What the experts say

Credit scores get less cryptic

Ever been turned down for a credit card or a car loan? Now you can find out why. A new federal law requires financial companies to give you a free copy of the credit score they used to make their decision, said Ryan Mac in Bloomberg.com. And there’s no more mystery about how your credit score is calculated. Credit seekers who are turned down will be told the “four main reasons why the number wasn’t higher,” such as that their payments on telephone bills or mortgages have been late. Since a higher credit rating can secure not only a loan but also a lower interest rate, consumers need the “clearest picture possible of their personal finances,” said Colorado Sen. Mark Udall, who proposed the provision as part of the Dodd-Frank financial reform legislation.

Renting textbooks to cut costs

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As public universities hike tuition and slash financial aid to make up for cuts in state funding, many college students will be heading back to campus this fall looking for ways to reduce their expenses. One way to save a bundle is by renting e-textbooks via Amazon.com, said Kayla Webley in Time​.com. Instead of shelling out more than $100 for a new molecular biology textbook, for example, students can pay less than $30 to rent a version for the Kindle or other tablet platform for an entire semester, complete with margin notes and highlighting features. Most students say they still prefer studying with print textbooks, but “odds are when students find out about the potential savings, the rental program will take off.”

Home is where the trust is

If you are hoping to pass down a home to your children, now may be the moment, said Lou Carlozo in Reuters.com. Current tax exemptions make this the “perfect time” to transfer homes out of your estate and into what’s called a Qualified Personal Residence Trust. The trust allows you to continue living in the home and substantially lowers gift and estate taxes. Granted, the strategy can be “very complicated,” requiring you to set the right term for the trust and to name the right trustees, since they could theoretically evict you. With those caveats, the approach is a “major tax boon.” But “the clock is ticking”—the tax exemptions that make the trusts so attractive are due to expire on Jan. 1, 2013.