Category Archives: Credit Repair
Your Vantage 4.0 Credit Score
Your credit score is only one of many reminders that working people can rarely catch a break in life, even as the rich get richer for doing absolutely nothing. How many times have you been turned down for loans simply because you did not have enough credit history? It didn’t matter that you always… Read More »
Credit Utilization Blues
Credit utilization, which is how much of your available credit you have used, is one of the factors in your credit score. It is also known as debt to credit ratio, because credit reporting bureaus do not measure it purely by the face value of your outstanding credit card balances. Instead, they look at… Read More »
Why So Many Credit Checks?
Several stories in Greek mythology warn of looking too soon at the prize you are about to obtain. In the myth of Orpheus and Eurydice, Orpheus travels to the Underworld to rescue his wife Eurydice and bring her back to the world of the living. Hades agrees to release Eurydice to go back to… Read More »
What’s So Great About an Awesome Credit Score?
If it is any consolation, people whose financial situation is beyond your wildest dreams probably spend as much time wishing they had more money as you do. Money does not buy freedom from stress about money. “Enough” is in the eye of the beholder, and realizing this is the first step to gratitude and… Read More »
What If Student Loan Policy Changes Have Tanked Your Credit Score?
The COVID-19 pandemic brought plenty of uncertainty, but for student loan borrowers, the pause of student loan payments was a source of temporary relief. If you borrowed money to attend college, then as soon as the guests had left your graduation party, the worries about repaying your student loans set in. Even though student… Read More »
Is Positive Rent Reporting Too Good to Be True?
The credit reporting bureaus must have missed the memo about “positive vibes only.” If all the other soccer moms have used their last ounce of strength to keep a smile on their faces for the duration of soccer practice, they cannot expect to get any relief when they log onto the Zoom meeting for… Read More »
Credit Limit Increases
It is an unpleasant truth that the lending of money ultimately benefits lenders more than it benefits borrowers. Lenders have less to lose when they choose not to lend than borrowers do when they choose not to borrow. If a lender doesn’t lend, they keep the principal of the non-loan and only lose out… Read More »
The Tyranny of Depending on Your Parents Financially
You don’t dare complain about it out loud, because people will judge you. These days, everyone is quick to judge you just for existing, no matter who you are. This is weighing heavily on you, though. You don’t earn enough money to make ends meet, so your parents float you a few hundred dollars… Read More »
Bouncing Back After a Late Payment on Your Credit Report
If you can still convince yourself and others that your financial hardships are temporary, count your blessings. If you paid one of your bills late last month but paid it on time this month, you are in a better financial position than most. Despite this, if you genuinely felt financially stable until an unexpected… Read More »
Will the Resumption of Student Loan Payments Tank Your Finances?
If asked to describe the effect that the COVID-19 pandemic had on their finances, most people would not use the word “relief.” For the wealthiest and most educated people in society, the pandemic gave us a glimpse of how to live modestly and avoid lifestyle creep. We went for walks and cooked from scratch… Read More »