In the last post we talked about the upcoming New Year and how this new start historically holds promise for each and every one of us to approach our life from a fresh perspective. There’s not many opportunities in life to be able to have another chance and wipe the slate clean; but each January 1st we have the ability to have at least the psychological perspective of starting over. It’s no secret that this time of year is marked by people starting a variety of new projects - including starting an exercise program, new diet, even new jobs; so it’s not surprising that so many people take a long and hard look at their finances this time of year. As we discussed, if you’re looking to make some headway with your credit, there are a number of things that you should be doing when the New Year starts - including establishing the habit of ordering free credit reports. Getting your credit report from each of the three credit bureaus gives you a comprehensive look at your credit standing and lets you know what your credit score is so that you can watch it move as you make progress. Some other things to consider this coming New Year include:
Establishing credit. Credit score can be impacted by a lack of credit as well as by bad credit. For those who are lacking a credit history it’s important to start establishing credit in order to raise their score appropriately. Of course it’s important to compare credit cards so as to find the best deal available.
Getting help for bad credit. Those who have trouble with their finances and are suffering the ramifications with a less than stellar credit score may find themselves unsure where to turn for help. Even in this economy there are credit cards for bad credit - including secured credit cards - that will help people get on the road to better credit.
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The beauty of the New Year is the ability to wipe the slate clean; to start fresh and do what you maybe wanted to do the first time around. This is the perfect time for anyone who has struggled with their credit to take the bull by the horns and get down to making a real change. In fact there’s no better time of the year to order free credit reports and take a look at where you stand financially so that you can take the steps necessary to get into a better position.
Of course with the holidays around the corner most people are more intent on spending within their budget rather than giving any thought to the bigger financial picture. However once the holidays pass it’s time to get back down to business - getting a handle on the reality of your situation and moving on from there. So what should you be doing at the start of this New Year ahead?
Begin the habit of ordering free credit reports throughout the year. There are three credit bureaus and we are all allowed to order a free credit report from each of them once within every twelve month period. This means that you can order a credit report every few months - rotating through the credit bureaus - and still be within the limit. This also gives a well-rounded look at your credit by order free credit reports from each, as information can differ between them.
Take stock of your credit score and begin making changes to help increase your score. The best part of ordering free credit report is the fact that you can actually follow your progress and watch your score improve in response to your work. A credit score is more important than ever in this tough lending market.
More in the next post…
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There aren’t crystal balls that will help you determine with 100-percent certainty what a bank or credit card company might say to an application. Still, a free credit report can come close. If you want a decent idea of your chances at receiving low interest rates versus bad credit loans, looking over your own history can reveal a lot.
You have the right to pull your own credit report at no charge at least once a year. This means once from each of the three major credit bureaus. There are also other locations that offer free credit reports, which enable you to get a clear picture of your standing on a more frequent basis.
If you’re tired of not knowing why you only get offers for secured credit cards, bad credit loans or credit cards for bad credit, it’s time to take a peek. When you have a report in hand, you’ll be able to see what lenders see. The information includes:
All outstanding accounts – A credit report will show you exactly what has been reported that you owe and to whom. It will also enable you to see all outstanding balances and the amount of credit allotted to your account. Even if your payment history is excellent on all accounts, having too much credit available in your name versus your income can actually hurt you.
Payment history – You will also be able to see how your payment history has been reported. This is an important area to review for any mistakes. You might, for example, have an account that you paid off a long time ago still showing as unpaid. A few phone calls will probably clear this up, but until they’re made, your credit will suffer.
When you pull free credit reports, you can see what lenders will learn about you. The knowledge can, in turn, be used to help you map out a plan for fixing any issues that appear. Take the right steps and you’ll soon find yourself having to compare credit cards for the sweetest deal.
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In this time of budget tightening, more people are examining their bills to determine where cuts can be made. When it’s time to do this on the home front, pulling a personal credit report can serve as an excellent guide.
While a free credit report won’t provide you a list of bills to “cut” per se, it can show you which ones to pay off quickly for maximum impact. Free credit reports will include information on a variety of bills that many people overlook when budgeting or budget tightening.
