3 tips for paying down your heavy debt load

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A heavy load.

Tips for paying down debt (CreditCards.com)

With the New Year just around the corner, it's time to begin think about resolutions. One popular resolution is to pay down debt. Matt Schulz, senior analyst at CreditCards.com shared three ways to lower your debt burden. First, ask for a lower interest rate. According to CreditCards.com, this works about two-thirds of the time. Next, apply for a balance transfer. Some offer no interest on balances or new purchases for 15 months. Finally, figure out what got you into debt in the first place, and figure out ways to spend within your means.

Pep Boys has accepted Bridgestone's new offer (Bloomberg)

Bloomberg reports that Pep Boys has accepted a takeover offer of $17 per share, or $947 million, from Bridgestone. The deal, which is shy of Carl Icahn's $18.10-per-share offer, has caused Icahn to suggest the deal undervalues the company. "We cannot understand the actions of the directors in that they know we were willing to offer a lot more than $17," Icahn told Bloomberg.

Mastercard says holiday sales were "solid" this holiday season (Mastercard)

MasterCard Advisors SpendingPulse data showed holiday sales rose 7.9% year-over year, bolstered by online spending and strong demand for furniture and women's apparel. Online sales jumped a robust 20% YoY, confirming the recent trend that more holiday shopping is being done online. Also notable was the impact of low gas prices. "We saw some very promising trends," said Sarah Quinlan, SVP, Market Insights for MasterCard Advisors. "The double-digit growth in furniture sales, for instance, shows that consumers are willing and able to splurge on big ticket items."

Investors pulled money from active funds in November (Think Advisor)

According to data obtained by Think Advisor from Morningstar, investors withdrew $35 billion from active mutual funds during November, running the 12-month withdrawal total to $175 billion. Outflows hit PIMCO ($4.5 billion), Franklin Templeton ($3.7 billion) and Fidelity ($2.5 billion) especially hard. On the flip side, passive funds continued to see inflows, raking in $31 billion during the month. Passive funds have collected $435 billion over the past 12 months, according to Morningstar data.

RDM is teaming up with HighTower (Think Advisor)

RDM Financial Group, a firm with $700 million in assets, is joining forces with HighTower. Think Advisor reports, RDM will keep its offices in Westport, CT and Boca Raton, FL, and will also look to add about 80 employees to HighTower's New York City headquarters. "Years of due diligence revealed that the HighTower platform is the ideal destination for me and my clients," Ron Weiner, CEO of RDM said in a statement.