Credit Liftoff

Sears Citi MasterCard 10x ThankYou Point Offer Good Through 2018

October 3, 2018 by Dan Wilke

Sears Citi MasterCard 10x ThankYou Point – Gas Stations, Restaurants, and Groceries

Sears Citi MasterCard holders have an opportunity to rack up a lot of ThankYou Points for the rest of 2018. During the months of October, November, and December cardholders can reach spending requirements for 10x Points on purchases made for Gas, Restaurants, and Groceries. Your specific offer may vary as these were targeted to individuals based on behind the scenes schematics. Regardless, the offer is 10x but the total allowable points earned each month may vary – just be sure to activate your offer! Here is an example of one of the offers provided for this promotion:

Alternatively, some customers may have received this offer:

As you can see, the individual offer may vary but the earning structure is identical. The most important thing with this offer is to make sure that you activate your individual offer online otherwise you will not be eligible to receive your 10x bonus.

This current credit card is not available for applications. The current version of this credit card is offered by Citi and MasterCard but the card provides Shop Your Way Points rather than Thank You points (other attractive card offers can be reviewed here). Time will tell whether or not Citi decides to bring back the card which provides Thank You Points but for the time being Sears seems to be moving towards Shop Your Way Points rather than the Thank You Points reward system.

Free Credit Freeze – Experian, TransUnion, and Equifax

September 25, 2018 by Dan Wilke

What Is A “Credit Freeze”

Before you freeze your credit it is important to understand exactly what a credit freeze is. Freezing your credit requires contacting the three credit bureaus (Experian, TransUnion, and Equifax) and requesting a freeze on your credit through each of their respective credit freeze processes. Once you have completed this with each of the agencies your credit is frozen and no changes can be made to your credit report. This means that no credit checks, new loans, new credit cards, or other report related information can be accessed by you or anyone else until you unfreeze your credit.

While it may seem like a hassle to freeze your credit (and truly, it is) there is an upside to the process. Once your credit is frozen, you are completely protected against ID theft unless your credit is unfrozen. During the credit freeze process you are provided with a PIN number which is required to remove a credit freeze on your account so only you will be able to unfreeze your credit. The upside to a credit freeze is that you can rest easy that your credit will not be used by someone else.

Congress has recently amended the Fair Credit Reporting Act to include provisions that the major credit bureaus must provide free credit freezes for customers (previously there was a fee associated with each time you froze your credit report). This change was a result of the updates that Congress made following the Equifax Security Breach where information of millions of United States citizens was hacked. This change allows customers to control their credit reports by freezing their account and no longer comes with any sort of fee.

Are There Reasons Not To Freeze Your Credit?

While it is a bit of a hassle to go through the process of contacting each credit agency to freeze your credit, once completed you are very well protected against identity theft. Because of this many people probably assume this is a good idea and they may as well go ahead and freeze their credit. The downside to this process is that anytime your credit needs to be accessed you will be required to unfreeze your report with each agency and then refreeze your account once completed.

At first, this too may not seem like much of a hassle but credit reports are being used for more and more things. For instance, some commonly incurred credit pulls that you may not have been aware of include things like:

Completing an application for an apartment rental
Applying for new automobile, rental, or home insurance
Applying for a new job (company background check)
Setting up new cell phone service with a new provider
Getting new internet or cable service set up at your home
And of course – new credit cards and loans

With this list in mind, you should remember that the credit agencies have up to three days time to unfreeze your credit once your request has been submitted. Most of the time, the unfreeze process will be much quicker (often completed within hours) but given that this is not an immediate process, it is important to anticipate any unexpected need to unfreeze your credit or you may be put in to a tight spot.

One additional thing consumers may notice after freezing their credit is that they no longer will receive pre-screened credit offers. Once your credit report is frozen it is inaccessible to anyone so for this reason you will not longer receive pre-qualification notices for credit offers, insurance offers, and more. Depending on your perspective, this could be a great positive (less “junk” mail) or a negative (missing out on great offers).

