So you’ve rehabbed your credit with a credit restoration or credit repair program: you could now be charged annual fees for paying your bills on time. In response to new credit regulations that limit when banks can raise interest rates on credit card and loan bills, banks executives are doing their best to maintain profits. This translates to an increase in fees of all types, as well as new fees being introduced.
One of the most common ways banks are trying to recoup their money is by charging (or increasing the rate of) annual fees for each account. Previously, people who have gone through a credit restoration or credit repair program have been immune from such fees. So, what’s the reward for being a reliable customer who pays his or her bill on time?
Apparently, there isn’t one. People with good credit who find that they’re being charged with annual fees have the choice of either paying it or closing their account and opening another one elsewhere. Unfortunately, if you’ve had the credit card account for a while, it can potentially hurt your credit score to close it out. Suddenly, people who have had good credit all their lives may end up needing to join a credit repair program – just to avoid paying a higher annual fee.
If you think this doesn’t sound fair, you’re not alone. People are getting outraged over the fee hikes, while bank analysts are trying to figure out exactly how much they can raise annual fees while without losing a huge chunk of customers. Most people who have gone through a credit restoration program already put up with ridiculously high interest rates, and now they’re being told to swallow an additional annual fee on top of that.
So, what’s a person to do? The first step is to check your credit card statement to see if you’re one of the people getting charged! If you are – contact us and we’ll advise you on what steps to take.
In a world where almost everyone seems to have a Facebook, MySpace or Twitter account, it’s no wonder financial institutions are itching to get their hands on your personal information. But can your social media pages affect your credit? Surprisingly, the answer is yes…but that doesn’t mean it’s a bad thing.
If you’re in the process of getting credit repair help through a credit repair program, it’s possible that your social media pages can improve your chances of getting credit. If your social media pages are kept open to the public and you apply for fresh lines of credit, it’s possible (or even likely) that the financial institution considering your application will check out your pages.
When they’re snooping around your Facebook or Twitter page, they collect information and create a consumer profile about you. So, if you’re a fan of a popular credit repair program on Facebook or Tweet about getting credit repair help, the institutions will see that and take notice. This information gives them insight into your behavior patterns, and gives them a better perspective of your creditworthiness.
However, it’s not just about whom you follow on Twitter or who you’re a fan of on Facebook – they also look at whom you’re friends with and what they like. Overall, it’s more about acquiring as much usable marketing data as possible, and less about improving or harming your actual credit score.
By figuring out which groups of people are most likely to seek credit repair help or enter into a credit repair program, financial institutions are able to target their marketing messages more effectively and efficiently. This means that if you’re friends with a lot of people who have bad credit histories, your chances of being marketed to are higher than somebody who only has friends with good credit.
Most people use the Internet every day, without ever thinking of the potential risks to their identity’s security. Considering the facts about identity fraud, maybe they should. The Federal Trade Commission estimates that 1 in 6 Americans will be a victim of identity theft, this year alone! Since it’s easier to prevent identity theft than it is to get credit repair help, here are five common mistakes that you might be making:
1. Assuming your security software is keeping you safe. Criminals create new viruses all the time, and unless you constantly update your security software, it won’t keep you safe. To keep yourself from signing up for a credit repair program in the future, make sure you have the latest version of your security software.
2. Accessing your accounts through email links. If your bank sends you an email suggesting that you update your account information, manually type in the URL you want to go to – never click the link. “Phishing” scams have become wildly popular, because they’re so effective and extremely hard to detect. Save yourself the headache of having to use a credit repair program, and type the link in yourself.
3. Using the same password for all of your accounts. Unless you want to pay somebody for credit repair help, change up your passwords! Use a variety of numbers and letters, and change your passwords at least twice a year. Otherwise, you’re leaving yourself susceptible to the cyber crooks that want to max out your credit cards.
4. Downloading free software. We’re not saying that everyone who downloads free software will need credit repair help in the future, but be wary of downloading something just because it’s free. Before installing anything, do a little online research to see if anyone has had problems with the software. As many identity fraud victims can tell you, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure!
5. Shopping online without checking to see if you’re secure. Before you buy anything online, make sure the URL starts with “https”, which offers much more security than “http”.
It’s also a good idea to frequently check your credit report – just in case. If you find something unusual, find an expert and get credit restoration help immediately. The longer you ignore it, the worse it will be later on.
