Ideally you would want to pay off the debt all off at once to avoid the interest that prolongs the repayment process and leave you paying more than you borrowed originally. If your income is not what you’d like it to be, you may be struggling to make payments on time. That said, here are a few suggestions of making the most of the income you do have.

First of all, you must stop adding to the debt you already have. Stop using the cards; this may be difficult if charging is a way of life. Make the commitment to use your credit card only in the case of a genuine emergency, perhaps a household or car repair that is otherwise unavoidable and not covered by insurance. Avoid the temptation of buying a lot of items on sale thinking you are saving money; remember once you add up all the interest charges you are paying much more than you saved.

So as you know, minimum payments are not going to get you out of debt anytime soon unless you owe very little. But if your balances are ranging into the thousands or even tens of thousands, you must be more aggressive.

Be consistent in paying more than the minimum; even if it’s just an extra fifteen or twenty dollars, it helps you to tackle the principle, and not just pay the interest.

You may also want to consider rolling your debt a credit card with a lower interest rate. Again, resist the temptation to then use the credit cards whose balances you have cleared to run up more debt. The synergistic combination of a lower interest rate and the constant monthly payments that exceed the minimum due will begin to make inroads into your debt.

For additional tips, see:

• 60-Second Guide to Getting out of Debt
• The Truth About Credit Card Debt

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How to Pay Off Credit Card Debt When Money Is Tight

Where can a homeowner turn? Lending institutions are perceived as not being as cooperative as they could be. It is not always possible to seek and obtain a a loan modification from the original lender.

There are many reputable, licensed companies that offer loan modification services and you can find them by searching for them on the internet. You are strongly advised to do due diligence and checking their license status and see if there are any complaints or cases against them. You can also go to the Better Business Bureau (also online) and check to make sure there are no complaints. These companies do charge a fee, though most are not allowed to charge an upfront fee. That does not mean that they have to complete the modification before they get paid. It just means that they have to perform some services before they can charge anything. Again, you can check a company’s history and reputation fairly easily.

It is recommended that homeowners employ the services of these professional loan modification experts if they wish to avoid foreclosure. Many homeowners will think they are saving money by going directly to the lending institution and requesting a loan modification but they are taking a big risk. Most banks have very small Loss Mitigation departments and they are overwhelmed with requests from homeowners and from the loan modification companies.

Most of the time, homeowners try and follow the steps provided by their lender but without guidance they may not indicate the correct amount of income or allowable deductions, or miss some of the numerous required documentation. When the loss mitigation department personnel open a file that is incomplete they may just automatically decline the modification request or request updated information. Most homeowners do not have the time or patience to follow through with all of these requests and so they just stop trying or they get discouraged once they are declined.

To avoid foreclosure and get a low monthly payment that they can afford they need to be patient and persistent. By going to a professional, reputable company they can avoid the pitfalls of going directly to their lender themselves. As with all major financial decisions with far-reaching consequences you are encouraged to seek the help of a qualified financial professional if you feel too stressed or overwhelmed to do the research and due diligence on your own.

Find out more in the video below.

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Can You Avoid Foreclosure by Getting a Loan Modification?

And like with school grades, if you have unsatisfactory results, you must commit to doing what you can to improve your scores. Indeed, a credit score is a grading system; it’s a number that anyone who deals with you financially can use to evaluate how responsible you are with money. Whenever you apply for credit, be it a new credit card, a personal loan, an auto loan or a mortgage, the potential lender will use your credit score to see how risky — or not — you are as a customer. Prospective employers will also look at your credit report and credit score as a means to evaluate your credit. It is possible to get credit with a less than optimal credit score but expect to pay a higher interest rate.

What is commonly known as the credit score is usually the FICO which will range from the lowest score of 300, to the highest score of 850.

Tracking your credit score isn’t as easy as it should be. By law in the U.S. you can get your credit report for free once a year from each one of the three main credit bureaus. However, getting the credit score will cost a bit, ranging from 8 to 15 dollars each for Equifax, Experian and Trans Union.

When you receive your credit report, check carefully to make sure there are no inaccuracies. This is an important step which should not be overlooked.

Now making the grade with a great credit score isn’t as much about how much money you have as it is about how you take care of your finances, however little or much you make. You may not be able to control how much money you make, but you can certainly control how you spend it. Make your payments on time. Delinquent payments can have a very negative affect on your FICO score. To find out just how extensive the impact, you can use the credit score simulator on MyFICO.com. Even one late payment can significantly lower your credit score. To make sure you don’t miss paying any of your bills on time, consider using online services such as Mint or Quicken or set up email or text reminders.

