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  1. Women Handle Debt Better than Men

    May 23, 2013 by editor

    Shout out to the ladies: a recent Experian study surveying 750,000 credit reports revealed that even though men earn 23% more than women in general, they had higher credit scores, less debt, lower mortgages, AND had less past-due credit accounts. Okay, ladies, you win. Guys- time to shape up! Getting a handle on debt, credit, and finances doesn’t just catch us up to speed with the ladies. It saves money in the present and in the long run, improves our credit scores, makes us eligible for the best interest rates, and just feels damn GOOD. Plus, aving your financial house in order gives piece of mind on top of everything else. I do wonder what it is about dudes that makes us more inclined to have more debt and a lower credit score? The good thing is, it’s not impossible to reverse these habits. Chipping away at debt and working at improving our credit are things we should constantly be striving for, and maybe this is a good wake up call to get serious about putting in a hard-core effort. Here is the Reuters article by Mitch Lipka, including information that hasn’t even been released yet about Experian’s survey:

    “When it comes to managing credit, American women have a slight edge over men, according to a study of credit reports by the credit report agency Experian Plc. Experian looked at 750,000 credit reports, a sample of what it collected nationwide, and found that while women earn 23 percent less than men, they know how to handle debt.

    “When you start from there, you recognize that women have less money to spend,” says Michele Raneri, Experian’s vice president of analytics. “And their delinquencies are less.” “

    Click here to find out in what ways women have the edge over men financially.

    Okay gents you’ve been challenged: get that credit score, credit report, and mound of debt in shape–if for nothing else other than to keep up with our female counterparts who are creaming us at it.

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  2. Bad Credit vs. No Credit: Which is Worse?

    May 22, 2013 by editor

    When discussing whether having bad credit or having no credit would be worse, it certainly is like deciding between the lesser of two evils. A recent article debated the answer to this question, and outlined what the major differences were between the two. I would say I’m more inclined to feel as though having no credit is actually worse, because you can clean up what credit you have even if it’s not the best. If you have no credit however, it’s difficult to prove that you’re trustworthy enough to be lent money– a cruel catch 22, needing credit in order to qualify for credit. So I’d have to say I would rather have poor credit than no credit. And interestingly enough, this article pointed something out to me. I always thought that the general demographic who had no credit are young adults, college-aged kids and 20-somethings who haven’t had a chance to build any credit yet. This LowCards.com article pointed out that senior citizens can actually come across the scenario of not having enough credit too, if they pay everything in cash and don’t ever use credit. You learn something new every day. Here is the hot debate in an article by John Oldshue:

    “Many people assume that “no credit” and “bad credit” are the same thing, but that is not the case. This is not like taking a test in school, where 0 and 50 both lead to an “F”. Having no credit at all does not send the same messages as having bad credit, but it could put you in a similar situation. In either case, you should strive to build up a good credit score.

    Is no credit worse than bad credit? What can you do to improve your credit score? Check out the tips below to find out.”

    Click here to find out which is worse, having no credit or having bad credit.

    If you’re in the boat of having no credit, it can be tough starting off. Try easing into the world of credit by applying for a retail card such as a gas card or a Macy’s card. Often, they are not as strict about requiring a credit history because their credit limits are much lower. A secured credit card is also a good way to go to build some credit. Good luck!

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  3. Key Factors in Understanding How Credit Works

    May 13, 2013 by editor

    I see this happen all the time: people unknowingly damaging their credit score because they don’t understand how their score is factored, or what exactly influences the number. Things like closing a credit card account after it’s been paid off, or going after the credit cards with the freebies–even if that means having 5 or 6 open credit accounts, all of which have hit your credit when they checked you out for eligibility. But then, there’s just the key components that make up a credit score, the specifics which most people are surprisingly a bit hazy about. Ashlea Ebeling of Forbes jotted down five of the biggest credit misconceptions, and how they can hurt a consumer, taking care of course to counter those with how to make the credit system work in your favor:

    “Key factors about credit scores continue to be widely misunderstood, and the misconceptions are potentially costing consumers tens of thousands of dollars, according to a conference held today by the Consumer Federation of America and VantageScore Solutions, a FICO competitor.