Where Identity fraud is a unlawful change of identity. It indicates illegal activities that use the identity of another person as a target of a crime. Lets make this clear that identity fraud can occur without identity theft.
Identity theft wont just ruin your day, it will take over your life! Trying to get your life back will not be a short process and the more you delay on correcting ID theft the more money you will be responsible for. This is a not-so-fun fact: The average time spent by victims resolving the problem is about 330 hours. Also that 15% of victims find out about the theft through proactive action taken by a business. There are many different kinds of identity theft types:
business/commercial identity theft (using another’s business name to obtain credit)
criminal identity theft (posing as another when apprehended for a crime)
financial identity theft (using another’s identity to obtain goods and services)
identity cloning (using another’s information to assume his or her identity in daily life)
medical identity theft (using another’s information to obtain medical care or drugs)
My goal is not to scare you but to make you aware of what is out there. If you ever see anything out of the ordinary ie. card you did not apply for etc., these are the following steps that should be taken:
1. Remember if you find out that your identity has been stolen remember to collect and keep a record of mail, phone calls, letters, dates and times. This is the only evidence that you will have to prove your case.
2. The next step is to contact one of the three big credit reporting agencies (listed below), they in turn will contact other two. If your bank account has been penetrated, then close your account immediately and contact a bank representative.
3. Notify your employer and cancel all direct deposit payments to your account. So not to loose any more money and also you may need it if your accounts are frozen. The initial phone call to close out the accounts will only get the process started, institutions want to see the evidence before totally closing out any bank or card.
4. Remember cover your back and make sure to send your information certified mail, so you have proof that they received it, as we know this companies can easily lose important documentation. This is were it can get tricky, first file a police report, so you can prove to creditors that there was a crime.
5. Then file a identity theft complaint form with the Federal Trade Commission so you can understand how you can, “deter, detect, and defend against identity theft”. Which will guarantee that credit agencies are not able to release your information with out your consent.
These steps will get started! If this seems like a lot it is, I am talking form experience. If you’ve suffered from identity theft and ruined your credit, call us for credit repair help.
I received a email recently from an old client the topic was regarding Credit Card increases. Due to the latest legislation that was past earlier this year, credit card companies are trying to do anything and everything they can before the new rules are implemented on February 22, 2010. As we know the average consumer should never agree with “Big Business” at face value. So what are the big credit card companies trying to pull before February 22, 2010, first they have raised the bar for who they deem as “good consumers” in-turn marginalizing the majority of credit card holders. Second, research is showing from the Pew Health Group, that these unjust credit card practices have become even more rampant. Pew research, has also reported that not one of the card companies reviewed would meet the in Credit Card Act regulations passed earlier this year. Even after being called out, they do not even want to show face! At times I wonder how do they sleep at night. Are you surprised, I am not! Will Credit Card companies change there business practices, lets be realistic not until they are forced to.
Let’s keep the following practices in mind, because they are pretty alarming:
99.7% of companies have raised interest rates on outstanding balances
95% of card companies have engaged in harmful practices towards there customers
90% of card companies are using hair trigger option that would increase rates after a card customer makes just one or two late payments. Documentation shows that some payments have gone up 29%
12.24% and 17.99% is the median annual percentage rate used by bank credit cards
Just to put this topic in prospective, people in this country pay around $15 billion a year in credit card penalties. Furthermore, 80% of American families have a credit card, and 44% of families carry a balance on their card. At times it seems like a stacked deck, and you probably say to yourself what can the average credit card user do! Throughout all my years and experience I think creating personal awareness is the most important. As we all know these companies are not our friends. Before I started a career in credit repair I was just like everybody else on the other end of the spectrum. Hopefully, the new Credit Card Act will me implemented and will have oversight. Let’s wait and see I will be optimistic. After finding these new figures, I am making it one of my New Year’s resolutions to report the unjust acts that occur. So you will not fall victim to to these practices. My goal writing this blog was not be depressing going into the New Year, but I want to gear everybody up for a fresh start in 2010.
If you ever have any questions you can email us on our homepage and we’ll answer them on our blog!
The economic downturn will not stop people from spreading holiday cheer for there friends and family this year.
According to the latest Gallup poll, Americans estimate that they will spend on Christmas gifts somewhere around $600 which has been a consistent benchmark throughout the holiday season. On the nightly news, there was one answer that kept getting repeated, “I will worry about it later”. That thought stuck in my head for days as I was looking over economic data that showed double digit unemployment growth and the data of new job creation being a little misleading. After reviewing the information I came to the answer that the data is not the driving force.
