Your Credit Questions and Answers

  Debit card fees will vary depending on the bank or financial institution you use. Here are some common debit card fees : ATM withdrawal fees : When you use an ATM that is not owned by your bank or financial institution, you may be charged a fee by both the ATM owner and your bank. This fee typically ranges from $2 to $5 per transaction. Foreign transaction fees: If you use your debit card to make purchases or withdraw money in a foreign country, you may be charged a fee by your bank or financial institution. This fee is typically a percentage of the transaction amount, ranging from 1% to 3%. Replacement card fees: If you lose your debit card or it gets stolen, you may be charged a fee to replace it. This fee can range from $5 to $25 depending on your bank or financial institution. Overdraft fees: If you spend more money than you have in your account, you may be charged an overdraft fee. This fee can be as high as $35 per transaction.  Ouch. Balance Check Fee:  Some ATMs will charg

To earn an 800 Plus credit score you must have at least Three Different Credit Sources , No Missed Payments in the last 7 years, Less than a 10% Credit Utilization , and an Average Credit History of at least 6 years.       An 800 Plus credit score is considered excellent and what most people would like to accomplish.   A perfect FICO or Vantage 300 Credit Score is an 850. The worst is a 300.  800 Plus Credit Score Requirements The requirements for an 800+ score are rarely stated but here's what I have found: You must have at least three sources of credit, up to five will have a positive affect. An example  might be  two credit cards, two car loans and a mortgage or two credit cards and a personal line of credit. You cannot have any thirty day late or MIssed Payments in your credit history in the last 7 years. I have been able to get some missed payments removed. Check out How I removed a Missed Payment. You cannot have any Collections in your Credit History in the last 7 yea

Always Be Nice to Customer Service Customer Service Agents are able to help you if you're nice to them and hurt you if you're not. I was never taught how to deal with Customer Service.  However my Mother always taught me to be a Gentleman. Customer Service on the Phone I am always extremely nice and courteous to customer service. They have a very tough job because so many people yell at them and treat them horribly.  So many customers, especially of banks or credit cards, make a mistake but won't accept responsibility for their mistake. The customers want to blame the bank for the missed payment.  My dog ate my statement so I didn’t pay my bill. My rule of thumb is always be extremely nice to customer service. They're just doing their job and it is a tough one. They can certainly help if you are nice to them. Customer Service Tracks You Many Customer Service agents are able to make notes on your account. If you are particularly mean during an interaction they will

Three Steps to Identity Theft If someone attempts to steal my identity they will do at least these three things. They will: Get my Social Security Number Change my mailing address to their address Apply for a new credit card or loan with my name Closely Track New Credit Applications If the Thief has gotten my social security number and applied for new credit this will show up on my credit history. By closely tracking the credit applications made with my SS number I will know right away if my Identity is being stolen. Credit Karma Monitoring is Free With Credit Karma monitoring, any time new credit is applied for Credit Karma emails me with a notification. I check my credit and my email regularly. My Stolen Credit Card Monitoring If the thief has stolen my credit card number and used it I will get an email from my credit card company that my card was used. I have my credit cards set up so any charge creates an email to me. You can setup a separate email account just for credit card pu

Recently I tried to use one of my Chase cards with a low credit limit to purchase an expensive item. My credit limit for the card was $4,000 and I tried to charge $8500. Chase declined the purchase.   Credit Card Customer Support  I called Chase Customer Support but the three digit number on the back of my card has rubbed off. I cannot read it. When I talked to Customer Service, I could not give them the three digit number on the back of my card.  Chase must have thought the card number had been stolen and temporarily closed all of my Chase Credit Cards. Support On Hold I called in over that weekend and was told I needed to talk to Loss Prevention.  Three times I was transferred to Loss Prevention and they never picked up the phone.  After twenty minutes or more I just gave up each time. Chase stopped usage of all four of my Chase cards for four days until my account got straightened out. I have a total of $35,000 credit available on the four different Chase cards. This was quite frus

Credit Karma is a free credit monitoring service that provides users with access to their Vantage 300 credit scores and credit reports.  In my opinion Credit Karma is awesome. Here's how Credit Karma works To sign up you will create an account and provide personal information, including your name, address, email, phone number, and the last four digits of your Social Security number. Credit reporting Credit Karma uses two of the three major credit bureaus, Equifax and TransUnion, to obtain users' credit reports. After you sign up they will update the credit reports every week.  If you check it more often CK will eventually update daily. Credit scoring Credit Karma uses the Vantage Score 3.0 credit score model, which is a credit scoring model developed by the three major credit bureaus. The score ranges from 300 to 850.  It is not the same as your FICO score but it will usually be close. Credit monitoring Credit Karma monitors your credit reports for changes, such as new account

There are Many Assorted Credit Card Fees.  I work hard to avoid the fees.  I work hard for my money I don't like to waste it. Annual fee - this is a fee charged by some credit cards once a year just for having the card. Most Airline cards and many Premium cards will have an $80 to $500 annual fee. I have a United Airlines card and a premium Chase card that I pay an annual fee on. I have tried to get out of paying the fees on these by calling and asking with no success.  The only way I found would be to cancel the card. Interest rate - this is the percentage charged on the balance of the credit card that is not paid off in full each month. This is not an issue with me as I pay off my cards in full every month.   If I do need short-term money I use money from my HELOC.   Ask for a Zero Percent Offer If you are needing money and have a good credit history you may call your credit card and ask them if they have any Zero Percent offers for this card.  They will charge you 3% upfro