    “People who fail to understand exactly what can impact their score have little incentive to manage the things that can truly make a difference,” said Barrett Burns, president and chief executive of VantageScore Solutions.”

    Click here to read about the key factors that can affect your credit score, and which ones are often misconceived.

    Fun fact from Ebeling’s article: on a standard 60-month auto loan taken for $20,000, a consumer with a poor credit score would pay about $5,000 more in interest charges than a borrower with a really good score. So literally, having a good score is like money in your pocket.

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  4. Baby Boomers Still Need Credit Scores

    May 6, 2013 by editor

    I read this great article recently that explored people needing credit scores once their mortgage has been paid off and they’re not planning on buying a new car, refinancing their home, etc. Bottom line? Credit scores are still important! Baby boomers included. People might think that at some point in life, they can rest easy and not worry about their score. Well, what about taking out student loans for kids or grandkids if they don’t have enough credit themselves, or unexpectedly go back to grad school? Or purchasing a boat, a vacation home, or something else fun that might come up in retirement. The point is, even if your home is paid off and you don’t foresee a “big ticket loan” in your future, you should still be checking your credit report to monitor its accuracy and still be working on maintaing a good credit score– or actively trying to improve it, if it’s not the best. You just never know when something will come up and you’ll be glad your credit is rock solid. Here’s what Oklahoma’s semiweekly newspaper, the Broken Arrow Ledger, had to say about it:

    “Maintaining a good credit profile is important at all stages of life, even for baby boomers who may have paid off their mortgages and don’t anticipate the need for more big-ticket loans. But it’s important to remember credit scores are used for more than just borrowing money, and you never know when an opportunity or emergency might pop up where credit is needed.

    To be sure, maintaining good credit can benefit everyone from vacation home shoppers to those seeking college tuition loans, and it can help you acquire financing in the event that you’d rather use credit than cash. What can baby boomers do to maintain good credit scores or improve lower scores?”

    Click here to read about why credit scores matter in all walks of life, especially at the Baby Boomer age.

    So remember, you’re never too old to learn something new, set a new goal, dream a new dream, or need a good credit score. OK, so the first three are actual quotes… I made the last one up. But that doesn’t make it any less true. :)

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  5. A Quarter of American Men Have Never Checked their Credit!

    April 24, 2013 by editor

    I had to share this article, just HAD to, because it’s a statistic I nearly did not believe when I first read it. Now, you can say statistics can be skewed to support any argument, taken out of context, and so forth. But this is one number that’s pretty black and white. According to a new survey taken by FindLaw.com, 18% of all women and 25% of all men that actually have credit reports have never checked them–not once. This is totally shocking to me, considering how important a credit score (and in turn a credit report) weighs into so many financial aspects of life–car loans, home loans, student loans, credit cards, even employment. What’s even MORE mind blowing is that credit reports are FREE to check once per year! It’s not like people even have to pay money for them. And fellas let’s be honest… we’re lagging in the credit-check department. Women have us beat by 7%. That’s a pretty decent number when you figure how many people there are in the U.S.! Check out this Thomson Reuters article to learn more:

    “Despite its importance in everything from obtaining a credit card or mortgage to employment background checks, nearly a quarter of Americans have never checked their credit report, according to a new survey by FindLaw.com, the most popular legal information website.

    Twenty-two percent of Americans have never checked their credit report to verify the accuracy of the information, even though by law, credit reporting agencies are required to provide free copies upon request.”

    Click here to learn more about the FindLaw.com study, and about how to obtain a free credit report.

    OK guys, now that you have the scoop about how to check your credit report and why credit is so important, the only thing left is to go actually check it. C’mon… don’t be included in that 25% that is in the dark about their credit! You can’t fix credit errors if you don’t know they’re there. True story.

