How To Improve Your Credit Score
By Karen Boies
Your credit score is a judgment about your financial health, at a specific point in time. It indicates the risk you represent for lenders, compared with other consumers. There are many different ways to work out credit scores. The credit-reporting agencies Equifax and TransUnion use a scale from 300 to 900. High scores on this scale are good. The higher your score, the lower the risk for the lender. Lenders may also have their own ways of arriving at credit scores. In addition, lenders must decide on the lowest score you can have and still borrow money from them. They can also use your score to set the interest rate you will pay.
Which parts of a credit history are most important?
35% – Your Payment History
30% – Amounts You Owe
15% – Length of Your Credit History
10% – Types of Credit Used
10% – New Credit
Top 5 tips for improving your credit
1. Pay your bills on time.
Pay your bill in advance of the due date, ensuring it reaches the creditor before the payment is due. Pay off debt, don’t move it around. Owing the same amounts, but having fewer open accounts, can lower your score if you max out the accounts involved.
2. Contact your creditors as soon as you know you will have a problem paying bills on time.
Try to work out a payment arrangement and negotiate with them to keep at least a portion of the late notations off of your credit reports.
3. Reduce the number of active credit cards to 2 or 3 accounts.
Revolving credit includes department store cards, grocery store cards and gas cards. Establish a minimum of 2-3 trades with good repayment history for 24 months.
4. Keep account balances within 50% of the available credit limit.
Keep your credit card balances low. High debt-to-credit-limit ratios drive your scores down.
5. Pay or satisfy all outstanding collections and judgements.
It is advisable to avoid applying for credit and having your credit report checked unless you have a genuine need for credit. The risk to consumers with a lot of activity on their credit report over a short period of time is that a lender may interpret this as a sign that you are in financial difficulty or taking on more debt than you can manage. Fortunately most scoring systems will not penalize you if they determine that you are shopping for the best rate on a particular product like a mortgage.
Your credit score is important and you need to take action to make sure that you will be able to borrow money when you need it. If you currently have a low credit score don’t be discouraged. Take action. Start doing the things that will cause your credit score to improve. Be consistent and before you know it you will have better credit.
Karen Boies is a mobile mortgage planner in Greater Vancouver. If you have any questions about your credit score or about getting a mortgage, please call Karen at 604-726-9550 or email at Karen@mortgagecentrecitywide.com
Ready to Buy? Advice From A Realtor
By Colette Gerber
Ladies, did you know that it’s a Buyer’s market? And did you know about 35% of people buying their first home are single women? As a group we (yes, I too am single) have more disposable income than any other time in history. After you’ve made the decision to buy, the first step should be to obtain mortgage pre-approval.
Lenders are beginning to recognize the power women wield with their disposable income and are willing to lend generously to single females. Personally, I prefer to use a mortgage broker since they will shop a number of lenders to ensure you get the best possible rate without gender bias. Mortgage pre-appproval gives you clout when it comes time to make an offer to purchase. Knowing that you have financing in place, sellers will take your offer seriously. As well, the pre-approval letter-which you should get in writing- establishes how much you can spend on real estate. This ensures you are looking in the correct price range.
In the current Buyer’s market there is a larger inventory of real estate than there are people wanting to buy. As a Buyer, this gives you the opportunity to look at multiple properties and give some thought as to what you like. For most properties, multiple offers are not currently a concern. This is good news since it takes the pressure off having to make a quick decision. However, having said that, if you find something you really like you should have your Realtor write an offer as soon as possible. If the property is that good, chances are others will feel the same way and you don’t want to take a chance and lose the property.
Let’s talk about Realtors for a moment. Did you know that as a Buyer it doesn’t cost you anything to work with a Realtor? Realtors get paid by the Seller only when a deal completes. Working with a Realtor can save you time, money and inconvenience. Time: they search the listings every day to see if anything suits your criteria so you don’t have to spend time on the computer. Money: when it comes time to negotiate, they will do everything they can to ensure you get the best possible purchase price. Inconvenience: they know the pitfalls a Buyer can encounter so a good Realtor will stay involved in the entire buying process, until they hand you your keys. Women know the importance of listening. They understand you want great bathrooms, need closet space to accomodate your shoes and that you don’t care if the floor is ¼” or ½” real or faux wood. I encourage you to work with a female Realtor who “gets” what you want…..
Colette Gerber is RE/MAX Realtor who works anywhere in the Lower Mainland that the business takes her. She was recently awarded her Accredited Buyer’s Agent designation, joining the 1 ½% of BC Realtors with this prestigious accreditation. You can contact Colette by visiting www.colettegerber.com
Sustainability for Singles: Save Time & Money
By Jeff Echols
As a single woman, what are two of your most important commodities? Maybe you answered time and money. And, unless you’re of the likes of Warren Buffet or WalMart, you probably don’t have enough of either. That’s one reason that sustainability should be important to you.
Admittedly, sustainability is a term with an increasingly broad definition. It takes on many forms and applies to every facet of life on Earth. You may not have any interest in rain water harvesting, regional transportation, local farmers markets or solar panels but as a home owning single, take note; sustainability can save you time and money. The kind of sustainability that I’m referring to is the kind that involves making decisions and taking actions that allow you to maintain and improve your quality of life.
I recently heard an expert say that you should plan to spend between 1% and 3% of the purchase price of your home every year to cover maintenance issues. With the median home value in the United States being in the neighborhood of $200,000 that means that you’d better have $2,000 to $6,000 to set aside. How’s that sound? Have you budgeted that much? And, since we’re on the topic of budgeting, how are your utility bills? They keep going down right? I know mine don’t.
So here’s today’s Sustainability Tip for Singles:
Whenever you need to repair or replace anything inside, outside or around your home, spend as much as you can to use the most durable, long-lasting, energy efficient materials, equipment and appliances possible. The payoff will be long-term and it will come in the form of savings in time and money. You’ll spend less time calling and waiting for the handyman service, not to mention writing fewer checks to the service. And you’ll pay less for utility bills. The added bonus is that there are a number of State and Federal tax benefits available related to the purchase of those energy efficient products.
So protect those most valuable commodities in your life and take a sustainable approach to maintaining your home, your most important investment.
Jeff Echols brings over 20 years experience in design, construction and renovation to his Renovation Resources Blog with the goal of educating, inspiring, informing and motivating homeowners wherever they are in the Renovation process. In addition to his blogging and other Social Media efforts, Jeff also focuses his architectural and construction management talents on a variety of project types as an Associate at ONE 10 STUDIO in Indianapolis, Indiana. Read Jeff’s Blog at http://www.renovation-resources.blogspot.com or email Jeff at jeffechols@renovation-resources.com
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