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Friday, March 27, 2009

Student Credit Cards, How May Them Help Your Kids With Academic Expenses

If you have kids attending college, you probably know better than anyone how often do young people run out of money before the ending of the month or how difficult is for them to get along with a monthly budget when they have so many things to pay month by month. There are those well known academic expenses including tuition, fees, books and library supplies. Then of course they have to eat and get dressed. Ok, so far we could estimate a monthly amount and help them to develop a strategy on how to maintain within that budget.Then we can start counting those unexpected expenses like cars breaking down, medical emergencies or any other kind or unexpected situation in which your kids have to spend money out of what they have programmed. Talking With Your Kids About Credit ScoreStudent credit cards are offered by creditors to college students to help them solve these kind of situations. Of course credit cards are what they are, just credit cards, even these ones that have been specially designed for students. If your kids are already in college, they would probably have already been offered to apply for a student credit card. If they don't have their own, or an extension of yours, a student credit card may be a good option for your kids to start a good credit score. Assuming a responsibility on their expenses, paying bills on time and developing sense to manage a certain amount of credit will help your kids acquire a good financial behavior and they will be rewarded with a good credit record. Knowing this may give them an idea on which way to take in the future. A good credit score is the main door to any kind of loan they would like to obtain, like car loans, mortgage loans, or personal loans. Even if they are thinking about applying for a private student loan in the near future, having already any good credit record like maintaining a student credit card will make easier their way into approval. Some Advantages Of Student Credit CardsThey are easier to obtain than most of credit kinds for students. You may apply even if you don't have a job. Student credit cards offer the possibility to face some of the academic related expenses, such as books. Same as any credit card, they can be used to do online shopping, paying your purchases in several monthly payments and they also apply for many rewards and benefits, depending on the credit company. Carrying a credit card is always safer than carrying cash. Facing a theft or an eventual lose, just calling the credit company will maintain your account safe. You may have to be responsible for the first $100, but this will depend on the situation. They also offer a good source of fast money in case of an emergency. Some Disadvantages Of Student Credit CardsAs we said, a student credit card is still a credit card, and credit companies tend to offer high amounts of credit to students, even if they don't have a job. As they can be used as well as regular cards, it's difficult sometimes to refrain the desires of buying everything. Having access to a high amount of money, may be a bad thing if you don't develop a good financial behavior. If you are not careful with your student credit card, you may find yourself into debt sooner than you can imagine. Paying your bills out of term is another way to get into debt. Even when student credit cards don't have annual fees, interest rates and penalties due to late payment may be slightly high. A Few Tips On How To Be A Good Credit Card HolderUse your credit card wisely, try to maintain your expenses within an amount you know you will want to pay. Don't do late payments in order to avoid penalties and high interests. Try to keep a record of your credit card purchases, even those ones that are not related with academic expenses. This will help you to control your debt, and will avoid paying for undone purchases. About the author:Lara Sawyer is a professional loan advisor who helps people to secure Personal Consolidation and Online Bad Credit Loans. Visit http://www.fastguaranteedloans.com/

Sunday, March 22, 2009

Credit Card Use Tips And Suggestions

A credit card is an amazing financial product that can provide you with a lot of benefits if you use it properly. Unfortunately if used wrongly it can also produce much harm and damages. As you can see, as any other financial product, these are only an instrument for achieving certain goals. It is the actual use that you give to that instrument what will eventually produce benefits or damages to your credit and financial life. Following are some tips on how to use them smartly to avoid the drawbacks while taking advantage of the benefits they provide. Shop Around Before Signing AnythingDo not go for the first offer you receive. Actually do not apply for any credit card you are offered. Instead, shop for one that suits your needs and desires. Check the interest rates, the fees, the credit limits and other variables you are interested in before agreeing on any product. Keep Your Balance Within Reasonable LevelsNever max out your accounts, it is important to follow this tip because by ignoring it you may end up buried deep in debt due to the accumulating interests. You may wonder what a reasonable level is. Anything below 60% of the credit limit is optimum. Anything reaching the 80% becomes risky and requires immediate attention. Control Your PurchasesYou should keep all the receipts for two reasons: It will help you compare the balance with the purchases to make sure that no unauthorized transactions are registered and it will also help you objectively analyze your purchasing behavior to see if you overspend or exceed the number and quality of purchases that you planned to make. Protect Your Personal InfoYour personal information should be sacred. Unfortunately, there are many unscrupulous people out there preying on those who need financing and apply for or use these products. Therefore, you should try to keep your personal information from being exposed and thus, you should avoid sharing your credit card number and code with merchants whose security levels you have not confirmed. Try Not To Pay Only The Minimum PaymentThis would lead you to debt accumulation and conspire against financial and credit health. Instead, try always to pay the whole balance and if you are forced to pay less than that, make sure that you pay higher sums whenever possible. Also, if you see that you are currently not being able to afford the payments, immediately reduce your spending. If you cannot increase the amounts you destine to reduce debt, this is the only other way to keep it at bay. Do Not Keep Too Many Credit CardsIt is best if you do not keep too many open accounts because this jeopardizes your finances adding available credit to your credit report and if the lines of credit are maxed out, the situation will be even worse. A reasonable number of cards will depend on your income but for average earnings two credit cards are more than enough. However, remember not to close accounts altogether because this can damage your credit too. Try to keep old accounts (they provide you with a longer credit history) and close only one account at a time (every 6 months) if you have too many of them.
About the author:Amanda Hash is an expert financial consultant who specializes in helping people to recover their credit and get approved for home loans, car loans, personal unsecured loans, unsecured credit cards, refinance home loans, consolidation loans, student loans and other financial products. If you want to learn more on how to get approved for Private Consolidation and Unsecured Debt Loans just visit http://www.yourloanservices.com/ Article Source: http://www.Free-Articles-Zone.com