Make sure you keep your balances low. If you have a $10,000 credit limit, it is not in your best interest to run up your balance close to the limit. The extent to which you have used the credit available to you is indicative of your financial stability. Keeping your balanced under 10 percent or so of the limit can improve your credit score considerably. If you have credit cards you are not using, do not close the accounts as this can hurt your credit score. t shortens your credit history and it also increases your credit utilization ratio.

For more ideas see the video below.

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Tips for Improving Your Credit Score

The unprecedented number of homeowners in such a predicament continues to have wide-ranging impact both upon the lives of families as well as the U.S. economy in general.

Several million households in the country are struggling with their mortgages, and stand to lose everything to foreclosure. And the government’s budget to help them doesn’t go really that far. There is a growing consensus among consumer advocates and economists as well as some financial experts who all believe the government needs to do more. From a political perspective, having millions of families losing their homes in an election year, can’t possibly be considered a savvy move. Aside from disaster for incumbent politicians, a rise in foreclosures will also slow the economic recovery.

When the loan modification program — known as Making Home Affordable and as the Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP) — began it attracted homeowners in crisis. But how are the homeowners and the program faring? You can read an assessment in the New York Times: Stall in Applications for Federal Mortgage Program. Click here to read more about the government home mortgage modification program

Visit the official government Web site to learn more about eligibility requirements. See also the video report.

Click here to watch more videos on YouTube

Obama’s Loan Modification Program for Homeowners: Is It Working?

You should first check your credit report and your credit score. Realize that your first priority may be to do what you can to improve the score. Due to the state of the economy, lending institutions have more restrictive lending requirements these days.

A Home Equity Line of Credit (HELOC) is the most popular type of home improvement loan and they are fairly standard, with a few exceptions. A HELOC is really a second mortgage lien against your property and requires that you have a certain amount of free equity in order to qualify. Combined first and second loan to value (CLTV) ratios are usually limited to under 70% for qualifying purposes.

A HELOC is usually an ARM (adjustable rate mortgage) with rates tied to an index, usually the Prime Rate plus a margin. For example if the today’s Prime Rate is 8% and the margin is 1, then your rate will be 9%, adjustable monthly based on what the Prime Rate is doing. These home improvement loans are usually interest only for ten years at which time the principal is due (balloon payment).

Banks will require that you have not only good credit but a steady, long-term employment or proof of income in order to qualify for the home improvement loan or HELOC. You will usually be required to provide two recent pay stubs and 12 months of bank statements (all pages).

If you find you are not able to meet these requirements you can make your first project to improve your credit score. Click here for ideas and suggestions to improve your credit score. It cannot be done overnight, but it is not impossible. Click here for other options to seek a loan despite your credit history. More suggestions and possibilities are explored in the video below.

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Home Improvement Loans with Bad Credit?

When we speak of these numbers we are referring to the FICO scores that lending institutions use as a part of their criteria for loan approval…and denial.

The FICO score ranges from a low of 300 to a high of 850. Needless to say you have to have exceedingly bad credit to be at 300 and perfect financial history to hit the 850 score. With those extremes aside, nearly everyone falls somewhere in various ranges which are generally explained as follows.

Those with the highest scores are those above 800. As such you can expect the best loans at the lowest interest rates. Interestingly those who have no credit history at all automatically have a score of 800. However you will need some years to build credit and establish a credit history. Knowing you start out near the top should provide incentive to establish good financial habits of paying bills on time.

Generally regarded as the next tier is a score of something above 720. You should still prevail well with loans at this level. Should your FICO range around 680 to 720 you will also do well, but you are not in the upper tier and the interest rates offered you will reflect this.

Scores below 680 while not bad may result in some difficulty in attaining loans; if you are not outright declined you will find interest rates are higher than those above you in the credit spectrum.

A score below 620 is considered to be “bad credit” and the farther below the 620 the worse you will fare. With a 580 score you may have success in attaining a loan, but with higher interest rates and restrictions. Scores below 580 reflect serious blemishes on your credit history such as collections, judgments, foreclosure and bankruptcy. Scores below 500 would be considered very bad credit with likely a number of marks. While lending agencies cater to people with bad credit interest rates are high.

Click here for a full explanation of the components of the credit score. Here is a discussion on the meaning of FICO.

Fortunately, you can improve your score by rebuilding. Paying bills on time and keeping credit card balances low will help. Here are more suggestions for improving credit score. Find additional tips and pointers in the video below.

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Credit Scores and What They Mean

Firstly, they require you to leave your money in the bank for a certain amount of time. The other is that they generally have a higher interest rate than other savings accounts.

If your bank has a good interest rate on their CDs, this is wonderful. You can keep all of your money in the same bank. If you aren’t sure whether your bank has a good rate, don’t be afraid to do some shopping around.

When you open a CD you will be given an option of how long you want to leave your money in the account. Anywhere from three months to six years are normal options. Generally, the longer period of time that you choose, the higher rate you will be given.

