Florida woman wins suit against Equifax.

It's hard to credit, but someone finally was able to win a suit against credit tyrant Equifax.

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Battle of the A.P.R.'s

Which rate is better?

The chart looks at two Annual Percentage Rates [A.P.R.]. To the left, is the Promotional A.P.R. and to the right, the Standard A.P.R., for a credit card over an eight month period of time.Annual Percentage Rate [A.P.R.]

An A.P.R. is the amount interest slapped on a loan over a period of time.

There are Variable A.P.R.'s and Fixed A.P.R.s'.

Variable A.P.R. is movable and the movement is usually to a higher rate.

Fixed A.P.R.'s are not movable. They will not go up.

How the A.P.R. is calculated for any credit card is very confusing. I've studied credit card terms and conditions for many hours, but I have never been able to figure it out on my own.

Instead of trying to figure out how the A.P.R. is input and calculated, I advise my clients to look at the outcome.

For example if you have a credit card balance of $3,000 at 16.24%, and you are paying the minimum, you will pay over $5,000 in interest alone and over $8,000 total. That is a very bad outcome.

Short-term Promotional Annual Percentage Offer

A short-term promotional offer is a variable rate trick used by credit card companies to lure new customers and to keep existing customers. The credit card company will often off a low interest rate for a specified period of time (generally between 3 - 12 months).

If you charged $3,000 on your credit card at a rate of 2.99% you would only pay $371 in interest for a total payment of $3,371. A much better outcome.

If your monthly minimum payments are high, a short-term promotional rate can help you save money over the short-term. But if your minimum payments are low, there's not much benefit in having a short term promotional rate.

Standard A.P.R.

Standard A.P.R. the normal rate on your credit card. Once your promotional rate ends, your Standard A.P.R. will be slapped onto your account. A high (13% and up) standard A.P.R. will skyrocket your debt and minimum monthly payment.

You can lower your standard rate after the promotional rate expires, but it will be very difficult.

My opinion

If you credit card company is offering you only a short-term A.P.R. adjustment, then you should look to do a balance transfer to a lower rate card. Many cards will allow you to do a balance transfer to a their product.

As soon as you get a promotional rate offer, start shopping around like me on Christmas Eve. Check all of the offers that you get in the mail for a lower fixed rate. You'll be surprised at how many great credit card offers are waiting for you.

What do you think? Share your comment's regarding any post you see here. Or if you have specific debt related or media inquires contact jcarltonford@yahoo.com

A bad scam that looks honest

I hate scams

I never had an account with Wachovia Bank, but I received an important email notice from Wachovia just before Thanksgiving 2007.

I found it it funny that since I don't Bank with Wachovia, that I would get an email from them.

Are you thinking what I'm thinking? "Yep, it's a scam".

I love to dissect the scams that target me, so I can show you what to look in a scam. So I numbered the things that scream scam in this email (click image above for a full view) . I'll explain each scam point one by one.

1. Importance

I've got to hand it to them for using the headline of "Important Notice". That statement caught my attention. The average person (like me) only gives an email five seconds attention. After that, they ignore the email until they delete it. Only the most important emails get peoples attention. Emails from loved ones, friends and important business matters.

This scam attempts to use a valid business reason to establish it's importance. If I was a Wachovia Customer, I might think this email could be legit.

2. Credibility

Next they use the Wachovia logo to establish credibility. I actually had to go to the Wachovia site and check and yep, it's the real thing. But here's the catch, anyone can copy a logo from the web. Nonetheless, it's a dirty trick to use the Wachovia logo to build credibility.

3. Valid business reason

Of course, a scam artist would say to themselves "What is a good reason for people to click on a link"? This is where the reason has to be a valid one. The scam artist claims that Wachovia is switching to "new transaction security standards".

4. They "kindly ask"

Awe, isn't that nice? They kindly ask if you will update your information. The scam artist thinks that by asking you nicely, you will give up your banking information so that they can bleed your account dry.

What do you do when you get an email like this?

When in doubt, always call the number on your bank statements that your bank mails you, to confirm any information that you are doubtful of. Or you can call the 800 number on the back of your ATM card.

Never share your personal information in an email.

Mark the email as spam. Marking an email as spam tells your email service to shut the scam down. You'll be helping yourself and others.

Debt collector's to pay consumers $92,903 for debt collection

The New Mexico U.S. District Court found that Marshall and Ziolkowski abused the plaintiffs by: * calling Stephanie McMichael and telling her that her “mom might have to go to jail”; * calling Bill McMichael derogatory names and using profanity to intimidate him; * threatening to have Kimberly McMichael arrested;

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Question 3 0f 5 to help you get out of debt

"When can you get out of debt?"

