Archive for the ‘credit’ Category
admin on May 22nd, 2008
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If you have any credit cards or loans, you are known to collection agencies and financial institutions as a debtor. When you owe companies or individuals money, you are mandated to be treated fairly by the individuals or establishments to which you are indebted. Your debt is not decreased or limited in any way by the Fair Debt Collection Laws that are in place, but certain methods of debt collection are prohibited under the Laws. You do need to be treated fairly by those whose job it is to collect your debts. These collectors are known as debt collectors, and they make their living trying to recoup the money owned to their employers or companies.
A number of different debts are covered under the federal Fair Debt Collection Laws, as established in the United States of America. These debts include personal loans, family loans and general household debt. Automobile purchases, medical care and credit card accounts are some of the specific situations that are covered.
Debt collectors are limited in when and how they may contact you. These individuals may not contact you outside the hours of 8 am to 9 pm, unless you have given the debt collectors specific permission to do so. You may be contacted by phone, fax, mail or in person, but you may not be contacted at work if it is known that your employer would not approve of such contact. These collectors may not threaten you with violence, publication or any type of harassment. They are also prohibited from making any false statements, such as that they are employed by the government or that they are attorneys.
You can prohibit debt collectors from contacting you by sending them a letter telling them to stop, but this does not erase your debt and you may end up being sued by your original lender if you do not take care of the debt. Debt collectors may not continue to try to recoup the money if you have sent a letter to them advising them that you do not owe money and that perhaps the debt is an error. However, they can resume such collection practices if they find that you do, in fact, owe money.
If you feel that a debt collector who has contacted you has broken the law, you do have some resources available to you. You are able to sue the collector or the collection agency for damages, attorney fees and court costs. Complaints can be placed at FTC.GOV.
admin on May 20th, 2008
Consumers are getting smarter, which means credit card companies have to change the rules to make a bigger profit. Getting caught in one of these traps could cost you big.
Grace Periods Are On Their Way Out
Most credit card companies have already reduced their grace period from 25 days to 20 days, but now many companies are completely wiping out the grace period. No grace period means you start accruing interest the moment you sign that credit slip or press the purchase button online. Credit card companies can change these rules whenever they want, so as soon as you miss a payment or decide to do the smart thing and pay off your credit card each month, they can take your grace period away in order to create more income for themselves.
Smart Consumers Need Not Apply
Being a responsible credit card user can now mean more fees will be added to your account. Credit companies are charging fees for closing your account, failing to use your credit for a certain amount of time, paying off your card each month and even charging a fee each time you use your account (in addition to interest charges!)
“As a Valued Client – Skip Your Payment This Month!”
This happens around the holidays a lot, you’ll receive a letter from the card company inviting you to skip a payment so you have extra money for the gifts you need to buy. Of course they don’t tell you that this little “gift” from them will cost you higher interest rates or extra payments in the future.
Convenience Checks
Another favorite around the holidays is sending you convenient paper checks you can write to yourself, with of course a special gift of no grace period, a high interest rate or additional fees. Merry Christmas!
Lowering Your Minimum Payment
Credit card companies hope you never pay off your debt because the longer you have it the more money they make. To encourage you to take longer they lower your minimum payment. If you can’t pay off your card every month, at least pay more than the minimum payment in order to pay off the balance faster and save interest payments.
Do You Know When Your Payment is Due?
You think you know when your payment is due right? It’s been the same day for years, so you would know if you are late. Well, now companies are adding due TIMES to bills which means if your payment is processed after that time on the due date you could be slapped with late fees.
admin on May 12th, 2008
While to many people it may seem that life is pretty much over after filing for bankruptcy, there are things a person can do to still appear financially attractive to financial establishments. Everyone makes mistakes and bankruptcy can count as a mistake. The important thing for people to remember after filing for bankruptcy is to keep moving in a forward manner and not dwell on the past, which cannot be changed. By taking the appropriate steps, even people who file for bankruptcy can become financially responsible. You will not get satisfaction right away. Improving your credit will take time and it is important to remain patient throughout the procedure.
Getting a secured credit card is advisable for the individual immediately following their filing for bankruptcy. Collateral is used for the card to set the limit so the individuals who have this type of card will not be spending more than they can afford. This will help build up credit and help you stick to a budget.
Track your credit and remember to pay everything on time. To improve your standing even more, pay over the minimum payment as much as you can. This will make you appear responsible, while at the same time your debt will decrease faster than if you were just paying the minimum amount due. If you want to take complete control of your finances you should pay off your debt in full each month. If you are using more credit each month than you can pay off, you probably need to look at how you are spending money.
Identity fraud is a growing concern and individuals can be forced to file for bankruptcy if someone steals their identity and racks up debt. It is often scary when you have a lot of debt, but ordering your credit report at least once a year can save your credit if you find any issues during the checkup.
In general, it will take time to build your credit back up. This does not mean there is nothing to be done about the situation. By continuing to be positive and work in the right direction, you can still appear as the financially responsible, dependable individual you would like to be.
admin on May 4th, 2008
If you’ve already filed bankruptcy, you have probably been inundated with credit card offers. You aren’t alone. Households with a recent bankruptcy filing receive 3 times as many credit solicitationas as households where there has been no bankruptcy filing. It’s not a mistake, the credit industry wants your business again, and some even refer to your bankruptcy in the credit offer.
Katherine Porter’s Bankrupt Profits: The Credit Industry’s Business Model for PostBankruptcy Lending is quite eye opening.
Wondering why credit companies would want to target people that have a history of late payments, or no payments? Especially when the credit companies lobbied for bankruptcy reform on the notion that people who file bankruptcy are simply people who choose not to pay their bills and use the bankruptcy system to their advantage?
It’s quite simple actually. Now that past debt has been wiped out, the credit companies will have less competitors vying for payments from the debtors, as well as almost 8 years where the debtor will be unable to file bankruptcy again. These consumers are also more likely to incur late fees and other high fees that put more money in the creditors pocket.
admin on May 4th, 2008
It may seem like a long shot, but I’ve always believed in the rule that if you don’t ask, you’ll never receive. Sending a letter won’t cost you a lot of money and you may just get someone on a good day where they are willing to help you out. So how do you approach a creditor and ask them to remove a debt that is being reported accurately?
Dear CEO name,
I am writing you to discuss my credit card account #xxx which was established x years ago. I am writing to ask you to consider removing this account from my credit report. I understand this is an unusual request, but the Fair Credit Reporting Act does now say you must report all credit accounts to the credit bureaus.
When I established the account I was financially secure, and I certainly understand that it was my responsibility to stay current on payments. Unfortunately I made several financial mistakes and fell behind. When I was able to, I paid off the debt in full on xxxx. I am hoping that after you review my circumstances and the fact that I have paid off the debt, you would be willing to remove the negative remarks with the three credit bureaus.
I an not saying the information is inaccurate, I am simply asking you to use your discretion to remove the account from my credit report in an act of goodwill. I appreciate your consideration in this matter.
Sincerely,
Your Name
