Keller, Author at The Financial Wire

credit score concept on the screen of computer

FICO’s UltraFICO score is now available to lenders — it folds checking and savings activity into your score, and over 75% of consumers with sound finances score higher

David Keller3 months ago3 months ago09 mins

FICO made its UltraFICO score available to lenders on May 20, 2026, adding checking and savings account activity to the traditional credit scoring formula. The new model, built with data connectivity from Plaid, lets banks factor in deposits, withdrawals, and transfers when evaluating borrowers. FICO says more than 75 percent of consumers with sound financial…

Happy middle aged european real estate agent standing outdoors in front of new house for sale

36% of home listings now carry a price cut — and median list prices are down 2.2% from a year ago

David Keller3 months ago3 months ago010 mins

Home sellers across the United States are slashing asking prices at a rate not seen in recent cycles, with more than a third of active listings now reflecting a price cut and the national median listing price falling 2.2% compared to a year earlier. The shift, documented in Realtor.com’s latest monthly housing report, signals that…

The FDIC’s new “debanking” rule takes effect in 4 days — after June 9, banks can no longer close your account because of your political views

David Keller3 months ago3 months ago010 mins

Starting June 9, federal banking regulators will be barred from pressuring banks to shut down customer accounts based on political beliefs, religious views, or constitutionally protected speech. The joint final rule from the FDIC and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency eliminates “reputation risk” as a supervisory tool, stripping examiners of the leverage…

professional reviewing a disability insurance policy with a client in a wheelchair ensuring comprehensive coverage

VA disability claims now take about 80 days on average to complete — with 94.02% accuracy, the agency’s best 12-month rate in two years

David Keller3 months ago3 months ago09 mins

Veterans waiting on disability benefits from the Department of Veterans Affairs are seeing faster decisions and fewer errors than at any point in the past two years. The agency reported that average completion time for a disability claim dropped to 80.7 days, down from 141.5 days, while 12-month claim-based accuracy reached 94.02 percent. Those changes,…

Student loan borrowers have 26 days to leave the SAVE plan — after July 1, servicers start 90-day exit notices and non-movers get auto-enrolled in Standard Repayment

David Keller3 months ago3 months ago08 mins

Federal student loan borrowers still enrolled in the SAVE plan face a hard deadline: servicers will begin issuing exit notices on July 1, 2026, giving each borrower 90 days to pick a different repayment option. Those who do not act will be automatically placed into Standard Repayment or a new Tiered Standard plan. With 26…

Female woman hands holding home model small miniature white toy house Mortgage property insurance dream moving home and real estate concept

Property taxes on single-family homes neared $400 billion last year — the average homeowner paid $4,427, about 3% more than the year before

David Keller3 months ago3 months ago09 mins

American homeowners paid a collective $396.8 billion in single-family property taxes last year, pushing the average annual bill to $4,427, roughly 3 percent higher than the prior year. That increase landed on top of already elevated housing costs, squeezing household budgets in regions where local governments depend most heavily on property-tax revenue to fund schools,…

road trip, travel and old people concept - happy senior couple driving in car

The 2027 Social Security COLA forecast now spans 3.9% to 4.2% — but the raise arrives in January 2027 checks, while the inflation driving it hits budgets now

David Keller3 months ago3 months ago010 mins

Roughly 70 million Americans who depend on Social Security checks are absorbing higher grocery and housing costs right now, but the cost-of-living adjustment meant to offset those increases will not reach their bank accounts until January 2027. Independent forecasts place the 2027 COLA somewhere between 3.9% and 4.2%, a notable jump from the 2.8% increase…

Business people are stressed about credit card debt and many bills on the floor

Overdraft and NSF fees topped $12 billion in 2025 — even though most big banks now cap the fee at $5 to $10 or dropped it entirely

David Keller3 months ago3 months ago09 mins

American consumers paid more than $12 billion in overdraft and nonsufficient funds fees in 2025, a total that looks jarring next to the wave of fee cuts and eliminations at the largest U.S. banks. The gap between headline reforms and the actual dollars leaving checking accounts traces back to a shift in who collects the…

Employers announced 97,006 job cuts in May — 39% of them in tech, where 38,242 cuts made it the sector’s worst month in nearly two years

David Keller3 months ago3 months ago09 mins

Workers across the American tech sector absorbed the sharpest round of job cuts the industry has seen in nearly two years during May, when employers announced 97,006 reductions nationwide. The tech sector alone accounted for 38,242 of those cuts, roughly 39 percent of the total, concentrating pain in an industry that had been among the…

Caring loving adult son helping his old senior elderly father paying bills counting money doing paperwork at home together Aid to elderly generation Happy fathers day

State unclaimed-property programs are sitting on roughly $70 billion in dormant assets — and a new bipartisan SAFER Act would block states from selling escheated stocks and bonds

David Keller3 months ago3 months ago010 mins

Millions of Americans with forgotten brokerage accounts, old savings bonds, or inherited stock portfolios stand to lose real money under a system that lets state governments sell those assets and pocket the proceeds. Reps. Mike Lawler, a Republican representing New York’s 17th District, and Dave Liccardo introduced the bipartisan SAFER Act to stop states from…

David Keller

FICO’s UltraFICO score is now available to lenders — it folds checking and savings activity into your score, and over 75% of consumers with sound finances score higher

36% of home listings now carry a price cut — and median list prices are down 2.2% from a year ago

The FDIC’s new “debanking” rule takes effect in 4 days — after June 9, banks can no longer close your account because of your political views

VA disability claims now take about 80 days on average to complete — with 94.02% accuracy, the agency’s best 12-month rate in two years

Student loan borrowers have 26 days to leave the SAVE plan — after July 1, servicers start 90-day exit notices and non-movers get auto-enrolled in Standard Repayment

Property taxes on single-family homes neared $400 billion last year — the average homeowner paid $4,427, about 3% more than the year before

Overdraft and NSF fees topped $12 billion in 2025 — even though most big banks now cap the fee at $5 to $10 or dropped it entirely

Employers announced 97,006 job cuts in May — 39% of them in tech, where 38,242 cuts made it the sector’s worst month in nearly two years

State unclaimed-property programs are sitting on roughly $70 billion in dormant assets — and a new bipartisan SAFER Act would block states from selling escheated stocks and bonds

IG

FB

PIN

LI

X