Avoiding big problems with a little time spent transferring balances

Balance transfer credit cards can be many things. On the surface, yes, they excel as credit cards that permit an individual to consolidate his or her other credit card balances onto one piece of plastic, but what else can they do? Not much research has been done into the question, though I am thoroughly convinced they can be used as a method to cut down on crime. Allow me to explain. Let's say, hypothetically, I happened to be in serious credit card debt. Like many Americans, I took out more credit cards to pay off old ones, effectively closing myself in a nasty little circle. Having multiple cards, I was getting charged interest rates and late fees on each one, killing my chances of ever paying them all off. The stress and strain of always worrying about my finances began to wear down on me. Nights would go by where I could not sleep, partially due to my worrying, and partially because I couldn't stop planning witty retorts for creditors that were calling me at all hours wondering just where the hell their money was. Oh, yeah, this is hypothetical still. Really. So finally on a rainy Tuesday in the awful month of March, I snapped. How it happened was kind of funny. See, I was getting paranoid, probably from not sleeping. I started confusing the creditors with my company's upper management. Anyone wearing a suit that cost more than $300 became suspect. So my boss called me in for my annual review and strategy brainstorming. I sat there white-knuckled, pouring sweat, as he talked about things like "trimming the fat" and "hunting down clients that haven't paid like the savages they are." I thought the hammer was coming down, so I seized him by his trendy tie and comb-over, threw him into his charity golf event trophy case, and fled the scene. Knowing I was guilty of assault, I proceeded to lose all self control. I began, again, hypothetically (I swear), robbing liquor stores and girl scouts on their cookie routes all across the country. I thought if I could steal enough money to pay off my multiple credit cards, I'd be free of my nightmare. Ironically, the real nightmare was when I ended up spending five nights in a Reno prison for mugging an old woman that was really a 25 year old cop who had a thing for off-duty cross dressing. Now how could I have avoided this entirely untrue story that did not occur two months ago? Well, I could have not been born a complete maniac, yes, though there is another way. Let's pretend I had transferred all of my credit card balances onto a balance transfer card. With only one interest rate, and hopefully no (but probably one) set of late fees, my debt would have been easier to carry and manage. If I had done that, perhaps I wouldn't have come to know an ambitious cell mate named Benny who kept mistaking me for a woman named Rita. The point I want to make, aside from stay away from poorly dressed bag-ladies in Reno, is that balance transfer cards are a convenient answer to a common problem. Plenty of people I know have taken out multiple credit cards to pay off other cards. If you find yourself in such a cycle, consider loading all your troubles onto one balance transfer card. Or, you could always do what I did. What I hypothetically did. Yes. Right.

Credit score is important when buying a car

Do you check your credit score and credit report before you go shopping for a car? You might find out that it is well worth your while to do so, as some auto dealers are taking advantage of the fact that many consumers do not know their credit scores. No one likes buying a car; the entire process is awkward and cumbersome. Most items we buy are plainly marked with the price, but with cars, the price is often a mystery. Then you have to haggle with a salesman and hope that you have worked out the best price possible. Having done that, you have to arrange financing. You can often get an acceptable interest rate when financing through the dealer, but some dealers are padding their bottom line by offering loans at higher rates than they otherwise might. The scam works like this - You negotiate your best price with the dealer and you agree to finance through them. You fill out the credit application and hand it over to the salesman, who has promised you some reasonable terms. He takes off to process the application and to check your credit report while you have a cup of coffee. He returns a few minutes later, shaking his head. He informs you that your credit score is only 600 and that you will not qualify for the interest rate he offered you. He says that you will have to pay a higher rate. And not knowing any better, you agree. Had you done your homework by checking your credit score ahead of time, you would have known your actual credit score and you could have pointed out that the salesman's assessment of your credit score was incorrect. At that point, you could insist upon receiving the more favorable interest rate or threaten to finance elsewhere. This is a common scam that works because most people really do not know their exact credit score. Learning your credit score is easy. All you have to do is visit the Websites of one of the three major credit bureaus - Experian, Trans Union or Equifax. For a modest fee, you can receive a copy of your credit report with your credit score. Armed with this useful piece of information, you can shop for a car with a bit more peace of mind, knowing ahead of time whether or not you can qualify for the best financing.

