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Increase Credit Scores Rating
Credit scores ratings always starts with Credit repair. It is something that takes time and patience to accomplish, especially if the damage was made recently. There are many ways to increase your credit score and boost your ability to apply for future financial aid, but these can be tedious and time consuming.
To start the repair, you will need a copy of the reports from all three consumer reporting agencies:TransUnion, Equifax, and Experian. Compare all the reports and make sure that all the information they contain are accurate. Some creditors only report to one agency, which can cause discrepancies. Also, there have been instances where closed accounts are still being reported open and paid off debts are still showing as unpaid. Make sure to correct these errors right away by calling the consumer reporting agencies and explaining the situation. You may also need to contact the creditors who made the report to send an update to clear up the inaccuracies.
The next step is to get rid of too much debt. Make sure to get rid of all most of your unsecured debt either by paying it off or consolidating it. Too much debt can be seen as a negative and is a factor when it comes to your credit file . Close out all the extra charge cards and store cards and only keep two – ideally a Visa and a Mastercard, to make sure that you will have access to funds when you need it. Keep the accounts that have been open the longest because this will have a positive impact on your credit score. Donít close out all the other accounts at the same time. Try to close only one or two accounts every six months to give your score time to adjust.
The way to confirm the repair is to ensure that you do not have late payments or incur an overdraft on any of your debts. Financial institutions report these to the consumer reporting agencies , who in turn put it in your credit report. There is a 30 day, 60 day, and 90 day category on missed payments, and having one of this can cause your score to take a very large drop .
Finally, make sure that your credit report information is being accurately reported. Your FICO score is partly based on the amount of debt you have versus the amount of credit you have available. Some charge cards report your highest balance instead of your limit, so if the highest balance youíve incurred is $400 out of a $500 charge card and you charge $450 the next month, it may look like you went over the limit. Make sure never to charge more than 30 percent of your limit to show that you are not spending more than you need to .
Credit report repair is a long term process, especially since some of the negative feedback will take 7 to 10 years to fall off. One thing that you need to remember is not to borrow more than you can afford to pay back and to make sure that your accounts are all up to date. After all, even though the repair can take years, it will still benefit you in the long run.
Credit Card for Students
For most university students, credit cards arent high on their priority list for things to take care of after all, students with loans can pay for things with direct debit from their bank accounts, as can students that are being assisted financially by their parents.
The simple truth of the matter is that most students dont think about credit cards, so that when it gets to the point that they need one, they end up rushing through the selection process, ending up with a credit card that isnt optimal for their needs or worse one that actually ends up being detrimental for them in the long run.
So what should a student seeking a credit card do? Simple, they need to research! Look at a wide variety of student credit cards, their benefits and their drawbacks. Only select one that you feel comfortable with and that you feel addresses your needs well, while not providing you with too many setbacks.
So what characteristics should you look for? Well, here are a few things to keep in mind in your search for the perfect student credit card.
Fees
Some credit cards charge you an annual fee for their usage; I like to counsel students to stay away from these types of credit cards, as usually their good points are not enough to outweigh the fact that you have to pay for them. Youve already good tuition, textbooks, residence and many other things to worry about, no sense in adding another to the list.
Credit cards that charge annual fees are intended more for business people that spend lots of money and have lots of disposable income, not for students on a fixed budget. As a result, most student credit cards wont have such a fee attached to them. If they do however, consider whether you really need the benefits of that specific credit card before you sign up for it.
Spending Limits
When I started my first year of undergraduate studies, the first credit card I applied for had a credit limit of $500, and it ended up being more than I needed at the time. As I went through University and my general expenses increased, I ended up applying to have that limit raised to $1000 and adding a second credit card with a limit at $1500 this was mostly just for when I bought textbooks or paid for tuition, as I wanted to get the maximum advantage out of my credit card bonus plans, but it was a good example of me getting the most out of the cards.
Incentives
Incentives are bonuses that the companies attach to their student credit cards in order to entice more people into signing up for them. A good example of this is the “cashback” credit card, where a certain small percentage of what you spend on your credit card is refunded to you.
A credit card that was popular amongst friends of mine was the grocery credit card, which was given out by one of the chains of grocery stores where we lived. Instead of direct cashback, they offered a store credit that was twice the value of most cashback plans at the time, the practicality of which appealed to a lot of students.
Interest Rates
Ideally, this shouldnt ever be a problem, as youd be able to pay off your balance each month and thus never accrue interest on your account. Practically, however, things wont always work out that way. Therefore, interest needs to be a concern as well.
The industry average for credit card annual interest rates is somewhere in the 19-23% range, compounded monthly. However, being a student you should take advantages of the discounts available to you if you do your research, you should be able to find a card that suits your needs with a student discount interest rate in the 10-15% range.
While 10% may not seem like a whole lot, if you ever lose your job, have to quit or have some other unexpected event that affects your finances, the interest can build up very quickly. One way to partially prevent this is to purposely search for a lower interest rate first.