From the category archives:

Credit / Debt

How to Improve Your Credit Score

FICO-credit-score-breakdown

Do You know what is considered a good credit score? Your credit score is used by lenders to determine whether or not they want to risk lending you money. It’s also used by some employers when they’re deciding who to hire; landlords who are looking for tenants; and even the calculation of your car insurance [...]

Read the full article →

How to Use a Credit Card to Build Your Credit Score

My first experience building credit was with a credit card that I opened while I was attending college. Thankfully, I avoided the classic college mistake of maxing out the card in the first month of ownership, then living with debt for the next 10 years. My goal was to apply for the credit card, make [...]

Read the full article →

Should You Use a HELOC to Consolidate Credit Card Debt?

Credit card debt can be a budget killer, especially with many credit card companies raising interest rates.It’s not uncommon for credit cards to come with interest rates around 15% or higher. It can take 10 years to pay off your credit card debt if you only pay the minimum on each card. Even if you [...]

Read the full article →

Check Your Credit Report Often

Your credit report is one of the fundamental financial documents that represent your overall financial health. Your credit report is used whenever you apply for a loan, credit card, mortgage, and sometimes even a job or security clearance. Having a clean credit report, and a high credit score can save you thousands of dollars in [...]

Read the full article →

207th Carnival of Debt Reduction

Welcome to this week’s Carnival of Debt Reduction! For those not aware, a blog carnival is a gathering of top notch articles under one topic. The goal is to bring readers relevant and timely content so they don’t have to go searching through the web to find it. The Carnival of Debt Reduction is a [...]

Read the full article →

Will My Credit Cards Affect My Ability to Get a Car Loan?

I received a reader question last week about how credit cards and available credit will affect her ability to get a favorable rate on a car loan. Now let’s look at her question: I am writing because I was curious what effect my credit cards will have on getting a car loan with a good [...]

Read the full article →

Should You Pay a Debt Consolidation Company?

I recently received a reader question regarding debt consolidation services: Hi Ryan, Do you have any recommendations or advice for someone looking to consolidate their debt? I’ve got too much debt right now and I’m struggling to meet my monthly payments. Thanks, Shawn Hello Shawn, Thank you for your question. Several months ago I answered [...]

Read the full article →
.