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  6. Traffic Violations Can Mar Credit Report

    April 9, 2013 by editor

    Ever wondered if your parking violation, speeding ticket, or other traffic violation will effect your credit report? NBC’s Chuck Todd found out the hard way that it, in fact, can end up on your credit report– and can ding it up pretty good. The thing is, pretty much any instance where you owe money and have missed payments and the debt has gone to collections will wind up on your credit report. Same goes for a parking ticket or, in Todd’s case, making an illegal turn at a red light which he never paid. Todd claims that he never received the ticket and is now disputing the ticket, but what an unhappy surprise it must have been when he checked his credit report to find that ugly little instance dinging up his score. Moral of the story is to always pay what you owe, on time, regardless of whether it’s a line of credit with the Gap or AmEx or a traffic ticket. Ignoring the payments will only come back to bite you –by way of biting your credit report– in the long run. Here is what happened to Todd, as told by Eddie Scarry of MediaBistro.com:

    “An unpaid ticket for making an illegal maneuver at a red light has made its way into the credit report of NBC’s Chuck Todd.

    “So I just learned the hard way that an unpaid red-light camera ticket can be part of a credit report. That seems ridiculous,” he tweeted Thursday at noon. He followed up with two additional tweets: My issue with red light cam tickets being tied to credit reports is that there’s no guarantee it was me driving. “

    Click here to find out why Todd’s violation ended up on his credit report, and why yours doesn’t have to.

    I guess the other moral of the story is that it really can happen to anybody, regardless of whether you are an NBC anchor or an average joe American citizen, like the majority of us. Nobody is safe from the brutal eye of the law– or apparently from those red-light cameras! Those things are serious. If we’re going for a third moral to the story, it’s to drive safely and don’t do anything stupid at red lights.

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  7. Auditing Your Credit Report 101

    March 30, 2013 by editor

    Spring is in the air, and it’s that time of year where people begin cleaning out closets, shaking dust bunnies out of things, washing the winter mess off of cars, and doing a general spring cleaning. While you’re at it, now is also a great time to do a financial spring cleaning. How does that work, you ask? It can be everything from cleaning out your wallet and shredding old receipts, to getting rid of ancient financial documents that you’ve got in the house or boxed up in your attic, to getting a free copy of your credit report and making sure that everything is on the up-and-up. I found a great article by Kim Adams that gives a tutorial in how to audit one’s credit report. She does it in response to identity theft, but it’s a good idea to do a credit audit once per year and not just when you fear your finances might be at risk from a thief. Check out Adams’ article in Yahoo Finance:

    “I recently had a questionable alert come up with my finances. Fearing identity theft, I quickly moved to protect my credit health. I pulled a free credit report from Trans Union that I am entitled to obtain. The report was long and a bit confusing. After becoming comfortable with the report, I became a better consumer when it came to my own credit health.

    This experience reinforced how important it is to regularly monitor credit reports from each of the three main credit bureaus: Trans Union, Experian and Equifax. I will be checking a report from each of them every couple months until I am sure that no fraudulent activity has occurred on my account.”

    Click here to read about how to audit your credit report successfully.

    Hopefully this has given you a good idea about how to scour your credit report like a hawk and exactly what to look for. It’s not a bad idea to do this once per year–think of it as part of cleaning financial house–that way you never go more than a year without an error or mistake on your report that doesn’t get corrected. Happy spring cleaning!

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  8. Wells Fargo Offers Free Credit Scores

    March 24, 2013 by editor

    Who doesn’t like a free credit score or credit report? All consumers are allowed one per year (well, actually three– one for each of the national credit bureaus.) But most people don’t take advantage of this standing offer, and so Wells Fargo is putting out a proposal as part of a “Share Your Goals” campaign to get more people to cash in on checking out where they stand credit-wise. I like the idea a lot, and this is not the first time Wells Fargo has done something like this. I feel as though they are very good at trying to incentivize people to check their credit and work towards a goal for their credit score. That, to me, is the mark of a good bank–not just taking people’s money, but helping them figure out their credit situation and when necessary figuring out how to improve on it. Tony Adams of the Ledger-Enquirer reported on the campaign,

    “Quick! What’s your credit score? For those who don’t know that critical number, Wells Fargo is again this year offering free credit reports and the accompanying scores to any consumer who wants them through April 15.

    The offer is part of a nationwide “Share Your Goals” campaign, which includes a sweepstakes that will award a $500 Wells Fargo Visa card to 12 individuals and a $10,000 grand prize to one person.”

    Click here to read more about the Wells Fargo special and how to take advantage.