What is credit counseling all about

Many people who are suffering from extreme financial troubles due to debt have successfully made use of credit counseling services. While it is often spoken of in the same breath with debt negotiation it is really quite different. If you work with a credit counseling service you will have your own personal credit counselor who will help you to get out from beneath your debt. They can help get your debts consolidated so that it is easier for you to make your monthly payments. You will only be paying one lump sum each month and it should be smaller than the sum of the payments you were making previously. If you are sick and tired of bill collectors calling you as well as terrified of the collection agency letters you keep receiving, then credit counseling just might be for you. There is a right way and a wrong way to deal with credit counselors though. First of all, you need to be able to tell the good from the bad. Not all of these services are reputable. Millions of people have been taken in by credit repair scams, don’t you let yourself become one of these victims. Any offer that tries to sell you a quick fix should be discarded immediately. There is no overnight fix for bad credit. It is going to take some time before you are back on top. You want to look for reliable companies that have been accredited by Consumer Credit Counseling Services. Once you have found a good service you will have to make an appointment so that you can meet with them. The counselor will need documentation of all of your debts, you need to show the counselor everything because that is the only way they will be able to work out a solid repayment plan for you. Now it is up to the credit counselor. They will then let your creditors know what is what and explain to them that you are having problems and they are there to fix it. They will work with the lenders to come up with a plan that you can live with, one that comes with smaller payments and lower interest rates. If you want, most credit counseling services will allow you to send them a lump sum payment that they will make sure gets to the creditors each month. This is what is known as a debt management system. While this is a handy tool, these services have been known to be late occasionally with the payments and this is something that you want to avoid. Late or missed payments will do even more damage to your credit report. What you need to do to avoid this problem is really check out the service and find out what dates they plan on mailing out any payments. A credit counseling service that is running a scam will ask you for huge fees up front before they do anything at all whereas a reputable company will only charge you about 14 bucks a month. That is one of the best ways to tell the true services from the greedy scammers. While dealing with credit counselors may not be perfect, if you are in serious trouble due to your debt and you just can’t deal with it anymore, it might just save your life.

Adverse credit credit cards

As their very name suggests, adverse credit credit cards are an option available to those who have a bad credit history and, thus, credit rating. Why you may want to apply If you do happen to have a bad credit rating, then there is a strong likelihood that you’ll be successful when applying for one of these credit cards where you have been turned down when applying to the mainstream card issuers. Moreover, if you do have a bad credit rating, then applying for adverse credit credit cards can help you to re-establish you credit rating quicker – provided, of course, that you manage the card correctly and pay your bills on time! How to apply You can apply either Online or in the more traditional method of sending off an application form. Normally it will take a couple of days for the issuer to decide your creditworthiness. Having said that, provided your credit rating is not totally destroyed you should be successful in your application. What will the credit limit be Don’t get too excited, although, like all mainstream cards, there is no set card limit, depending instead on your ability to repay the limit balance that may be outstanding, one of the ways in which adverse credit credit card issuers limit their exposure is to set the card limit below that which you may otherwise have received with a successful application to a mainstream issuer. That said, provided you keep a clean record and pay all of your bills in a timely manner, there is no reason why your limit should not go up over time as you build trust between you and the provider. What’s the interest rate Along with the credit limit, the interest rate is one of the factors that puts most people off applying for this type of card. In most cases the APR is higher than that offered by competing cards and if you were merely comparing credit cards then it would look unattractive. Nonetheless, the best interest rate offered by the card is the same as that with any other card – 0%. So, if you pay off the balance in full each month, and with the lower limit this should be easier to do, the card will cost you nothing, while at the same time helping to rehabilitate your credit rating and history. Adverse credit credit cards are an easily affordable option of getting your financial health back on track. It is important, however, that you try and repay as much of the balance as you can possibly repay each month and that you never fail to miss a repayment date – otherwise this type of card can very quickly turn into an expensive and bad experience!

