Published on: 03 February 2022
Last Updated on: 12 September 2024
Inflation is up, money is tight, and your credit score is in the gutter. What a way to start the year!
Instead of wallowing in self-pity, it’s time to finally do something about your unfortunate credit score. This January, kick-off an improvement plan to improve your credit score by the time the clock strikes midnight on Dec. 31.
5 Lucrative Ways Improve Your Credit Score:
1. Know What You’re Working With
You can’t fix a problem you can’t see. If you’ve been avoiding checking your credit score for fear of what you’ll find, get over yourself. Now is the time to set aside your pride and review the damage. Your credit score impacts nearly every financial move you make. Working to improve it now, before you consider shopping for a major purchase, can make your life easier.
Pull up your free annual credit report to review the data that’s been reported to the credit bureaus. If you’ve got missed payments, high credit utilization, or too many accounts, take note. Then consider your overall score. Anything under 700 should be seen as an opportunity to improve. Now you’re ready to create your action plan.
2. Take Action Daily
You can make measured improvements on your credit score just by being mindful of your daily actions. If you struggle with overspending, pause before you swipe your card. Consider whether the purchase you’re about to make meets your goals and if you’ve got the money to repay the balance.
If the answer to either is no, resist the urge to buy. Instead, save up for want-based purchases so you can treat yourself without sacrificing financial security.
In an e-commerce age, you probably can’t eliminate plastic from your purchasing repertoire entirely, but you can be smarter about it. Familiarize yourself with different payment options like acredit builder card. These cards are secured by a funds transfer or initial deposit. Every time you pay your bill, your good payment history is reported to the credit bureaus. Over time, this great track record can improve your score.
3. Get Your Budget on Point
The way you spend often dictates how well you can keep up with the demands of your bills. While everyone has core expenses across housing, food, and transportation, it’s essential to manage one’s variable expenses. Sit down with the last two months of your spending history to identify budget busters and trends you’d like to address.
If dining out is a sore spot for your budget, create a system to help you indulge with purpose. Set a dollar amount that you can spend without dipping into cash reserves dedicated for other expenses. Think about why you like to spend in this category and whether there’s another way to fill your cup.
If your real desire is to spend time with friends, pivot to hosting a small potluck dinner once a month. Adjust your spending toward this event, and you just may find you like the results better than gathering at restaurants.
4. Dispute Inaccuracies
Your comprehensive credit report may be telling lies about you. If your careful review identifies inaccuracies in your report, it’s in your best interest to dispute them. Late payments are one of the biggest dings on your credit report. If you’re a reliable payer, it’s only fair to fix any errors in your report.
First, reach out to the company reporting the information to the bureaus to dispute your account status. Then report the error to the credit reporting bureaus. You’ll need to include a dispute form and documentation supporting your case.
This process can take months to resolve, so stay the course on other credit-boosting activities while you wait. Inaccurate reports happen, so it’s important to review your credit report regularly so you can quickly address them.
5. Attack the Two Most Impactful Credit Factors
Put your energy into the most impactful parts of your credit score: on-time payments and credit utilization. Your payment history drives 35% of your credit score. If you have a history of late payments, you’re killing your score. Catch up on missed payments and create a system to help you manage your bills. Set up autopay for your core bills (rent/mortgage, utilities, insurance, etc.) so you can ensure that your obligations are covered.
The second most impactful area of your financial behavior is credit utilization, which makes up 30% of your score. Credit utilization — the percentage of your available credit that you’re using at any given time — signifies how well you manage money. Work to keep your utilization below 30% to earn a good mark from the credit bureaus.
If you can, request a credit limit increase to improve that percentage, but resist the urge to tap into it. Consider making payments toward your balance as you make changes to keep your utilization low.
Creating the Accountability to Stay on Track
Any goal is more achievable when you breathe life into it. So create a vision board of your credit score goals and post it where you can see it daily. Talk about your plan with your friends and family to create an accountability team for your new credit-building habits. Monitor your progress regularly and course-correct if you need to.
The more you interact with your plan and assess your behavior, the more likely you are to be successful. Who knows? After a year of hard work, sacrifice, and intentional effort, your score could even climb from poor to exceptional.
