By Jackie Harsha
There are ways that you can clean up your credit report which will raise your score. These methods take time, but if you anticipate wanting to buy a house or car in the next 6 months to a year, it's a good idea to start working on improving your credit score now. Look over your credit report, and look for entries that may be mistakes. If there are, you can get those items deleted. By law,...
By Deborah Nelson
A credit score, often called a credit rating, is a numerical value calculated from the information contained in a credit report. A credit report is a history of all a person's reported credit activity compiled by one of the three major credit bureaus. The activities in the credit report can significantly affect the credit score. Understanding how things like balance transfers affect your...
By Pam G.
Receiving unemployment pay in Tennessee requires unemployed people to file claims and continue to look for employment. File an unemployment claim online at the Tennessee Department of Labor and Workforce Development website. (See Resources). File Internet claims at Tennesseeanytime.org/labor during these times only: Sundays from 8 a.m. until midnight or Monday through Friday from 7 a.m. until...
By Sam Holder
Credit scores are a vital part of our lives. They determine a variety of outcomes for loans, mortgages and even employment. Securing and maintaining a high score necessitates a constant monitoring of your credit profile. To do this, you'll need to know where to find your credit score, and how looking at your own credit affects you. Understand that obtaining a credit report is free and...
By Gregory Hamel
Securing a car loan can be difficult for anyone in a tough credit market, much less someone with bad credit. Increasing a credit rating takes time, often much longer than one can afford to live without a car. While someone with bad credit will have an especially hard time buying a new vehicle, it is oftentimes possible to get a loan for a used car if the proper steps are taken. Trade in an old...
By S. F. Heron
Credit card debt doesn't have to be a fact of life. It all comes down to controlling your spending. Paying off credit card debt requires discipline and a plan to eliminate debt. Your plan may include a measured payment method or a debt consolidation loan. Both allow you to eliminate credit card debt to get your finances back on track. Set up a household budget and stick to it. Household ...
By Michelle Leach
Paying off your mortgage may seem like a no-brainer at first---after all, no more monkey on your back! But it's not such a straightforward decision. For starters, the credit-score boost you assume you're getting by paying off that hefty mortgage may not be such a big boost after all, if you experience a boost at all. In some cases, paying off the mortgage can actually hurt you by altering ...
By Nadine Wheeler
The word "budget' is so awful to some people, it's hard for them to even think about sitting down and writing one out. However, if you've become financially smart---and congratulations for taking charge of your money instead of letting your money run over you---you understand how to manage your income wisely. You need to reward yourself. Take good care of yourself as well as...