Archive for the ‘Debt Settlement’ Category
According to Clark Howard beware of temporary loan modifications. This is when a lender might ask you to only pay half of your usual payment for several months. But despite this being the lender’s recommendation, some banks subsequently report you as delinquent in your payments. This reflects poorly on banks so even under a temporary modification agreement, you need to verify with the bank – and get it in writing – whether or not you will be reported as delinquent if you choose to go through with it.
According to Clark Howard if you are already drowning and haven’t stayed current, a temporary modification could honestly be a waste of your time and effort. Finally, will a modification really help or is it just delaying the inevitable?
The first step is recognizing that there is a problem. If thinking of your debt keeps you up at night you probably already know that you’re in over your head. Or perhaps you are “robbing Peter to pay Paul” and you may not realize that you’re on a dangerous slope. If you find that you fit either category, you may want to seriously think about getting a handle on your debt.
1. You routinely spend more than you earn.
2. You only make the minimum payment required on your credit cards
3. Your credit limit(s) is maxed out.
4. You are not aware of your total debt or what is on your credit report.
5. You skip paying some bills to pay others or use cash advances or payday loans to pay off others.
6. You argue with your spouse/significant other about money or afraid to discuss money with your spouse/significant other.
7. You panic when faced with an unexpected expense such as a broken water heater or car repair.
8. You owe more on your car than it’s worth.
9. Creditors are calling about overdue bills.
10. You are thinking about filing for bankruptcy.
The Wisconsin Senate has passed a plan regulating the payday loan industry in Wisconsin. Under this legislation, the payday loan companies may not loan more than $1,500 at a time to consumers and consumers may not rollover the loan more than one time. Surprisingly, there is currently no limit on the rate of interest. The Assembly has a slightly different version of the Senate’s plan. Some critics of the plan don’t believe that it goes far enough to protect consumers from predatory lending. While others hold that such loans would not be available at all if payday loan companies cannot charge high interest rates to protect against the risk of default.
A credit score is a number representing the creditworthiness of a person or the likelihood of a person will pay his or her debts. The scredit score is primarily based on statistical data from the three credit bureaus. Using the credit scores, lenders determine who qualifies for a loan, the interest rate and credit limit. FICO (The Fair Issac Corporation) is a publicly traded corporation and is the most widely used credit score model used in the U.S.
If you request your credit score the only one you should purchase or pay attention to is from FICO. The other scores are FAKE. If you are using a credit repair organization find out if the score they provide is from FICO or fake! Just remember…if the scores are not FICO – ignore them. If the credit-related service does not monitor your real FICO scores – ignore them.
As of February 14, 2009 you can only purchase 2 of the 3 FICO scores at www.myfico.com/12