Don’t pay them anything. Send a cease and desist letter in which you tell them to stop contacting you. Harassing people about debts (old debts, like yours, or current ones) is illegal under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act.
How to handle harassment by a collection agency Read More »
If the person that is your spouse, you need to file a request for what the IRS calls “innocent spouse relief”. Get IRS form 8857 to do this. If not, you should still notify the IRS and Federal authorities that you have been the victim of fraud and identity theft. Lock down your credit reports by getting a credit freeze and putting a fraud alert on your credit files with Equifax, Experian and TransUnion.
What To Do If Someone Filed A Tax Return In Your Name And Stole Your Credit Identity Read More »
Leave the credit cards at home.
As a matter of practice, leave your credit cards at home more often than not. Having credit cards, charge cards, and department-store cards in your wallet or purse makes it easy to make spur-of-the-moment shopping trips. You’ll think more about your spending practices if you have to part with your hard-earned dollars versus whipping out a credit card. Moreover, people tend to spend more when they use plastic instead of cash.
Eight Ways to Stop Emotional Spending Read More »
A woman is in a 5 year debt management program but wants to get out of it. What should she do?
How to Get Out of a Debt Management Program Read More »
I got a question from MH on Facebook. He wants to know if there are any legitimate companies that can help him sell his timeshare.
There is an organization called the Timeshare Users Group. They are known to be the first and largest timeshare owner network. When you visit their web site you find numerous articles, tips and advice on everything related to timeshare ownership including buying, renting and selling your timeshare. They will even let you advertise your timeshare on their free classifieds section.
Are there any legitimate companies that I could work with to sell my timeshare? Read More »
When you say “Direct Loan,” I believe you are referring to the U.S. Department of Education’s Direct Loan Program (http://www.dl.ed.gov), where you can transfer and consolidate your federal education loans into a single, new loan which offers lower monthly payments. Whether or not it makes economic sense to transfer the loans depends on a host of factors, including: how manageable (or unmanageable) your monthly payments are; how many payments are left on your existing loan; the amount of time and interest you are willing to pay over time; and the interest rates on your current loans.
Should You Transfer Your Sallie Mae Student Loans? Read More »
Despite what some people may suggest to you, it’s best to refrain from adding a “Consumer Statement” to your credit files.
Consumer Statements in Your Credit Files
Under the Fair Credit Reporting Act, you are allowed to add a 100-word “Consumer Statement” to any of your credit reports if you have disputed an item in your credit files, but the item was not removed because it was verified by a creditor. Frequently, consumers think that taking advantage of this “right” to add a consumer statement is a good opportunity. After all, you would get a chance to divulge what happened, elaborate on the dispute, or perhaps explain why going through a divorce resulted in you not paying a bill or how being laid off for six months is what led you to default on a loan. In your mind, perhaps you think that your explanation will prove that something wasn’t your fault, or at the very least t show a lender that you had a “good” reason for failing to pay.
Should I Put a Consumer Statement in My Credit Report? Read More »
If you’re like most adults, you probably want your children, or any youngsters around you, to develop good financial habits. But if you’re like the typical American, you may also struggle when it comes to being a good financial role model for our youth. A study by Northwestern Mutual revealed that 71% of parents feel that children should begin learning about money no later than the 1st grade.
How to Teach Your Children Financial Literacy Read More »
Paying so-called minimum payments now actually ends up costing you more – a lot more – over the long haul. The math behind some of the calculations that determine your interest rate can be tricky. And I won’t get into all the complex, and sometimes mind-boggling formulas that are used to calculate your Annual Percentage Rate (APR). But suffice to say that for every $1,000 you owe, if you paid a minimum of say 4%, you’d only be paying $40 a month. With just $2,500 in debt on a card with an 18% interest rate, you’d spend 10 years paying it off and you’d pay more than $1,400 in finance charges on top of what you originally spent.
Don’t Go Broke With Minimum Payments Read More »
A bank won’t let a woman refinance her house without her husbands signature. The problem is that the woman and her husband separated after being married for just one year, and the current mortgage is in her name only. What should she do? Click to hear Lynnette’s advice.
I Can’t Refinance My House Without My Husband’s Signature. What Should I Do? Read More »
Q: I am a Single Woman Sharing a Mortgage with my Mother. I Purchased the House From her in 2004 to Prevent Her from Filing Bankruptcy and Losing her Home. We’ve Refinanced Twice and Now the Loan is Twice the Amount of What the House is Worth. My Credit is Not Great. I’m in Debt Minus the Loan on the House of About $15,000. The Bulk of That is a $10,000 Loan I Applied for an got (Surprisingly) While I was Unemployed. Isn’t That Called Predatory Lending. I Would Love to Leave Here and Find My Own Place But I Need to Get My Credit in Order. Some of My Debts are 5 Years Old. I Don’t Want to Pay These If I Really Shouldn’t. What’s the Best Thing to do? Also, Re: the $10,000 Loan, I Know I Should Not Have Applied for the Money But I was Desperate As Our Mortgage Was 3 Months In Arrears and In Danger of Being Foreclosed On. Is There a Way That I Could Get This Debt Removed as it was a Predatory Situation?
When You Owe More Than A Home Is Worth And Have Bad Credit Read More »
Your FICO credit scores – like all credit scores – are based on the underlying data and information that is contained in your credit files with the “Big 3” credit bureaus: Equifax, Experian and TransUnion. According to Fair Isaac, the company that created the three-digit FICO scores (which range from 300 to 850 points), in order to have a FICO score generated for you, your credit history must contain at least three things:
How Do I Establish My First FICO Score? Read More »
If you’re already working, but need some extra cash, there are lots of ways to raise money. Here are a few of them.
How Can I Make Some Extra Cash, I am Living Paycheck to Paycheck Read More »
Question: I am 24 years old and my credit is not too spectacular. Most of the accounts on my credit reports are things I have done to myself, but the other half (and the most expensive portion of my debt) was done by an immediate family member who knows my social security number and has put cable, electric and telephones in my name and did not pay the bill. I don’t want to get my family member in trouble but I am not sure what to do?
What to Do if Your Credit Has Been Wrecked by a Family Member Read More »
Whenever you notice a mistake in your credit report, you should always dispute it – with the credit bureaus or the creditor that reported inaccurate information. Getting an error removed from your credit file usually takes about 30 days to be completed.
What’s the Fastest Way to Fix Errors in My Credit Report When I Apply for a Mortgage? Read More »
