Can’t Pay Your Medical Bills? There Are Ways To Save Your Credit
By Mike Wayman
Paying medical bills can be a challenge even when the economy is stable and income is steady. Medical bills are usually a somewhat unexpected addition to one’s financial obligations, and thus may not be accounted for in the monthly budget. So what is one to do when faced with the burden of paying medical expenses, especially in today’s depressed economy?
Most importantly, do not ignore the bills. Stay in communication with care providers and billing departments and work out comfortable payment plans whenever possible. Make sure that any applicable insurance or other benefits are duly applied to the expenses, and if there are any discrepancies follow through to be certain that responsible agencies pay the portion of your bills for which they are responsible. Be willing to ask for financial assistance where it is available, particularly if you are underinsured or uninsured altogether. Public hospitals usually have programs to defray costs for underinsured patients, and even care providers in private practice can often put you in touch with agencies that will help with your care costs.
Lastly, do not be pressured by collection agencies. Panic never helps, and falling into charging your bills to a credit card in order to get a credit agency off your back will not help in the long run. Take steps to address the bills with the providers to whom they are owed, proceed responsibly and with care, and most often you will find that manageable payment options can be found.
How Will A Foreclosure Affect Your Credit?
By Mike Wayman
In today’s economy it is not surprising that many people are dealing with foreclosures. In fact, there are many tv specials that report the substantial amount of foreclosures that are prevalent today. If you have foreclosed on a loan or are at risk or foreclosure, your credit score is definitely going to be effected.
A credit score or FICO score indicates your ability to pay your bills. Anything can change this score, and a failure to make a loan payment for 30 to 90 days will definitely result in a decrease of your score. Additionally, every time you further default on payments, your score is further affected – it is like a rippling effect.
Most people who have foreclosure on their credit scores are denied credit for up to 7 years. If they are lucky enough to get credit to pay for something, it will most likely be at an extremely high interest rate. However, some people say that this cannot be proven for sure. The researchers do suggest, however, that your credit score will be lowered by 100 to 150 from a foreclosure.
Regardless, your credit score is a valuable asset. If you have not foreclosed yet, do whatever possible to avoid it. And, if you already have a foreclosure on your record make sure that you are doing everything possible now to establish a positive credit history.
What’s the Real Way Out of the Economic Mess?
June 22, 2009
By Mike Wayman
Opinions about how the economy will ultimately improve abound. There’s a great number of reasons why. After reading something that the Federal Reserve Chairman has said, or after watching 60 minutes at times or even after having a really good discussion with a friend about the economy, it sometimes seems the answer to our nation’s problems, economically speaking, seems rather simple: get credit flowing again, get people working again or consumer confidence just needs to take root and then things will improve.
Well, I think there’s good news and bad news about the economy. The good news is that credit is very cheap right now but the guidelines for acquiring credit have become stricter. Credit being cheap is good while guidelines being stricter, while understandable, may be seen as a negative. In terms of jobs there is growth in certain sectors, like computer and biological sciences, but the overall employment situation has yet to improve. Consumer confidence rose for the first time in a while recently, but overall confidence is rather low. So what does this all mean?
It means that in reality our leaders that direct monetary policy, the statisticians that gauge the public psychologically and our friends that we speak to are all a bit confused and frightened by what’s going on. The reality of our current situation, and the only way out, is for American ingenuity to again create superior products, services, or leading edge technologies that can create a demand or fill a serious need around the globe.
The real way out of the economic mess is no secret…it never has been. It’s good old fashioned hard work. I think the American people are still up to the job.
President Obama Announces Sweeping Regulatory Reform
June 19, 2009
By Mike Wayman
In an effort to protect American Consumers from future financial collapse, the President has recently announced regulatory reform that seeks to protect consumers from the abuses experienced in the last ten years. Most of the reform centers on the mortgage industry.
The reform includes the creation of an independent agency to regulate consumer credit of all forms designed to protect the consumer from the abuse of lenders of all types. All banks and non-banking institutions that offer credit will fall under the regulatory power of the new agency.
While consumer groups, in general, are very pleased with the new announcement, lobbyists from the banking and financial services sectors are up in arms. While it’s understandable that bankers and lenders would be upset by further regulation, consumer groups argue that the abuses of the last ten years call for more consumer protection.
In my mind the real question is whether or not expanding government to protect individuals from corporations will actually make a meaningful difference. When it comes to sweeping regulatory change, many people will make off the cuff remarks about their thoughts, feelings and opinions regarding the expansion of government. Personally, I have a more “wait and see” attitude. Let’s see what this new government agency is able to do first and then pass judgment later.