Final Thoughts – Freeze or Not to Freeze

Ultimately this will come down to the individual. If you are worried about Identity Theft (which everyone should be to at least some extent) it could provide you with some peace of mind. For individuals who regularly stay on top of their credit or use credit monitoring services, it may turn out to be a much bigger hassle to freeze and unfreeze your credit than the perceived risk of ID Theft.

Freezing your credit is a very effective method to prevent ID Theft but it also presents some hassles. In addition to contacting the credit agencies you also will need to keep track of your PIN numbers to unfreeze your reports. Additionally, if you enjoy getting credit/loan/insurance offers tailored to your credit profile you may also want to consider keeping your credit unfrozen. There are many resources available to monitor your credit but at the end of the day the absolute safest way to keep your ID from being stolen is to always keep your credit frozen until you know you will need access.

Resources For Free Credit Freeze:

U.S. Bank Simple Loan (Payday/Short Term Loan Alternative)

September 12, 2018 by Dan Wilke

U.S. Bank Unveils Simple Loan To Compete with Pay Day Loans

The biggest banks in the US have yet to introduce products to compete with Pay Day loans however there is a definite need for new products in the small loan space. That is now changing as U.S. Bank introduces its new Simple Loan – designed for quick and small amounts of money to be paid back in 3 months over three installments. U.S. Bank Simple Loans offer customers $100 up to $1,000 and there is a charge of $12 for each $100 loaned to the customer.

One of the biggest issues with existing options is that they are often quite predatory due to high fees and high expenses. The Simple Loan is quite expensive compared to other low cost loan options but within the space of short term, pay day loans, the fees are extremely competitive. The key to any short term loan like this is to pay it off quickly or you will be subject to large penalties.

Features Of The Simple Loan:

$100 to $1,000 available in $100 increments
Available to US Bank Customers
Payments reduced is auto withdrawn from US Bank Account
$12 per $100 borrowed for auto withdrawal, $15 for manual payments
Repayment made over 3 months period (total divided by 3 plus fees)
Application can be made online or through mobile banking app
Repayment interest rate of 70.65%

Pay day type loans are generally reserved for pressing situations where money is needed immediately and no other options exist. Lower cost options such as personal loans may be a better option in some scenarios but for short terms needs when you plan to have the capability to repay your loan within 3 months then an option like the Simple Loan may not be a bad choice.

$1.3M Omnicare Credit Reporting Class Action Lawsuit

September 7, 2018 by Credit

A $1.3 million dollar settlement has been proposed in the class action lawsuit entitled Ijeoma Esomonu v. Omnicare Inc.

The case is pending in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California and claims that Omnicare Inc.’s background check authorization practices violate federal and state credit reporting laws.

Plaintiff Ijeoma Esomonu filed the lawsuit after she had to fill out and sign a background check authorization form and a liability waiver when applying for a job at Omnicare Inc.

Omnicare Inc. denies any actions of wrong doing but have agreed to pay $1,300,000 to avoid further trial.

U.S. District Judge Haywood S. Gilliam Jr. approved the settlement on 9/4/18.

Class members in the case are defined as anyone in the United States who received Omnicare’s background disclosure forms from 5/4/2010 to 5/25/2018 and had a consumer report on them that was procured by Omnicare.

Experts close to the case predict around 50,000 class members will be eligible to file claims in the case. Each class member will collect around $16.50.

Plaintiff Ijeoma Esomonu is being represented by Shaun Setareh from the Setareh Law Group.

Any questions in regards to the Omnicare Credit Reporting Class Action Lawsuit can be directed to the Setareh Law Group at 877-777-3774. The Setareh Law Group is based at 9454 Wilshire Boulevard Penthouse Suite Beverly Hills, CA 90212.

Other Credit Related Class Actions?