The reason banks do this is because if you give them you money to hold and you promise to not take it out before the end of the term, they can take that money and invest it. This makes them a lot of money. So, they are willing to offer you a high interest so that you will choose to leave your money with them for a long time.

Another requirement that banks generally have for opening certificate of deposit accounts is a minimum deposit. While this varies from bank to bank, an amount such as $500 is not unusual. While you have your CD, you can add more money to it. These requirements will be gone over before you actually open the CD, so you will know exactly what to expect.

Something else that you need to find out when talking to the bank is how often interest is paid out on the money in their certificate of deposit accounts. Many banks pay interest monthly, but others might pay quarterly. Find out if the interest compounds as well. Compound interest is great because you get money for interest that has already accrued in your CD.

Many banks will give you the option of having the interest deposited into another account, such as your checking, but if you are trying to make and save money this isn’t recommended. Letting the interest add up and compound can make quite a bit of money over time. Also, if you choose to take the interest out, the bank might not give you the best interest possible.

After the agreed-upon time period is up, the CDs reach “maturity” and your money is available to you again. You will usually have 10 or 15 days to decide what to do with your money before the account “defaults.” See what the default is when you open the account. For most banks it is to roll the money over into an identical CD.

Here are resources to find out current certificate of deposit rates Find out more in the videos below.

YouTube Link

YouTube Link

Certificate of Deposit Accounts Defined

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Mortgage Refinance News and Updates

The stories are often told of homeowners who have suddenly had to contend with unforeseen circumstances such as job loss or medical bills.

Perhaps you don’t even have to look at the news to be aware of foreclosure; you may already know someone who is falling behind on some mortgage payments and has that looming fear. It could be you yourself.

Obviously the best way to avoid foreclosure is to be preemptive. This means you must notify the lender immediately if you know you will not be able to make your payment that month. Don’t let the due date pass by on the calendar without making that phone call. The lender would much rather work with you and negotiate with you than to take over your house. While we are well aware of the consequences of foreclosure to the homeowner, what is often overlooked is that foreclosure is costly to the lender as they become bereft of the interest and principal payments the homeowner had been making, but then they must undergo an expensive and drawn out legal process to take possession of the house.

So do communicate with your lender, the sooner the better. If you are already behind on payments, you compound the problem if you do not respond to the lender’s phone calls or correspondence. Get in communication with them and stress that you want do do what is possible to avoid foreclosure. If you are in a short-term financial crisis or hardship your lender may allow you a few month of deferred payments, perhaps even a temporary forbearance. If your financial crisis has no end in sight, there may still be alternatives. For instance, there are agencies which can counsel you at no cost to you and enable you to devise a plan to solve your problem.

Additional options include the loan modification programs created by the mortgage companies as they cope with the crisis of an unprecedented number of homeowners who have simply defaulted and walked away from their homes. Perhaps you can short sell your home or find a way to preserve your home equity. However, you must exercise caution when dealing with these companies. As you will see in the FTC video below, there are a number of scams. Visit the FTC Web site for more information on foreclosure scams and learn more about real world solutions to help you in avoiding foreclosure.

While this is one of the options, the bigger picture includes more than interest rates. While getting a lower rate is definitely the primary goal, there are other mortgage refinance options you can make that can maximize your savings to your own particular circumstances.

One of the options you have is to lower your monthly payments. While lower interest rate is one way to go about it, the other way is to extend the current mortgage terms. For example, refinancing into a 40-year loan is one option that many lenders are willing to offer.

As you extend the length of payment, you are at the same time lowering your monthly payment. While this will result in higher interest rates over the long run, it can be a life saver for someone in a tight financial situation.

Another of the mortgage refinance options is to reduce the term of the loan. 15-year loans rates are so low to the point that you can refinance into a shorter term for the same monthly payment and still pay off the loan several years earlier. Going further with this, you can also choose a different loan type. Refinancing into an adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM) has much lower initial rates than fixed rate loans. If you have property equity, then going for the ARMs is a good refinancing choice. The property equity will allow you to have enough to refinance once the interest resets down the road.

Mortgage refinance options that involve “no-cost” refinancing can also address closing costs on a new mortgage. This refinancing option allows you to roll the closing costs into a new mortgage with slightly higher interest rates than if the closing costs were paid separately. You save money using the “no-cost” refinance option by ensuring the new monthly payments are less than the older ones as long as the payoff date remains the same. In this way, you will be saving money. You however need to ensure that the lender is not artificially lowering the monthly payments by stretching the loan term. The payoff date should be the same or less. These mortgage refinance options however come with steep early payoff penalties to protect the lender from unnecessary expenses.

Take time to consider your circumstances and the options available for you and select mortgage refinance options that are right for you.