Taylor, a client of mine, is a nurse who works the late shift at a hospital.

Her Ex-husband, Neil, was fast and loose with their joint credit cards, stacking up debt while sleeping around with another woman. Taylor found out about Niel cheating and filed for divorce.

Taylor's divorce had did major damage to her credit score. When her husband, Neil left he never mentioned the outstanding credit card balance on the joint account, and he had the bills sent to him, so Taylor wouldn't find out how he used the credit card. Neil, never paid his bills on time.

Taylor was stuck with a credit card with super high late fee's for a bill that she knew nothing about for a long time.

My client's and I cover a lot of personal subject's when we are on hold before negotiations.

While waiting on hold, I did a credit check up on Taylor by asking some questions and I found the problem. Taylor's problem was time. Taylor didn't have any time left. It took so long for financing that the owners of the home were talking to other buyers. Plus The Realtor wasn't returning Taylor's calls and she was suffering from Universal Default .

I explained Universal Default to Taylor and she asked me, "so that means that since I missed a few payment's my credit looks sick to lenders. I see, to the banks it seems like I've got signs of a credit flu, and they don't want to come near me, because they [the banks] don't want to catch my credit flu? "

I laughed for about a minute and then replied "exactly". I loved her example!

So then keeping Taylor's credit flu example in mind, I said, "as you know a flu can get better or worse depending on what you do". Getting over a flu is a process that takes time. If we could all snap our fingers and be flu-free, there'd be no need for painful flu shots. But we both know that fighting a flu takes time.

So Taylor asked me,

• "So when should I expect to get out of debt" and
  
• "What can I do to cure my debt flu"?

I answered , "pretend that someone comes into your hospital with the flu and they say they want to be cured 'immediately'. What would you say"

Taylor said, "I would tell them to start by getting plenty of rest and fluids and give it a few days. And that's all I could suggest, because there wouldn't be much else I could tell them"

I responded, "when you have a credit flu, time is the only real cure". I also told her "you will start to get out of debt as soon as you make the commitment to learning the credit and debt process and take action.

But in the meantime, to get her credit score in better health and her interest rates lowered, I suggested that Taylor do the following:

1. Make all payments on time for at least six months
2. Don't apply for any credit for 6 months
3. Don't close any open accounts

I told her that if she took my advice she would be cured of her credit flu in about six months.

What do you think? Share your comment's regarding any post you see here. Or if you have specific debt related or media inquires contact jcarltonford@yahoo.com




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What I Like About Ron Paul

Have you Heard of Congressman Ron Paul?

If not, you should know that this is a man who understands Americas problem with debt, and he knows we as Americans can do something about it.

Ron Paul is a doctor who has delivered over 4,000 babies, but more importantly, Ron Paul walks it like he talks it.

Congressman Paul states on his website," Whether a tax cut reduces a single mother’s payroll taxes by $40 a month or allows a business owner to save thousands in capital gains taxes and hire more employees, that tax cut is a good thing. Lower taxes allow more spending, saving, and investing which helps the economy — that means all of us." I agree.

Ron Paul also has a problem with Fractional Reserve Banking, which I feel needs some serious reform, if America is going to continue to be a world leader financially.

More importantly, if we as American's continue to allow bankrupt bank policies to finance our economy, then we are going to go bankrupt as a country.

Ron Paul outlines clear opinions on some issues that have been dividing America. America's strength is unity.

I'm not going to ask you to vote for Ron Paul (or any other candidate), but I am going to ask you to watch the video below.

2 of 5 Questions To Help You Get Out Of Debt

What Is Your Debt Vs. Income Ratio?

After you helped me understand the reason's for your debt, I would then ask you "what is your debt vs. income ratio".

I would ask your debt vs. income ratio to plan your strategy for victory in your war on debt .

In Glenda's case, her total debt was only around $1,800. She owned her home and car, so that wasn't a problem financially. The problem was that the majority of Glenda's debt was from interest was being stacked up like sand bags on the shore.

Glenda's was making $1,980 per month so a $50 payment wasn't hurting her finances in the short term. But in the long term, her interest rate of 29.99% was defeating her dreams for early retirement.

I asked my self, "what can I do to help her get out of debt"? In Glenda's case, I recommended that she do a balance transfer to a card with a lower interest rate. The problem was Glenda was once bitten by a credit card and now twice shy, so she declined that offer.

Plus, honestly a lot of my client's are skeptical about everyone, because they trusted themselves or someone else before and ended up in debt.