Biggest Credit Card Sign Up Offers – $500 Credit Card Bonus (Or more)

September 7, 2018 by Dan Wilke

Biggest Credit Card Bonuses For New Customers

Credit Card companies are competing harder than ever to win over new customers and it is no wonder that sign up bonuses continue to grow as the competitive landscape intensifies. A $500 Credit Card Bonus (sign up offer) is no longer a rarity – in this article we will review several of the most popular big sign up cards and will update this list as more major offers are released by credit card companies.

For this article we will focus on the credit cards with annual fees around $100 – there are several high end premium credit cards with annual fees in excess of $400 but we will review these in another post. This entry will focus on credit cards with large bonuses while maintaining a moderate annual fee. So far we have not found a credit card without an annual fee that competes with these cards but there are great sign up bonuses for no annual fee cards as well.

Bank of America Premium Rewards Credit Card

For Bank of America Customers who are looking for a premium credit card with a massive upfront bonus, this credit card fits the bill. The BoA Premium Rewards Card provides a huge sign up offer along with great purchase rewards – particularly for Bank of America preferred banking customers. The current offer for new customers includes 50,000 bonus points when $3,000 are made within 90 days of opening your new account. The 50,000 points are available for statement credit redemption worth $500.

Additional Features and Incentives For the BoA Premium Rewards Card:

Customers are eligible for $100 in incidental travel fees each year (seat upgrades, baggage fees, etc.)
Every 4 years, cardholders are eligible to receive $100 statement credit towards TSA PreCheck or Global Entry
Travel purchases and dining purchases are eligible for 2x points, all other purchases are eligible for 1.5x points
Preferred Customers receive additional point rewards (25% for Gold Preferred, 50% for Platinum, and 75% for Platinum Honors)
This Card has no foreign transaction fees and also provides customers with Travel Purchase Insurance when using your card

Chase Sapphire Preferred Credit Card

The Chase Sapphire Preferred Card has already been reviewed in our Top Credit Card Picks For 2018 post but a write up on huge bonuses cannot be put together without including the CSP. This credit card will require customers to have a good credit score but the reward for getting approved is well worth it. The initial spending requirement for this credit card bonus is $4,000 in the first 90 days of opening your new account. These points can be used towards statement credit which is worth $500 but even better yet, customers can use this for travel credit worth up to $625.

Additional Features and Incentives For the Chase Sapphire Preferred Card:

Cardholders are eligible for 2x points on all dining and travel purchases made with their credit card
25% bonus for points when redeemed through Chase Ultimate Rewards (such as travel purchases)
No foreign transaction fee and your annual fee of $95 is waived the first year (current offer)

Chase Sapphire Banking With Free Stock and ETF Trades Through You Invest

September 1, 2018 by Dan Wilke

Free Trading With Chase Sapphire Banking and You Invest

Chase Sapphire Banking is a new banking product provided by Chase Bank and is replacing the Premier Platinum Checking account. Customers who previously had a Premier Platinum account will automatically be switched over to a Sapphire Account. This checking account with Chase falls in to the premium banking service category – there are many bells and whistles that come along with your Sapphire Account and we will review some of the highlights. One consideration for customers who are interested in a Sapphire Account is that there is currently no bonus offer associated with opening a new account however there is considerable speculation that Chase will be providing new customer bonuses in the future (perhaps as early as late 2018).

Banking Features Provided For Sapphire Banking Customers:

No ATM fees for withdraws made anywhere in the world
Free Investment Trading with You Invest trading platform
No Wire Transfer Fees and no Stop Payment Fees
Overdraft fees are waived for the first 4 in a 12 month period
$25 Monthly Service Fee applies for Chase Sapphire Accounts
Existing Checking Accounts with Chase are eligible to update to Sapphire

Overall, Chase Sapphire Banking provides some very nice features – particularly the free trading with You Invest. For customers who are looking for a checking account and an investment account this combo feature pairs very well together. One additional feature of the account is that if you maintain a $75,000 balance, your $25 monthly maintenance fee will be waived. This may seem like a pretty high dollar amount to waive a fee, but when you consider many account holders will be using this for their main investment account, it is a nice added bonus for those individuals.