Wednesday, March 18, 2009

Become Debt Free Fast - Consolidating And Eliminating Credit Card Debt

Eliminating credit card debt is rather complicated. You should start right away though as it may take a long time. By following this guide you will be able to stay on the right track and avoid making common financial mistakes that may make matters even worse. Secured Consolidation LoansGetting a debt consolidation loan is the smartest way to go. Usually a debt consolidation loan requires you to offer some kind of collateral. This greatly reduces the risk involved for the lender and thus helps you getting lower interests and as a rule, considerable better conditions for the loan. On the other side, the use of collateral carries the risk of repossession which is a legal action that the lender can exercise against the property in order to get his money if you fail to meet the monthly payments. Should you apply for a consolidation loan, bare in mind that you must avoid getting into more debt. This may be difficult as you may feel suddenly relieved by the fact that you now have only one monthly payment. Failing to realize that an increase in the number of outstanding loans will worsen your financial situation will inevitably lead you to bankruptcy and reduce your credit to nothing. Sometimes you can put your car as collateral if there are not large sums of money involved or if your car has a high value. Otherwise if you are considering using your house as collateral, a home loan or a home equity loan are the smartest options. Unsecured Consolidation LoansIf you can’t offer any collateral, it will be very difficult to obtain a debt consolidation loan. Unsecured consolidation loans are very rare; there is much risk involved for the lender in this kind of loans and thus the interest rates will be too high, the amount of money much lower and the loan length too. However, don’t despair; there are ways you can improve your credit and get a loan at better conditions. You should start by reducing the amount of money you loose by paying extremely high interest rates. Many people pay thousands of dollars on interests all over the year and this could be easily avoided by searching for the right source of finance instead of accepting any credit card or loan offer that falls to your hands. Transfer Credit Card DebtIf you can get a 0% rate credit card, do so and transfer as much credit card debt as you can. You should start with the highest interest card in order to substantially reduce the amount of money spent on cards interest. Do not be at ease paying the minimum sum required, you should make sacrifices and try to pay as much as possible. Never miss a payment and avoid paying late. By this time you should have learned the lesson. You should refrain from getting into more debt once you get some relief by following this advice. Always build a budget and stick to it. And you should never rush in; always make conscious decisions whenever your financial health is involved.
About the author:Melissa Kellett is an expert loan consultant who can help you get approved for Bad Credit Private Loans and Bad Credit Personal Unsecured Loans. Just visit http://www.speedybadcreditloans.com/ where you'll find all the information you need.Article Source: http://www.Free-Articles-Zone.com