Credit card budgeting

When you receive a credit card, you will want to carefully follow an outlined budget for your entire household. Yes, this is easier said than done, however, if you fail to follow a strict budget and do not carefully plan the expenses of your credit card then you could fall into the same trap that many all over the world have fallen into, and become in serious financial debt. If you use a credit card as it was intended for use, for emergencies or traveling, then you may find it much easier to maintain financial stability. However, if you choose to use a credit card as a personal ATM or for every purchase large or small, you could find yourself in deep trouble. Here are some tips you can use to budget and protect yourself against falling in the large hole of credit card debt. No matter if a person has a credit card or not, it is a wise suggestion to never spend more than they can afford. The best advice anyone can offer is to use your credit card as if it were cash. This is because no matter how much you charge, you will still have to pay it back with additional fees. Many people have begun to use their credit cards for shopping at the grocery store, in addition to using them to buy things they really could not afford to with cash. This is where many begin the downfall into financial debt, even with all the excellent deals and promotions that appeal to you, with the interest rates the credit card charges you will not be getting those deals and likely end up paying more. All credit card companies issue you a credit limit; it is common that people see this as their money and the amount they can spend on a monthly basis. It is wise to think of the credit card limit as a short-term loan and that you have to repay at the end of the month. This is a great piece of advice because if you let the balance roll over you will have a good deal of interest piling up and therefore that credit limit that you maxed out will come a good deal higher when you really have to repay it.. Making wise and informed choices is the best defense you have against falling into a large hole of financial debt. Create a budget and stick to it, repay the credit card balance on an every month basis and never spend more than you can afford in cash.

Low interest credit cards a thing of the past

: With interest rates rising, low or zero percent credit cards may soon become a thing of the past. However, the wise shopper can still secure a low rate by carefully shopping around. Here are some ways you still get a bargain rate card: Contact Your Current Provider. Chances are the interest rate with your current credit card provider has been inching up for the better part of the past year. Whereas previously you could have had a 5% rate, the card may now be up to 8, 9, or even 10%. What can you do? Contact your credit card provider and ask for a lower rate. They can tell you no, at the risk of you going elsewhere, or give you a fixed lower rate. If your provider refuses to budge, see if they would consider a lower rate for a certain period of time, let’s say for six or twelve months.

The added savings of the temporary lower rate can be beneficial especially if you have a big purchase coming up that you plan on paying off within 6 to 12 months. Shop Around. Like most Americans, you probably are receiving solicitations in the mail for credit cards. If that is the case, find the plan that works the best for you and apply. Usually, a low introductory rate is offered as well as balance transfer options.

If the card has no annual fees and no additional fees are assessed for transferring funds, go with the new company especially if the rate is lower. Consolidate Your Debt. If your current credit card provider won’t lower their rate and the new card company’s rate isn’t quite as low as you expected, consider obtaining a debt consolidation loan through a lending institution. To get the lowest rate possible you may have to offer up something as security – for example, the equity in your house – to obtain the lowest rate.

Do this only if you have sufficient equity and can reasonably expect to pay the loan or line of credit off. The Federal Reserve Bank has raised interest rates ten times since June 2004. Still, lending institutions can and are offering lower rate credit cards and loans. As a savvy consumer you can and will find the best deals out there.

