Tag: repair your credit

Crazy Credit Score Penalty: Amounts Owed

~ Carolyn Warren ~ 4 Comments

We all need to understand the Amounts Owed section on credit scoring, because it makes up a crazy 30% of the credit score!

The points you get under Amounts Owed is almost as much as all your positive credit history and all of your derogatory

See if you can get this credit scenario right:

Three people have identical good credit reports except for each one having one negative item. Which person will have their Amounts Owed (30% of the scoring model) docked the most?

1) Ms. Blue has a $500 Nordstrom card that went unpaid, became a charge-off, and is still has a balance of $500 on a $500 limit.

2) Ms. Green has an unpaid tax lien of $860.

3) Ms. Purple has an unpaid utility bill of $1,000.

Whose credit score got hit the hardest under the Amounts Owed section?

Take your best guess and then let me know by leaving a Comment if you got the answer right.

If you said Ms. Purple because her utility bill has the most money owed, you are wrong.

If you said Ms. Green because a tax lien is serious stuff, you are also wrong.

Ms. Blue is really feeling blue right now, because even though she owes less than her two friends, her credit score got hit the hardest for the $500 maxed out Nordstrom card. How can that be?

The Amounts Owed section applies only to revolving credit. Revolving credit does not have a fixed number of payments, and every time you make a payment, the credit is automatically renewed. Neither a tax lien nor a utility bill are revolving credit. Therefore, the amount you owe on those bills does not affect the super-important Amounts Owed section of your credit score.

When you know how the scoring system works, you are in control of your own credit score. To learn more about credit scoring, pick up a copy of Build and Protect Your Credit Like the Pros here.

Repair Your Credit Like the Pros

~ Carolyn Warren ~ 1 Comment

Due to the economic effects of the coronavirus, you can borrow money to buy a home at the lowest interest rates we’ve seen in many years. Now is the time you have more buying power, because with low rates, your payment is lower and you qualify for a better home.

Home owners are refinancing and saving tens of thousands of dollars. Many are shortening their loan terms to own their homes free-and-clear sooner.

You can be one of the people who take advantage of our current market if your credit qualifies. Credit it king. A high credit score has power and earns respect.

If your credit has issues, if your score is low, then now is the time to take control. No matter what your past has been, today starts the future.

Creating good credit and achieving a high score is in your hands. Embrace hope! Get to work repairing and building your credit like the pros. Others have done it, and you can, too.

A. Roberts wrote:
Three months ago my scores were 595 (Experian) and 606 (Equifax.)
Today my scores are 715 and 647. Thanks a million!

Available on Amazon

 

New Year’s Resolution: Build Better Credit

~ Carolyn Warren ~ 1 Comment

Is 2020 going to be your year for better credit? Will you buy a home in 2020?

If so, here is a list to get you started in the right direction.

BETTER CREDIT IN 2020

  1. I will pay all bills on the same day they come in.
  2. I will set auto-pay dates for earlier than the last date (when errors can cause an unfair late payment).
  3.  I will keep all credit card balances below 50% of the limit at all times.
  4.  I will buy only what I can afford to pay in full when the bill comes. (No more carrying balances and wasting precious money on interest.)
  5. I will not engage in so-called “retail therapy” or shopping out of emotion, which is an unhealthy financial habit.
  6. I will not take a loan with a finance company.
  7. I will not do any type of business with a “payday” type of loan.
  8. I will have credit in my own name and remove myself from piggyback credit on parents or strangers.
  9. I will remove myself from co-signed loans. I will not co-sign for anyone, ever, for any reason.
  10. I will take joy in nature, friendships, family, and God rather than in material possessions that I cannot truly afford.

Have a happy and blessed New Decade!

 

Announcement: I’m Giving Away All My Book Royalties

~ Carolyn Warren ~ 1 Comment

Very near the equator where the sun rises at 6 a.m. and sets at 6 p.m. 356 days a year, there are villages where people live in thatch and mud homes barely large enough to shelter a sleeping family. They cook by fire and farm by oxen. They gather sticks and carry 50-lb stacks on their backs to sell at market in order to survive. In this place, something wonderful has happened.

