Move Your Money targets big-bank bravado

Want to put your money where your mouth is?

The folks over at the Huffington Post have launched a campaign called Move Your Money, a movement that encourages the masses to withdraw their cold, hard cash from the big-six banks on Wall street and redeposit their savings into well-rated community banks.

Why make the switch? "Community banks are typically more conservative about how they manage their money, they're more closely connected to the people and businesses who live near them, and they're more inclined to make loans they know will get paid back. In other words, they have the values that more people would want banks to have," the site says.

In addition to the obvious benefits of shopping locally, community banks generally offer better deals and specialize in customer service.

But, is it post-recession sour grapes?

In a recent segment on NPR's "All Things Considered," economist Simon Johnson says the Move Your Money campaign is less about revenge against the Wall Street banks and more about personal responsibility.

NPR: "But why punish the banks if they have almost all paid back what was essentially an investment by the federal government?" [i.e. TARP funds]

Johnson: "It's not about punishment, it's about responsibility, about people looking forward, and saying, 'How comfortable am I with the largest six banks in this economy now having total assets--which of course come from their liabilities, which is money they get from us--total assets of over 60 percent of the size of our economy, 60 percent of DGP?' That's a big banking system that's more concentrated than in the past--those same six banks back in the 1990s were less than 20 percent of GDP."

Click here MoveYourMoney.info.

Buyer's remorse over fixed-rate oil prices

Heating oil prices are half of what they were last fall. Why are so many stuck paying the hiked-up prices?

There's good news for consumers regarding heating oil rates. The Energy Administration announced national prices for March 2009 as low as $2.22; the lowest price since 2005. July 2008 prices were as high as $4.71.

The recession has caused oil prices to fall dramatically, which is good news for those living on a budget. However, some consumers dependent on heating oil are still paying last fall's prices. Fearing that heating oil prices would continue to climb, many consumers opted for a locked-in rate. Ken Glasser locked in at $4 a gallon last August to heat his Boston home. He had his friends and family join in on the fixed-rate. "Some years you're the dog and some years you're the hydrant," Glasser reports to NPR.

The locked in contracts are extremely difficult to break, most requiring a a large termination fee. Buyers remorse is a current theme among fixed-rate customers. In the past decade, fixed-rate customers have made out better than month-to-month customers. Unfortunately, a contract is a contract. Jim Colloura of the New England Fuel Institute says"It was offered as a service to the customer. It was no malicious intent here. … I think this is a learning curve for everybody."

This year's locked in prices are set to be around $2.50, a lot better than last year's. In any case, it is highly unlikely that heating oil prices will come close to last fall's average.