So, what kind of information can you expect to see when you look at a free credit report?
All current credit card accounts – You’ll get a complete picture of all open credit card accounts you have, the balances and the basic history on the accounts. Having this information can help you see which cards would be the easiest to eliminate from your monthly bill stack by paying off as fast as possible. A report can also show you why you might only be able to get bad credit loans, secured credit cards or credit cards for bad credit.
Clearing any issues up can change all of this and save you a lot of money in the long run. Before too long, you might even be able to compare credit cards before selecting an account to open.
Other loans – Car loans, mortgages and any other long-term type loan will show up in a credit report. While paying off these larger loans fast to reduce monthly outflow might not be possible, you will know where you stand when you pull a report.
Other bills – Sometimes other creditors report information to the credit bureaus. Doctors, hospitals and the like might have put negative marks on your history if you failed to pay a bill. Handling these if they appear in a free credit report can improve your standing down the road and help you save money later on interest rates.
Downsizing a monthly budget isn’t easy, but there are ways to make it happen. When a credit report is pulled, it can help you target bills that can and should be paid off as fast as possible to make a decent dent in the outflow of cash.
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I recently tried to get a credit card in my name. Easier said than done, it turns out. While I had always had a card as a user on my husband’s account I had decided that it was important to have something that was entirely in my name. I thought that this was a perfect time to apply considering that the holidays were coming up and cash flow was a little tight. I wanted to be able to budget out my holiday shopping and having a small credit limit in my name was, I thought, a good idea. However, I was denied credit - even a small limit. This was the first time that I had really given any thought to my own personal credit report.
It turns out that having little to no credit is just as detrimental as having bad credit. I just had very little in my own name and it was counting against me. I needed something in my name and I needed it quickly so I began to look at secured credit cards.
Secured credit cards allow for the cardholder to carry a particular limit that must first be deposited into a secured savings account that is held by the lender; this is to protect all parties involved. For instance, I could have a $1,000 limit by first depositing $1,000 for the lender to hold. Most importantly, this manageable credit limit would allow me to work towards building credit in my name - improving my credit report.
The way that I can keep track of my credit in the months to come is by ordering free credit reports on a regular basis in order to watch the improvement of my credit score. In the weeks and months to come I hope to see improvement so that I can look to get a traditional card in my name.
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In the last post we talked about the importance of really taking a step back and looking objectively at your credit report; something that can very easily derail financial plans that many people may have in their heads - including the purchase of something fun or travel plans. The fact of the matter is that if you don’t have a complete picture of your finances then it’s easier to make plans with abandon; when in reality these are plans that you really can’t afford. When you are ready to really get serious about your finances, however, the first step is making sure that you get a copy of your credit report from each of the three credit bureaus. Your credit report is the most complete picture of your finances and will give you the most comprehensive understanding of what you are up against in your quest to get financially informed.
Ordering free credit reports is the best way to go. Luckily we are all able to order a free credit report from each of the credit bureaus once within every twelve month period. Free credit reports can give you a variety of information; telling you:
• If there are mistakes on your credit report. One credit bureau may be reporting erroneous information that could be impacting your credit score and ability to get a loan. Having your credit report in hand will allow you to catch potential mistakes and take care of them quickly.
• What your credit score is and how it moves. You need to know where you’re starting before you can get to work. Your score is likely differ – albeit slightly – between the credit bureaus but you’ll get a general idea of your standing. Then you can watch it change as you make financial changes.
• If there’s anything strange going on. Free credit reports are a good way to catch identity theft because you will be well aware of the information on your report and will notice if things change drastically.
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It’s difficult sometimes to take a step back and look at your finances from an objective point of view. There are things you want to buy, places you want to travel and taking an honest look at the reality of your money situation may put a damper on all of the fun stuff that you think you can afford if you’re not really looking closely at things. For those who want to get serious about their money, however, and really make headway on their financial objectives, there has to be a reality check and it starts with a credit report.