Credit Monitoring Services
June 18, 2009
By Mike Wayman
Credit monitoring is an effective way to avoid identity theft and also an effective way for a consumer to maintain and improve their credit themselves. Credit monitoring allows a consumer to receive regular credit report updates, meaning, credit reports are mailed or emailed to you on a regular basis and when anyone applies for credit utilizing your personal information you are immediately informed. Utilizing credit monitoring services is highly advisable as it allows you to quickly ascertain if your identity has been stolen or if your creditors are falsely reporting information to the credit bureaus that may damage your credit. This allows you to dispute inaccuracies reported to the bureaus quickly and efectively.
While this service is very useful, some people have turned the credit monitoring service in to a scam. Here’s how it’s done on the most offensive scale: A credit monitoring company contacts you and explains the benefits of credit monitoring. You pay for the fees and provide the necessary information including, but not limited to your social security number, address and perhaps even the maiden name of you mother. This is everything these scammers need to acquire credit in your name and steal your identity.
The other scams are less complex for example taking your money and never providing the service or simply taking your money and registering for credit monitoring on your behalf at the three credit bureaus. Of course this last strategy will give you the intended results, but it’s something you can do on your own.
You can take advantage of credit monitoring safely and easily by contacting the three credit bureaus yourself. Their customer service representatives will explain your options if you need them to but you can apply for credit monitoring directly at the three main credit bureau’s websites.
How to Reestablish Your Credit Properly
June 17, 2009
By Mike Wayman
There are numerous ways of reestablishing your credit after a bankruptcy or if you have impacted your score severely. Each strategy has certain benefits and downsides. This post is intended to provide my readers with a scoop on some of the better strategies and some to avoid.
Department store credit cards may be some of the easiest to qualify for. If you need to reestablish your credit and you don’t want to tempt yourself with a card that has a huge maximum then a department store card may be the best way to go. The typical department store card for those with tarnished credit may only have a $250.00 to $500.00 limit. Beware of the interest rates however! Some of the department store credit issuers can have high rates if you have less than perfect credit. The upside to having a low limit on a card that has a higher interest rate is that you can affordably pay off the balance in full each month if you need to. Paying off the balance in full each month is a healthy habit to acquire and it will help you avoid making massive interest payments.
One of the best ways to reestablish credit is through a “secured” credit card. These are credit cards whose limit is secured by a deposit. Many banks and credit unions offer these cards and require a savings account to be opened and the consumer must deposit an amount in to the account equal to the limit on the secured credit card. Often, these cards are linked to the account for auto payment. This is a great way to insure that the payments are made on time. However, the auto payment may only cover the minimum monthly payment. You’ll want to avoid interest charges on these cards so pay them off in full each month if you can.
These are two of the least negative ways of building credit. You should avoid the blanket solicitations that come in the mail or, if you are really interested in getting a card from a blanket solicitation read all of the fine print. Some of these cards charge enormous interest rates.
The Importance of Good Credit in the New Economy
June 16, 2009
By Mike Wayman
Our economy has pushed millions of American consumers over the financial edge. Many have lost their homes, and, likewise, their credit has suffered tremendously. This can lead to a spiral of economic problems as many consumers use credit to bail themselves out of short term cash flow problems.
Imagine the following: one of the breadwinners in the household or the only breadwinner loses their job due to corporate downsizing. Credit card payments and other credit related payments fall behind first, as is common, due to the fact that most people prioritize making their mortgage payments before anything else.
Luckily, the job loss was only temporary. This breadwinner was able to acquire a new job quickly, albeit, at a lesser rate of pay. Money is tight for the family but the family credit score has been completely damaged. Now, due to multiple past due account balances, the score of both individuals in the household is hovering just above 500.
The problem in the new economy is that underwriting guidelines for all forms of credit are now much more selective. Should the family described above encounter any financial difficulties in the near future, it will be nearly impossible to borrow money to help in the short term for a number of reasons. First, many credit card companies will reduce the remaining balances on existing credit cards down to what is owed if the borrower fails to pay on time. These clauses are in most credit card contracts. Second, acquiring new credit will be nearly impossible, that is, unless you are willing to pay rates that are sky high. These are burdens that most would like to avoid but nevertheless, these burdens are commonplace.
Credit repair can help some people but not everyone. Credit repair does not really help borrowers that habitually fail to pay their debts on time, whether they have money or not. However, if your hardship is temporary in nature, credit repair can be an effective way to restore your credit to the point that you won’t be saddled with a terrible score.