I tried to convince Glenda that moving her money to a lower interest rate card would save her all of her interest - every single penny. I had some cards in mind that provide Glenda with world-class service and have great long term low interest rates.

Glenda didn't want another card. Period.

I said "OK, you're the client, let's move forward," and I gave her my final option. But this option was awesome.

I recommended that Glenda make a statement payment plus $30 every month, meaning that Glenda would pay $30 more than her minimum credit card payment each and every month, until the bill was paid.

Glenda said, "oh my" when I showed her how making a minimum payment plus $30 every month, would reduce her total payment's on that credit card from 1,242 payment's to only 55 payment's.

Glenda was shocked and amazed when I showed her that by making her minimum payment's plus $30 each month, would save her $29, 316 in interest.
(click the image for a larger view)

Glenda agreed that she could easily make an extra payment of $30 every month.

What I did was show Glenda, in living color what she could do to eliminate her debt in a fraction of the time, without defeating her dream of an early retirement. But what it was based on was her debt to income ratio.


What do you think? Share your comment's regarding any post you see here. Or if you have specific debt related or media inquires contact jcarltonford@yahoo.com




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1 of 5 Questions To Help You Get Out Of Debt

If you came into my office sat down, and said, "help I'm in debt," I would ask you 5 question's hoping that you'd be honest about all of them.



1. Why Are You In Debt?

Is it because you made a late payment on a credit card and now your interest rate has left the ground like a missile? Was it due to a divorce and a dead-beat ex? Was it because you were laid off or for a medical bill?

I would ask you 'why' because every persons debt situation is unique. Knowing why you are in debt will help you step back, and see what you are normally too close to see. Stepping back gets you thinking about the debt instead of feeling the affects of the debt.

For example, one of my client's Glenda took an $1800 cash advance on her credit card to help her daughter with expenses for college. Glenda had no idea that the cash advance rate for her credit card was 29.99% . (click picture for full view)














Glenda paid her minimum payment of $47 every month on time. But Glenda had no idea that $1,800 at 29.99% would mean that she would have to pay $30,613 in interest (alone) for a total debt pay-off of $32,413.

So the reason why Glenda was in debt was because of high a interest rate on her credit card.


There are many other reasons 'why' a person is in debt. But the first question that I ask is always "why". Asking why usually opens up a whole world of answers.

What do you think? Share your comment's regarding any post you see here. Or if you have specific debt related or media inquires contact jcarltonford@yahoo.com

A Moment Of Thanks For American Veterans

Thank you to those who have served to uphold life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.

On March 5, 1770, a crowd of colonists gathered and confronted a group of British about an incident earlier that day in which a soldier struck a boy who confronted him over a credit dispute.

The result was the death of Crispus Attucks during the Boston Massacre.

Before the founding of our country, in British Colony's, there where those who lived like slaves indebted to people whom they owed money.

Instead of being called Debtor's early Americans in debt were known as indentured servants .

Think back to your elementary school days when you learned about servants (Debtors) being slaves to those who paid for them to come to America (Creditors).

Early Americans living in the British Colonies were in debt and the creditors were a cruel bunch. The Creditors would violate Debtors human rights on a massive scale.

Like today, Creditors had binding contracts with Debtors. Creditors would punish their Debtors for actions that didn't have anything to do with the Debtors responsibility to repay the Creditor back.

Many of the early Americans came to this country, with a loan from their Creditor as indentured servant's.

These Debtors came to America often with only two weeks worth of food and a burning desire for opportunity. Because the sparks of freedom and opportunity couldn't be put out, it wasn't long until those sparks of freedom started a fire that caused brave men and women to burn down a system of human and consumer rights violations.

Since the beginning of the Revolutionary, our brave American Soldiers fought for our rights to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. Our Veterans have always fought to keep future generations of Americans from a life of indentured Servitude.

Today, there is a new class of indentured servants. They are still called debtor's. The cruel abuses of their creditors continue as well.

Cripsus Attucks died as a result of fighting for freedom from unfair business practices of the powerful.

Our Veteran's like Crispus Attucks have kept the fire of freedom buring. The ideal of freedom has been paid for with the lives of our men and women in the armed services.

Our Veterans have always kept us free from the cruel abuses of the powerful . For this sacrifice, we say Thank you and God bless America.

Will Fannie Mae and Freddy Mac Smack Down Banks?

Will the Washington Mutual Mortgage Scandal Impact You?

New York State Governor, Elliott Spritzer (pictured left) is expanding his questions into an alleged mortgage appraisal scandal between Washington Mutual (one of America's biggest banks) and appraisal company, 'eAppraiseIT'.

