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Studies have shown that people generally maintain a business relationship with their first card issuer for 15 years, which is why creditors want to get customers when they are young. The relationship lasts so long because the young consumer doesn’t know how to find better deals.
Many people are suggesting that credit card companies are aggressively trying to get students hooked on credit by luring them with T-shirts and other freebies when they apply for cards. This guide is designed to give you the facts you need to be a wise consumer and the tools to use credit to your
Read more…Credit Cards: What You Need To Know
The information in your credit report is key to getting the loans you need, but it is only half the story.
Before deciding whether or not to lend money, many organisations take your report, plus additional information included on your application form, and generate a credit score. This score predicts the risk involved in granting you credit.
Calculating your score
Computer programs score your application by looking at how past customers with similar profiles to yours repaid their credit commitments. Every lender uses a slightly different formula that represents its own and industry experience and these may be adjusted according to the type
Read more…Your National Credit Score (United Kingdom)
Debt Collection FAQs: A Guide for ConsumersIf you’re behind in paying your bills, or a creditor’s records mistakenly make it appear that you are, a debt collector may be contacting you.
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC), the nation’s consumer protection agency, enforces the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA), which prohibits debt collectors from using abusive, unfair, or deceptive practices to collect from you.
Under the FDCPA, a debt collector is someone who regularly collects debts owed to others. This includes collection agencies, lawyers who collect debts on a regular basis, and companies that buy delinquent debts and then try to collect
Read more…Debt Collection – A Guide for Consumers
When searching through the Internet, you will often see advertisements for personal bankruptcy aid, but how do you know the best choice to make for your situation? This article will give you valuable tips on making the best choice for yourself.
Personal Bankruptcy is a legal action that empowers you to extend some or all of your personal debts.
The most recent bankruptcy policy was established in 1978, and was recently amended in the spring of 2005. The end of the bill is to supply relief and structure to those of us who have gotten ourselves so far into debt that
Read more…Personal Bankruptcy Issues
If you are consistently paying your bills late, credit counseling services may be able to help you negotiate lower interests and payment plans with your creditors. A credit counselor determines your eligibility for a debt consolidation program or debt management plan. The main advantage is that you only need to make one payment per month to a credit counseling service, which then sends the payment to your creditors. You save by paying lower interest rates and avoiding late payments charges. It is also easier to manage a single debt as all your debt repayments are consolidated into a single monthly
Read more…When To Use A Credit Counseling Service
When you’re sorting out how to pay back your debts, you’ll need to identify the priority debts. This will mean you can use your available money to settle the most important debts first.
Priority debtsThe most important debts aren’t necessarily the biggest ones. Priority debts are ones where serious action can be taken against you if you don’t pay what you owe.Some examples of priority debts, and the consequences of not dealing with them, are listed below.
MortgagesIf you don’t keep up with mortgage payments, the mortgage lender can take legal action to take possession of your house and sell it, for
Read more…Which debts to pay off first (United Kingdom)
In the late 1980s and early 1990s, the number of credit and debt counseling agencies in America increased significantly. An antitrust lawsuit was filed against the NFCC, arguing that the presence of creditors on the NFCC’s Board of Directors constituted monopolistic practices. As a result of this litigation, creditors agreed to fund non-NFCC member agencies as well.
These sharp increases of credit counseling activity also created other, more serious issues in the industry. By the early 1990s, abuses by certain credit counseling organizations were so significant, it led to criticism of the entire industry.
A credit counseling agency typically receives most of
Read more…Criticism of credit counseling (United States)
Keep your balance low in relation to your available creditKeeping your credit balance to 25% or below your available credit is a good general rule. But, don’t open credit accounts you don’t intend to use just to increase this ratio.
Pay your bills on timeLate payments make a huge (negative) impact on your score. If you have missed payments, get current and stay current.
Make more than the minimum paymentIf you make only the minimum payment on your credit card each month, it may take longer than you think to pay off your balance. For instance, say you have a
Read more…6 Ways to Improve Your Credit Score
InterestWhen you use your credit card, the issuing bank is really giving you a loan for the amount of your purchases. The bank charges a fee, called interest, for using its money. The credit card company pays the dress shop or the furniture store within a few days of the transaction, and you must begin repaying the loan when your monthly statement arrives in the mail.
All interest charges can usually be avoided by paying the balance in full within the time limit specified on your statement. Obviously, the quicker the balance is paid in full, the less interest is paid.
Read more…Understanding Credit Costs
Handling merchant disputes – If you are dissatisfied with an item or a service purchased with your card, the first step is to resolve the issue with the merchant. If you can’t resolve the issue, contact your card issuer and you may not have to pay the amount due on the charges. Check your cardholder agreement and billing statement for complete details, limitations and restrictions.
Handling billing errors – If your billing statement is incorrect, or if you want more information about a transaction, write to the address shown on your statement. Typically, you will need to include your name,
Read more…Your credit rights
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