So I’ve Been Away for Awhile. . .
If you’ve ever started your own business before you know that it takes a lot of time and focus. In the time that I have been away America engaged in another war – oops I guess the politically correct term is “kinetic military action” (Libya), saw unemployment fall into the 8 percentile ranges, another year of American Idol kick-off with the beautiful Jennifer Lopez being the starlet that she is, a new reality show, “Gold Rush” take America by storm, “Glee” sing its way through another season and perhaps most heartbreaking – America’s Elizabeth Taylor pass away.
Credit Report Surprises: Don’t be caught short or uninformed
In the harsh economic times that we face it is vitally important that we focus our attentions on many things. From maintaining our employment, to maybe getting ahead on some bills, building an emergency fund, etc., one area that we must maintain due diligence and vigilance is in the area of our credit reports. Now is not the time to be surprised by finding out too late that your identity has been stolen or you can’t get that mortgage because of negative marks on your credit report.
Top Ten Tricks or Treats In Credit Part 1
Well in the spirit of Halloween let’s look at my top ten tricks or treats on credit. These are things associated with credit that can be a trick or a treat.
Number 10: You can’t do ANYTHING about bad credit marks on your credit report. This is certainly what the three Credit Bureaus and many media outlets would have you to believe but the reality is people have bad marks removed from their credit every day. This is definitely a TRICK.
Let’s Talk About Job Security & Bad Credit Reports
Recently my wife applied for a job, was interviewed, made it to a second interview, offered a job and then was told she would have to pass a background check before actually taking the job. Sound familiar? I am sure it does. Credit checks, background checks, etc. have become somewhat of a common thread in some job industries before a job is offered as a prospective employer pores over your credit report and determines whether you are “worth the risk.” When I entered the military, I had an FBI background check as I received a top secret security clearance. Teachers today are fingerprinted and checked ad- infinitum before being able to work with our children. Certain industries definitely can make claim for the need and importance of different “checks” being made before securing a job. But have we gone too far?
The Basics of Understanding Credit Part 2
How Long Will Negative Information Stay on My Credit Report?
The Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) requires that most negative credit issues be deleted from your credit bureau file in no more than seven years, except for a Chapter 7 bankruptcy which can stay for up to ten years. These are the time limits for reporting negative credit. Listen closely to this next statement: The creditor or the credit bureau can choose to have the negative credit information deleted whenever they please. Did you get that? You can do something about negative marks on your credit report.
The Basics of Understanding Credit Part 1
Let’s talk about the Basics of Credit today. It’s good every once in a while to sort of brush up on the basics. Recently I was talking to a friend who is an internet marketer and I was discussing some basic content programs that he probably understood way back in 2003 that I had viewed and he asked me to send him the information. The reason he gave was it was always important to keep up with the basics. The same is true in our finances and particularly our understanding of our credit reports. So let’s talk about the basics:
The new Credit Card phenomenon
Did you hear the latest statistical news? Debt is steadily falling across American households. Ready to throw the party; get out the party hats, sound makers and champagne? The recession must be over, debt is falling in a home near you; maybe even in your own. But before you pull out the party outfits, let’s stop and evaluate this for a few moments.
First let’s ask the general question as to “how” the debt is falling. Well according to Standard and Poor’s/Experian Credit Default Indices one of the big “how’s” to our decreasing debt seems to be bank write-offs of big ticket items such as mortgages and auto loans. While these seemed to bottom out by the end of 2009 and held steady in 2010 the American household continued to shed debt.
Options to paying off my credit card debt
If you’re working to get out of credit card debt,sometimes it may feel like you are putting in all kinds of effort but not getting anywhere. Having said that, just about every effort you make counts, and every single dollar you put towards your credit card debt is a small step in the correct direction. But the question is what is the right direction? Are there alternatives than just slowly paying off my credit cards month after month after month. The answer is yes.
Can a Consolidated Loan save my marriage
We have all heard the advertisements on the radio and elsewhere in the media, “Do you have more than $10,000 in unsecured credit card debt?” Then the person comes on to discuss whatever it is that they are advertising; whether it be consolidation, settlement, etc.
Consolidated loans include more than just credit card debt. They also include debts such as installment loans for big purchases and of course our mortgages and student loans. Maybe you are finding yourself wondering what to do because your debt is weighing you down and the stress levels are skyrocketing in your life.
Don’t Be an On-line Victim: How to Guard Against Internet Thieves and Electronic Scams
From the FDIC…Great Advice!
Experian
(http://www.experian.com/)
888-397-3742
You can place a fraud alert with Experian online by going to the Experian Credit Fraud Center.
