“Bad Credit Habits”: How To Avoid High Fees
January 20th, 2010 by adminIndividuals with problematic credit histories often suffer unfairly from high mortgage, insurance, and car loan rates. On top of that, they have difficulty getting approved for credit cards. The whole situation can get extremely frustrating. Frequently, I get emails from consumers wondering what they can do to rebuild their credit. The first thing I tell them is to get a credit card designed for people with bad credit. The second thing I tell them is written in bold: READ THE FINE PRINT.
There are only a limited number of credit cards for individuals with bad credit. At first glance, many look the same. They all help build and rebuild your credit by reporting to the major credit bureaus on a monthly basis. They all provide you with the Visa or Mastercard you need to make many purchases. And they are all necessary evils that can save you thousands of dollars in mortgage and car loan rates in the future. However, you must read the fine print before applying for one of these credit cards, as they often charge high yearly fees, set-up fees, and even monthly fees. Here, I will examine a few examples of charges current “bad credit” credit cards bury in the fine print. Of the three major cards I will examine, only one stands out as consumer-friendly.
“Bad Credit” Credit Card #1: This credit card charges a very low interest rate for an unsecured credit card. However, your first fine print glimpse reveals that there is a one time setup fee of $29. Not too bad. So far, since the next charge is a one time fee of $95. So far, we’re up to $124 in expenses. That’s got to be it, right? No. Add in another $48 for the annual fee and $6 per month in account maintenance fees. That’s brings the cost of your new credit card to $244 the first year, and $120 each additional year. This is no small change, and a card such as this should be considered only if you cannot be accepted for a better unsecured credit card for bad credit.
“Bad Credit” Credit Card #2: This credit card charges a very high interest rate for an unsecured credit card. This can’t be good. But the setup fee is only $29. Maybe this card isn’t so bad. There is that pesky monthly maintenance fee of $6.50 per month which brings the cost of this unsecured credit card to $107. Maybe we’ve found a bargain. Not quite. The annual fee is a whopping $150. Yes, $150 every year. That not only brings the initial cost up to $257, but you will also pay $228 a year just to maintain the credit card. There has to be a better offer.
“Bad Credit” Credit Card #3: This credit card is available as both a secured and unsecured credit card, based on the issuer’s review of your credit history. The interest rate is average, even competitive. Now, the fine print reveals that there is a one time setup fee. However, based on your credit, this fee can be as low as $0 or as high as $49. So far so good, especially if your credit is not that bad. But, there must be a huge annual fee. Not exactly. The annual fee for a secured credit card is only $35, and for an unsecured credit card, this fee can be as low as $39 or up to $79. So far, the cost of this card ranges from $35 to $128. Now its time for the monthly maintance fee. This one has to be huge. Or not. Its $0. That means the most you could possible be charged to obtain this credit card is $128, about half of what competing cards are charging.
Clearly, there are substantial difference between “bad credit” credit cards. Of the three offers we have examined, only one doesn’t take you to the cleaners. In fact, “bad credit” credit card #3 provides great value. All positive changes to your credit history and credit score will translate into lower loan rates, lower credit card interest rates, lower insurance rates, and ultimately, thousands of dollars in savings. The path to rebuilding credit has its costs, but in the long term, rebuilding your credit with a “bad credit” credit card is the fastest and most cost-efficient way to correct the often unfortunate circumstances that have damaged your credit in the first place.
A Paralegal Career Is Hot And In High Demand
December 16th, 2009 by adminJobs in the legal field are growing rapidly. They are expanding to accommodate different levels of skill and education. The Paralegal career has been on the rise for years also and has shown no sign of slowing down. In this field, there is always room for anyone who wishes to pursue the opportunity that is available.
There are many benefits of taking up a paralegal career. The employment opportunities are bountiful and exist everywhere regardless of whether you are in the city or in a rural area. The jobs that are out there, give people security in their careers. There is ample room to move up in this field and earn well. There are also the added benefits of being in a professional environment and the feeling of accomplishment when you have really contributed to the professional atmosphere. If you go after this highly sought after employment opportunity, you will feel a sense of pride in the work you do.
When compared to others, this field is growing at more than the average rate, even in tough economic times. Competition in a paralegal career may be fierce, but there is a lot of room out there. If you get into this line of work, there are a number of places you could find yourself working. You could be employed in a law firm where you would responsible for preparing legal documents and you will be working side by side with respected attorneys. You would also be involved in research for the attorneys and cases you work on. This is a very important part of the legal process.
There are also many ways a paralegal professional can work for government agencies also. There are all kinds of openings where government attorneys and lawyers need a legal professional to assist them. Large corporations are also hiring paralegals to work closely with their legal teams. Almost every large company needs the services that a person who has chosen a paralegal career, can easily and professionally handle.
If you choose this line of work, there are many schools out there with programs that can get you started. Some can get you in the field and working in under a year. There are specialty fields that you could train for. These specialty fields also increase your earning potential in the legal field. There are jobs for paralegals in the areas of patents. There are also immigration specialty paralegals for matters that pertain to this area. Two areas in the legal field which are really taking off are real estate paralegals and bankruptcy paralegals. Both of these are necessary to keep real estate lawyers free to do their work outside of the office and not be swamped with papers all day. Bankruptcy lawyers are also working very hard lately and need skilled and educated paralegals to handle the work load they may have been able to handle at one time.
Investment Property A Best Option to Get High Financial Returns
November 5th, 2009 by adminThere are two ways to get financial returns over the real estate property, first one is in the form of rents and another one is in the form of capital gain on the sale of property, in a particular time frame. The rental could be generated from the residential home whether you are living or not. You can also rent out the spare rooms of your house where you are currently living. It is difficult to find out the reliable and friendly tenants. So, it is usually a better option to buy a separate property, which is used only for generating a rental income.
Property investing is a very tough job in the sense that sometime only expert can be successful in this field. There are various benefits of buying an investment property such as its value rises in the long term, relatively a safe form of investment as compare to the risk worthy investment like stocks, you can be eligible to get tax deductions in the form of depreciation on the value of investment due to obsolescence, you can enhance your cash flows as well by obtaining variations in the tax, in the form of rental income. When the interest on the loan of your property investors becomes higher than the rental income earned from same property then it called negative gearing and this situation can help you to reduce the tax return. According to the survey, the investment in the real estate sector would be the best option to get high returns other than investing in gold, shares & stocks, bank deposits or debts.
After all discussing above benefits, it would be a smart way to take an advice from the qualified experts in this field such as quantity surveyors, real estate brokers, financers and in some case accountants. This makes possible to maximize the benefits you going to receive from your investment property.
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