This account can be opened online, however, customers who have an existing Chase Checking Account and would like to Upgrade to the Platinum account will need to visit a branch in person. For the time being, there is not offer but reports suggest that new customer sign up bonuses will be available in the future. The sign up bonuses will be in the form of Points similar to the reward systems used with the Chase Sapphire Credit Card Line (Sapphire Preferred and Sapphire Reserved). Updates will be provided once bonus offers are available!

Capital One $200 Money Market Bonus

August 7, 2018 by Dan Wilke

Capital One 360 Money Market Account – Offer200 Bonus Code

This special offer is currently being promoted and customers will have through December 14th 2018 to meet the requirements for the $200 bonus available for new 360 Money Market Accounts. The account creation application will take about 10 minutes to complete and once your account is approved you will have the option to fund your account using electronic transfers from another banking account.

The requirements for this bonus offer are very simple – open a new account and deposit $10,000 in to your new account. Once you have met the required deposit amount you money bonus will be distributed to your account within 60 days. One nice thing about this offer is that you do not have to hold your money in the account for any required amount of time which means in theory, you could open the account, make your deposit to earn your bonus and then withdraw your funds. While this may be tempting for some individuals there are many good reasons to consider retaining a money market account. Here are the highlight of the Capital One 360 Money Market $200 Bonus Offer:

Funds cannot be deposited from an existing Capital One Account
The 1.75% return rate applies to accounts with more than $10,000 deposited
You must make the qualifying $10,000 deposit by December 14th, 2018 to earn your bonus
Customer assistance is available at 800-289-1992 from 8 a.m. through 8 p.m. 7 days a week
This offer can be accessed using OFFER200 promo code

Is A Money Market Account A Good Investment Strategy?

The short answer to this question is yes. For customers who are risk adverse, a money market account is a great investment option as your funds will earn interest far in excess of what you can expect to receive in a traditional savings account. If you are in a position where you do not feel comfortable investing in the stock market or other higher return investments, you can safely deposit your funds in a money market account with no risk of losing your investment. The Capital One 360 Money Market Account earns 1.75% annually which is quite a bit higher than the average money market account which makes this an appealing option beyond the sign up bonus which is provided.

With that said, there are much higher return investment options available but of course those will come with some risks. One higher return option which is also a safe investment would be CDs. The downside with a CD is that you have to commit to keep your money in the account for a predetermined amount of time. Unlike a CD, money market accounts provide much more liquidity. Another common investment choice is the stock market. Historically, safe index funds and ETFs can easily return greater than 7% annually on your investment. The primary issue with the stock market that investors worry about is the potential for a major turn down in the market which would result in a loss in the short term.

Deciding whether or not a money market account is right for you requires considering many options but the biggest to things to take in to account would be how safe you want your investment to be and how liquid you require your funds to be. Money Market Accounts are not the greatest return rate but they are much better than leaving your money in a standard checking or savings account so for this reason they may be a good option for many consumers.

What To Know About The Upcoming SPG and Marriott Merger

August 2, 2018 by Dan Wilke

SPG/Marriott Merger Overview and What To Expect

On August 18th The Starwoods Preferred Guest and Marriott Rewards program will be combined in to one new program. The reason for this merger goes back to September of 2016 when Marriott acquired Starwood Hotel and Resorts at a price tag of 13.6 billion dollars. Ever since this purchase, it was expected that the company would begin work to merge their credit card and reward programs. Between SPG and Marriott, the two reward programs account for over 100 million customers which means a merger of this size is no small task. Fortunately for customers the process will be largely automated and your merged account will automatically be created.

For the time being, customers can continue to book their reservations using their current reward programs and point values. This will be the case through August, 17th 2018. The good news with this option is that customers have access to the new reward rates now so you can compare redemption values and make your booking decision based on whichever rate is more advantageous. The chart (available here) provides the rates for all 6,500+ properties which participate in the program.

