Category Archive for: ‘Credit & Debt’

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  Credit Monitoring: Identity Guard Vs My Fico -Who Wins?

  Earlier this year I started using Identity Guard to track both mine and my husband’s credit profiles.  Why?  Being that I manage all the money in our household, he had 1 very old issue pop up on his credit profile that we would have been [...]

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  The Fairytale of “Good Debt”: Like Santa Claus, It Doesnt Exist

  That’s right, there’s no such thing as good debt.  Yet, just 5 years ago, this is the toxic drool that financial aid administrators and mortgage brokers fed borrowers in hopes of sealing the deal on a new loan. Yesterday’s post surrounding 5 Myths About Student [...]

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  5 Myths About Student Loan Forgiveness: Debunked (+ Sign The Petition!)

  The Washington Post published an article this morning which centered on the myths around student loan forgiveness.  Admittedly I was irritated because I find the writer’s statements intellectually insulting and disingenuous. Before I go in on this article, yes, I am well aware that many [...]

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  Considering Bad Credit Debt Consolidation? Check Out These Pros and Cons

  Financial independence is at the core of the American Dream. No one sets out fresh out of college with aspirations and hopes of being dead broke at the end of their life! But the unfortunate reality is that scores of people find themselves in significant [...]

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  Credit Repair 101: Obtain And Inspect Your Credit Report

  This week we will be reviewing how to repair your credit.  Today we’ll start with the basics:  obtaining and reviewing a copy of your credit report. First, you should know that there are 3 credit reporting agencies: Experian, Transunion and Equifax.  Once you get a [...]

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  Discussion: Do We Need Credit To Survive?

  Do you believe we need credit to survive?  After the events over the last 3-4 years my assumption is that many have been forced to reduce or increase the reliance on credit depending on individual situations. I am a bit torn on the answer to [...]

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  Unemployed + Bad Credit? New Bills Ban Credit and Employment Status Discrimination

  Being unemployed with bad credit is often a death sentence when searching for a new job.  Why?  Some employers have taken to adding the following to job postings: “Must be currently employed” In this economy, that doesn’t make any sense!  The argument is that people [...]

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  Hi, My Name Is Teresa and I’m $11m in Debt: Here’s How I Did It + 4 Lessons

  If you haven’t heard about Teresa Guidice by now, where have you been?  She’s only the latest reality TV star to get caught up in trying to keep up with her rich friends by amassing 11 million in debt. I generally like Teresa’s bad a$$ [...]

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  Read This: Unemployment + Bad Credit = No Job

  Yes you read right!  If you are unemployed and have bad credit then you have another hurdle to get past:  employers unwilling to higher you because of bad credit. It’s important to note that this is the kind of bad credit where the potential employee [...]

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• Borrowers vs. Savers: Who Wins?

  photo credit: Mariano Kamp Borrowers may seem like the victims in the recent financial crisis, but low interest rates and higher FDIC premiums mean savers are paying for it. Based on all the news of mortgage foreclosures and credit card defaults, you might think this [...]

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• Read This: Why You Should Expect to Pay Higher Rates on Your Credit Cards

  photo credit: Fosforix It’s no secret that credit card interest rates are on the rise. Even with mortgage rates at records lows, banks and credit card companies are increasing so-called ‘credit spreads’ to compensate for risk across their loan portfolios – and that means higher [...]

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• Jingle Mail Revisted: Possible Bank Recourse And Borrower Consequences

  There’s been heavy talk recently around “walking away from foreclosures” and the devastating effect it’s having on banks and homeowners.  Jingle mail occurs when the borrower drops the keys in the mail and sends them back to the bank as final step in walking away [...]

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  Girls Gone Broke: Cyndi Lauper

  This month’s group writing project is about Rich People Gone Broke! Being that Girls Just Wanna Have Funds is themed by the obvious, Cyndi Lauper’s Girls Just Wanna Have FUN hit of the 80s, I thought her profile appropriate for this project. This 80s icon [...]

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  Get Your House Together: African-American Women and the Foreclosure Crisis

  photo credit: joelogon If you ever wanted to understand how the recent sub-prime mortgage crisis has affected African-American women, then this post is for you. Chances are you’ve heard about the mass foreclosures across the nation and even the phenomenon known as Jingle Mail. We’ve [...]

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• The Age of the Refi Renaissance

  Over the weekend I came across this article in The Washington Post, Lower Rates, Coming Resets: An Opening For Refinancing which discusses the onslaught of refinances due to the adjustable rate mortgages that are about to reset. Here are some of the more salient points [...]

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