When you’re living paycheck to paycheck, it can be tough to pay more on your credit card debt than the minimum payment. However, the numbers show that even if you can only afford to pay a few dollars more each month, you will drastically reduce your debt. Here is some advice on what to do. Paying only the minimum means you’ll pay more in the long run. If, for example, you have a balance of $2,000 and you pay 10% of that balance each month, in three years you’ll have paid off your balance and $269.31 in additional interest, assuming...

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First, let me explain what "balance chasing" means. If you own a credit card and carry a balance, you may have recently received a letter in the mail from your creditor telling you they’ve lowered your balance. Maybe you originally had a $6,000 balance, they cut it down to $4,000 and you owe $3,900. This is balance chasing, and here is some advice on how to deal with it. Balance chasing is when your creditor cuts your balance down to just above what you owe. They do it because they’re trying to reduce risk, but they also stand to...

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Whether you receive your credit card statement through the mail or electronically it may not be a welcome piece of mail in most homes, but if it is not checked correctly or thoroughly credit card holders could be incurring more costs than they realize. Here is some advice on what to look for and review in your credit card statement. At first glance a credit card statement can be confusing, but once you know what to look for you can save yourself money and even protect yourself against fraud. First you’ll want to ensure that you look over the “purchases or...

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Credit score or FICO in the dumps? Need to pick it up fast? Buying a home? Applying for a job? Not to worry; here is some advice on how to improve your credit score. Before I get to specifics, it’s important for you to know that your credit score is important not only if you are applying for credit, but also if you are applying for a job. Many companies will review your credit score as part of your employment application because they believe that if you have a solid credit score you may also be more responsible than a...

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There are only a few things that you can truly call your own, and one of them is your good credit. Financial choices we make from the time we get our first job help determine if we are creating a good or a bad credit history. Here is some advice to start establishing good credit card habits. There are many reasons why someone will have bad credit – marriage, divorce, lack of knowledge and just plain old poor choices. But, even with such a past, you can still work today towards building good credit habits that can help to repair...

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Did you know that according to census data, the average American household carries nearly $8,000 in credit card debt? For some, that's manageable. But for most households, it signifies a pattern of overspending and paying outrageous amounts of interest. Here is some advice on how to reduce your credit card debt. Being buried in credit card debt is far from uncommon. But that doesn't mean that's the way it should be. Carrying a high balance on your credit card – or worse, several credit cards – can take a big bite out of your budget. You might only be able...

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Debt is one of those things that we almost always intend to use with caution, but it doesn't always work out that way. Sometimes we just get carried away and borrow more than we can easily repay. Many keep their debt at a manageable level, but unforeseen life circumstances keep us from paying it back on schedule. Whatever the reason, being in too much debt can wreak havoc on your finances. In a perfect world, we would all pay off our credit card balances in full each month. But it's not a perfect world, and many of us end up...

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A credit card is one of those things that many of us have a hard time living without. It makes shopping simpler, and it allows us to reserve things like rental cars and hotel rooms with ease. But when your credit card is stolen, you might find yourself wondering why you liked that little piece of plastic so much. Here is some advice you need to know. Realistically, there's not much to fear. Federal law mandates that credit card companies require cardholders to pay no more than $50 in fraudulent charges, and most don't make them pay a red cent....

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You are an anomaly if you don’t have some sort of debt. But, that is a club that most people would rather not belong to. Do you want to get out of debt? Here is some advice on how to institute a debt payment program and find freedom. First of all, you don’t have to use credit payment programs if you don’t want to. The truth of the matter is that you can accomplish on your own what these programs offer to do for you. They have no more leverage with the credit card companies than you do. However, if...

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We all should know that having an emergency fund is of the utmost importance. If you put away some money for hard times, you won't be as likely to fall behind when something unexpected happens. The peace of mind that affords is priceless. Still, lots of people do not see the logic behind having an emergency fund. They reason is that they feel they can use their credit cards if an emergency comes up, so they don't bother trying to save up a financial cushion. Some do this simply because it's so much easier, while others reason that...

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