These days, it seems talent isn't enough. Celebrities have to get their name and image out there as well, hawking so many products with their faces on them that it can be utterly nauseating. Toys, clothes, fragrances, jewelry, food, drinks, accessories and more: the list goes on ad infinitum.

But some things celebrities lend their name and image to are downright dangerous, particularly when they get in bed with the credit and debit card companies largely responsible for so much debt around the world.

More and more the public is able to apply for credit and debit cards with their favourite celebrities face on them, but the fees and interest charges are often so high that only the rich and famous who endorse these cards can afford them.

​Ahead, we'll show you whose promoting what cards and pull back the curtain on what the card companies are charging you to have them.

By David Schepp
Daily Finance

Anyone who's ever had a parent die knows that dealing with a loved one's financial matters afterward is one of life's less pleasant tasks. It can mean numerous letters or trips to a bank or credit card company to close accounts, have money transferred and more.

So pity poor Siobhon Peers, who lost her father, David, to cancer in October 2011, but continued to receive letters -- about 20 in all -- from the Royal Bank of Scotland, saying the deceased owed 6 pounds (about $9.14 at current exchange rates) on his account, the result of a standard overdraft charge.

As London's Telegraph newspaper reports, Peers sent a copy of her father's death certificate to the bank to close his account, but the bank demanded an original copy and continued to send letters. "I sent them a copy of the death certificate and that should have been enough," Peers told the newspaper. "I wasn't going to send them the original as I want to keep that."

Nevertheless, month after month, bank charges continued to pile up, as the outstanding overdraft amount mushroomed to 625 pounds with interest.

By Matt Brownell
Daily Finance


Kmart (SHLD) just came out of nowhere with one of the funniest commercials we've seen in a long time.

The discount retailer is touting the fact that in-store shoppers who can't find what they're looking for are now able to order the item online right in the store, with free delivery. In its latest commercial, released Wednesday, shoppers react with amazement at the fact they can ship their pants right there in the store. Take a look:


The uncharacteristically off-color ad is meeting with universal acclaim on YouTube: The video has received more than 160,000 views, and 98.6% of those voting on the video gave it a thumbs-up.

"I think Walmart (WMT) just shipped itself," notes one top commenter.

As for Kmart, the ad serves a real purpose: emphasizing to consumers that Kmart stores and Kmart.com operate as a cohesive unit, allowing shoppers to buy merchandise via either channel as they see fit. This so-called omnichannel approach to retailing has been a major focus of bricks-and-mortar retail chains over the last few years.

But it hasn't always come easy, even for Kmart. I recently recounted an experience I had at my local Kmart, when I discovered via a smartphone app that a product was available on Kmart.com for 50% cheaper than it was in the store. As one retail analyst told me at the time, inconsistent pricing across channels and locations has been an issue for retailers, and Kmart is no exception.

With that said, I was able to navigate around the price differential rather smoothly by ordering on my smartphone and then picking it up from the customer service desk an hour later. And as I later learned, Kmart's price-matching policy does indeed apply to its own website, which isn't always the case in the retail world.

In other words, Kmart seems to be figuring out this whole omninchannel thing. And it certainly seems to know what it's doing on the advertising front.

UPDATED (6 p.m. ET Friday): While the commercial is only viewable online for the moment, a spokesperson for Kmart tells us that it will start airing on select cable TV channels later this month.

Matt Brownell is the consumer and retail reporter for DailyFinance. You can reach him at Matt.Brownell@teamaol.com, and follow him on Twitter at @Brownellorama.

By Diane Bullock
Minyanville


Remember that old maxim, "The customer is always right"? Me neither. Maybe I was born too late, but I don't ever recall an era in my lifetime that wasn't guided by the "buyer beware" principle. If there ever was a golden age of shopper deference, it certainly didn't survive the now-great epoch of Time Warner Cable (NYSE:TWC) et al. Here are a few tricks to help you pull out of this thing with your dollars and dignity intact.

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By Matt Brownell
Daily Finance

A store in Australia is apparently taking an extreme approach to eliminating showrooming, alerting would-be customers that they'll be charged $5 if they come in to browse but don't buy anything.

Reddit user BarrettFox posted a snapshot of a sign warning shoppers that the store would impose a $5 fee for people who are "just looking." The fee, the sign explains, will be deducted from the final purchase price, ensuring that people who actually buy something won't be charged. It notes that it's pursuing this strategy because of "a high volume of people who use this store as a reference and then purchase goods elsewhere."

Condos offer first-time buyers an affordable entry into home ownership but buying a condo isn't the same as buying a house. One major difference is that, on top of your mortgage payments, you'll be responsible for maintenance fees for the building.

And there are other things to think about. Consider these four "R's" before committing to buying a condo.

After a day at the office and a long commute home, there are a million things that need your attention.

So when the pile of junk mail comes to your attention, the first impulse is to eliminate this clutter from your counter. So into the recycling bin it goes.

But did you know that this unsolicited mail contains personal information that could easily be used in identity theft?

So don't just pitch, here are the reasons to shred these envelopes, letters and flyers before tossing in the blue bin.

True story. A couple in their late 50's decide to sell the home they'd lived in for 26 years and rent someplace where they wouldn't have to shovel snow, cut grass or repair the roof. They find a wonderful three-bedroom ground floor apartment with a private fenced-in yard, pet friendly, gas fireplace, loft, stainless steel built-in appliances, two and a half baths... the list of conveniences went on.

In short, it was perfect for this work-from-home couple. They signed a one-year lease and moved in early one August with the understanding that they would be long-term tenants. It was not to be.