Governor Spritzer stated, "our expanding investigation into the mortgage industry has uncovered that Washington Mutual improperly pressured appraisers to provide inflated values that best served the lender's interest,"

What the Governor is saying is that Washington Mutual screwed over a bunch of people to make more money for themselves. The claims that the mortgage company gave false appraisals on homes.

The problem, from a down to earth point of view is, if a bank tells you that your home is worth more than the fair market value, you will have trouble when you try to sell it or refinance it.

I remember talking to a few of my friends a while back. They were all trying to convince me to buy a new home. They knew I had the money and the credit. They were all telling me about how they purchased their home in 2004 and only after a year, their home was appraised at double it's value.

I always was a little suspicious about their claims as well as the market. These were honest people whom I felt had been mislead into believing that their homes were worth more than they were. As it turns out, I was right in not believing the hype.

I've never trusted banks (for many reasons). This scandal gives me more reason to not deal with banks ever again.

Of course Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae promised to investigate. I'll keep you posted.

In the meantime, here are my suggestions for home owners:

1. Call your realtor and demand that they send you a full accounting of how your mortgage was appraised. Ask was that company independent or are was that company a vendor of the Realtor.

2. Call the bank that owns your mortgage and request a complete history. Include in your request:

A. A request for complete payment history

B. What 'other fees' (administrative, customer service etc.) were you billed for.

C. The current balance on your mortgage.

Keep all records of request and communication with your lender. If they don't respond to your satisfaction they may have something to hide.

What do you think? Share your comment's regarding any post you see here. Or if you have specific debt related or media inquires contact jcarltonford@yahoo.com

Credit Bureaus: Friend or Enemy?

Are the credit bureaus really on your side?

If you were to write the story of your war on debt it would make a great story. Your commercial would say something like; "in a world where greed ruled over justice, a warrior would be called into service. The story of your war on debt would have nail bitting drama, constant twist's and turn's, enemies disguised as friends and a massive conflict.

You would be the star and lead character. You play the leader of the resistance.

Share your comment's regarding any post you see. Or to trade links email: jcarltonford@yahoo.com

The Lazy Way To Understanding Credit Terms and Conditions

Do You Find Credit Terms and Conditions Confusing?

I was tooling around the Internet for follow up information on the WAMU eAppraiseIT scam reported by the Associated Press yesterday, and I came by a comment.

The commenter stated, "I don't have time to go over the credit agreements". I understand. Who has time to dissect a credit agreement and all that fine print?

So, I will outline 6 lazy ways to understand all of the terms and conditions on your credit credit agreements.

1. Call the customer service agent and ask them to explain all the terms and conditions of your agreement. They are the experts, and they (or their boss) should be able to explain your terms and conditions in plain English (although sometimes with a thick overseas accent :)

2. Ask the customer service agent how your base rate is calculated (e.g. Prime or LIBOR). Capital One uses LIBOR whereas, WAMU uses Prime as the base rate.

3. Ask how many points above your base rate your card is.

When the customer service rep tells you your interest rate they will say something like "prime plus 5.24%."

With the recent drop by the Federal Reserve Board, the Prime base rate is 7.50%. So Prime (7.50% ) plus 5.24% equals 12.74%.

4. Ask if there is a grace period for payments without getting a late fee. Most times there is no grace period, so keep that in mind.

5. Ask what your 'default rate' is. Once you are in a default rate status, it will take a minimum of six month's of on time payments to get out what I call the Default Dungeon.

6. Ask what it takes to go into default status. Some accounts default after one missed payment and others default after two or more.

Many times after you default your account may be subject to 'universal default'. Universal default means that all of your creditors may raise your rates because you defaulted on another account.

If you don't understand any of the terms or conditions on your credit agreement, don't hesitate to call and ask. You are the customer, and if they want to keep your business they will patiently answer all of your questions in plain English.

What do you think? Do you have any other questions that you'd like to offer for the list?

Share your comment's regarding any post you see. Or to trade links email: jcarltonford@yahoo.com

Did WAMU Screw You Too?

The Associated Press reports that New York Attorney General, Andrew Cuomo uncovered a major appraisal scam between Washington Mutual and real estate appraisal company eAppraiseIT.

Attorney General Cuomo, filed a civil complaint charging eAppraiseIT "colluded with the nation's largest savings and loan companies to inflate the values of homes nationwide, contributing to the subprime mortgage crisis".

If you are a Washington Mutual customer double check everything.

More to come as details emerge.


Share your comment's regarding any post you see. Or to trade links email: jcarltonford@yahoo.com

FTCs Top 10 Frauds

The Federal Trade Commission http://www.ftc.gov/ released it's latest report on consumer fraud. A shocking 30.2 million Americans have been scammed.