Sunday, March 15, 2009

Debt Settlement Services and Their Advantages

Unmanaged debt is one of the most common problems faced by a large number of people today.
If you are facing the problems of multiple debts then seeking help of experts in debt settlement services can be a wise option. Having debt problems is very stressful, and when you are surrounded with pending bills and late payments, it gets real hard find peace. Even a night of sleep seems to be a distant dream then. In such a circumstance, a professional debt settlement company can get you out of your debt problems by employing various debt management techniques in play.
There are numerous debt management companies offering debt settlement services online and you can find a reliable company by making some online research. The debt settlement company offers an effective debt management program depending on your financial ability and the amount of your debts. They will also contact your creditors to make an agreement that will allow you to make smaller monthly payments for your debts.
There are many benefits of getting Debt settlement services , and some of them are discussed below:
- By getting debt settlement services from a reputed debt management company, you will be able to reduce a large portion of the amount of your debts. Your debt settlement company will negotiate with your creditors and explain them your inabilities in making your repayment in time.
- With debt settlement services, you will also get an elongated time period to make your repayment. By making small monthly installments for a longer period, you can easily get rid of your debt problems without much hassle.
- As your debt settlement attorney has negotiated with your creditors, you will have to make a lower repayment amount compared to your initial repayments.
- When you get debt settlement services, your management company will take the responsibilities of your credit score. Your attorney will help you to improve your credit rating thereby allowing you to get financial assistance in the future. Moreover, you are not required to pay extra dues or late payment fees when you receive debt settlement services.
About The Author: Myself Webmaster of http://www.settlementcorporation.com a source of debt settlement services that provide Debt settlement programs. A Debt settlement company that specializes in helping people mired in debts.
Related Articles - Debt settlement, Debt settlement company, Debt settlement services,

Friday, March 13, 2009

Manage Debtors And Creditors To Improve Liquidity


Sales turnover and net profits may follow a rollercoaster pattern familiar to most business but when the cash flow dries up the game is over. Urgent attention to the management of working capital can provide every business with the cash resources to exploit its potential Most businesses will experience periods of lower sales and times when losses may be incurred as expenses exceed sales income. The situation is recoverable by producing higher sales and reducing costs and expenses. A business that runs out of cash resources is dead in the water. Debtors and sales income management The objective is to obtain payment from customers as fast as possible improving cash flow and minimising the risk of bad debts and not being paid at all. Payment terms offered to customers should be clearly stated and fixed as standard accounting figures according to the amount of funding the business is prepared to offer its clients. Because that is exactly what credit terms to customers is, free cash funding in exchange for eventual sales income. Consideration should be given to using a cash discount system to encourage sales invoices to be paid faster. In some businesses it would be appropriate to obtain up front deposits and scheduled payments. Review this practise to obtain a greater proportion of payments faster to improve liquidity. New customers should be subjected to a strict credit check. All new customers where credit check details are not available should be invoiced by the accounting function on a pro forma basis. Any businesses who fail to meet the highest credit score required should remain on a pro forma invoice basis. The credit control function needs consideration from the first step of issuing customers with a sales invoice, producing customer statements of the debt owed and a set procedure of credit control letters and telephone follow ups that actually achieve the end result of getting the cash in. An essential process in the credit control procedure would be to ensure the accountant or bookkeeper always issues sales invoices and customer statements promptly. Incorporate into the terms of trade a set of rules to invoke interest payments for late payment and late payment debt recovery costs. In the UK the Late Payment of Commercial Debts (Interest) Act 1998 sets out the statutory rights of business to claim interest and costs. Consider the possibility of factoring sales invoices due from debtors either by selling the sales invoices to a third party or raising cash on the value of those invoices pending payment. Factoring has the disadvantage of often not being cheap but does have the advantage of generating a regular stream of cash. Bad debts have a double impact on any business and all possible steps should be taken to reduce the risk. A bad debt not only uses valuable resources in chasing the debt with the negative impact on cash flow and liquidity but also is a straight loss to the net profit and a strong indicator that the accounting function is failing the business. Creditors and expenditure management The objective is to extend the time allowed for payment of expenses the business incurs. Consider the frequency of all payments made to suppliers. Small business have alternative payment terms available for the payment of taxes. In the UK value added tax can be paid quarterly or monthly, vat cash accounting can ease the tax liability due in critical periods and paye payments can be paid quarterly rather than monthly for smaller businesses. Every opportunity should be considered to improve liquidity and that would include the frequency which employee salaries and wages are paid. A sensitive area since it involves the most important people to the business success but adopting a payment period to coincide with the receipt of cash from customers may in some circumstances balance liquidity. General creditors are a major area to be addressed in terms of both the amount of credit received from suppliers and the time required to pay those creditor accounts. Larger orders on extended payments terms creates a risk area should the goods not be used but can greatly assist cash flow as the business is effectively borrowing free cash from its suppliers. Stock levels are crucial to financial management of the creditor total. High stock levels use valuable working capital which is offset in part by the level of creditors. Higher levels of stock financed by free credit from creditors lowers the cash flow requirements on the other parts of the business.