    So if you are wanting to check your credit score, credit report or both, I would recommend taking Wells Fargo up on their limited-time offer. Why go through Wells Fargo and not the other freebies? Well for one, you can win sweepstakes through Wells Fargo’s and for two, I do not believe that this check would count as one of your three freebies–leaving those available to you if you want to inquire later in the year at no cost.

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  9. When Do Medical Bills Show Up on Credit Reports?

    March 19, 2013 by editor

    Wondering how medical bills can affect credit? People seem to be confused by when it is that medical bills actually make it onto somebody’s credit report. The simple answer is, if you get a bill from a doctor’s office and pay it, it will not show up on your credit. If you get a bill and don’t pay it, after a certain amount of time the doctor’s office will send it to a collections agency and THEN it will show up on your credit report. Let me just fill you in on one huge piece of advice: as somebody who works in the medical field, and sees patients regularly, I can honestly say that communication is the best way to keep a fat bill out of the hands of a collection agency and off of your credit report. If you get a bill from a doctor’s office that seems to massive to pay in one fell swoop, call them. Let them know your financial situation, if you’re unable to pay with one transaction, and then set up a payment plan. If you are making payments each week or month, I have a very hard time believing any doctor’s office will send you to collections. It’s when they can’t get ahold of you and haven’t received a payment in awhile that they start getting nervous you’ve bailed on the bill. Here is Sally Herigstad of Fox Business’ take on it:

    “When you owe money to your doctor or to a hospital, it generally does not show up on your credit report. However, if the bills go unpaid long enough and end up in collections, they’re going to be on your credit report, and they will affect your ability to get credit, including a mortgage.

    Becky Walzak, president of Looking Glass Group in Deerfield Beach, Fla., and an expert in loan quality assurance, says, “Frankly, we see a lot of medical bills on credit reports.” “

    Click here to find out how and when medical bills can affect your credit.

    Bottom line guys: don’t mess around with medical bills, because they can come back to bite you hard if you let them go. The two most important things to do with medical bills is 1. pay them and 2. be communicative with the doctor’s office who is billing you. Sometimes just a phone call is enough to keep them from sending you to collections, so don’t fall off the face of the earth! Work out a payment plan, do whatever you have to do because medical bills are not considered good credit like installment loans are. They don’t help your credit score, they can only harm it.

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  10. How Student Loans Can Affect Credit

    March 18, 2013 by editor

    Student loans are something of a hot topic for me. I have many of them, know friends who are heavily indebted with loans, and have seen countless friends and family graduate from college with what seem to be increasingly bigger loans as the years go on. I think it’s pretty insane the amount that schools charge kids to take classes and get a degree, and I’m sure that’s a big part of the problem. But I also think that college is something of an expected step for students to take after they graduate high school, and sometimes I wonder how much thought really goes into the cost–both upfront and later on in life–that comes with this choice? I’ve seen many parents take out loans in their children’s names, without conversations happening about this transaction and what that translates to for when the student graduates and needs to start paying. Bottom line, I think there needs to be more communication and game plans surrounding student loans, so that when the freshly graduated borrower needs to start paying but doesn’t have a full-time job yet, there’s a plan. Looking on the bright side, student loans can actually help boost a student’s credit, which is good news because it’s generally pretty tough for students to start building credit without an actual credit card. Here is what Jan Miller of Deseret News has to say about how student loans affect credit:

    “Many people are curious, and often worried, about the effect that student loans will have on their credit score. They wonder if taking out a student loan will help their credit, or hurt it, and to what degree will it influence overall creditworthiness.

    The way that your federal student loans impact your credit is actually quite similar to the way any loan does. Just like any loan or line of credit, they can help your credit score when you make your payments on time — and they can hurt it, if you don’t.”

    Click here to read the nine ways that student loans can affect the borrower’s credit score.

    Now, people. It’s not like it’s okay to go out and take out more loans with the mindset of “This is good for my son or daughter’s credit score!” What about their wallet? What about YOUR wallet if they are unable to pay? I will always believe that the smartest action is trying to get your kids through school with as little debt as possible. Whether that means they go to community college for a couple of years first, or a state school instead of a private school, or in-state versus away. There are ways to get a college degree without leaving school owing the $25,000 that the average college grad owes these days.

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