The number of people scammed in 2005 amounted to 13% of all Americans.

Below is a list of the FTC's top 10 frauds:

The frauds were communicated through various media including; Print & Electronic Media. Many of the victims are from minority populations. Victims also where considered to be less educated than non-victims.

What to you think? Have you been scammed? Share your comment's.


Or email: jcarltonford@yahoo.com

The Counts Of Credit and Debt

Every loan and fee that you pay to a bank makes the bank financially stronger, while you get financially weaker.

This is because of the concept of Fractional Reserve Banking.

This kind of banking magically allows a bank to turn $100 into $900, while you don't have the same magical ability.

For example, for every $100 in your bank account the bank can lend someone else up to $900 of your money. Of course, the bank can charge up to 30% interest [$270!], while the bank pays you only 2% interest.

To make things much more frightening, the bank will charge you a fee to store your money. Then that same bank can turn around and lend the money from the fee's to someone else.

Every dollar that you pay a bank feeds a hungry money vampire that will sneak up and suck more of your financial life-blood from you.

What do you think? Share your comment's regarding any post you see. Or to trade links email: jcarltonford@yahoo.com

Scary Credit Cards

These Cards Can Bring Financial Failure Out Of Your Nightmares Into Real Life

You may have invited an evil menace into your life. You may have trusted this menace with your all of your important personal information like; your social security number, date of birth and banking information. Now this menace goes with you everywhere and may cause you years of stress and anxiety.

It's not your fault. You've been tricked by a "Credit Predator". Like all predators, the Credit Predator is sneaky, cunning and calculating.

You were probably offered 20% for all purchases at participating merchant's, Rewards Points and Cash Back. Fine print read like a Stephen King or Dean Koontz Novel.

You may trapped in a Secondary Credit Card.

A Secondary Credit Card has driven people to financial ruin, bankruptcy and suicide.

Unlike Primary Credit Cards, which have interest rates under 12%, Secondary Credit Cards have introductory interest rates in the 16% to 24.95% range.

The scariest part is that many Secondary Credit Cards say in writing, that your interest rate will never go lower than the introductory rate. So, if you start at 24.95% interest, the rate will never be lowered.

Here's a quick guide to Primary and Secondary Cards:

Primary Cards

•American Express
•Credit Unions
•Discover
•Master Card
•Visa

Primary Cards are a treat because they offer good service and great lending experiences. Primary Cards often have lower interest rates.

Secondary Cards

•All Store Cards
•All Bank Cards
•High Interest Cards
•Secured Cards

Don’t be tricked into staying in a Secondary Credit Card. The rates, fees and customer service are enough to give you nightmares forever...

Do you hear an evil laugh or is that just me?

What do you think? Share your comment's regarding any post you see. Or to trade links email: jcarltonford@yahoo.com

Freeze ID Thieves

"At Acme Sales Company, We Know That Bad Things Can Happen Your Good Credit..."

I'm sure you've heard some spokesperson, in some advertisement, use that pick up line. I used to laugh at that line .

That was, until I met some real ID Theft Victims.

Good news: Beginning, November 1, 2007 you will be able to freeze your credit report preventing identity thieves from leaving you feeling cold. Freezing your credit report will secure that no one else can access your credit file without a your secret PIN.

Before, the Big 3 Credit Reporting Agencies [codename: Big 3CA's] Equifax, Experian, and Transunion, would only freeze access to your credit report, after you were a victim of identity theft. We think this new option is better late than never.

Now all three Credit Reporting Agencies Equifax, Experian, and Transunion will offer the option to freeze your credit file for a payment of $10 for each Big 3 CA.

Use with caution: The security freeze process has not been perfected yet.

Were you a victim of I.D. Theft? Share your story in a comment.

Top 9 Credit Card Warning Sign's

1. You only pay the minimum amount due on your credit cards each month.
   


2. You make late payments or sometimes can’t make a payment.
   


3. You add more to your credit card balances than you pay each month.
   


4. You rarely if ever see your credit card balances go down.
   


5. You don’t know how much you owe, total, between your credit cards and other loans.
   


6. You apply for new cards but are at or near your credit limit on existing cards.
   


7. You pay for necessities such as groceries, gas or insurance with credit cards or cash.
   advances instead of cash.
   


8. You tap your savings to pay your credit card bills and other debt – or you have no savings.
   


9. You feel anxious or stressed when using your credit cards.

What do you think? Share your comment's regarding any post you see. Or to trade links email: jcarltonford@yahoo.com