To place a fraud alert with Experian by phone:
- Dial 1-888-397-3742.
- Select option 2 (“all other” requests not related to credit management tool).
- Select option 2 (“if not” wanting to listen to 8 minute recording of CA Civil Code Section 1785.10).
- Select option 3 (“if you believe that your credit information is being used fraudulently”).
- Select option 2 (“to add an alert to your credit file using an automated system”).
Coffee, credit, challenge, character: They all begin with C
I was having my morning coffee waiting for the temperatures to rise above 50 so I could go out and paint my house and came across some interesting statistics that you might be interested in. They reminded me again how much financial challenge we are in today and how important it is that we takes steps to get our individual financial houses in order. Let me just share a few with you under the category of – “Did you Know . . .”
- In 2001 American teens spent as much money as the Mexico exported in goods – $172 billion. (Teenage Research Unlimited, 2001)
Extra Money In My Pocket Podcast
Please take a moment to tune into a small snippet from my TomTalksCredit Weekly radio show…Enjoy!
Extra Money For My Pocket – Thomas Johns
Remembering 9/11
I just wanted to write to you today; this very special day of remembering 9/11. I think we could all look back and remember where we were in those moments of tragedy. At the time I was working for the American Red Cross and was actually interviewing someone for a secretary job, who was a student in college from NYC. The Emergency Services Director burst into my office and told me about the first plane crashing into on of the towers. It was a shock for all of us and the young lady turned pale and began to cry wondering if her family was ok. We all rushed down to the Emergency Directors Office and watched the TV the rest of the morning while this young woman continued to try to contact her family; unsuccessfully at the time. It left her wondering if they were perhaps down there, as they often were. She eventually left our office to go back to her dorm and continued to try to reach her family. Thankfully, later she was able to establish contact with home, and found out they were ok and yes I did hire her for the job.
Later that morning my oldest daughter called from college, it was her first year away. She was afraid and needed to hear an assuring voice that things were going to be ok. I think a lot people people were afraid that day and the days to follow with no planes in the sky and a country wondering what would come next. It was an eerie feeling to look up into the sky and see no planes across the sky.
Is this you? Knowledge + action = power
People in credit card and other debt often act like the picture here. They bury the proverbial head in the sand, although in Buffalo we would replace the sand with snow, and pretend that things are not really that bad. They think if they can at least pay their minimum payments, they are ok. They even convince themselves that they carry an average debt load along with the rest of the country when in reality they often owe much more.
What happens to these head-in-the-sand/snow types? They get run over realizing too late the hole they had dug for themselves was too Big, too Wide and too Deep.
Last thoughts on Identity Theft: Identity theft part 4
Surprises are bittersweet. If they are good surprises they are awesome. But, if I wake up in the morning and find my tire flat and now I am going to be late for work surprise; not so awesome. You know what I mean here. You’re at work and all of a sudden, ambushed surprise; you’re day is not going to go well at all. This is how it feels a little bit when we find our identities stolen. One moment we are waltzing down life and the next we have been thrown into an October Storm such as we found ourselves in Buffalo not too long ago.
What to do when all is lost: Identity Theft, Part 3.
We have been exploring over the past two articles the fast-paced world of identity theft. We have been examining its’ reality and its’ signs that we might be on guard for the time, God forbid, we find ourselves becoming caught short of breath realizing that we have just been robbed of our identity.
Unfortunately, some will never know what hit them because of their refusal to being proactive in regards to their financial picture. They refuse to take advantage of gaining regular access to their credit report through such institutions as www.freecreditreport.com whereby they would be able to track and see the first signs that something is amiss.
Something’s not right: Identity theft, part 2
Years ago my wife and I were at the check-out line paying for groceries. We had our second son with us at the time. His older brother and sister were at school. Our second son loved the gumball machines they used to have at every store somewhere. So while we were placing groceries onto the conveyer and getting ready to pay, something didn’t feel right. I couldn’t explain it at the moment, I just had a feeling something was not right. I looked up, around, behind me and in front and then asked my wife, “Where is Tyler?” She stopped unloading groceries and looked down because he should have been right beside her. He wasn’t. You could imagine we both started frantically looking around, I started for the outside thinking maybe he wandered outside when I heard my wife say that she had found him by the gumball machine. Crisis averted. Hugs and kisses all around and mom and dad just aged about five years.
