Category: Credit Cards

The reason why companies should ensure that they have a good consumer reputation is obvious. Without a good reputation it will be nearly impossible to attract new customers. Since no business can survive for long without customers, it is essential that every business ensures that it takes care of its reputation. However it is much less obvious to people why it is necessary to have a good corporate reputation. The reasons are just as sound and it is just as necessary as the consumer reputation, however it is a bit less obvious to the layperson just how important the corporate reputation is.

Many are saying that corporate reputation is just as important as good business credit. If this is the case, businesses should be taking online reputation management much more seriously than most companies do now. This may be a little bit drastic however. It is hard to draw a straight line between credit rating and online reputation. Without a good corporate credit rating it may be difficult to get the loans needed to help expand your business and allow it to grow.

Reputation management is just as important. If you cannot get customers to your business then there will be no need for loans as your business will never manage to grow.  The need for reputation management is always there. If you are unable to build and develop a good reputation then your business will never manage to succeed. You need to build a business that everyone wants to work with. Both customers and other business need to know that your business can be counted on to deliver a solid, reliable product and to be accountable for the loans that it takes out. Unless you can build a business which can do both, the business will have a hard time succeeding.

Managing your financial accounts is essential to daily living. Knowing when to spend and when not to, can save you from overshooting your budget and spare you from running out of money before your next paycheck. And this is the reason why debit cards are so amazing – they’re great financial tools; better than credit cards.

Prepaid debit cards are better than credit cards for a variety of reasons. First and foremost, debit cards don’t allow you to spend more than you’ve already earned. With debit cards, you’re more easily able to stay within your budget and live within your means. Debit cards won’t drive you deeper into debt.

Another advantage prepaid debit cards have over credit cards is they’re available to more people than credit cards. Reloadable debit cards can be accessed from the Internet or from major retailers without a credit check. This means people with poor credit or no credit at all can get their hands on a prepaid debit card. All that’s required to obtain a card is valid identification and a legal age (18 years old).

But the best thing about these cards is that they enable you to save money over time. With prepaid debit cards, you never pay interest as you do with credit cards. Paying credit card interest is like paying a surcharge on all the items you buy, making them more expensive. But with reloadable debit cards that never happens so you wind up paying less for items which leaves you more money in the long run.

Credit cards can be dangerous in the wrong hands. Impulsive buyers as well as shopaholics don’t do well with credit cards. They tend to run up big balances and get stuck in the revolving debt/minimum payment rut. But owning a debit card saves you from all of that. A prepaid debit card helps you make smarter purchasing decisions, allowing you to buy only what you already have the money for. They’re really amazing.

Because of the difficulties in the economy today, people who are involved into any credit card debt problems are more into getting credit card debt settlement programs. This program will actually help you to settle from all the burdened of your credit card debts and negotiate to your credit card companies to make some settlement of paying the money you owed from them. What you need to do here is to make a phone call to your credit card company and inform them that you wanted to have a credit card debt settlement. This will actually lead you for some hours or sometimes for some days before you will know how the negotiation with your payments goes. You just have to be persistent because they will expect you to tied yourself with them for a lifetime payment of your balances and interest. All you have to do is to tell them that you have a cash loan from any member of the family or close friend and get the 25% payment left for the next couple of months, if they will agree to cut off all of your debts with them. You will somehow be granted with this option since the credit card company is also thinking about the money back that you owed to them. Though you will surely have a bad record in your credit card history then, but on this kind of situation, this type of option might be the only choice that is best for you to have.

And if you are unemployed at the moment and thinking about any loans available for you – yes, there are now available loans for the unemployed. Compared to credit cards, equity loans, or any other credit options, loans for the unemployed is actually much better solution if you need some quick cash help. Loans can actually be secured and unsecured – secured if you have any guarantee to pay the money back to the money lender but with lower interest rates, and unsecured if you don’t have any back up guarantee to repay the money you owed to the money lender which is also tend to have much higher interest. Loans for the unemployed can actually have both ways of secured and unsecured loans. Though unemployed do have much higher interest rate because of the risk of being unstable and jobless to pay the money back to them. Credit card companies will also hesitate to let you avail credit card options because of the lesser chances of paying your bills. So before making any decision of getting any credit options, consider loans for the unemployed as your best favorable credit options at the moment that you are still searching for some job and might need some help of any financial assistance.

