credit-score Archives

Need a Lift? Boost Your Credit Score Before Financing A Car

Managing your credit score is the true definition of adulting. For one, it is an ever-changing score. You get your score up to make a grown-up purchase, then you have to manage the bills for said purchase along with having less available credit for you to use on other things. But it is a necessary requirement in order to make big purchases and to manage finances. So here are five things you can do to prepare your credit report for a big purchase.

Study Your Report

Sounds obvious, I know. But the truth is, most people do not have regular access to their credit reports. Knowing what is on your report and disputing anything that should be removed is the first step in managing your ongoing credit history.

Scale back on Credit Card usage

Hopefully, you are one of those people who has credit available because you don’t max out your cards. The best look for creditors to see your worthiness is to have multiple credit cards that are open but not overused. Aim for under 30 percent usage on all of your cards and be sure to keep ones open that are older. Because that counts in favor of your credit score. Look at the ones with the higher balances and pay those down to get to that below thirty percent mark. If your cards are maxed, start aggressively paying them down or consolidate cards into ones that can help you reach that magic less than a third number.

Budget Using Cash

Cash is king and that is not changing anytime soon. Simplify your credit usage before making a big purchase by spending only what you have and not extending credit. Forcing yourself to use primarily debit cards to make purchases will help you carefully choose where to spend your money. This tactic is not just good for the short term. It can help you become a better future spender.

Consider A Cosigner

If your credit history is not that old, your score may not be established yet. Or it may be your credit just isn’t good enough to purchase a car on your own. If either of these two scenarios applies, then consider having a cosigner help you get the wheels you need. Knowing that someone else’s credit can be affected by your on-time payments may just be the incentive for you to make those timely payments and get your credit on track. A refinance auto loan or new car loan can help your score as you build your credit history.

Refrain From Opening Up Additional Accounts

Did you know that you get points for having credit that you do not use too much of and that you also get points for not actively seeking more credit? If you plan to purchase a car within the next three to six months, you will likely have a better FICO score if you do not open any accounts between now and then.

Conclusion

Use these tips above to not just have a better score to score your next purchase or loan, but to continue to use credit responsibly. Happy Fiscal Adulting!

Tips To Improve Your Credit Score for 2022

When you attempt to get a loan or a credit card, the lender runs a check on your credit score. This score helps lenders determine the risk of giving you a credit card, auto loan, mortgage loan, or other forms of financing. Lenders prioritize borrowers with higher credit scores, often offering easier approval, lower interest rates, and more substantial lines of credit.

When making lending decisions, lenders mainly look at your FICO score, an industry-standard credit score. Factors that impact your FICO score include your credit history, payment history, and credit utilization.

Although credit scores prove essential in borrowing money, many find improving their scores challenging. Building high credit proves especially frustrating for adults who made poor decisions in their youth that continue to haunt their credit.

Whether a missed payment, significant debt, or another factor has negatively impacted your credit, you can still turn it around. This article presents some helpful tips for boosting your credit score in 2022.

Key Takeaways

Free credit reports help you track your progress and identify points for improvement.
Credit utilization at or below 30% can boost your credit score.
A debt consolidation loan raises credit and helps you pay off your debt.
Unused and closed credit accounts negatively impact your score.
A poor on-time payment history negatively affects your score.
Becoming an authorized user or cosigning a loan may improve your credit.
Secured credit cards can help you build your credit score.

Use Free Credit Report Resources

The most crucial step to take when improving your credit is to take advantage of free credit-monitoring services. Websites like Credit Karma and Credit Sesame provide scores from multiple credit bureaus.

You might also find free credit reports from your credit card company. For example, if you have a Discover card, you’ll find your updated credit score on your monthly statements, online, and in the app.

Review reports from all three major bureaus: TransUnion, Equifax, and Experian, for the most well-rounded view of your credit. Take note of high balances, unused accounts, and errors within the reports. If you find misreported payments or other errors, report them to the credit bureau in question to have them corrected.

Reduce Your Credit Utilization

If you have a low FICO score, consider your credit utilization ratio. According to credit bureau recommendations, you don’t want to have an unpaid balance of more than 30% of your credit limit. For example, if you have a $3,000 spending limit on a line of credit, keep your balance below $900 to improve your credit score.

Consolidate Your Credit Card Debt

Keeping credit utilization in balance is often easier said than done. Consider a debt consolidation loan if you have high credit card balances but can’t seem to pay them down due to high interest rates or the burden of multiple payments.

Many people use personal loans to consolidate their credit card debt into a single, low-interest payment. Not only will this help you pay off your debt, but your credit will also get a boost via the paid balances and a lower credit utilization ratio.

Don’t Close Old Accounts

Many young adults find it difficult to build credit because they don’t have long credit histories. To improve your credit history, maintain accounts long-term, and avoid letting them close. Keeping accounts at zero balances may seem advisable, but unused credit accounts risk closure, negatively impacting your credit history.