There are far too few of us who are disciplined enough to really have a handle on our credit report. In fact, we may be surprised to learn what is on our credit report and how it subsequently impacts our financial health. We may only learn about the details of our credit report when we apply for a particular loan and are given our credit score. But even then that may only be the information derived from one credit bureau.
There are, in fact, three credit bureaus and a credit report is held by each of them. So when we investigate into our credit standing it is important to get the information from each of the credit bureaus. The way in which we can stay informed about our credit information is by ordering free credit reports from each of the credit bureaus – once within every twelve month period. Once you order a free credit report from each of the bureaus you must be able to examine it objectively in order to make changes if changes are necessary. There is only one way to approach a credit report and that is with your eyes wide open.
More to come in the next post…
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In the last post I talked about my ignorance regarding my credit report. In fact I had never given my credit report a bit of thought until I was forced to face it after being denied for a mortgage loan. That was when I knew that I had to deal with my finances once and for all. I ordered free credit reports from each of the three credit bureaus – something that I have continued to do every twelve months as is allowable by law. Each of the free credit reports from each bureau gives me insight into what my financial standing looks like to potential lenders and keeps me abreast of changes to my credit score and information that could potentially be linked to identity theft should it occur.
In addition to ordering free credit reports I also began checking out secured credit cards as a way to manage my financial comeback. Secured credit cards offer a credit limit to users but the amount of the credit limit must first be deposited into a secured savings account. This protects the lender from the possibility of the cardholder defaulting on their loan. But secured credit cards also protect the cardholder from getting in over their head with a huge credit limit that they can’t pay.
I finally found a credit card that worked for me and I have been using it ever since; only buying things that I need and keeping the balance low and manageable, and making on-time payments every month. My secured credit card is just one stage in my financial reform and a way that I have been rebuilding my credit piece by piece. One thing is for sure – when I go to get a mortgage the next time around I will have a very clear understanding of my credit report.
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When it comes to your credit report nothing can make you believe in the importance of it until you are face to face with the impact it can have on your financial life. I had never given any thought to my credit report; not before I had it brought to my attention. Unfortunately the way in which my credit standing was brought to my attention was during a loan process in which I was trying to get a mortgage for a home. I honestly didn’t know enough about my credit to make a determination which way it was going to go but I thought for sure, in the end, I would be okay and would be approved for the mortgage. With the loan process being what it is right now, however, I was denied for a mortgage loan in short order and I had nothing to blame but my credit report – something that I had actually never laid eyes on until that time.
Since then, my credit report has been a huge part of my life as I work towards fixing my finances and my credit standing. Part of what I am doing on a regular basis is ordering free credit reports from each of the three credit bureaus – something that I am at liberty to do with each of them once within every twelve month period. Having a free credit report on hand allows me to know right away when something needs to be addressed on my credit report and also to watch as change is made through my efforts and my credit score approves.
Additionally I began looking at secured credit cards to help me start to repair my credit; something that I could do that was within my control. More in the next post about secured credit cards…
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Information is the foundation for success in every respect. This is the philosophy by which I run my own business and it has allowed me to achieve success in what I do. I wouldn’t say that I micromanage things per se but I do like to know everything that is going on from day to day – just so that I can stay informed and nothing will catch me off guard.
This is the same philosophy that I apply to my finances although it wasn’t always. As top of things as I am in business it certainly doesn’t make much sense that I haven’t been as educated about my finances over the years; but I guess that this part of my life just took backstage to everything else that I was doing in terms of building my business. I have recently changed the way in which I work with regard to my finances. I have learned over the years that information is my strength in this area as well and, to that end, I now order free credit reports from each of the three credit bureaus on a regular basis.
We are entitled, as it turns out, to order a free credit report from each credit bureau once within every twelve month period. I take advantage of this ability by sticking to a rotating schedule so that I can always know what is happening on my credit report.
With free credit reports in hand I can stay in the loop of my finances and make decisions that will benefit my credit score and my financial standing in the long run. It’s impossible to make the right decisions when you don’t have the correct information at your fingertips; free credit reports make that possible and allow me to stay just as informed about my finances as I do about my business.
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