It seems the holidays get bigger every year. More ads, bigger presents, new television specials and more please to get your dollar seem to be every where. While it is human nature to try and show our love through really nice gifts, it should not be via a credit card. And for those people who are considering one last shopping spree right before they file for bankruptcy, heed the advice of a Chicago bankruptcy attorney; leave the credit cards at home.

New Changes in Laws

Recent changes enacted by The Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act make it tough for people to run up a large balance on their cards and then immediately run to the bankruptcy court for protection. The actual wording states “consumer debts owed to a single creditor and aggregating more than $550 for luxury goods or services incurred by an individual debtor on or within 90 days . . . ; and cash advances aggregating more than $825 . . . or within 70 days before the order for relief under this title, are presumed to be non-dischargeable . . . ” This means that when people try to purchase a significant amount of items on December 21 and then try to file for Chapter 13 relief on January 25, their chances of qualifying will be greatly reduced.

More Common Sense Approaches

Although some people may look at this rule and decide to charge up new debt and wait past the 90 days before getting help from a Chicago bankruptcy lawyer, there is another common sense ruling used by the courts. If a person charged a significant amount of debt over a short time and had no reasonable chance of repaying the debt then the items may be disqualified from bankruptcy. This is usually seen in people who had several credit cards with very low balances and then in the past 6 months maxed out all of their credit cards with no significant change in their income.

It is better to simply cut up the cards and seek out quality counsel before making a choice that could actually worsen your overall financial situation.

These days the government is strictly regulating credit cards, but many people are still locked into accounts with high interest rates. Contacting the issuing company can occasionally result in the lowering of the rate, but a more effective way to save money is by opening a no balance transfer fee credit card.

Transferring balances from one credit card company to another often comes with a fee. This fee can be 2-4% or more of the balance being transferred, or a minimum of a certain dollar amount like $10. A no balance transfer fee credit card allows a person to transfer the balance of the high interest rate card to a new card at a lower rate of interest without accruing a service charge.

The best no transfer fee credit cards offer a special interest rate for a specified period of time. A prime example of this special rate is the 0% for 6 or 12 months offer. The discounted interest rate draws the consumer in by saving them a great deal of money and creates a relationship that will hopefully, at least in the company’s eyes, last beyond the life of the special offer.

When switching cards, it is important to choose a reputable company. Pre-approved offers are frequently mailed to consumers, but not all are on the up-and-up. If the company is not well-known, check with the Better Business Bureau to see if there are any complaints of poor business practices. Search the name of the company on the internet to see if there are any recorded scams before trusting the company with your finances.

All credit card offers are accompanied by a grid that explains the fees associated with the account. As important as a low introductory rate is, it is equally important to review what the interest rate will turn into after the special offer expires. A card at 0% for six months will not save money if the balance will not be paid off during that time and the interest rate increases to an astronomical amount thereafter. Look for additional charges like annual service charges, monthly processing charges, or even a monthly fee to have the primary plastic card or one for a secondary cardholder. As long as there are no hidden fees, taking advantage of a no balance transfer fee credit card can save a lot of money.

Many people are under the misconception that President Obama has suggested or enacted a bill to provide credit card debt forgiveness to Americans. This is not true. It is, in fact, a ploy by several companies to lure in unsuspecting consumers. Generally these companies act as go-betweens, selling the information they obtain from hopeful consumers to third-party companies that specialize in debt settlement.

The difficult economic times have caused a marked change in credit card usage. Many people have switched from using credit cards for extras like vacations and needless purchases to reaching for their cards for more practical uses such as paying household bills or buying clothing for their children. Everyday usage of credit cards has resulted in a high quantity of accumulated debt with prohibitive interest rates. Monthly minimum payments cover little more than the interest, which makes it near impossible to pay off debt and leaves the consumer looking for alternative answers.

The advertised program to forgive credit card debt claims to afford a 50-60% reduction in amounts owed by consumers with credit card debt in excess of $10,000. While the bill is a ruse, the suggested savings may not be. Many lenders have been affected by the growing bankruptcy rates and as such they are now willing to work with borrowers in an effort to regain at least a potion of the debt that otherwise would be entirely written off. Debt that has been outstanding for a long period of time has likely been subjected to high interest rates, late fees and over-limit fees that have often been the result of the former two. Through settlements, or substantially lowering the balance of the account, the lender receives payment and no longer needs to invest in collection costs associated with outstanding debt.