Maximum return on your credit cards

There has been an explosion of credit cards that specialize in certain benefits over the last five years; reward points, cash back, 0% transfers, credit monitoring, discount gasoline, money-market savings, etc. So how do you get the most return from your card, particularly when their plans change? (Presuming you never, ever carry a credit card balance – interest charges and potential fees will more than consume any side benefit that a card can offer.) In the old days, the big benefit was airline miles. Let’s see how well that works out. The average airfare for a ticket that was paid for with credit card airline miles is about $400. And the average program requires 25,000 to 35,000 miles to be credited a free ticket. Since miles are normally accrued dollar-for-dollar, the average benefit is between 1 to 1.5% of what you spend. Now we are starting to have something to compare. If you get an offer for a 1% cash back credit card, you’d be slightly better off getting the airline miles. But in my opinion, the many cards offering up to 5% cash back are the best deal, as long the fine print lines up. First, there are normally limitations on the shops where the 5% applies. You want a card that applies the 5% to where you spend the most of your monthly income. The credit card industry calls these ‘everyday purchases’, such as groceries, drug stores, and gasoline, but exclude warehouse clubs. You should get a card with the widest number of retailers where you commonly spend money. Or, get a specific-store card for those large one-time purchases. For example, if you are buying new kitchen appliances from Sears, apply and use their card for the purchase and you normally get 10% off. You can cancel it later when it has a zero balance. The next 5% cash back problem is an annual limit. Citi Dividend credit card limits your annual earning to only $300. If you have some big purchases, you may have spent $5,000 on your credit card in the first month, and you’ve hit your cash back limit already. So guess what, you are going to stop using that card and start using a different 5% cash back card until you’ve used up that limit as well. Use them up and move on. American Express currently has a card called Blue Cash for bigger spenders. It offers only 1% cash back until you spend $6,500, and then it pays 5% cash back until you’ve spent $50,000. But there aren’t nearly as many AmEx merchants as Visa/Mastercard merchants. (Again, AmEx and others may have exclusions like purchases at warehouse clubs). Getting the most from your card is like going into battle: you can have a great plan in the beginning, but once cardholders start exploiting loopholes and creating unintended consequences, the card companies change their policies, it goes back and forth continually. So read all the fine print before applying, and squeeze some extra money from your credit card purchases this year.

How to use a secured credit card to repair your credit

If you have ever had credit cards, paid a bill monthly, or obtained a loan, you have a credit rating. When you make payments to a creditor, they report these payments to credit reporting agencies that compile your credit report and track your credit history. If you miss a payment, or even worse, your debt gets sent to a collection agent, this affects your credit rating negatively, and may prevent you from obtaining more lines of credit when you need them in the future. As soon as you realize you are in this situation, it is crucial that you immediately begin to make an effort to repair your credit rating. To most people, this seems like a difficult thing to do, but doing nothing to repair your credit will only prolong the damage for up to seven years. Until your credit is better, you will find that you are barred from any type of loans or even activities that require credit, such as renting a car. One way to repair your credit is to obtain a secured credit card. You may wonder how this is possible with bad credit, when you will most likely be declined when filling out a credit card application. However, without a credit card, you will have a hard time proving to creditors your responsibility in making payments on time. Try a secured credit card. Secure credit cards are marketed specially toward individuals with poor credit. These credit cards work when the customer applies a deposit equal to their credit limit. For example, if you make a deposit of $100, your credit limit will be $100. The credit card company then be use your deposit toward any balance on the credit card resulting from late payments. This type of credit card is risk-free for the company that issues it, because they can always deduct the balance from your deposit, so it makes sense to issue these cards to people with poor credit. One drawback to secured credit cards, however, is the annual fee that most regular credit cards don’t charge. After you have obtained one of these secured credit cards, use it sparingly but regularly, and make sure you mail all of your payments on time. This will enable you to slowly, but surely, repair your credit. You will demonstrate to your creditors that you are trustworthy, responsible, and pay your bills on time. Taking steps towards repairing your credit will eliminate the risk of keeping your credit rating “poor” for up to seven years. However, after seven years the black marks on your credit will finally be taken off, so waiting is always an option. If waiting is not an option, take the necessary steps toward credit repair. Obtain your secured credit card, use it responsibly, and reduce the seven-year sentence of bad credit.