This week we are republishing some of our most popular articles in case you missed them the first time around. I believe these articles will be very helpful to you.

Did you know that often it’s possible to settle out your debt for less than you actually owe? That’s right, many of your creditors may be willing to accept less than the balance owed to satisfy a past due account. This can equal big savings for you.

It is highly recommended that you use a professional debt negotiation service, like the HOPE Program, to ensure that you receive the best settlement available. People often think that it will be cheaper to pay off the negative accounts on their credit by themselves. However, the average consumer pays much more to settle an account alone than they would pay if they had professional debt negotiators working on their behalf. Members of the HOPE Program typically save far more money through the debt settlements arranged by HOPE than they pay in HOPE membership fees. That means that it is actually cheaper for them to have HOPE Program negotiators settle their collection accounts for them than it would be for them to settle the accounts on their own.

Here is an example of the savings reached for a HOPE client this very afternoon:

Type of Account: Credit Card
Amount Owed: $5,425.62
Settlement Amount (Negotiated by HOPE): $1,050
Total Savings: $4,374.62

This HOPE client saved 80% off his debt! The client can now use the additional funds, that he would have paid to his credit card company, to settle out additional collection accounts. HOPE will be there to help him complete this process as quickly and as inexpensively as possible.

If you need help with your past debt, give us a call today at 704-503-3669. Our caring staff is standing by to assist you with your credit needs!

I am often asked what is a healthy credit card balance?

Your credit card balances will effect your scores quite significantly. The best balance is between $10 and zero.

When we let our credit card balances get over 50% it hurts our credit scores even though we are paying them on time. If you can get your scores below 50% you will get a credit score increase. If we get our balance below 30% we get another credit score increase. When we can pay the down to $10 to zero we get our maximum credit score increase.

It is mportant that you have the right number of revolving credit accounts as compared to the rest of your indebtedness. Many times people think that closing and paying offf credit cards will help their scores but usually this will cause a decline rather than an increase in scores.

At HOPE everyday we help our clients fine tune their credit so their scores will increase and be maximized. If you would like to find out more please give our staff a call at 704-503-3669. +

Life events can effect our credit drastically. I run into people everyday who had great credit at one time but now they find themselves in a situation where they cannot qualify for a home loan.

It does not take very long and a great credit score can go down quite quickly. Sometimes it is a job lay off (there are almost 7 million Americans drawing unemployment checks right now), an accident or an illness. These things many times come upon us without warning.

Many times people find themselves unprepared for these emegencies. The bills keep coming due every month and the income has been drastically reduced. Before long they start to fall behind and new lates begin to show up on their credit reports. I have seen one new late drop a crdeit score 100 ponts while the average is probably more like 30 to 40 points. The rest of the bad news is that it will effect their credit scores for at least two years.

Whether unexpected life events have lowered your scores or just bad past credit decision there is a way back to healthy scores again. There are certain prinicipals, if followed, that will cause your scores to climb fairly rapidly. You can rebuild your credit file so that it will be healthy, assuring you of a much better interest rate.

At HOPE we educate and help our clients make wise credit decisions every day. If you would like to know how you can improve your current credit situation please give us a call at 704-503-3669. Our staff is waiting for your call.

A very important part of your credit education is staying on top of credit facts in the news. This week we will take a look at things that are happening right now that affect your total financial future.

According to The Boston Globe, Congress passed the Credit Cardholders’ Bill of Rights Act of 2009 and sent it to President Obama for his signature. This bill amends the Truth in Lending Act and provides consumers with many reforms to the way credit cards are issued and administered today. According to the bill that was passed, here is a summary from the Library of Congress of what it means to consumers:

• Creditors cannot increase the annual percentage rate (APR) during the first 12 months of opening up an account.
• Creditors are required to provide consumers with a 45-day advance notice of changes in rates and significant contract changes. Rates that change due to a change in the index that the rate is based on are excluded from this 45-day notice requirement.
• Promotional rates need to be in effect for at least six months from the beginning date of that promotion.
• Creditors need to provide a 30-day advance notice of an account closure.
• With certain exceptions, credit card issuers are prohibited from charging a finance charge based on the double billing cycle method.
• Creditors are prohibited from charging a fee on an outstanding credit card balance at the end of the billing period if the fee is attributed to the interest accrued on an outstanding balance that was fully repaid during that preceding billing period.
• Consumers have the right to reject a new credit card after the creditor notifies a consumer reporting agency of its corresponding account.
• Creditors are required to remove information provided to a consumer reporting agency about newly established credit card accounts if the consumer has not used or activated the account and and if the consumer contacts the creditor within 45 days of its establishment to close it.
• If two or more different APRs apply to different portions of an outstanding balance, the amount of any payment above the required minimum payment needs to be applied to the balance with the highest APR first and then to lower APR balances.
• Creditors are required to provide a grace period for payments even if the cardholder takes advantage of a promotional rate balance or deferred interest rate balance.
• Creditors are required to send credit card statements at least 21 days before the due date of the outstanding balance.
• Creditors are prohibited from providing credit to consumers under age 18 (unless they are emancipated under state law, or the consumer’s parent or legal guardian is designated as the primary account holder).
• For college students who do not have a co-signer, the maximum amount of credit extended will be limited to the greater of 20 percent of the student’s annual gross income or $500 dollars. The aggregate amount of credit extended from all of their credit cards will be limited to 30 percent of the student’s annual gross income (for the recently completed calendar year).
• Creditors are prohibited from opening a credit card account for any college student who does not have any verifiable annual gross income or already maintains a credit card account with that creditor, or any of its affiliates.
• Creditors are prohibited from charging a fee to make telephone and web-based payments. However, a fee may be charged for expedited telephone payments made on the due date or the day before the due date.
• Creditors are required to post their written credit card agreements on the internet.

At HOPE we keep our clients educated on news that effects their credit. If you would like to know more call us at 704-503-3669. Our staff is waiting om your call.