Prior to contacting a lender to make settlement arrangements, it is advisable for a consumer to sit with a credit counselor to review all of his or her options. In some instances bankruptcy is a cleaner, more direct approach. If settlement is the best choice for the consumer, however, a debt consolidation company might be able to negotiate a better percentage rate. Be warned that most consolidation companies require payment for their services, although laws are being passed to prevent them from charging up-front or unreasonable fees.

Being in debt can be a stressful, trying experience; getting out of debt requires research and work. All the hype about Obama’s credit card debt forgiveness program sounds legitimate, making it is too easy to fall prey to the gimmick. Consumers should gather information and speak with professionals before making their own debt relief programs.

The best way to use a small business secured credit card, especially if you have signed up for one in the hope of improving your credit score, is to never spend more than half your limit and pay the balance off in full each month. Over time this kind of behavior will lead to the fastest possible rise in your credit score.

Although you may start out this way the uncertainties of the business world mean you may sometimes have to carry over some of the balance for a longer period than you would ideally like. If you experience real difficulties, you may even find yourself unable to make the payments at all.

Even though you may hope and think that this will never happen to you, it is worth checking what procedures each card company puts in place for those who default as some are far more forgiving that others. If you think this may be even a remote possibility, choosing the right company can make the difference between trashing your credit score even further or surviving a shaky month or two with little to no negative impact.

If you miss your monthly payment you are likely to be charged a late fee. If you know in advance that your funds are going to be delayed, this fee can sometimes be waived if you call your creditor ahead of time and let them know there is a problem. This may also help avoid a black mark on your credit rating.

If a payment fails because there are insufficient funds in your bank account you will also be liable for a return check fee. Together, such fees can easily push you over your credit limit, especially if you have ended the month being previously close to it. If this happens you will then end up having to pay out once again, this time for an over limit fee which can be up to $40 at a time. If you think this is a possibility and have some spare cash available it may be worth making a deposit to ensure you can avoid this financial penalty.

An interest free credit card is like money in the bank. While you charge living expenses and luxuries on an interest free card, you can leave your personal money in the bank to draw interest. To utilize this offer, you simply make sure you pay the balance in full before the interest free period expires.

Normally, credit card companies issue interest free credit cards for promotional purposes and remains interest free for a certain amount of time. Once that predetermined date has passed, interest becomes chargeable on any outstanding balance. There is no benefit to using a card in this manner if you do not do it correctly. It will cost you more than paying cash if not done properly.

There are other savings to this type of transaction as well. There is only one check or bank withdrawal, instead of several. If paying by check, only one postage stamp is required. Most interest free credit cards offer rewards for every dollar spent. Throughout the interest free period, you are using their money for nothing and actually making money in reward points. Whether credit card companies offer cash, gift cards, or some other form of rewards, it still adds up to a bonus. You get something free you would have paid for otherwise.

Some people use an interest free credit card for large purchases that may be difficult to pay for at one time. This allows you to pay the balance on a monthly basis without interest or penalties. Many people will transfer a balance on an interest charging account to an interest free card. As long as you pay the balance in full before the stated deadline, and the transfer fee is less than you would have paid in interest, the interest free credit card is financially a better option.

Techniques to Settle Credit Card Debt

So you are over your head in credit card debt, and you want to know how to deal with it. You want to pay back the money, but its such a daunting amount you are not even sure where to start. You may have heard advertisement too about a legal credit repair company? Is this an option for you?

Dealing With Credit Card Debt

If you want to really handle your debt you have to know the state of your finances. If you do not feel comfortable making budget decisions or have never had much of a head for numbers, you may want to talk to a financial planner. There are there to help you, and there is no shame in seeking assistance.

The first thing you need to do is figure out the time frame it will take you to pay off all the money you owe. If that number is over 5 or 10 years, you may be looking at filing for bankruptcy. This is not necessarily a terrible option, and will let you begin anew, although with much worse credit.

How To Settle Credit Card Debt

Set aside an additional $200 at the first of every month. Find a way. Stop eating out, or buy less stuff, or start buying generic foods, but find a way. Pay the minimum due on all your cards. After you do this, apply the $200 to the card with the lowest balance.

Once that is paid off, which should be fairly quickly, use the $200 plus what you were paying before, and put it on the next card with the smallest amount. Keep repeating this process till all your cards are paid off.

This technique is quicker than spending money all across the board on your cards and lets you see faster progress.

If you are so in debt that it would take literally five or more years to pay off everything bankruptcy may be a legitimate option. It will make things securing loans for a while harder, but it will be better than your current situation.