On August 18th SPG customers will be assigned a new account number which will be provided to them on that date. This account number will apply for all reward purposes and will be the number to use moving forward. The account number will automatically be linked to your SPG Credit Card so no changes need to be made on the customer end to make sure they continue to earn reward points. A rollover of points will occur on the 18th and customers who have Starpoints will see their rewards converted to “points” at a 3x rate (for instance, if you have 10,000 Starpoints, you will see your account will now have 30,000 points). The conversion rate is used to account for the previous difference in point values between the two programs.

On August 18th the new program will be live and Marriott Rewards, The Ritz-Carlton Rewards, SPG Reward accounts will all be able to be combined in to one new account. The best news about this combination of accounts is that if you had significant points with multiple reward accounts you may be eligible for a status upgrade upon combining your new accounts. The Elite Status is eligible for guests who have booked the necessary nights to qualify for a particular elite level tier.

For more information, consumers can visit the official Marriot/SPG Merger Page to receive more details about the changes they can expect when the merger takes place. Overall, the process should be mostly painless for consumers. The most important thing to keep in mind with this merger is that if you are in the process of planning a trip you should check your redemption rates before the merger to determine which rate will have the best value. In the meantime, you can relax and wait until your new account goes live on the 18th of August.

An Overview of Cryptocurrency and Cryptocurrency Investing

July 29, 2018 by Dan Wilke Leave a Comment

Understanding Cryptocurrency and The Blockchain

In the past several years terms like Bitcoin, Ethereum, and The Blockchain and become commonplace throughout the financial and technological industries. This recent explosion of information has left many people understandably confused as cryptocurrencies are very unlike traditional currency. The first thing to know about digital currencies such as Bitcoin is that the operate based on a decentralized record keeping system known as a “blockchain”. There are entire books dedicated to the topic of Blockchains and how they will impact our world as the become more commonplace in technology and enterprise. To understand blockchains and their role in cryptocurrency several key aspects need to be highlighted:

When a transaction occurs on a blockchain this becomes a permanent part of the ledger upon which subsequent transactions be based
Due to the above characteristic, a blockchain is unalterable without consensus from the entire blockchain making it an incredibly secure system of record
A blockchain ledger is often distributed across a peer to peer network (public ledger) therefore it is decentralized from any one user’s control

The main takeaway from this is that unlike traditional currency (often referred to as “Fiat” by crypto enthusiasts), cryptocurrencies operate on a decentralized basis. When a government issues a currency, it is backed by the that particular country. When a cryptocurrency is released during an ICO (Initial Coin Offering), the currency is backed by the community of users which give it value.

Cryptocurrency As An Investment

Popular cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Litecoin have undergone an absolute surge in value since their inceptions. Early investors in these currencies are now reaping levels of returns that previously would have thought to be unheard of. The question that investors need to ask themselves is whether or not cryptocurrencies are still a good investment today. This is a difficult question and depending on who you ask you will receive completely different answers. There are highly respected investors who are predicting $50,000 BTC prices within the next several years while others are certain it will fizzle out in to irrelevancy. Deciding if crypto investment is right for you should first involve considering several basic questions:

How much risk are you willing to take?
Would you be able to sustain a substantial loss on your investment?
What percent of your investments do you want to leverage on cyrpto?
Are you willing to see your investment go to zero?

There is no question about it that crypto investments still have a very high upside. The use of currencies like Bitcoin is only now beginning to spread in to a mainstream audience. If adoption rate continues to increase, there is a great chance that major cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin continue to see a huge increase in value. Currently, Bitcoin is down from an all time high of nearly $20,000 per BTC. As of today it sits around $6,500. Investors who bought in at its height would currently be seeing a massive loss in their investment and there is no certainty of where Bitcoin will go from here.