New Credit Card Law Bans Deceptive Allocation Practices
June 16, 2009
By Mike Wayman
The recession has American Citizens in an uproar and for good reason. As people throughout the country lose their homes to foreclosure and the unemployment rate continues to increase, watchdogs and legislators are on the lookout for companies, especially credit companies, who typically earn money from the misery of others.
When families fall behind in payments, often times, they engage in balance transfers on credit cards to avoid paying high interest payments or they simply acquire more credit cards to compensate for a lack of household income.
In the past, these strategies may have worked, however, sometimes at a very high cost. This is because credit card companies have had the power to “allocate” the payments made to the credit card company as it feels it should. What this means is that the credit cards you typically use have at least three different rates for the types of transactions we engage in: typical purchases, balance transfers and cash advances.
Allocation refers to the practice of the credit card issuer dividing your payments between these three types of “bills within bills” in your monthly statement. So, as an example, if the rate on a cash advance is 25%, purchases 9.9% and balance transfers 2.5% and you pay $100.00 as a payment, the credit card issuer controls how much of the payment goes to pay down the balance of each type of transaction. Guess what? They don’t allocate the payments in your best interest!
This new law bans the credit card companies from allocating the least amount of money going to the highest rate balance on the card. This is the most profitable form of keeping you in debt within the credit card industry.
If you find yourself in a situation where you need cash advances and balance transfers please read the credit card’s agreement that you signed to determine what the rates are. Call your issuer to ask if they are in full compliance with the new law enacted in May of 2009 that bans them from misappropriating your payments away from the highest interest rate due and by all means…avoid the cash advances if you can. These are the most expensive types of transactions you can make on a credit card.
From CreditCards.com:
Here’s an example of how the new law will work:
Say you have a $3,000 balance on your credit card and a $39 minimum payment. That balance includes $1,000 in purchases at a 12 percent interest rate, $1,000 in balance transfers at a 0 percent interest promotion rate and a $1,000 cash advance balance at an 18 percent rate.
If you make a $500 payment, the first $39 will most likely go toward the zero percent interest balance transfer, leaving that balance at $961.
The remaining $461 will go toward the $1,000 cash advance balance, leaving that balance at $539.
None of the payment will be applied to the purchase balance.
Missouri AG Sues Credit Solutions of America
June 10, 2009
By Mike Wayman
Credit repair companies don’t have the greatest image in the eyes of many consumers and governmental protection agencies. It isn’t necessarily because credit repair is a scam in general, but that a few rotten apples can really tarnish the image of the industry.
It surely doesn’t help when credit repair companies take in a bunch of fees and utterly fail to perform any of the services they promise to perform.
Choosing a credit repair company wisely is important especially in difficult economic times. Recently, the Missouri Attorney General sued Credit Solutions of America for failing to perform adequate services for their clients. The Missouri AG claims Credit Solutions of America took in a great amount of fees but never really did work on behalf of their clients.
From OzarksFirst.com:
The Texas-based company advertises to consumers it could get people out of credit-card debt and lower their monthly payments.
The Attorney General’s investigation found that the company took customers’ money, but did little or nothing to solve their debt problems.
Here’s some tips when considering a credit repair company:
Ask them to explain the entire process of repairing credit. Who will be handling your file? How will you receive updates and notifications on progress?
What is the timeline for the credit repair process?
Can the company provide you with testimonials or referrals from other clients?
Do they put their claims and guarantees in writing?
These are just a few of the strategies you can use when considering the right credit repair company to handle your case.
Credit Deletion with Certified Credit Repair
June 10, 2009
By Mike Wayman
As my first blog post I’d like to first welcome you to Certified Credit Repair. Our company strives to provide the highest quality credit repair service at the most affordable price.
One of the aspects of our service that sets us apart from our competition is that we offer a $10,000.00 guarantee that our services will work, that is, that we will completely and permanently delete derogatory tradelines from your credit profile for good.
Our company does not send off dispute letters in the high hopes that your creditors will fail to respond. These strategies seldom work and definitely don’t work for the long term.
My goal is to help my clients get back on track financially and in modern times a clean credit profile is absolutely necessary in personal life and in business.
You’ll see posts on this site on a daily basis that are geared towards informing our readers of credit repair strategies and tactics, credit repair scams and alerts from the government as well as credit repair news from across the nation.
Feel free to return to our site frequently for the most up to date news in the credit restoration field. I look forward to building a long term relationship with everyone interested in credit repair.
Respectfully,
Mike Wayman