At some point people have to stop being practical and just say, “we will figure out away to get through this.” At some point that strategy is all you have, especially when so many things are out of a individuals control. When something is so far out of your control it seems like the only thing that one can do is throw their hands in the air. Instead of taking this approach we have to figure out personal strategies that help us get closer to our goals. Because if will listen to the talking heads on TV one minute they will tell you “We will see growth in the first quarter of next year” and then the next day they say, “we do not see growth for the next 18 months”. I think the only thing is we can conclude is that at some point American innovation will see us through this crisis. But during this crisis we need to be proactive! I think for most Americans the goal is to acquire the least amount of debt, so when the turn around happens, we can prosper.
But as a Credit Professional I fell obligated to give you a few tips for the holidays (I got in this business to see people prosper) :
Avoid the store cards
Stay away from store cards even though they start at zero percent rate, if you miss on payment it will shoot up exponentially.
Credit card companies will offer a return protection, which means that carrier will guarantee your purchase, usually up to 90 days after you make the purchase. Return protection policies change from company to company. The 3 month protection is the industry standard and is better than the retailers.
When shopping online remember to look for the security seals, which gives you comfort that the there is the right measures being taken to protect your data.
At some point we will see the end of this crisis. Hopefully soon than later! In the meantime lets do all we can to end our own personal financial crisis and the nation will follow.
I hope everybody has a happy holiday!
With personal debt growing, lack of GDP growth and unemployment in double digits understanding the world of credit is that much more important. If you are one of the lucky Americans that have not been impacted by growing personal debt, you know someone that has. Most people do not have time to read the fine print, but they should not have to feel victimized by Credit Card Companies. The following are six methods to protect your credit:
The importance of your Balance
It is important to not hold a revolving balance for a lengthy period of time depending on your credit history the result might be a reduction your is credit limit. Even if you are holding 20-30 percent of the overall debt of the card, which does not make you high risk, card holders with new or poor histories have a better chance of getting the rug pulled from under them.
Spreading around your debt
Let’s say your debt is over 30 percent of the limit of the card, industry professionals will recommend you to split your debt between to cards. The reason for this being so you can spread the debt and your credit, so you can be able to track your spending and credit card companies view an accumulation of credit on one card a dangerous trend. This will effect you credit history. Remember before making any actions with credit always review your credit history and talk to a professional.
Raise your score
When talking about credit always be proactive and take the necessary step to raise your credit score, so issuers cannot raise rates and lower limits. This can not be emphasised enough review your credit score and practice responsible spending habits.
Making Payments
No one wants there interest rate to change. Remember to stay at your current rate not just your current credit is important but your past creditors play a role as well. Remember to always create a payment plain so you can keep track of your payments.
keeping card active
It is important to check with the credit companies because they are able to close accounts if they are not being used. Even with a good credit history, to ensure that your account stays activity, charge a small amount and make sure you pay the balance. This is really important for people that that have emergency cards.
Never feel to proud to ask for help! This is a very complicated business and sometimes we need help from third party credit repair process experts.
So you’ve rehabbed your credit with a credit restoration or credit repair program: you could now be charged annual fees for paying your bills on time. In response to new credit regulations that limit when banks can raise interest rates on credit card and loan bills, banks executives are doing their best to maintain profits. This translates to an increase in fees of all types, as well as new fees being introduced.
Most people use the Internet every day, without ever thinking of the potential risks to their identity’s security. Considering the facts about identity fraud, maybe they should. The Federal Trade Commission estimates that 1 in 6 Americans will be a victim of identity theft, this year alone! Since it’s easier to prevent identity theft than it is to get 
At some point people have to stop being practical and just say, “we will figure out away to get through this.” At some point that strategy is all you have, especially when so many things are out of a individuals control. When something is so far out of your control it seems like the only thing that one can do is throw their hands in the air. Instead of taking this approach we have to figure out personal strategies that help us get closer to our goals. Because if will listen to the talking heads on TV one minute they will tell you “We will see growth in the first quarter of next year” and then the next day they say, “we do not see growth for the next 18 months”. I think the only thing is we can conclude is that at some point American innovation will see us through this crisis. But during this crisis we need to be proactive! I think for most Americans the goal is to acquire the least amount of debt, so when the turn around happens, we can prosper.