Ethiopians are telling other Ethiopians about a newfound joy, the joy of knowing Jesus in a personal way. Their lives are being changed from male-domineering-sometimes-abusive into compassion. One of these villages has been praying for a neighboring village for 10 years, and now those same villagers are finding faith in Christ.

In one village there are now 88 Believers who gather to worship. They sit on plastic jugs or on the ground under a tree. They have no protection from scorching heat or rain. They need a church. Moreover, in their culture, what makes a religion valid is a church. They are accustomed to prayers in a mosque. Socially, without a church, you are nobody. Friends have told them, “If you get a church, that is when I will come and pray with you and join your faith.”

To build a church, they need land. A prominent Ethiopian, an Influencer, has come to salvation—and he brought his family of 24 into the faith with him. This man has donated land for the purpose of a church. The problem is, there are no funds to build a church nor means to earn funds. How much does a church cost?

$7,000! That’s right, only $7K will build a church that will change the course of a village. Less than what most of us pay for our cars.

I am donating 100% of my royalty income for November and December from my two bestselling books to fund a church for these dear people. However, my current monthly is not enough. And this is where I need your help. I am asking you to hit Share on Facebook to pass on this information so that people who need the information will order a book.

Repair Your Credit Like the Pros has 412 reviews with an average of 5 stars. Everyone who needs to fix their credit can benefit. (See Amazon)

Build and Project Your Credit Like the Pros is for young people starting out, immigrants, and anyone else who wants to go from basic-to-expert and a 800+ credit score in record time.

All November and December profits brought in by these books will go to build a church in Ethiopia. It is high time that prayers sent to heaven for 10 long years get answered!

If you know someone who could use it, why not purchase a book as a gift for them, knowing you will be helping families living far, far below the poverty line?

Thank you for considering being a co-partner with me in this worthy endeavor.

Are You Getting Bad Service? Your Credit Score Might Be to Blame

~ Carolyn Warren ~ 1 Comment

The shocking results of a customer service survey showed that people with low credit scores receive more disrespect and bad service than people with high scores.

It’s not enough that people pay higher rates and higher premiums for having bad credit! Now they get treated like second class citizens, too.

I’m not making this up.

Cable One, an Internet company that services almost a million customers, fully admitted that they spend less time and resources helping their customers who have low credit scores. Here’s what CEO Thomas Might said:

We don’t turn people away,” Might said, but he added that the cable company’s support staff isn’t going to “spend 15 minutes setting up an iPhone app” for a lower-value customer.

Did you get that? If you have a poor FICO score, you are considered a “lower-value” customer.

They flag a person’s file so that the customer service reps know not to spend too much time on you.

This is just one example. Who knows how many other companies provide inferior service to people with subpar credit?

Listen, friends: You don’t have to take this garbage! Take control of your credit, starting today.

Request your free annual credit report so you can check for errors and unverifiable derogatory information. Check your balance-to-limit ratios and pay down those high balances that are docking your score. Pay all your accounts on time. Don’t ignore those statements that come in the mail, because there might be something important inside the envelope. Keep your good credit open, even if you don’t use the credit card (assuming you’re not wasting money on an annual fee).

If you’re not sure where to start, pick up a copy of Repair Your Credit Like the Pros here. Make sure you get the Expanded Edition, not a used copy of an old version of the book. That way, you’ll get all the newest info and all the letters that accompany it.

Refuse to be a victim of a low credit score! Take charge of your life and earn the respect from the financial community that you deserve.

If you’d like to read more about Cable One’s credit discrimination, see here.

Don’t Close Your Credit Cards (Here’s Why)

~ Carolyn Warren ~ Leave a comment

Warning! Closing credit cards you don’t use could lower your credit score.

Do You Have Unused Cards Like Jesse? Learn From His Mistake

How many credit cards do you own? Jesse had six credit cards: Alaska Air Visa, MasterCard, Sears, Home Depot, Paypal, and Target.

