How Your Credit Score Affects the Cost of Your Car Insurance
Your credit score influences your ability to secure financial products. A higher credit score could mean a more affordable mortgage or a better rate on a credit card. A lower score can affect your employment eligibility or cause a landlord to turn away your rental inquiry. Your credit score has a way of sneaking into […]
The Good & Bad Credit Divide: 5 Cities Where Residents Face Largest Credit Score Differences
Which class would you consider yourself a part of? Most people in America are in the middle class. Fewer people are poor, and an even smaller number are part of the elite rich class. Your credit score follows the same pattern. Exactly two-thirds of Credit Sesame members have good credit scores (66.7%; 759 – 551) […]
5 Strategic Moves to Improve Your Credit in the New Year
The start of the new year is the perfect time to make financial improvements in your life. Exercise is great for all, but don’t forget about your financial health and credit well being. Create a credit plan for the New Year to make sure your good intentions don’t fall by the wayside, as many resolutions do. […]
How to Recover From Your Holiday Credit Binge
Like stepping on the bathroom scale after too many holiday parties, checking your credit score after the holiday season could reveal a number you didn’t want to see. We can’t help you with your waistline, but we’ve got tips to help get your credit back in fighting shape. Top 3 harmful credit habits during the […]
Essential Checklist: How to Keep Your Credit Cards Safe All Year Long
Your credit cards may get a good workout in 2017. Make sure that you’re the only one doing the spending. Criminals don’t go on vacation. Whether you shop in stores, travel or make purchases online, here are a few tips. Don’t take your credit cards with you. If you don’t plan to use a card, leave […]
Credit Repair Guide: How to Fix Your Credit Score
Your credit plays a bigger role in your overall financial well-being than many people realize. Your credit score and your credit report are seen as markers of your responsibility with money — and ones that nearly all lenders and financial institutions take seriously. Whether you’re looking to buy a car or a house, start a […]
Property Inspection vs. Property Appraisal: What You Need to Know
When it comes to buying a home, whether it is your first time or you are a seasoned veteran, you must go through the process of a property inspection as well as a property appraisal. It is important to know the distinction between these two processes and how they affect both the buyer and seller […]
What the Fed Rate Hike Means for Borrowers Who Want to Get Loans in 2017
With the transition in national leadership, we’ve heard chatter about nearly every subject affecting Americans. Naturally, the buzz around finances occupies a special corner in many consumers’ minds. Will we see more Fed rate hikes in 2017? What will rate hikes mean for getting a loan in the New Year? One rate increase was just […]
How to Boost Your Savings While Paying Off Debt
Raise your hand if you’re heavily in debt, with little savings to boot! Same here. I’m working hard to pay off $85,000 of debt while earning a less-than-stellar entry-level salary a couple of years post-graduation. It’s tough to save, to say the least! I was tired of being broke all the time, living paycheck-to-paycheck while […]
How to Set Goals to Embrace Value-Based Spending in 2017
As a student, I didn’t think much about the debt I racked up in college. After I walked across the stage to receive my diploma and celebrated with my family, however, I felt a pit in my stomach. I came to realize that the source of the anxiety was my financial future. I had over […]
7 Ways the Fed Interest Rate Hike Could Affect Your Finances
It may take a little time, but expect a domino effect to your finances after the Federal Reserve raised its benchmark interest rate Dec. 14 for only the second time in eight years. Any type of variable-rate debt is likely to become more costly in the foreseeable future. The best way to avoid the impact […]
10 Things to Know Before You Donate Money
December is the high point of the year for charitable donations, in part due to the holiday spirit of giving. This year, several organizations have also reported record levels of donations from activists in the wake of the election. Whatever your motivation to give, doing your research before you donate can help your money make […]
3 Key Ways to Ring in the New Year With Health Insurance
Are you a fan of Europe’s “The Final Countdown”? Well, if you’ve ever been ashamed of playing ‘80s stadium rock over and over and over, I’ve got good news: you’re encouraged to play it now, because it’s the final countdown to health insurance coverage. What do I mean? Well, you might know that right now […]
Top 5 Credit Myths Busted, Once and For All
Here are five prime examples of credit myths you shouldn’t fall for. Myth #1: Checking your credit hurts your credit score. Checking your own credit NEVER hurts your score. A self-check is a “soft inquiry” and does not impact your credit. Other types of credit checks are also harmless. When you receive a pre-screened credit […]
How a CD Can Help You Save Money: What You Need to Know to Get Started
Do you ever wish that your savings account offered a better return, but don’t want to risk losing your money in the stock market? Is it hard for you to keep your money in a savings account? If so, then a certificate of deposit (CD) might be a good option. CDs are a great way […]
