Welcome to the January 7th, 2009 edition of Carnival of Everything Credit. Although we took a bit of a Holiday break, the carnival submissions didn’t stop coming! We had another great turn out this week. Below you can find a collection of personal finance articles from around the web.

Michael Haltman presents You Are Facing Foreclosure? Now What? posted at The Political and Financial Markets Commentator, saying, “For any number of reasons many homeowners find themselves in the position of either being late on their mortgage or about to be late. There could be a death of the breadwinner, loss of a job, an adjustable mortgage, divorce, loss of a tenant in an investment property and the list goes on.

Prior to going into the foreclosure process, there are other steps that should be considered in dealing with the lender and the mortgage they hold on your property. Some may delay the process, others will avoid it, but in the end the borrower will likely lose the house.”

kathryn presents Dealing with Financial Disaster posted at Out of Debt Christian, saying, “Instead of throwing in the towel or trying to bury your head in the sand, take the bull by the horns and get started right now on fixing the problem.”

Madeleine Begun Kane presents Banks To Taxpayers: Drop Dead! posted at Mad Kane’s Political Madness.

Tushar Mathur presents 3-6-3 Rule – An unofficial banking rule !! posted at Invest In India, saying, “The banking industry of the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s is often described as operating according to a 3-6-3 rule .The rule basically explains how bankers would give 3% interest on depositors’ accounts, lend the depositors money at 6% interest and then be playing golf at 3pm.”

Shaun Connell presents Financial Happiness: The Real Goal of Financial Planning posted at Financial Planning, saying, “Financial planning almost always revolves around the same basic theme: get a job that pays well, save as much as you can, invest as much as you can, make as much as you can, hoard as much as you can. But what if financial planning -isn’t- about the money? What if it’s about something else? This is a must-read for anyone who has any sort of financial plan.”

Deposit Accounts presents How to Choose a Money Market Account posted at Deposit Accounts.

Ben presents Best Online Savings Accounts posted at Money Smart Life.

apply4-credit presents Tips for Negotiating a Credit Card Payoff posted at Credit Card Applications Expert | Apply4-Credit.com.

Credit Card Assist presents How to Tell Your Credit Card Company You Can’t Pay posted at Credit Cards Blog | CreditCardAssist.com.

Debt Freedom Fighter presents Tips for Choosing a Debt Counselor posted at Discover Debt Freedom!.

kathryn presents The Hole in the Checkbook posted at Out of Debt Christian, saying, “The budget is made, we write down what we spend and we limit our purchases to necessities only. That usually lasts for the first couple of weeks or even a few months before the checkbook springs a leak.”

Michael Haltman presents Madoff And His Fuel For The Anti-Semetic Fire posted at The Political and Financial Markets Commentator, saying, “True to form the Madoff scandal has not only cost individuals and charitable organizations billions, but it has brought the specter of anti-semitism that normally bubbles just underneath the surface out into the light of day.”

KCLau presents Introduction of a new scheduler tax deduction (STD) posted at KCLau’s Money Tips, saying, “About LHDN introducing a new scheduler tax deduction (STD) system”

Shaun Connell presents What is Money? posted at Financial Planning, saying, “What’s the difference between money and currency? Are they the same? Why do we say we “make” money rather than “get” money? All these questions are answered — what is money?”

Matthew Paulson presents Can You Get A Vehicle Loan With Bad Credit? posted at American Consumer News.

Debt Freedom Fighter presents 3 Methods to Discover the Best Company For Credit Card Debt Relief posted at Discover Debt Freedom!.

Savings Toolbox presents Save For College With 529 Plans Through FreshmanFund posted at Savings Toolbox.

Insurance Toolbox presents How to Save Money When Buying a LIfe Insurance Policy posted at Insurance Toolbox.

Deposit Accounts presents Learning to Live on 70% of Your Income posted at The Money Blog.

