Along with a number of small, local, credit bureaus, there are three major credit bureaus that provide credit reports. The three major credit bureaus are Equifax, Trans Union and Experian. When someone requests a credit report on you, it is typically compiled by one of these three major bureaus; computed in to a ‘score.’

Your credit score contains a variety of information on you. It will have basic identifying information such as your Social Security number, current and previous addresses, past and present employment and date of birth. Your report will also have a section for public records. In this section, any judgments obtained against you or records related to bankruptcy filings can be found. The largest section in your credit report is generally the section where credit and bills are reported. In this section, you will find records related to car, home and personal loans, credit cards, student loans and debts that have been charged off as unpaid. Finally, there is a section that indicates who has recently requested your credit report.

All the information found in your credit report is used to calculate a credit score. This score is then used by many lenders to decide whether or not to extend you credit. Because of the importance of your credit score, checking your credit profile on a regular basis for inaccuracies is very important.

Article written by Editorial Staff @ www.collegeplastic.com

When it comes to saving, borrowing and investing, the amount of financial jargon involved can be enough to make anyone’s head spin. But at some point in your life, you’re likely to need to know about one or all three of these aspects of finance. With a basic understanding of bank rates, personal loans and investments, you can make financial decisions knowledgeably and set yourself up for a more stable financial decision-making process whenever you consider investing your money or taking out a personal loan or college student credit card.

Bank Rates

Bank rates are found in the interest you accrue with a Certificate of Deposit (CD) or on a checking account. They’re also found in the interest that’s attached to your car loan or home mortgage.

By depositing money into a CD or another interest-bearing account, not only are you placing your money there to keep it safe and build interest, you’re also allowing your bank to use that money as part of their assets. In this case, the bank will pay interest on your account. When borrowing monies from the bank, the interest is added to the money you owe.

Bank rates vary in accordance to many factors. The financial market, inflation, economy, and supply and demand all play a part in determining a bank’s interest rates. As these factors fluctuate, bank rates change, too. Because of this, it’s always wise to choose a fixed-rate loan to avoid having to pay higher rates of interest due to changes in the market.

Personal Loans

A personal loan is a tool you can use to borrow money from a bank or lending institution in order to pay for something you need or want. Taking out a personal loan should be preceded by some research and serious decision-making since, once you are given the loan, you will commit to repaying it.

Understanding Bank Rates, Investments and Personal Loans

People take out personal loans for a variety of reasons. A personal loan can help you buy a new car, fix up your home, or be used for other important personal needs for which you’re not able to pay out-of-pocket. Personal loans shouldn’t be taken out casually or frivolously and are not an effective tool for getting out of debt because they only add more debt.

Anyone can apply for a personal loan, but must meet the qualifications of the lending institution in order to be awarded the loan. To determine your credit worthiness, the lending institution will look at your credit history to see if you’re a worthwhile risk. While there are personal loan options for people with bad credit, the interest rates on these types of loans are extremely high to compensate for taking you on as a credit risk.

Investments

The term “investment” is often used to describe things such as a new car or a timeshare on a vacation condo. Even a college degree is referred to as an investment in your future. But investments that involve investing your money are different from these types of things.

An investment is the process of using or investing money to receive profit in the form of money, interest, capital gain, appreciation in value or income. When a person decides to invest their money, they do so in the hopes of making money off of the investment. The money made can be in the form of profit when selling stocks, interest accrued in a money market fund or through the increased value of your investment.

There are several ways in which to invest money, including mutual funds, stocks, bonds, gold, futures and real estate.

Features of college student credit cards
Some of the best college student credit cards today offer no annual fee, cash back rewards or other bonuses specifically designed for students, low interest rates and basic requirements making it easy for students to get approval.

If you are taking college student credit cards into consideration here are some things you should know.

