Is Credit Card Debt Keeping You from Getting a Job?
Having too much credit card debt can hurt your job search. That’s because some employers routinely check credit reports during the application process. Even if you are highly qualified for a position, your bad credit could be a huge red flag that leads an employer to offer a job to someone else.
Credit Debt Relief
If you find yourself losing out on jobs because of bad credit, it’s important to put together a debt reduction plan to begin repairing credit. Some options for getting help with debt include: Read the rest of this entry »
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Loading ...Senator Mark Udall (D-Co) has introduced a bill that would greatly assist consumers in dealing with and improving their credit. The legislation, intended to amend the Fair Credit Reporting Act, would require credit bureaus to include credit scores with free annual credit reports. Under current law, consumers can request free copies of their credit reports from credit bureaus Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion annually, but must purchase their credit scores. From the standpoint of consumers, whose financial lives are highly impacted by credit scoring, this legislation is long overdue. Here are some reasons why credit scores are important along with tips for improving them.
Credit Card Debt Can Lower Your Credit Scores
Credit scores not only impact your ability to get credit, but they can also influence your chances for getting hired, renting or buying a home, and finding a good prices on insurance. Here are some things that are useful for boosting your credit scores:
- Paying down credit card debt: Too many of us carry credit card debt in excess of one third of our available credit. If your debt utilization ratio (amount of debt owed divided by your total credit lines) is more than 33%, developing a debt management plan is essential to improve your credit scores.
- Understanding and Comparing APR: The annual percentage rate (APR) for each of your credit cards displays on your monthly statements. The APR is the total of interest and other finance charges including penalty fees expressed as an annual percentage of your current balance. An APR can change from month to month, but paying down the highest APR debt first can help save on finance charges and pay off your debt faster.
- Getting Debt Help: If you have no will power or are concerned about successfully managing your credit card debt, contact non profit consumer credit counseling and debt consolidation services for help. These agencies can help evaluate your income and spending, develop a cash based budget that includes saving for emergencies, and negotiate affordable repayment terms with your creditors. If you agree to a repayment program, you are charged an administrative fee and asked to pay the agency a specified amount toward your debt each month. Your credit counseling agency deducts its fee and pays your creditors according to your repayment plan.
Credit Counseling and Your Credit: No Miracles Available
Anyone promising to “eliminate negative credit” or provide “overnight relief” is not providing legitimate debt management help. Credit counseling and debt consolidation programs cannot change negative credit entries that result from overdue accounts. Credit counseling services cannot guarantee that you’ll have good credit upon completing your plan, and they also cannot guarantee that you’ll qualify for new credit.
Debt Management: Don’t Let Temptation Sabotage Your Credit Scores
Consumers who are in debt due to impulsive spending are vulnerable to temptation after paying off credit card debt. For your financial peace of mind, please banish the phrase “just this once” from your vocabulary and don’t carry credit cards with you.
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Chris Rocks is the Regional Director of the National Credit Federation (NCF). NCF is a nationwide membership-based organization that assists consumers recovering from a financial difficulty and those who need a significant increase in their credit score.
Chris began his financial services career as a Financial Advisor helping young families with risk management and asset accumulation strategies. It was during that time that Chris realized that many of these young families also needed someone to guide their choices with regards to debt management.
He made the transition into the mortgage industry where he first worked as a loan originator and later the Vice President of a small mortgage company. As Chris came across clients who had suffered through financial challenges and saw the difficulty they had in re-entering our credit driven economy, he discovered there was a real opportunity to leverage his unique background and help others.
He can be contacted by visiting his personal site, GoodCreditLiving.com.
Francine L. Huff is the Publisher and Editorial Director of Super Savvy Publishing, LLC, which provides editorial and publishing services. She is a gifted author, freelance journalist, and motivational speaker who has entertained and motivated a variety of audiences through workshops, panels and keynote addresses. Francine is the author of The 25-Day Money Makeover for Women, which has inspired and motivated many readers to rein in poor financial habits, become good stewards over their money and work toward a debt-free life. She has appeared on a variety of TV and radio shows. Francine previously worked for the Wall Street Journal, where she was the spot news bureau chief, a news editor and a copy editor. She has interviewed a variety of financial professionals about financial issues and strives to present information about managing money in an easy-to-understand format that is accessible to people of all backgrounds and income levels.
Karen Lawson is a freelance writer with more than 15 years of experience working in mortgage banking and loan servicing. She holds BA and MA degrees in English from the University of Nevada, Reno. She enjoys writing informative articles about debt management and personal finance.
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