Debt Free Destiny presents Bankruptcy Has Far Reaching Effects on Your Life posted at Debt Free Destiny.

Credit Card Assist presents 5 Reasons Balance Transfers Can Do More Harm Than Good posted at Credit Card Assist.

apply4-credit presents 5 Secrets the Credit Card Companies Don’t Want You to Know posted at Apply4-Credit.

Budgeting

The Investor presents Do you run a tight ship or are you just a tightwad? posted at Monevator.com, saying, “Playing devil’s advocate: Do we think we’re being financially smart when really we’re just being mean?”

Credit

Sun presents Tips To Boost Your Credit Score and Stay On the Top posted at The Sun’s Financial Diary.

FIRE Getters presents Four Quick Ways to Build A Strong Credit Rating! posted at FIRE Finance.

DJ presents Bank Cards: Should You Use Them as a Debit or Credit Card? posted at The Family Wallet.

marjorie presents FICO Reconfigures Credit Score Formula posted at Wealth Junkies, saying, “Your FICO score is the key factor in whether a company will extend you credit. There are entire books on how to improve your FICO score and complex strategies for managing it. All that means that even a small change in how the Fair Isaac Corporation (the company responsible for FICO scores) calculates your score can be a big deal. Starting at the beginning of 2009, FICO scores will be calculated based on a new formula. The FICO reconfiguration is a case of good news, bad news. For some consumers, the new formula will spit out a higher credit score. For many others, it’ll offer a lower score. But, either way, credit will be at least a little easier to get than it has been of late.”

Julie Guarnizo presents FICO 08: The New Credit Score posted at Beef Up Your Piggy.

Credit Cards

PFR presents RevolutionCard Credit Card Up To $100 Savings Offer posted at Personal Finance Reviews.

Mark Aucamp presents Check your Mortgages for free with Loancheck | Talk Money blog posted at Money Saving Tips, Consumer Finance, Expert, Advice and Help | Talk Money Blog.

Pinyo Bhulipongsanon presents College Students Can’t Handle Credit Card, Really? posted at Moolanomy.

Lazy Man and Money presents Brief Interview With a Visa Representative posted at Lazy Man and Money.

The Dough Roller presents Small Business Credit Cards | Compare, Review, and Apply Online posted at The Dough Roller, saying, “Here’s a listing of some of the most rewarding small business credit cards.”

Ryan Suenaga presents Barclay’s Closed my MasterCard posted at Uncommon Cents.

Silicon Valley Blogger presents Best Gas Credit Cards: Get Rewards For Spending on Gas posted at The Digerati Life, saying, “Thanks! Happy New Year!”

The Smarter Wallet presents Show Me The Money Cards! Evaluating Cash and Credit Cards posted at The Smarter Wallet, saying, “Thanks!”

Tom Tessin presents Get The Most Out Of Your Rewards Credit Card posted at FCB Blog, saying, “How to get the most out of your rewards credit card.”

Tristan presents FSB States Credit Card Interest Rates Must Not Rise posted at Debt Consolidation Quote, saying, “Federation of Small Business states credit card interest rates must not rise, as this will put pressure on UK businesses and consumers. A look at how prices have been falling recently and how the real worry should be the weak pound, not expensive credit cards.”

Sam presents Credit Card Debt. Get Out of Debt and Take Back Your Power $$$$ posted at Surfer Sam and Friends, saying, “Credit Card Debt
Get Out of Debt and Take Back Your Power
If you feel like your credit card payments have you backed up against a wall, there are steps to help you manage your money. Money management is the key to escaping from debt. No matter how irregular your income is, or how broke you are, it is better to face your money troubles squarely than to deny the problem. Take heart. In this country, no one is sent to prison for not paying credit card debt.

