Loan-loss provision weighs on credit card company Capital One’s 3Q profit; stock drops + MORE Oct 17th

Here are your Thursday offerings! News, Tips & Tricks Have you voted yet? Vote for your favourite Travel Rewards Credit Card in our 2014 Canada’s Choice survey! Vote at rewardscanada.ca/vote We have further updated our Credit Card Comparison Charts with Foreign Exchange Transaction fees. Before we only listed them on the chart that compared all the credit cards but now you’ll find them on the following charts: Most Popular Airline Hotel Hybrid Travel Points Etihad Airways which serves Toronto three times per week from their Abu Dhabi hub have announced “Etihad Partners” a tighter conglomeration of 6 airlines (many of which are owned or partly owned by Etihad). This new pseudo airline alliance which has the possibility of growing into a full fledged one based on wording in their press release sees stronger ties between Etihad and air berlin, air Serbia, Air Seychelles, Etihad Regional (operated by Darwin Airline) and Jet Airways. You can book one ticket to travel on their combined network of over 250 destinations and it will see an alignment of each airlines’ frequent flyer programs in terms of elite tiers, mileage earning and more…

Forget the sweater weather and pumpkin spice lattes – fall is spending season; from back-school to trick-or-treat, it seems there’s a reason each week to go beyond the budget. It takes real consumer savvy to keep autumn costs down – so this week, MoneyWise brings you ways to save in the kitchen, in your wallet, and on your house hunt. Read on for today’s top headlines.

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Condos are booming in Canada, especially in big urban centres like Toronto. But as developers race against steep demand, are they sacrificing quality? Recent headlines of falling glass and shoddy workmanship have many cautious buyers second guessing their condo purchase.
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Read Rubina’s Blog | Is Your Condo Built to Last?>
In Credit Cards: Costco Credit Card Switch: Are Consumers Missing Out?
Wholesale club retailer Costco changed up its credit card rewards partnerships this year, switching from American Express to MasterCard as the officially accepted card in store…

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MCLEAN, Va. – A bigger buffer against loan losses weighed on Capital One Financial Corp.’s third-quarter earnings.
The McLean, Virginia-based company said Thursday that it had profit of $1.08 billion, or $1.86 per share. But analysts expected $1.95 per share, according to FactSet. A year ago, profit came to $1.11 billion, or $1.84 per share.
Capital One set aside $993 million for future losses, up 17 per cent from a year earlier.
Shares fell 2.5 per cent to $76.60 in after-hours trading.
The credit card issuer and bank posted revenue of $5.64 billion in the period, which topped Street forecasts. Analysts expected $5.54 billion, according to Zacks Investment Research. A year ago, revenue came to $5.65 billion.
Loans on credit cards in the U.S. totalled $73 billion, up 5 per cent from a year ago.
Capital One shares had ended regular trading down 68 cents to $78.53. The company’s shares have increased 2.5 per cent since the beginning of the year, while the Standard & Poor’s 500 index has increased nearly 1 per cent…

Costco did a bit of card shuffling back in September, when it announced it would no longer be accepting American Express cards at its Canadian stores as of January 1, 2015. Previously, Amex was the only credit card accepted at Costco and together the companies offered a partnership card called TrueEarnings, now discontinued.
The change-up is specific to Canada, and comes after the companies were unable to reach an agreement ahead of their contract expiry at the end of December. In a phone interview with The Globe and Mail, David Barnes — a spokesman for Amex in Canada — said “The terms of the contract was up, Amex and Costco entered into negotiations and were unable to come to terms. This is very specific and exclusive to Canada.”
How does the news affect Costco customers? TrueEarnings cardholders are being switched over to the new Amex SimplyCash card and MasterCard will now be the accepted credit card at Costco Canada stores. Those being migrated over will not lose their Costco membership…