The Bernard Factor Your Net on blogs

My wife and I were talking about our kids college fund the other day and trying to figure out how to put three kids through college over the next 15 years. While our first kid will not enter college until 9 more years we are looking at some financial options to help us soften the financial impact. There are a lot more options now with state specific savings plans that allow you to stay out of debt and helped to set aside money tax free for college.

When I came out of school I used a student loan consolidation program to help extend the time in which I had to pay off my student debt. I found that early on being able to learn debt management helped me to stay focused and avoid any credit problems. We used a variety of financial vehicles to help manage our debt such as equity lines of credit and low interest bearing credit cards to help pay down higher interest loans and use more of the principal to pay down the cards and loans quicker. The key as that as our payments went down we continued to make the standard payement and this helped to `build up equity and we actually got letters from our banks offering 0% interest loans for a specified time if we transferred some of our other debt to them. This was a huge savings of approx. $1500 over the life of the loan to other investment vehicles that in turn we were able to earn a higher interest rate for our investment.

My parents made just enough money to keep us out of the financial aid realm so there were some nice debts when come out of my four year education. So as I got into the work force and applied my education I was able to use various forms of debt management to pay off my student loans while helping to build up my credit score. This has proven to be a great assest as our credit score is great and we have never been late or behind on any payments owed to creditors.

Whether you are looking for homeowner loans, car loans, or debt consolidation loans there are a lot of choices that you must be aware of. As more and more consumers look to buy the dream home, or that next new car they will be using some sort of finance and finding the right loan can be tricky if you do not research all your options. A great example of this is the recent sub-prime mortgage fallout. Many Americans took financing that was well above their means due in part to banks and lenders feeding on the need to have a bigger home and reduce their payments. So when people were getting the call to tell them that they could reduce their payments by refinancing they jumped at the chance not realizing the full terms of the deal and exactly what type of loan they were getting. Then when the rates on their adjustable mortgage starting to go up they found themselves unable to make the payments and actually owing more on their home than it was worth. This caused thousands of people to loose that dream or find other alternate financing to keep from loosing their house. The housing and finance industry lost billions in bad debt and this resulted in rates increasing to help pay for this miscalculation.

This leads me to some great ways to do your research online so if you need secured loans or looking to find bridging loans. Bridging loans are a little known way of financing that can be helpful if you need funds when you are between homes and waiting for your existing home to sell and need money to close on another property. These types of loans are usually 1- 12 months and the interest rates are around 1.25% and up. At No debt today you can view multiple lenders and their rates in one easy to use location. By using their side by comparison for many types of loans you will be able to find the financing that best fits your situation. An ARM may be great if you plan on staying in your home less than 5 years, but should not be used for a short term fix for a long term solution. Plus they provide a plain English explanation of some of the requirements of the various loan types so that you can see exactly what you are applying for.

When we were first starting out online we started out like many Americans selling on various auction sites. We did ok selling odds and ends and used the online payment processors as our main source to collect and process payments. As we gained more exposure we started getting free credit card machine offers to help both our online and small retail business. While at first this looked like a great deal once you read the fine print the transaction costs started to add up. Plus most of these systems would charge a monthly processing fee after the first initial 30-60 day period. For a small business getting up and going every percentage point in sales expense can start to add up. As you start and grow your business it is essential to be able to take credit and debit cards as most people are paying in this form and it does reduce your bed debt fees as checks can be a drain on your bottom line.

This is where a company like Total Merchant solutions comes. They are now offering and placing free credit card processing equipment into any business in order to gain their long time relationship. After a simple application they will provide your business with systems like the wireless Nurit 800 credit machine or the Hypercom T4100 retail machine. The wireless terminal can be especially beneficial for those mobile businesses that sell at open air markets, trade shows and other conferences. They offer a host of solutions to help your business accept various forms of payment and is backed with over 100 support personnel to assure your uptime while trying to grow your business.

Knowing your credit report and what it says is just more than knowing the score. There are a few myths that have come up about why you should always check your credit report annually and listed are just a few of the myths around your credit. As the new credit scoring system continues to roll out many people are left wondering what does good look like.

You can never remove a bankruptcy. Just like any other obsolete, erroneous, misleading information bankruptcies will come off.

Your credit report information cannot be changed. In fact under the Fair Credit Reporting Act; both federal and various state laws require items that are not 100% accurate should be removed.

Having your credit report altered may be illegal. No, as this is what the Fair Credit Reporting Act is all about. Congress enacted this  consumer protection to help consumers from intrusion.

You can remove past due debts by paying them off. By simply paying a past due amount you will not erase this off your credit report, but it will help to show good faith towards the credit card or loan companies.

Obtaining your Free Credit Report is easy and can help save you money by finding any issues before they affect your credit history. There are many Americans that pay thousands more in interest each year because there are inaccurate reports listed on their credit report. Your credit card rates are based on your payment history and credit score and can mean the difference between a 14.5% interest and a 4.5% interest rate. Those with credit problems may look at Secured Credit Cards which have a balance that backs up the actual amount of the card. This can be helpful for folks trying to reestablish their credit score and get back on the right track. The one piece of advice that I can give to anyone is to Compare Credit Cards and their details since this is one of the biggest pitfalls most people run into. This is because many will be attracted to the 0% interest offers, but do not realize that one day that payment will come due and they will end spending a huge amount of interest on the unpaid amount. This then starts to affect your credit and will impact future loans, insurance, and even jobs.

I was impressed with the Presidents State of the Union Address as he outlined a plan to give more funds back to the American people through tax rebates and make that permanent . As America faces some tough times due to mismanagement in the mortgage industry it is important for everyone to take a look at their personal finance situation and make some corrective actions. We have been fortunate to have good credit and pay our bills when due to keep us out of any financial crisis. As with home homeowner we too got caught up in the lower short term rates and probable purchased a home that was a stretch for us, and once the rates started to adjust higher we were able to flip that over to a 30 year fixed for actually less than our 7 year ARM. This was based on market timing and knowing our personal finance situation which enabled us to negotiate with the lender.

If you have multiple credit cards or loans and have paid your bills on time then you may have some leverage with your current credit card or finance company because they are looking for good credit risks. Just call them up and let them know that you are considering switching or transferring your funds and ask what their lower rates are and most of the time you will be able to gain a lower rate.

If you are selling any type of tangible or electronic goods on the internet then you need to have an eCommerce solution. This enable you to be able integrate your shopping cart and take various credit cards as forms of payment. Our society is very plastic and you will loose business if you do not have some sort of merchant account set up. At CardAccept.com they offer a comprehensive solution where you can take orders via the internet, phone, or even at your local retail store if you have one. This is a great solution for small to medium businesses looking to expand their reach and break into new markets.