College students today are accumulating more debt while in school than previous generations
According to a recent report from Sallie Mae the average student carries in excess of $2500 in credit card debt while still enrolled in college. Developing a pattern of accumulating debt so early in life does not bode well for good financial futures.

College students are graduating with more debt than previous generations
In addition to accumulating debt while in college students are also graduating with over $5000 in credit card debt. Add this debt to countless student loans and it is easy to see why even the young are overburdened by debt.

College credit cards come in handy in case of an emergency
The college life is riddled with emergencies. That book that you need to complete a required course, a sudden increase in tuition or unexpected changes to your living arrangements. You credit card can tide you over when emergencies arise.

You may need a co-signer to get the card
Thinking about applying for that great credit card offer you saw on campus? If you’re under the age of 21 or cannot show proof of a regular income then you need to get an adult to co-sign on the account. This new legislation was put in place to protect students from the consequences of poor credit card management and it makes it harder for students to get credit.

Student cards can help build credit
Proper management of your credit card will help you to establish a positive credit rating which will give you the head start you need once you graduate. Building credit while you’re young will make it easier to get a mortgage, car loan as well as private loans much sooner in life.

Be responsible with your student credit card
Charge only the things you need and repay your balance in full when you can to avoid finance charges. Just as using the card responsibly will help you to build your credit if you are irresponsible and default on payments you can ruin your financial future. If you are susceptible to the temptations of maxing out your card use a prepaid card and keep your credit card for emergencies only.

Your student credit card served its purpose and got you through many tough times in college. Now you’re about to graduate what do you do about that low limit credit card with its unbelievably high interest rate? Should you now ditch the card… …ditch it in favor or a grown up credit card or should you suck it up and keep using your card?

Some financial experts believe that you should keep your student credit card accounts open even if you don’t plan to use them anymore. The goal here is to establish credit history and there is no better way to do so than by having a couple cards open for a while. Graduating with a positive credit report gives new graduates a good start in the world of adulthood. It would send a positive message to potential employees who run credit reports before hiring. It makes renting, buying a car or home that much easier.

An unfortunate reality of college student and credit cards is that too many students use the cards as free money not giving thought to how their behaviors could affect their financial futures. They qualify for the cards and make use of them but as small as the credit limits are they can have a negative impact if not managed responsibly. Take Tom for instance. He maxed out three college student credit cards during his four years of college and did not see the need to repay the balance. Shortly after graduation he was turned down for a promising job and a car loan. It took this rejection for him to realize the error of his actions.

Six years later his cards are paid off in full and he has reshaped his financial future but it took a lot of work. His college credit cards though paid off are still open accounts and his credit report shows that he has had accounts open for over six years without any defaults.

Tom’s early attitude towards the use of credit cards sadly reflects the attitudes adopted by many college students today. The good news is that a lot of credit card providers are implementing programs and incentives to avoid these situations from arising. They reward good behavior motivating students to do the right thing. The outcome is that many of them are building positive credit reports that will help them later on after they graduate.

Credit card issuers are also making it easy for students to upgrade once they graduate. If they have been responsible with the college credit card they are given options to upgrade to a more appropriate credit card solution. Student credit cards have interest rates that are higher than the average and the credit limits are low. Graduates once they secure a good job and have a good credit history are able to secure cards with lower interest rates than are provided with student cards. They can easily transfer the balance from the higher interest card to the low interest card if they do qualify for one.

Once you graduate it is ok to begin searching for a lower interest rate credit card and perhaps a higher credit limit while you’re at it. If you transfer the balance make sure that the terms are good so you won’t wind up spending a lot more. Finally you should pay off the balance on the college student credit card but don’t close the account since you could bring down your credit score and keeping it open really helps to show longer credit history.

Keep the card open but put it away in a safe place where you are not tempted to take it out and use the available credit limit.

The rates on student loans are not as attractive as they used to be and many graduates are caving under the pressure of repaying these loans. The current limit on rate is set at 7.14 percent on Stafford loans but in some cases students pay much higher rates especially those who use private loans that are not subject to regulation. Statistics has it that 1 out of every 20 college student will default on payments.