About The Author
Terry Cartwright designs UK Accounting Software at http://www.diyaccounting.co.uk/ on excel spreadsheets providing complete Bookkeeping solutions http://www.diyaccounting.co.uk/smallbusinessaccounting.htm for small to medium sized businesses

Personal loans: The best financial helpers for all


Most of the people in India belong to the segment of middle class. Without depending on others, they can survive with their life and can satisfy the basic needs of their life. But, they can not effort money for the unexpected and luxurious needs. In these cases, they should borrow money from their colleagues or friends or relatives or money lenders. There is no guarantee of satisfying their needs with these sources. Money lenders with take advantage of the borrower's financial situation and offer money at a very high interest rate. To avoid all these inconveniences to the people in India, now number of public and private sector banks are offering personal loans for all kinds of people. One can avail these loans to face all kinds of unexpected and emergency personal financial problems. Many types of loans come under the category of personal loans like car, education, wedding, home, two wheeler and travel. Nowadays, getting personal loans in India has become very easy and fast. Because, most of the banks have extended their services and liberated the rigid rules of their banking system. Moreover, they are competing with each other to provide more facilities like low interest rates, flexible repayment modes, online services and opened customer care centers to retain customers. The major benefit of going for these loans is no need to mention the specific reason of taking loan. You can spend that money to satisfy any type of your personal need. Compare to the other loans, these loans are offering more benefits to the borrowers like low interest rates, large amount of loan money and easy payment modes like monthly, quarterly and yearly. There are mainly two types of personal loans that are offered like secured and unsecured. Some of the banks sanction personal loans only on the guarantee of some property that should be equal to the loan amount. These are called as secured personal loans. If the borrower, who has taken secured loan from any bank is unable to repay the loan amount in time, the bank will take the secured property to compensate the loan amount. Most of the people, only go for these loans when they need a large amount of loan. These loans can also be availed even by a person who has a bad credit history.While, on the other hand, the borrower, who takes unsecured loans need not to submit any of his property documents to the bank. The borrowers of these loans should submit reliable documents. The lenders sanction these loans within a short time. Unlike the business loans interest rates, the personal loans are offered at very reasonable and low interest rates. They help you in many ways of your personal life like to celebrate the wedding of children grandly, to pay fee for higher education, pay off your previous debts, to buy a two-wheeler and to renovate home etc. Moreover, you can enjoy long holiday trips along with your family members without facing any financial problems.

About the author:For more information about unsecured loans and loans against property, please visit our site http://www.paisawaisa.com/.

American Express credit cards : Gaining huge popularity in India


A credit card is a sleek and compact sized plastic made financial tool with a magnetic black strip that contains data. This is a kind of financial instrument that allows the users to make financial transaction without carrying money. These are issued by the commercial banks, public banks and retail outlets to make hassles-free financial transactions. These light-weighted and compact-sized financial tools permit the customers to purchase goods without carrying a single penny. There are numerous banks available in the market that provide such financial instruments with easy terms and conditions, such as American Express bank, ICICI bank, HDFC bank, State Bank of India and Punjab National Bank.In the queue of such financial instrument issuers, one of the most trustful and profitable providers is the American Express. It is the world's most famous private bank and satisfying millions of people with customer-friendly services. The American Express credit cards are acceptable across the globe because its branches are available in the whole world. There are two largest credit card companies, named as Visa and Mastercard. Both were originally formed by consortia of banks. American Express is both a credit card provider and a bank. There are many types of credit cards available in the Indian market that offer many exciting schemes to the people. 0% balance transfer, cash back, 0% purchase, long term balance transfer, business, low score, loyalty reward and sport credit cards are some of the famous financial tools in the present market.ICICI bank is also a leading provider of such financial instruments in India. The cards offered by this bank benefited you to experience an exciting way of shopping and offer you the flexibility to manage your finances. ICICI bank credit cards provide a boast of amazing offers and benefits like, reward programs, low interest rates, lifetime free service and one of the most important features is that huge credit limit and cash withdrawal limit. The bank offers several types of such cards to suit the different needs and requirements of people.Among all the financial organizations and banks that are offering the credit card services today, those from American Express appear as the winner. The services offered by the American Express bank guarantee to lubricate the process of expense of daily and timely financial obligations with ease. In the other words, they are offering the most luxurious and convenient services in India. Each and every credit card of the American Express is specially specially designed to meet the needs of the users.One of the major advantages of such financial tools is that the cardholders can purchase the products without carrying cash in their pockets. The people can use the American Express credit cards throughout the world and that too with user-friendly and flexible process of transactions.
About the author:For more to know on ICICI bank credit cards and American Express Credit Cards Plz visit http://www.paisawaisa.com