Hard Inquiries vs. Soft Inquiries and How They Impact your Credit Score
You don't want to do anything that could lower your credit score because you are afraid you might need a good score to qualify for a loan or service at some point in the future. The challenge is that the credit scoring process includes things you might not consider. Take ...
Understanding the Credit Lifecycle – Part 2: Pre-Charge-off Collection
Part 2 of a 5-part series on the Credit Lifecycle. If you missed the first article on Understanding What Happens To Debt, you can find it here. Pre-Charge-Off The pre-charge-off collection period begins at the first missed payment and lasts until the account goes 179 days without a payment. Once ...
Speed Up Your Settlement Program by Overfunding Your Next Savings Deposit with Your Tax Refund
Every month that you continue to fund your debt settlement savings account means you are that much closer to living a life free from the shackles of high interest credit card debt. You’ve made a few sacrifices, tightened your budget, and made few sensible adjustments to your lifestyle and spending ...
Debt Consolidation Strategies: Balance Transfer Credit Cards vs.Personal Loans
High credit card balances carried over month after month is a weary process because the minimum payment barely moves the needle. When debt levels exceed $15,000 or $20,000, it might feel as if you are destined to die with your debt. High interest and daily compounding are two critical factors ...
Understanding Credit Lifecycle: What Happens To All That Debt?
Part 1: Stages of The Credit Lifecycle and How the Value of Debt Changes Over Time In an effort to take some of the mystery out of credit, credit collections, and loan defaults, we have put together a five-part series on the credit lifecycle. Today we start with the value ...
What You Need to Know About the Key Factors Impacting the Settlement of a Debt
Before granting a loan approval, a creditor will assess the risk of the borrower, aiming to maximize profits and limit losses. In addition to looking at your raw credit score, credit grantors will also take into account many of the individual factors that make up your credit scores such as ...
Is Debt Settlement Legit?
After years of sparse regulation and oversight that allowed a few unscrupulous companies to unlawfully take money from consumers without helping them achieve debt relief, Congress provided the necessary consumer protections to regulate the debt relief industry. By revising the Telemarketing Sales Rule (TSR), the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ...
How Credit Counseling Influences Your Credit, Even If It Does Not Directly Lower Your Credit Score
GREAT! You’ve decided to finally do something about the tens of thousands of dollars you have in credit card debt. It is no longer enough to make minimum monthly payments and reduce balances slowly. You’re done with that! You want to put your debt reduction strategy into hyperdrive, without dinging ...
Why Making Minimum Payments to Pay Off Credit Card Debt Ensures You Will Die Broke
Another credit card bill arrives, and you moan when you see the balance. Then you look at the minimum payment due and think, “I can afford this. I just have to pay $200 on my $10,000 bill.” What you don’t see is the interest charge of $180, meaning you are ...
Concerned About Receiving a 1099-C on Forgiven Debt?
How to Reduce or Eliminate the Impact of a 1099-C on Settled Debt Are you concerned about entering a debt settlement program because others have warned you about the tax implications cutting into your savings? Have you paid off a debt through debt settlement and now dread the trip to ...