Who’s coming out your front door? Identity theft
I spent a lot of summers growing up with my grandparents. They were awesome times with many awesome memories. But there is one memory that was not very awesome. I was about ten years old I think. My older brother and I were staying with my grandparents and every week we would take Grandma to the beautician to set her hair. We would be gone about forty-five minutes and Grandma would be happy for another week. One day as we were coming home as we approached the front door strangers were coming out with grandpa’s TV. They were thieves. My grandfather gave chase but could not catch these cowards who would take what they had not worked hard for. It devastated my grandparents to the point they became prisoners in their own, once beautiful home, filled now with bars across windows. They eventually moved but never really recovered.
What’s your credit score being used for?
So you think your credit score is just being used by potential credit card and loan issuers? Think again. While your credit score is still being used in the traditional manners of credit worthiness, determinations in setting an interest rate or amounts of credit or loans, more and more consumers are finding that others are using their credit scores for other reasons.
Let me list just a few examples for you:
Let’s Talk Banking & Overdrafts
New rules that rein in overdraft charges have financial institutions eager to dump unprofitable accounts and tack on new costs, but savvy buyers will have plenty of choices.
For months, we’ve been hearing about how new restrictions on overdraft service fees will lead to “the end of free checking” as banking institutions seek to replace the billions in service fees they’re about to lose.
You could possibly be forgiven if you are left with the impression that each examining account will now come using a $10 to $15 mandatory monthly maintenance cost. That won’t happen.
Pushing My Credit Score Even Higher Part 2
Now that you understand the basics, and your current scores are healthy, you can use the following methods to push your scores over 740.
- 1. Keep track regularly of your credit score reports.
Your credit rating scores are based entirely on the information inside your credit score reports on file at the major 3 credit score bureaus: Equifax, Experian and TransUnion. If the details are wrong, your credit scores could suffer. You are able to get your reviews once a year for free from the government-run AnnualCreditReport.com; you can purchase subsequent copies directly from the bureaus or from myFICO.com. Dispute any serious errors, such as:
Pushing My Credit Score Higher Part 1
In our post-crisis economy, an excellent credit rating isn’t just nice to have — it is vital should you desire to level the playing field with lenders.
Credit rating scores are three-digit numbers lenders use to gauge your creditworthiness, and right up until the monetary and economic crisis hit, a 720 FICO credit rating was sufficient to acquire the most beneficial loan terms. Even individuals with lower scores could get decent deals, and at the peak of the lending boom it seemed that no score was so low that it merited a rejection.
Smart choices bring positive results – Part 2
I was reading this morning a Reuters article (http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE67553520100807) that detailed the housing market in dire straits with foreclosures being forecasted to rise toward the end of this year. Now I think most would agree that this is not surprising news. What may surprise some of you today is the number of people who are in trouble even with the government bailout plans for mortgages being administered by Fannie Mae.
Smart choices bring positive results, Part 1
I went to visit my parents recently in Florida. We were getting out of the Buffalo heat as they joked with us down south. My family, like the majority of America and Western New Yorkers, developed some less than positive eating habits back-in-the-day. Most of you are relating to that pretty well. About three months ago my wife and I decided we would make some changes. I cut out the sodas and we added fresh fruits and vegetables into out meal plan which now consists of a meat with fruit and veggies. We also joined a local gym and have begun working consistently to gain positive results from the smart choices we are making. We shared all this with my folks and encouraged them to take some positive steps themselves.
Actions Impact Everything; Especially in Credit
Today, I want to talk about actions we take that affect our credit scores.
Look at this chart here below. This chart represents someone who has a score of 680. This would be considered decent credit. Not great and hitting that magical 700 mark but decent credit. Let’s look at the chart and see the outcomes from different actions this person has taken and the impact the credit score.
Effect on a 680 score
Maxed-out card - -10 to -30
30-day late payment -60 to -80
Debt settlement -45 to -65
Foreclosure -85 to -105
Take Action or Watch from the sidelines: Who are YOU?
Well on this 4th of July weekend I took my family to a place called Ft. Niagara and watched a reconstruction of the battle for the Fort between the French and the British which took place in 1759. It was a 90 degree day. As the French came for a parley where the British were demanding their surrender, all of a sudden a voice in the crowd 30 ft. down from where I and my family were watching rose up crying out for help. It was an older woman who was trying to hold onto her husband who was teetering and ready to fall over. Between me and this couple were over thirty people on one side and even more on the other. She was panicked. You could tell it in her voice. I looked over and for a second I was sure many would jump to take action, but by the third second I knew it wasn’t going to happen. I quickly pushed my way through the crowd, took the man from his wife and slowly escorted him to the bathroom.