Although student loans include special conditions that benefit the borrower there are even more benefits built in to protect the lender. For instance even when Chapter 7 bankruptcy is filed the student loans still stands. It is easier at this point to walk away from credit card debt than the debt of a student loan. The sad part is that many eager students walking into these loans are completely oblivious to this bankruptcy provision. This provision extends for both government and private loans.

In the face of this harsh reality are credit cards a more attractive option to student loans? It could be for someone who transfers the student loan to a low interest credit card and makes payments on time. This could result in thousands of dollars being saved. The downside is that interest rates on a credit card can change without notice so keep this in mind.

Before you transfer your student loans to a credit card you must have a decided plan for repaying the balance before the interest rate jumps to the standard card rate. You should never transfer a student loan to a card in order to get out of the bankruptcy clause since lenders will investigate your intent and can plead a case to have your credit card obligations reinstated.

Credit cards are a likely option for those who can manage payments responsibly but student loans do have some benefits too. Single graduates who earn less than $65,000 yearly can claim a tax deduction of $2,500 on their interest payments. If you are facing hardship you can also file for a forbearance or deferment. For some loans you won’t be required to pay anything while you’re in school or in the Peace Corps. Student loans also allow for payment from a set percentage of income earned and can extend for up to 25 years. The loan is completely forgiven if you die. Weigh your options carefully before you make a decision considering the advantages and disadvantages of the two options and keep in mind that you can negotiate the rate on a student loan just as you could for a credit card.

1. An authorized-user credit card with set limits
Most credit cards provide the option to add an authorized. As a parent you can add your college student to your account and set the available limit to a reasonable amount.

Before you run out and sign up for this type of card you need to ask questions. For instance what the penalties would be if the user goes beyond the limit? How easy would it be to decrease or  increase the limits you set? Can you restrict use of the card at certain place like the ATM for instance?

The advantages with this type of card are that parents can monitor spending, ensure that the bills get paid and help your child build a great credit rating at the same time.

2. Debit
Debit-cards are the new check book and students welcome the familiarity of swiping cards. Although this is a great way to avoid debt if the student fails to balance the account it could be costly with all the overdraft fees. One way to decrease the cost of overdraft fees would be to decline the option for overdraft protection on the account.

The advantages of debit cards are that they are easy to qualify for, are accepted almost everywhere and it’s easy to monitor charges and deposit money for your child when he needs it. One major disadvantage of the card is that spending is limited to what is present in the account.

3. Secured credit cards
Secured cards are a good way to build credit in your own name. To obtain one you need to pay a deposit which the credit card provider will hold for the existence of the account. The deposit is usually equal to the credit limit. Once this is done the card can be used in much the same way as a credit card.

For all their benefits secure credit cards are expensive, will have lower credit limits and higher interest rates. If you decide to use a secure credit card search for one with lower rates and one that gives you the option to convert to a regular credit card after a period of time.

4. Reloadable prepaid credit cards are a cross between debit and credit cards. The card is topped up with a credit card, debit card or balance transfer and it can be used in all the places that debit or credit cards are accepted.
You can get the cards at local pharmacies, supermarkets or even through your bank. The fact that they are widely and easily available still means that you need to do your research and compare the cards so that you get the best rates available.

Some rates that you can expect to pay include a fee for loading the card and use at an ATM. These cards are an attractive option since they are easy to acquire without having to do credit checks. The downside is that there can be losses if the card is lost or stolen and the account balance must be closely monitored to avoid exceeding the card’s limit.

5. Gift cards are convenient and can be loaded with any predetermined spending limit. The can be used just like debit or credit cards making them an attractive alternative to credit cards.

If you decide to get gift cards you need to check the expiration date (if there are any present) and determine if a monthly fee is charged if there is no activity on the card.