The term credit can mean many things. For most people, it is the ability to borrow today and pay later. The idea of “credit-worthiness” defines our personal finances, and reaches out to all parts of our financial lives. Credit can be an accounting term. You can talk about credit cards, your credit history, your credit score, or the three credits you got in college for taking Bowling. This page is the credit nerve center of ThinkGlink.com. From this page you can learn more about what credit means and how having good, bad, or mediocre credit affects your personal finances.
Nine Reasons To Pay Off Your Credit Card Debt
While paying the minimum amount owed each month, on time, shouldn't damage your credit score, there are good reasons to pay off your credit card debts, not to mention your other loans like auto loans and school loans, and wipe your credit slate clean. Stop paying interest. Keep credit open in case of an emergency. Improve your credit to be able to receive the best credit card offers.
How To Pay Down Your Credit Card Debt
When you're ready to get rid of credit card debt, making smart choices can help you eliminate your balance faster. First, stop adding to the debt, and wait until you have the cash to make any purchases. When it comes to paying off your credit card debt, the smartest move you can make it to pay the debt carrying the highest interest rate first.
Choosing A Credit Counselor
The average American family has as much as $8,800 in credit card debt and as many as 20 different lines of credit open. Reaching out to a credit counseling service can be intimidating if you don't know what to look for. If you have debts and want to pay them off, you should choose your credit counseling agency carefully.
Build Credit Using Credit Cards, Not Debit Cards
Have a good credit score and history is critical to buying a home. What can you do if you're trying to improve your credit history to buy a home? Use credit cards wisely. Debit cards do not count toward building a credit history and score. If you can't qualify to get a credit card, you should set up a secured credit card with your bank.
How This New Generation Is Learning To Save And Grow Their Money
Chicago's Saucedo Bank of the Millennium teaches children the value of the dollar by making them responsible for the school's money.
Watching Your Credit History
Credit Watch is a service from Equifax, one of the nation's three major credit reporting bureaus. For about $50 per year, Credit Watch will notify you any time there is a change to your credit history, whether a creditor changes names, or if an account is opened or closed. If you have already been the victim of identity theft, Equifax, Experian, and Trans-Union will put a special hold on your credit history, which requires creditors to contact you personally before issuing credit in your name.
Options For Paying Off Student Loans
By the end of 2001, more than 2 million recent college graduates were expected to begin paying back billions in student loans. Which is fine, if you found a job after graudation. But the poor economy means out of work grads are having a tough time
making ends meet. Money and real estate expert Ilyce Glink has some suggestions on making the numbers work.
Protecting Your Credit
Your credit history is the single most important piece of information a lender will assess. And with identity theft on the rise, your credit history could be in danger. All someone needs to steal your identity is access to your social security number - which is everywhere. Here are some ways in which you keep your financial identity safe.
How To Protect Your Identity
The key to your personal identity is your social security number. A unique number is issued to each U.S. citizen at birth, and typically this is the number used on bank account applications, on insurance forms and even your driver's license.
Pay Off Credit Card Debt
You'll never get anywhere in life with credit card debt. Pay off your credit cards before making any large purchase like a house. Only charge what you can afford to pay off at the end of each month.