Credit Guy Blog
Happy Holidays
Twas the night before Christmas and the credit card companies were looking down on Whoville wondering what else they could do to rip off their customers before the credit card reform act goes into effect. That’s a completely different story though, because this is supposed to be a joyous time of year. So blogs about credit...
Now’s the time to make deals with debt collectors
It’s sometimes hard to look for the positive in an economic climate like the one we’re currently experiencing. It’s all too easy to focus on the negatives and ignore the positives—positives like the low housing prices for those trying to buy, government assistance like the homebuyer’s tax credit, and the willingness of debt collectors...
Obama to meet with “fat cat” banking executives
There’s been a lot of talk in the news today and over the weekend about Obama meeting with the heads of the largest banks today. He’s having a little sit down in Washington with over a dozen bank heads from Bank of New York Mellon Corp., Bank of America Corp., U.S. Bancorp, JPMorgan Chase &...
Been Rate Jacked? 3 Ways to Stand Up to Your Double Crossing Credit Card Issuer
By: Joe Taylor Credit card rate hikes have become a popular strategy for lenders who want to purge their portfolios of less profitable accounts. New federal credit card regulations give consumers the power to reject a credit card rate increase, but only at the expense of an active credit line. “Freezing” a credit line to lock...
ChexSystems, it’s like a credit report for your checking history
I write a lot in this blog about credit reports and credit cards, but I haven’t written about something that’s just as important as a clean credit report before—a clean ChexSystems report. ChexSystems is a consumer reporting agency, just like the credit bureaus, that tracks your deposit accounts, like checking and savings, with banks. A...
FHA’s New Lending Criteria
Everyone already knows that the mortgage crisis obliterated the mortgage market, but many aren’t aware of how this changed the face of a tiny government agency, the Federal Housing Administration. Prior to the crash the FHA only guaranteed 3% of new home mortgages against default. Today they guarantee about 30% of new home mortgages. Why...
National Association of Credit Managers’ Credit Index Shows Credit Is Becoming More Available
The National Association of Credit Managers published the November results of their benchmark credit index today. For the second straight month the credit index surpassed the breakeven index number of 50. The index was at 34 a year ago, but increased to 51 in October and 55 in November. What does this mean for...
5 ways to kill your credit scores
The curtain has parted, albeit slightly, on the mystery of how your credit rating is calculated. Find out what these common credit problems can do to your standing. By Liz Pulliam Weston One of the questions I’m asked most often about credit scores is exactly how much certain actions affect people’s scores. Until now, the best I could do...
Didn’t buy a home to qualify for the Homebuyer’s Tax Credit? Maybe some of these lesser known tax credits will apply to you instead.
The first time homebuyer’s tax credit has been helpful to a lot of people, saving them thousands of dollars toward the purchase of a new home, but they’re not the only tax credits that got a boost this year. Here’s a few other that might apply to you. “Residential Energy Property Credit” Have you made any improvements...
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