If you have an old credit card account you don’t use, consider designating it for gas, groceries, or another regular purchase to keep it from closing.

Pay on Time

Missed payments cause derogatory marks on your credit report and lower your FICO score. That doesn’t mean you have to worry about that payment you missed a decade ago, but if you currently struggle with paying on time, your score is likely not as high as it could be.

Having a solid payment history strengthens your lending power by improving your credit score and demonstrating to lenders that you can manage timely payments. To help you make payments on time, consider one of the following tips:

Use automatic payments.
Set bill-pay reminders on your phone.
Create a spreadsheet of all your bills.
Download an app for budgeting.

Whether you prefer sticky notes or phone apps, using reminders offers a simple way to make sure you pay on time.

Sometimes, missed payments result from inconvenient billing dates. If a billing date conflicts with when you get paid, ask the lender or credit card company if you can change it.

Become an Authorized User or Cosigner

If you have a reliable and trustworthy friend or family member, consider asking them for help with building your credit.

You can help improve your credit score by becoming an authorized user on someone else’s credit card account. When they make regular payments, this reflects well on their score and yours. Another option is to cosign on a lease or loan with a trusted person who can be relied on to make payments on time.

Be sure you trust the person before using this tip. Missed payments also reflect on your credit report, and cosigning makes you financially responsible should the other person fail to pay.

Consider a Secured Credit Card

Many people with low credit scores struggle to add diversity to their reports simply because no lenders want to give them a chance. Secured credit cards allow these borrowers to build their scores by paying for a line of credit.

Think of a secured credit card as a kind of prepaid card. You pay a certain amount down to open the line of credit. Secured credit cards often start with modest credit limits, but you can boost these over time by making regular payments.

The most important piece of advice to offer is this: be patient. Building up your FICO score won’t happen overnight, but if you follow these tips, you’ll be on your way to a better credit score and more borrowing opportunities.

3 Secret Ways To Build Your Credit Score Using A Credit Card

There are many ways that you can build up your credit score. For instance, you can look into debt consolidation loans if you’re having trouble paying back several credit cards at the same time. You might also dispute errors you find on your credit report.

However, your credit cards are one of the most crucial tools you can use to improve your credit score. We’ll discuss some ways you can do that in the following article that some people might not necessarily know.

1. Pay Back Your Bills Strategically

You probably know that if you carry a credit card balance from one pay period to the next, you have to pay interest on it. If you do that, you’re not getting anything back from that money you’re spending, so it’s something you want to avoid.

Paying your entire balance before each cycle ends, though, is an ideal way to improve your credit score. If you don’t carry a balance from one payment period to the next, that means you have a very low credit utilization ratio. Your credit utilization ratio is determined by looking at how much borrowing power your credit cards give you vs. how much you’re using.

The lower your credit utilization ratio, the better it is for your credit score. That should incentivize paying off your credit card bills on time just as much as avoiding paying any interest.

2. Get a Higher Credit Limit

If you’re working at building your credit score, you can also ask your credit card company for a higher credit limit. If you show a record of consistently paying off your balance on time, a company will probably be willing to give you one.

If you’ve got a higher credit limit and still don’t carry any balance on your card from one pay period to the next, that means you’re doing even better with your credit utilization ratio. You have more borrowing power, but you aren’t using it. That will translate to your credit score increasing.

3. Credit Piggybacking

Maybe you know someone in your family with excellent credit. They always pay their entire credit card balance and never carry it from one pay period to the next.

If so, you can ask them if they’re willing to add you as an authorized user to their account. You don’t actually have to use their credit card. That card account’s credit will be added to your credit utilization, though. Once again, you’ll have credit you’re not using.

Some people call this “credit piggybacking.” You’re using a friend or relative’s smart payment habits to improve your own credit score.

Credit Cards Can Help Build Your Credit Score

If you’re selective about how you use credit cards, you can utilize them as tools to build up your credit score. You might use credit piggybacking by getting someone with good payment habits to put you on their card account. You don’t have to use their card, but their account’s credit will improve your credit utilization ratio.

You can also attain a better credit utilization ratio by asking for one of your credit card companies to extend your credit limit. That means you have more credit available that you’re not using, which will cause your score to rise.

You can also pay off your entire credit card balance every pay period, so you don’t carry anything over to the next one. That will keep your credit utilization ratio low, and you won’t have to lose any money to interest payments either.

Credit cards can help you raise your credit score slowly but surely if you follow the steps we’ve laid out.

How to get 0% APR on your next auto loan

A 0% APR car loan is an auto loan that has no interest rate. This means that 100% of your monthly car loan payment will go towards the loan’s principal balance. There will be no interest charges at all.