He read that only three credit accounts are needed to qualify for the best conventional loan. He also read that three credit cards are optimal for achieving a high credit score. So he took a look inside his wallet to see which cards he could get rid of without missing anything.

He quickly identified Sears, Home Depot, and Target as unnecessary. He almost always used his Visa for everything anyway, because he liked racking up the points for free flights.

So, he called customer service at the three store cards and instructed them to close the cards “at consumer’s request.”

Consequently, his credit score dropped by 15 points. Jesse was stunned and dismayed!

What happened?

Length of Credit History Accounts for 15% of Your Score

Jesse’s Sears and Target cards were five years old. His Home Depot card was four-and-a-half years old.

His Visa and Paypal cards were both less than two years old.

By closing out three long-standing cards, Jesse had lost points for longevity.

What Should You Do With Old Credit Cards You “Never” Use?

If you have a major credit card with a bank or credit union, you should use that for a small random purchase (grocery item, gasoline) once every quarter to keep it active and prevent the bank or credit union for shutting it down.

On the other hand, individual store cards remain open indefinitely (most of the time). Even if you don’t shop at Sears for three years, Sears keeps your credit line open in hopes that you might stop in and shop a sale.

There is no harm to your score in keeping old, unused cards open.

If you don’t want to handle the cards, cut them up, shred them, or burn them; but whatever you do, don’t call and instruct the creditor to shut them down! Keep those “long history” cards working for your credit score.

For more vital information about building A+ credit in the shortest amount of time, see here.

Thank you for reading this post. My aim is to help good folks achieve A credit and gain respect in the community.

 

Need a New Car? How Much Will Having a Low Credit Score Cost You?

~ Carolyn Warren ~ 2 Comments

Having a low credit score hurts your bank account in more ways than you might have known.

National Credit Care did a study and discovered that people with low credit scores paid on average $200 more per month for auto financing than those with top tier credit.

Let’s look at how much more your car costs based on the financing terms:

$200 per month x 60 months = $12,000 more for the car

$200 per month x 36 months = $7,200 more for the car

How does that make you feel to pay $12,000 more than the last customer, all because of that three-digit score called FICO score or credit score?

What could you do with that extra $7,000 to $12,000 if you weren’t shelling it out in interest to the wealthy finance company?

But that’s not all!

On top of paying more in financing, you also pay a higher insurance premium for having a low score — even if you have a perfect driving record.

That’s right! Insurance companies also check credit scores as part of their determination on how much to charge you for insurance.

And don’t get me started on credit card interest rates…! I’ll save that for another article.

Take control of your credit! Review and repair. Even if you can’t fix everything, you can raise your score and keep more of your hard-earned money in your own pocket.

I don’t know about you, but I can think of a lot things to do with $7,200 to $12,000! Grab yourself a copy of Repair Your Credit Like the Pros here and get started today.

Available in paperback and on Kindle here.

If you know someone who is thinking of buying an automobile, please pass on this information to them, because no one needs to throw away good money on higher interest rates.

Thank you!

Proof that DIY Credit Repair Works

~ Carolyn Warren ~ 4 Comments

Does credit repair work? YES

Is credit repair a scam? NO, not when you do it legally like the certified, licensed, credit repair specialists.

One of my book readers  recently sent me this, showing her success.

Previously, her credit report had a charge-off from Verizon that she did not agree with. She challenged it and won! This letter from Experian shows the results and outcome: “Deleted – This item was removed from your credit report. Please review your report for the details.”

She was so happy, because having this negative item removed from her credit will boost her score. I cannot predict how many points her score will go up, because it varies depending on the person’s overall credit report. That said, having a charge-off removed is a major success!

Congratulations, dear book reader, and thank you for giving me permission to post this as an encouragement to others that DIY credit repair works.

All the steps on how she did this are in Repair Your Credit Like the Pros: How credit attorneys and certified consultants legally delete bad credit and restore your good name. You can check it out here.

Please share this encouragement with others who either need to restore their credit and/or who want to know how the credit system works. I appreciate it so much, and they will too!