Credit card fees and high-cost mortgage thresholds just got higher

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has adjusted the dollar amounts that define high-cost mortgages and credit card fees. This means more loans and credit card charges will fall below the thresholds that trigger special consumer protections.

Every year, the government adjusts the numbers that define when a loan or a credit card fee is considered 'high-cost' or 'excessive.' These adjustments are tied to inflation. When the numbers go up, fewer financial products trigger the extra rules designed to protect consumers from predatory lending. This means some loans that would have been considered high-cost last year will now be standard, even if their terms haven't changed.