USAinDebt

If you happen to be in debt then the likelihood is that you consider credit card to be a dirty word! Credit cards account for the majority of debt in this country at the moment, but did you know they can also help to get you out of debt?

The latest credit card trend is towards balance transfers. Transferring your credit card balances from a high interest card to one of the many interest free credit cards that have fixed nine, twelve or eighteen month offers can knock hundreds of dollars off your bills and give you a little breathing space to get your credit card balances cleared. But if you are not sure where to look for these offers then a website like About Your Money can help.

About your money is a comparison site that has access to plenty of the latest interest free credit cards and the related offers. The site is really comprehensive, complete with a comparison table and a guide to help you choose the interest free credit cards that will best suit you. If your debt is more extensive though, you might want to take a look at the personal loans section instead.

Now is the time though. With 2008 approaching and bringing a fresh start with it, now is the time to look to clear your debt.

Definitely take a look at what Philip Brewer @ WiseBread has to say about 401(k)!

Here’s an excerpt:

‘The twin advantages of tax deferral and a corporate match make the 401(k) the foundation of most people’s savings plan. Putting in enough to get the maximum corporate match is almost always the right choice–a good corporate match is so much money, funding your 401(k) usually even comes ahead of paying off debt. Sometimes, though, it makes sense to put money other places.’

Read When NOT to put money in your 401(k) on WiseBread

We use more and more energy as days go by. One hundred years ago there were no computers, videogames or DVDs and VCRs to plug-in, no cell phones, PDAs or laptops to charge. The new electronic devices & appliances era has brought up the consumer’s energy consumption to unseen levels. And the higher the demand, the higher the cost of that energy. And it is not just about your bills, it is what it costs to our environment what matters as well.

You have most likely seen the Energy Star symbol already, and although many people are familiar with it, they actually don’t know what it means. As per Energy Star’s website, “ENERGY STAR is a joint program of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Department of Energy helping us all save money and protect the environment through energy efficient products and practices.” This program awards different products with the Energy Star badge, which indicates that those appliances, office equipment or electronics help you save money and the environment by consuming less energy than ordinary products. The Energy Star website also has a whole section with great tips on how to save energy by learning to do simple things such as turning off the lights while we are not in the room, changing the air filters regularly, replacing high-wattage bulbs with Energy Star ones and many more. An excerpt from Energy Star’s website shows how important those energy-saving practices are: “If every American home replaced their 5 most frequently used light fixtures or the bulbs in them with ones that have earned the ENERGY STAR, we would save close to $8 billion each year in energy costs, and together we would prevent the greenhouse gases equivalent to the emissions from nearly 10 million cars.” That’s a lot of money, isn’t it?

So, if you are looking into saving some cash on your bills, why not take a couple of minutes to review Energy Star’s website? Remember, you are not only saving green on your monthly bills. You are saving the environment for yourself and for your children.

Tags: energy star | save money on bills | energy | environment

Deb at The Dollar Stretcher gives some valuable tips on how working moms can save some money. Where There’s a Will, There’s a Way!

 Money-Saving Ideas for Working Moms at The Dollar Stretcher

Tags: save money | savings | work

A very interesting articles on the real cost of war with some good point stressed you can read today on Brip Blap.

“The Iraq War has cost the United States almost 457 billion dollars as of today, not to mention untold military and civilian lives…”

Cost of War on Brip Blap

Tags: war | iraq | cost | petrol | oil | afganistan

Individual’s credit score has turned into the individual’s life score in our society. Your credit score is constantly checked, your credit report is evaluated by numerous companies for numerous reasons. No wonder that everybody is trying to figure out what to do to raise their FICO’s. Here’s a couple of tips that can help you out:

•  Pay your bills on time, and pay as much as you can. Missing your payments or sending the funds late will impact your numbers negatively. Besides that, the more credit you have used, the higher your credit available to credit used ratio is. Higher ratio means lower score.
• Check your credit reports. You credit reports contain all the information, that lenders will judge you by. If there are errors on your report, you better get them fixed, unless you want somebody else to buy that nice shiny car you are looking at the dealership.
• Refinance. Check your credit cards and see if you can get a good deal on a balance transfer. Shop around ans refinance your mortgage. Both of those will leave with more cash to apply towards your loans.
• Be careful with the accounts. Don’t open new accounts rapidly, and keep the old accounts open.
• Control your spending. Try to use cash and keep the plastics for emergencies. Keep your balances low, call your bank every now and than, ask them to lower your APR’s or waive your fees. Set-up a budget, write everything down and stay on top of your finances.

- Get all three credit reports for free here (not a sponsored link or a hoax; it’s 100% free)

- Get all three credit reports unlimited views for $9.99 per month (Credit-Keeper by HSBC)

Tags: credit score | fico | loan | apr | annualcreditreport | hsbc | budget

Thursday, Experian announced that, starting November 1, it will allow consumers the option of ‘freezing’ their credit file. Experian is the final credit bureau to allow credit…

Read Experian now allows credit freezes, too on Advanced Personal Finance

Tags: personal finance | fico | credit report | experian | equifax | transunion

I have been with TrueCredit for a while until I stumbled upon CreditKeeper. They give you a month free when you sign-up and then it’s 9.99 per month. You get all three credit reports + your scores (it’s not myFICO scores but it is still good to have). It’s a service by HSBC bank (you don’t need to have an account with them to sign-up). You can’t beat that price If you have found a cheaper site, please share in the comments.

This is not a sponsored post.

Visit CreditKeeper

Tags: creditkeeper | credit report | credit score | fico | hsbc | truecredit

Just a shortie on Blueprint for Financial Property about the new Zecco fee schedule, effective 01Jan2008.

Zecco to Limit Free Trades in 2008 on Blueprint for Financial Property

  Tags: zecco | investments | zecco 2008 fee schedule

Thanks to Lulu @ howisavemoney I am now hosting a BolgCarnival! The topic is “Twenty Something Finances”. If you want to submit your article, follow this link. The next edition of the carnival of Twenty Something Finances will be held on October 15th, so articles are accepted until the 13th of October.

Submit your article for “Twenty Something Finances” on BlogCarnival

Hosting a carnival gives you great exposure!  :wink: 

Tags: blogcarnival | saving money | finances | twenty something