With this said, many investors believe cryptocurrencies are still in their infancy’s and we will continue to see an overall rise in their value. Bitcoin has had many ups and downs in its short lifespan so to say it is a volatile investment would be an understatement. Any person who chooses to invest needs to keep in mind that there will likely be huge fluctuations in the value of their currency.

How To Invest In Cryptocurrency

If you decide to take the plunge in to cryptocurrency the process has become very simple for US based investors. CoinBase is the primary entry point for cryptocurrency investors in the United States. Currently CoinBase allows individuals to purchase 4 major cryptocurrencies: Bitcoin (BTC), Ehtereum (ETH), Litecoin (LTC), and Bitcoin Cash (BCH). Customers who use Coinbase can make their purchases using their attached bank accounts or using a credit card. Once you make your purchase your cryptocurrency will be added to your CoinBase wallet.

CoinBase provides access to investors in 4 major crypto assets but their are hundreds of additional currencies people may wish to purchase. For these purchases, you will need to use a cryptocurrency exchange such as Binance (this is one of the most popular and most trusted exchanges). Once you have transferred to your currency from CoinBase you will be able to purchase any other currencies available on the exchange you choose to use to purchase your other currencies.

To summarize, there is no doubt about it – cryptocurrency is an extremely high-risk investment but there is a high upside due to the low utilization rate. If these currencies are widely adopted it is likely the surge of value will continue and investors will see their Bitcoin increase in value. In addition to Bitcoin, there are many other options for investment and research needs to be at the forefront and there are many questionable coins out there that are nothing more than a money grab. Ultimately investors need to evaluate their ability to take on risk but there is no doubt about it that cryptocurrency seems to be here to stay and there is plenty of evidence to suggest it will continue to be adopted and increase in value.

Credit Worthiness and Improving Your Credit History

July 29, 2018 by Dan Wilke Leave a Comment

Understanding “Credit Worthiness”

“Your approval will be subject to your creditworthiness” – Everyone, Everywhere

If you have ever received a loan, opened a new credit card, or even applied for a new job, chances are you have had your credit history pulled. There are many good reasons companies, banks, and organizations use credit reviews as a basis for financial approval decisions. For instance, the information is easily available, it provides important financial information about an individual, and it can be a predictor of financial reliability. For people with great credit, the thought of a credit review provokes no cause for concern. If you are one of the millions of people who have less than great credit the prevalence of credit checks can seem daunting. Here we will address some of the most common questions, concerns, and topics regarding credit.

These simple tips will help you in the future for securing any type of credit. Whether you plan to apply for a home mortgage or an auto loan, following this advice will improve your chances of approval. Furthermore, better score will also save you big cash in the long term on interest rates.

What Is My Credit Score and Where Can I Find My Credit History?

To begin understanding your credit score and your credit history, the first step for any responsible consumer should be reviewing their credit report and their credit score. Every person has their credit history monitored by the major credit bureaus – Experian, TransUnion, and Equifax. Federal law in the United States requires consumer access to their credit report for free, available every 12 months. The only federally authorized website to provide this information is www.AnnualCreditReport.com and consumers can receive their full credit report annually at no cost. Additionally, there are many free credit score services such as Credit Karma which provide weekly credit score details.

A credit score is assigned to consumers based on a many variables all of which have varying degrees of impact on your score. The most well known and widely used credit score is The FICO Credit Score (score range from 300-850). The exact calculation for FICO scores is not available. It takes considerations for several major aspects including:

Your past payment history
Existing accounts on your credit report
The overall length of your credit history
The make up of your credit accounts (types of accounts)
New credit and new credit checks on your report

We will explore these topics further but for now understand that each category impacts your score differently. The approximate weight for each aspect looks something like this:

Simple Strategies to Dramatically Increase Your Credit Score – Credit Cards and Loans

We have reviewed what a credit score is and how you can find your credit history report. The next important topic is what consumers can do to improve and maintain great creditworthiness. It may seem counter-intuitive at first but it is very difficult to have strong credit without first having a line of credit issued to you such as a credit card or a loan. The single biggest factor contributing to your credit score (as shown above) is your payment history. Without a track record of timely payments your score will suffer. The second biggest factor contributing to your credit score is the amount you owe on your existing accounts. These two factors account for nearly two-thirds of your score. There are some simple strategies you can use to positively influence both.