Dealerships usually offer 0% financing only on new cars, and you typically have to have a very strong credit history to qualify. Furthermore, these promotions are generally only available from what’s known as captive financing companies. Captive financing companies are the finance arms of vehicle manufacturers, for example, Ford Motor Credit co. or Toyota Motor Credit Corp. Manufacturers use these deals to incentivize customers to purchase brand-new vehicles, which sell at significantly higher prices than used vehicles.

If you want to get a 0% APR on your next car loan, you need to understand what it takes to qualify for a zero-interest car loan and where you can find these types of deals. Fortunately for you, we can show you how to find the answers to these questions. Here are three things you can do to help you qualify for 0% APR on your next car loan.

Get Your Credit In Order

Before you head to the car dealership, you need to check your credit report and score. Your credit score will determine your eligibility for 0% APR financing. Your credit report is used to calculate your score, so you should check it carefully to make sure there are no errors. If something on your credit report looks incorrect, you need to dispute the mistake before submitting a car loan application

Lenders don’t usually share what credit scores are necessary to qualify for a 0% APR auto loan. Still, credit scores of 700 and higher are usually considered quite good and are your best chance at getting approved.

If your credit is not 700 or higher, you should work to improve your score before applying for 0% APR financing. You can improve your credit by:

● Paying bills on time

● Paying down the balances of your credit cards

● Keeping old credit cards open

● Applying for new credit only if you really need it.

Look at Manufacturers for 0% APR Auto Loan Offers

If you have good credit, the next thing to do is start looking for the 0% APR auto loans you want to go after. These zero-interest vehicle loans are usually only offered by auto manufacturers, not banks or credit unions. Therefore you should start your research by looking for auto manufacturers that are offering 0% APR loans.

You can usually find these offers by going directly to the manufacturer’s website. In general, manufacturers will offer no-interest loans on specific models and under particular circumstances.

Negotiate your Car Price and Apply for the Loan

Once you’ve found a manufacturer offering a 0% APR car loan deal, it’s time to negotiate the price of the car you want to purchase. It’s important that you wait to tell the dealer you’re looking for 0% APR financing until after you’ve negotiated the price of the car. This is because you’re more likely to get the best price possible if you negotiate the car’s price first. Once you’ve settled on a car price, you can start the process of applying for the auto loan.

Summary

If you want to get 0% APR financing on your next auto loan, there are three things you need to do. The first thing you need to do is have an exceptional credit score or start working towards improving your score. The next thing you need to do is research manufacturers to find the ones offering the 0% APR deal you desire. Lastly, you’ll want to negotiate the price of the car you want, then let the dealer know you wish to apply for 0% APR financing.

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10 Things To Help You Find Your True Happiness That Doesn’t Include Chasing A Man

Am I the only 20 something who feels like there is something wrong with her because she doesn’t want to “chase a man”? I mean come on ladies it’s 2021 we can literally do ANYTHING we set our minds to, we do not need to find our happiness within a significant other. Trust me. I know this is going to sound so extremely corny but it’s oh, so true. That feeling of real and true happiness is something we won’t find in anyone else. That is the happiness we can only find within ourselves. Life Coach Spotter suggests hiring a happiness coach. They can reframe your perspectives and help you better appreciate the good things in your life. This makes you feel a sense of purpose and fulfillment which is a great step in the right direction. Here are 10 other things you can do to try and find that feeling of true happiness without having to try and find that happiness within someone else.

1. Start your own business

Tired of the same old 9 to 5? Leave! There is nothing wrong with starting over, and doing what you love! Starting your own business can be challenging at first and it would be of great advantage to have a life coach like Mia Hewett to guide you both in business and in life.

2. Take that dream vacation

Sometimes you just want to get away from everything you know and just take a breather, and sometimes you just need inspiration

3. Work on raising your credit score

I know they say money can’t buy you happiness but money can buy you, your dream home and your dream car and that’s pretty close to happiness!

4. Go back to school

Even if you don’t know what you want to go for, just take a couple of classes and get your feet wet! I mean you have to start somewhere!

5. Adopt a dog

I promise you a dog will be your absolute best friend, they will always be there for you. They will always love you.

6. Plan a vacation JUST FOR YOU!

Get away from everything and everyone. Find yourself and explore an exotic place!

7. Take yourself out on a shopping trip!

Do it just because, treat yourself and buy the bag because life is too short so buy the shoes!

8. Volunteer and help mentor young kids.

Be THAT person that YOU needed when you were younger because I can promise you that some other little kid needs that person too.

9. Get away from social media

Delete the apps off your phone! (you don’t actually have to delete your accounts) Get away from the toxicity that is everybody on the internet’s opinion and just be you.

10. LET IT ALL GO!

Go to the dollar store, and buy a glass plate and some sharpies, write everything that weighs you down everything you regret, and everything that you are mad at or feel bad about. drive to a road that is not always being driven on blast your music and SMASH IT! When you smash that plate let all of those regrets and all of that negativity go!