Do you have a new year’s financial resolution?
Here are some important things you may want to address this year.
Learning about the factors that affect your credit, budgeting, and debt management can help you financially.
Learning about Your Credit and Finances – At least once or twice every year you should check your credit report to look for errors reported on your credit file. Correcting this information may help improve your credit score. You may visit www.annualcreditreport.com to check a copy of your free annual credit report, no scores. The next step, is to understand what is affecting your credit score in regards to the balances on your credit cards, derogatory information, or even lack of credit. One of the factors that has the greatest negative impact on your credit report are the late payments on your accounts. Late payments effect your credit scores by approximately 35% and it could take up to 12 months to see an improvement on your credit score after the last late payment.
Budgeting – Budgeting is an important part of your financial life. When budgeting you will take into consideration how much you earn and how much your financial obligations are. If you set the dates and amounts of all your financial obligations most likely you will always be on time and will have the money to pay your creditors. Budgeting is also exciting, it will help you save for the vacation you are planning or even to pay down your credit cards. It will also show you how much you are spending on small things that add up like the coffee you are buying every morning before work. You may want to save that money and spend it on something you really want.
Debt Management – Having credit cards with high balances is the next factor that has the greatest impact on your credit scores. Up to 30% of your credit score could be affected if your credit card balances are at the limit. Always think about the priorities and what you really want to accomplish before you apply for new credit or before you continue to use your credit cards. Ask yourself “Do I want it or do I need it?” this will really help you make good decisions. You may see how your debt goes down and faster.