Medical bills have the potential to hurt your credit just like most other types of bills. Medical bills can wind up on your credit report even if you have health insurance, since insurance companies don’t always cover 100% of medical services. Medical service providers don’t drop a medical bill on your credit report right away. They typically give you a give you time to pay the bill in full or make a payment arrangement first. In...
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau recently released its 2019 Fair Debt Collection Practices Act Annual Report which discusses trends in consumer debt collection complaints. The FDCPA is the federal law that dictates what third-party debt collectors are allowed to do when they’re collecting a debt. The CFPB receives complaints from consumers about financial services businesses, including collection agencies. After receiving a complaint, the bureau opens an investigation and attempts to work out a resolution between the...
Most credit cards come with a credit limit, which is the highest outstanding balance you’re allowed to have on your credit card. Your credit limit is based on a few factors: your credit score, your income, and the credit card itself. Spending all the way up to your credit limit is known as maxing out your credit card. Even though your credit card issuer allows you to spend all the way up to your credit limit,...
As credit cards become more secure and consumers become more savvy about protecting their financial accounts, there’s another type of account that we should be on guard for - account takeover fraud. Criminals can do just as much damage by taking over your accounts as they could by having direct access to your credit card or bank account. What is Account Takeover Fraud? Account takeover fraud is a type of theft where a criminal gains access...
When you’re first starting out with credit, it’s natural to have a limited amount of information on your credit report. In the credit industry, that’s called a “thin” credit file. Unfortunately, having a thin credit file can make it difficult to get approved for many credit cards and loans. In some cases, you may not have a credit score if you have a thin credit file. You need at least one account on your credit report...
Your credit card interest rate affects how much you pay for carrying a balance on your credit card. The higher your interest rate, the more you'll pay in finance charges and the longer it will take you to pay off your full credit card balance. When you have a variable credit card rate, there's always the risk that your interest rate will go up. That's because variable rates are indirectly tied to the Federal interest rate. Whenever...
Consumer debt has been rising steadily as the economy recovered from the 2008 recession and overall consumer debt reached a record $13.5 trillion in the 4th quarter of 2018, according to the Federal Reserve Bank of New York's report on U.S. household debt and credit. Rising levels of debt may not be good for the economy and especially on consumer wallets. Here are some ways you can tell if you're adding too much debt each month. You...
Trying to pay off multiple credit cards can be complicated. You have to break up your extra money between all your balances, which means you’re not making as much progress as you would if you could just pay one debt. Consolidating your credit card debt makes it much easier to pay since you can make a single payment. The hard part can be figuring out the best way to consolidate. Here are a few options to...
Spending too much on your credit card can lead to major problems. Big credit card balances put you at risk of going into debt. They can also hurt your credit score, since 30% of your credit score is based on how much of your credit you’re using. Here are some tips for tracking your credit card spending so you’re on top of what you’re charging each month. Use a spreadsheet. If your credit card lets you...
Sure, credit cards are a great way to rack up rewards points on your regular purchases or save money on a high interest rate balance, but there are plenty of other ways you can get tremendous value from your credit card. Pay off your balance every month. One of the ways credit card issuers make money is by charging interest to cardholders who take their time paying off a balance. The bigger your balance and the...
