<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?><rss version="2.0" xmlns:atom="http://www.w3.org/2005/Atom"><channel><title>RatesAndAmort</title><link>https://ratesandamort.com</link><description>Independent, browser-based credit card, debt payoff, personal loan and mortgage calculators for the US market.</description><language>en-us</language><atom:link href="https://ratesandamort.com/rss.xml" rel="self" type="application/rss+xml"/><item><title>Bi-Weekly Mortgage Payments: The Real Savings and the Fee Traps</title><link>https://ratesandamort.com/blog/biweekly-mortgage-payments</link><guid isPermaLink="true">https://ratesandamort.com/blog/biweekly-mortgage-payments</guid><description>Paying half your mortgage every two weeks adds one extra payment a year, worth about $129,000 on a $350,000 loan at 7.25%. How to get it without a fee.</description><pubDate>Thu, 22 Oct 2026 00:00:00 GMT</pubDate><category>Mortgages</category></item><item><title>The Car Loan Interest Deduction (2025–2028): Who Qualifies and What It's Worth</title><link>https://ratesandamort.com/blog/car-loan-interest-deduction</link><guid isPermaLink="true">https://ratesandamort.com/blog/car-loan-interest-deduction</guid><description>The new federal deduction lets some buyers write off up to $10,000 a year of auto loan interest. Eligibility rules, the income phase-out and a worked example.</description><pubDate>Thu, 22 Oct 2026 00:00:00 GMT</pubDate><category>Auto loans</category></item><item><title>The 10% Credit Card Interest Rate Cap: Where It Stands and What It Would Mean</title><link>https://ratesandamort.com/blog/credit-card-interest-rate-cap-10-percent</link><guid isPermaLink="true">https://ratesandamort.com/blog/credit-card-interest-rate-cap-10-percent</guid><description>A 10% APR cap has been proposed in Congress and promoted by the White House. Its October 2026 status, both sides' arguments and the math on a real balance.</description><pubDate>Thu, 22 Oct 2026 00:00:00 GMT</pubDate><category>Credit cards</category></item><item><title>Using a HELOC to Pay Off Credit Card Debt: The Math and the Risks</title><link>https://ratesandamort.com/blog/heloc-to-pay-off-credit-card-debt</link><guid isPermaLink="true">https://ratesandamort.com/blog/heloc-to-pay-off-credit-card-debt</guid><description>A home equity line can cut a 24% card rate to single digits. It also puts your house on the line. A side-by-side example and the questions to ask first.</description><pubDate>Thu, 22 Oct 2026 00:00:00 GMT</pubDate><category>Debt strategy</category></item><item><title>How Long Does It Take to Pay Off a Credit Card at the Minimum?</title><link>https://ratesandamort.com/blog/how-long-to-pay-off-credit-card-minimum-payment</link><guid isPermaLink="true">https://ratesandamort.com/blog/how-long-to-pay-off-credit-card-minimum-payment</guid><description>Real payoff times and interest costs for $2,000 to $20,000 balances at today's average card rate, and the fixed payment that clears each one in three years.</description><pubDate>Thu, 22 Oct 2026 00:00:00 GMT</pubDate><category>Credit cards</category></item><item><title>Mortgage Recast vs. Refinance in 2026: Which One Saves More?</title><link>https://ratesandamort.com/blog/mortgage-recast-vs-refinance</link><guid isPermaLink="true">https://ratesandamort.com/blog/mortgage-recast-vs-refinance</guid><description>With 30-year rates above 7%, refinancing a cheaper loan rarely pays. A recast keeps your rate and cuts the payment. Here is the math on a real example.</description><pubDate>Thu, 22 Oct 2026 00:00:00 GMT</pubDate><category>Mortgages</category></item><item><title>Should You Refinance Your Car Loan? A Break-Even Checklist</title><link>https://ratesandamort.com/blog/should-i-refinance-my-car-loan</link><guid isPermaLink="true">https://ratesandamort.com/blog/should-i-refinance-my-car-loan</guid><description>Refinancing an auto loan can save thousands, or quietly cost more. A worked example, the break-even test and the warning signs to check before you apply.</description><pubDate>Thu, 22 Oct 2026 00:00:00 GMT</pubDate><category>Auto loans</category></item><item><title>SAVE Is Over. How the New RAP Student Loan Plan Calculates Your Payment</title><link>https://ratesandamort.com/blog/student-loan-repayment-assistance-plan-rap</link><guid isPermaLink="true">https://ratesandamort.com/blog/student-loan-repayment-assistance-plan-rap</guid><description>The Repayment Assistance Plan replaces SAVE for millions of borrowers. How the payment is set, what the interest waiver and principal match do, and deadlines.</description><pubDate>Thu, 22 Oct 2026 00:00:00 GMT</pubDate><category>Student loans</category></item><item><title>US Household Debt in 2026: Credit Cards, Auto Loans and Mortgages by the Numbers</title><link>https://ratesandamort.com/blog/us-household-debt-2026</link><guid isPermaLink="true">https://ratesandamort.com/blog/us-household-debt-2026</guid><description>The latest New York Fed and Federal Reserve data on what Americans owe, what it costs, and where delinquencies are rising, with what it means for your own plan.</description><pubDate>Thu, 22 Oct 2026 00:00:00 GMT</pubDate><category>Data</category></item><item><title>What Is a Good Credit Card APR in 2026?</title><link>https://ratesandamort.com/blog/what-is-a-good-credit-card-apr</link><guid isPermaLink="true">https://ratesandamort.com/blog/what-is-a-good-credit-card-apr</guid><description>The average card rate is above 22%. What counts as a good APR, what each rate costs per $1,000 a month, and when APR barely matters at all.</description><pubDate>Thu, 22 Oct 2026 00:00:00 GMT</pubDate><category>Credit cards</category></item><item><title>Debt Consolidation vs. the Avalanche Method: How to Compare Them Fairly</title><link>https://ratesandamort.com/guides/debt-consolidation-vs-avalanche</link><guid isPermaLink="true">https://ratesandamort.com/guides/debt-consolidation-vs-avalanche</guid><description>When a consolidation loan beats paying cards off one by one, and when it does not. A side-by-side example with fees, rates and the same monthly budget.</description><pubDate>Thu, 22 Oct 2026 00:00:00 GMT</pubDate><category>Debt strategy</category></item><item><title>How Amortization Schedules Work (and Why Early Payments Are Mostly Interest)</title><link>https://ratesandamort.com/guides/how-amortization-schedules-work</link><guid isPermaLink="true">https://ratesandamort.com/guides/how-amortization-schedules-work</guid><description>Read any loan schedule line by line: how each payment splits into interest and principal, why the split shifts over time, and what extra payments really do.</description><pubDate>Thu, 22 Oct 2026 00:00:00 GMT</pubDate><category>Loans &amp; mortgages</category></item><item><title>Understanding APR and Daily Interest on Credit Cards</title><link>https://ratesandamort.com/guides/understanding-apr-and-daily-interest</link><guid isPermaLink="true">https://ratesandamort.com/guides/understanding-apr-and-daily-interest</guid><description>How card issuers turn an annual rate into the interest on your statement: daily periodic rate, average daily balance, grace periods and the real annual cost.</description><pubDate>Thu, 22 Oct 2026 00:00:00 GMT</pubDate><category>Credit cards</category></item></channel></rss>