No matter how easy it is to get credit, borrowing should not be considered a way of life. Changing the way you spend money is the first step out of debt despair. In other words, you bring in a certain amount of money each month, and when it’s gone, it’s gone. Accepting that reality is the key to living a happier, wealthier life.
Step 1 The List
If you are swamped in debt, borrowing more money is not the best step to take. Before you do anything else, list your financial obligations so that you know where you stand. Your list should include lender’s name, balance owed, rate of interest, late payment charges included in the balance and the minimum payment. Total up the dollars owed and all the minimum monthly payments.

How much debt is too much? If your total monthly payments, including your home mortgage payment, exceed 36% of your monthly income, you’re carrying too much debt. Credit card companies are getting rich off of you.
Step 2. The Baseline Budget
The next step is to prepare a baseline budget. This is a simple list of the money you need every month to meet your basic living expenses. Your baseline budget will include rent, utilities, car insurance, housing expenses like mortgage payment, property tax and insurance, costs to get to work, medicine, and basic food. The baseline budget total tells you how much money you need to live without any luxuries. It doesn’t include pizza, fancy food, dining out, clothing, impulse purchases, entertainment, vacations or cable TV. None of these things fit into a debt-reduction budget. Your lifestyle must be revised to include brown-bag lunches and value-priced groceries.

The purpose of the baseline budget is to remind you what you need to get by and how much of your take-home pay can be used for paying off your debt. Put your baseline budget into practice right away. The baseline budget is your first brave step to taking charge of your money.
Step 3 The Paydown”

Raj Patel presents Step 1: Quit Spending On Credit Cards posted at DebtGoal.

David Weliver presents The Best Credit Card Offers for Young People (Update) posted at Money Under 30, saying, “My best credit cards for twenty-somethings, updated for 2009 and the tight credit market we currently face.”

Debt

Michael Bass presents What is a Junk Debt Buyer? posted at Debt Prison, saying, “Often, original creditors are selling debts that were absolved due to bankruptcy or debt settlement. And collection agencies also sell debts in bulk to other collecting companies. Why would anyone buy debt that legally can’t be collected on?”

Mr Credit Card presents What To Do When You Can?t Afford Your Car Payment posted at Ask Mr Credit Card.

Doug Ragan presents How YOU Can Help Save The Economy posted at I’m A Pundit Too, saying, “Who’s going to save us from our failing economy? Do you really think that Congress can save both big business and you at the same time? It is obvious to everyone that the economy is in big time trouble. But what everyone doesn’t understand is how to put it back together. There is much debate about fixing the economy, bank bailouts (thanks Paulson), auto manufacturer bailouts (thanks Bush), freezing foreclosures (thanks Fannie), expansion of government programs that take jobs from the private sector(thanks Obama), the list goes on. One of the interesting things about this very long list is that it mostly seems to be about what the government can do to fix the economy, instead of what the individual can do. The government has a habit of trying to tell business what to do, then trying to prop business up to keep it from failing. This has created problems that won’t be fixed by more of the same. If you really want to talk about “Change” then you need to talk about what individuals can do to put the US economy back on track instead of what the government is going to attempt to do.”

Tristan presents Maximise The Benefit Of A Debt Consolidation Loan posted at Debt Consolidation Quote, saying, “How do you benefit from a debt consolidation loan if you don’t pay off the debts any quicker? Simply put you don’t, you have to be discplined and use the money saved on interest to pay off the debt quicker, that way you maximise the effects of using a cheaper interest rate.”

Finance

Bill Spohnholtz presents Best Tax Savings Tip For A Down Market posted at Learn The Stock Market And How to Trade.

Save Money presents Dave Ramsey’s Baby Steps: My Take posted at How I Save Money.net.

Brian McKay presents Investing the ?Rainy Day Fund? posted at MonitorBankRates.com, saying, “Having cash on hand to get through any ruff period in life is essential to any financial plan.

Financial analysts recommend having three to six month’s of living expenses on hand to get through any emergency,”

That concludes this edition. Submit your blog article to the next edition of carnival of everything credit using our carnival submission form.

(No Ratings Yet)

 Loading ...