How Credit Cards Can Be Used to Positively Influence Your Score

Many consumers are concerned about credit cards due to high interest rate and the potential to fall behind on your payments. With that in mind, the first thing to consider when opening a credit card account is your ability to use your card responsibly. Credit cards can be an amazing financial tool when used properly. They can also cause a major and almost immediate impact to your score. A great way to maintain responsible credit card use is to use it as if it is directly attached to your bank account. Try your best to never exceed an amount that you are willing and able to pay off in full.

Here are some tips for maximizing the impact a credit card can have on your score:

1. Make your credit card payments are on time and paid in full. Maintaining a very small credit card balance may not negatively impact your credit score substantially. This said, revolving debt (credit card debt) can be seen as more detrimental to a credit score than other debt such as an auto loan.

2. Periodically request an increase in the line of credit on your existing credit card accounts to minimize your debt to credit ratio. To illustrate – a credit limit of $1,000 with a $500 balance would be 50% credit utilization. That same $500 balance on a credit limit of $5,000 would be a 10% credit utilization. The lower your credit utilization is, the better.

3. Maintain your oldest credit card accounts and keep them open to extend your account history. Having an account with a long history of payments is seen favorably when your credit score is calculated.

4. If your current credit history prohibits your approval for a credit card, consider finding a low fee intro credit card. These cards report to the credit bureaus just as other cards would. Many do not have strict credit requirements to open.

How To Manage Loans To Maximize Your Credit Score

The average American family has nearly $140,000 worth of debt. This may seem like a staggering amount of debt at first. When you consider the many sources of debt such as car loans, mortgages and student loans it quickly becomes apparent how fast we accrue debt these days. For consumers who do not have loan accounts, there is certainly no reason to open an account for the sole purpose of improving your credit score (see the credit card tips above instead). For the rest of us who have multiple loans, it is important to understand how to make payments to best benefit your credit score.

Here are some tips:

1. Never allow an account to become delinquent. Missing a payment at the due date rarely results in a report to the credit bureau intermediately. Allowing your account to become delinquent typically means you are 30 days behind your payment can result in a negative mark on your credit report.

2. Pay off your high interest loans first. This does not directly impact your score. With that said, making payments beyond the minimum due on your highest interest loans you are saving money on the life of the loan. These savings can ultimately be passed on towards other accounts to reduce your existing debt burden.

3. If you are having trouble meeting your minimum payments shop around to see if better loan options exists. Loan consolidation or refinancing options can often result in lower monthly payments and better interest rates. This can save substantial money and help you avoid missed payments on loans.

4. Set up automatic payments to make sure your loan payments are always paid on time.

Benefits of Maintaining a Great Credit History

As mentioned at the opening, your credit history can have major impacts on aspects of your life you may not have realized. Credit checks are routinely used from opening a new bank account to signing up for new cell phone services to applying for a new job. One of the best things a young adult can do to set themselves up for a bright financial future is to begin thinking about their credit history early. A missed payment early in life can impact your credit history a decade later. Never live under the impression that one misstep will not follow you in the future.

Having a great credit score will allow you to confidently apply for loans. When you apply for a car loan or mortgage without having to worry about your approval odds you will find it to be a huge relief. A great score will allow you access to credit cards which provide fantastic rewards. Great credit will ensure a potential landlord does not turn you away on the apartment of your dreams. Building strong a strong credit history does not happen overnight. As discussed, there are actions you can take daily to ensure you set yourself up with the best chance possible of achieving excellent creditworthiness. If you try hard, one day you could reach a perfect 850 FICO score!

Helpful Links: