Saving for a down payment on a home loan can take years, especially when most lenders want a minimum of ten percent down. That’s still a lot less than the 20% which used to be normal. This makes the dream…
Category: Debt
10 Reasons You Should Skip Shopping Thanksgiving Day Sales
The official start for shopping for the holiday season used to be Black Friday, the day after Thanksgiving. That’s no longer the case. Pre-Black Friday deals started to get promoted the day after Halloween, and now the official start to…
Will Using Credit Karma Hurt Your Credit Score?
One of the questions people often have when using free credit score sites like Credit Karma, Credit Sesame and Quizzle is whether using them will ultimately hurt their credit scores. This question usually arises because they hear somewhere that checking…
Does it Matter Credit Karma, Credit Sesame and Quizzle Don’t Give a FICO Score?
A common criticism that people direct at credit check websites like Credit Karma is that the free credit score that they offer you is not an actual FICO score. Credit Karma gives users the options of 3 different types of…
How Credit Karma, Credit Sesame and Quizzle Can Help You Save Money
The fact is that many people don’t pay much attention to their credit scores. In this day and age, the ability to comprehend how your credit score can benefit or hurt you is important to learn. If you don’t have…
Time to Refinance? Dropping Mortgage Rates Should Make You Consider the Option
With the drop in mortgage rates seen this week, millions of Americans are now asking themselves if it’s finally time to refinance their mortgage. The sudden drop in rates, caused by plunging stocks as fears over Ebola, global economic weaknesses,…
Credit Karma vs Quizzle: Which is Better for Free Credit Scores and Reports?
There are so many websites out there that promise free credit scores and free credit reports. The problem is many of them walk the tightrope of being scams, and only a few of them tend to deliver on their promise.…
Occupy Wall Street Strike Debt Retires Nearly $4 Million of Student Loan Debt
One of the offshoots of the Occupy Wall Street movement which has had a direct impact on individual lives is Strike Debt. This arm of the movement had a unique idea which has actually worked. The movement formed an entity…
Six Reasons to Like Credit Karma, Quizzle and Credit Sesame
If you want to find out your credit score these days, it’s a lot easier than it was even a few years ago. With sites like Credit Karma, Quizzle and Credit Sesame, you can find out your credit score by…
Will Student Loan Debt Still Be a Problem for Seniors in Retirement?
Student loan debt is usually considered a problem of youth, but a report released this week by the Government Accountability Office (GAO) has sobering statistics on the number of Americans who are still paying off student debt between the ages…
How Credit Karma, Credit Sesame and Quizzle Make Money
As the saying goes, “Nothing in life is free,” but what about the companies like Credit Karma, Credit Sesame and Quizzle which offer free credit scores, free credit reports and free identity protection? None of these companies require a credit…
Is the Credit Karma Free Credit Report a Scam?
Credit Karma recently made the announcement they would offer their users free credit reports on top of the free credit scores they already give. The question many people have when they hear about something like the free credit report is,…
How Much Does Credit Karma Spend Giving You Free Credit Scores and Reports?
One of the most interesting tidbits which came with the announcement that Credit Karma will now be offering free credit reports from TransUnion (see how their offer compares to AnnualCreditReport) along with free credit scores was the amount they spend…
Credit Karma vs Annual Credit Report: Which Is Better?
With the announcement that Credit Karma now offers free credit reports in addition to free credit scores, there are a number of people wondering how it compares to the government mandated free credit report site, AnnualCreditReport. For those looking to…
Why the New FICO Scoring System May Not Raise Your Credit Score
Most consumer advocates reacted positively to the news that the Fair Isaacs Corporation is going to revamp the way they calculate their FICO score so medical debts aren’t going to be viewed on the same level as credit card debts…
FICO to Change Their Scoring System Which Could Help Millions Save Billions
Credit scores are an important factor when determining how much consumers pay in interest for such things as car loans and mortgages, along with a host of other areas it can affect a consumer’s personal finances. Since credit scores can…
Credit Karma Adds Free Credit Reports
Credit Karma went back to its roots with the announcement the company will now offer free credit reports in the same way they offer free credit scores. That is, those who sign up for their service will now be able…
Congress Finally Compromises to Ease Veteran Healthcare Wait Times
There’s some good news out of Congress for Veterans and their health care needs. Tension was resolved over the weekend with a compromise reached between VA leaders, Bernie Sanders and Jeff Miller,on a bill to aid veterans faced with long…
Credit Karma Warns Shoppers Who Get Store Credit Cards for a Discount
It wasn’t that long ago when retail stores would offer you a freebie to open up a credit card account. While this still happens, there has been a shift to retail outlets offering an immediate percentage discount off of a…
AAA Predicts More Travelers and Higher Gas Prices This Fourth of July
There are going to be more cars on the road this Fourth of July, and the most since 2007, according to AAA travel. An estimated 4.1 million Americans will be on the road traveling 50 miles or more away from their…