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There are two distinct stakeholders in every market, we have the traders and the investors. These two sets of people have one thing in common, they both want to make a profit however they approach the market differently.
If you are reading this article you are probably interested in the market but, you are a little bit dazed about either deciding on trading or investing. It's time to cheer up friends, don't be disturbed anymore, your questions would be clarified after reading this article.
This article would share the necessary information you require to make your decision; trading or investing. Let's get started.
What is trading?
Trading is a financial activity carried out to earn a profit from short-term fluctuations in the market.
Trading involves buying and selling financial instruments; stocks, currencies, commodities, and derivatives to make profits from their price movements within short periods.
What is investing?
Investing is a long-term financial activity where investors buy a financial instrument; for example, stocks that can yield returns in the long run.
Unlike trading, investing requires creating a variety of portfolios of assets and keeping them through every stage of the market till the period they wish or project to take their returns.
Unlike trading which is reliant on price movements for returns, investing grants numerous benefits such as bonuses, dividends, buybacks, stock splits, and more.
The similarities between trading and investing
Trading and investing have a similar objective which is to make a profit. They both offer the possibility of getting rewards.
Trading and investment both hold the possibility of a loss; they both have financial risks.
You need an account/broker to either trade or invest. Without an account, you cannot buy and sell or invest in stocks, ETFs, options, currencies, and others.
The differences between trading and investing
The table below would give you a better understanding of the differences between traders and investing:
CharacteristicsTradingInvestmentRiskHighModerate/LowCapital growthFrom short-term profitAmass gains/wealth overtime while minimizing risksIntentionPurchase assets during the short term and take advantage of mispricing/irregular price movements in the marketBuy investments and hold them for a long period to grow capitalLeverage offeredYesNoAnalysis neededTechnical analysisFundamental analysisCapital gainsMajorly short termBoth short-term and long termPeriod of investment trackingHigh/ConsistentMedium/lessAsset durationSeconds, minutes, a few hoursWeeks, months, years/decadesAssetsStocks, optionsStocks, bonds, ETFs, mutual funds
Conclusion
When you are about to make a decision; trading or investing, be introspective. Ask yourself and consider how patient you are. Are you knowledgeable about investing or trading? What are your skills or expertise? Can you manage risks? Or do you prefer to play safe?
Based on these questions and your strengths or weaknesses you can think about, you can now decide which; trading or investing is best for you.
Remember, trading is more susceptible to financial risk because it is a short-term activity while investing is long-term and less susceptible to financial risk. Trading and investing are not profitable though trading can be a way to earn quick profits while investing wins come in the long run but with fewer losses than trading. You can find your perfect binary options broker as a trader or investor today.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
I. Do traders earn more than investors?
We can not authoritatively say that a trader is earning more than an investor vis-a-vis.
Traders and investors both have the potential to profit. But they both have to make the right and smart decisions otherwise they would lose money.
II. What types of trading can I engage with?
There are four types of trading; day trading, position trading, swing trading, and scalp trading.
Day trading:
Positions are held during the day alone.
Position trading:
Positions are held for months to decades.
Swing trading:
Positions are held within days to weeks.
Scalp trading:
Positions are held within seconds to minutes. Scalp trading is usually operated during the day alone.
III. What types of investing can I engage with?
Some of the types of investing you can engage in are index investing, active investing, passive investing, value investing, market cap-based investing and growth investing.
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The aftermath of the COVID-19 Pandemic saw a string of businesses file for bankruptcy. The United States saw many B2B businesses including, FTK Worldwide (Jewellers), Contact Transport (Logistics and Supply), and others opt for the bankruptcy route.
Legal experts are of the opinion that no two bankruptcy cases are the same. They differ in terms of their exposure, risks, legalities, and the court judgment. Even if two companies file for bankruptcy under Chapter 7, their judgments and orders can be different.
In this article, we speak to a leading bankruptcy Birmingham law firm that specializes in these issues. we ask them about some important things businesses and their owners need to keep in mind before filing for bankruptcy.
List of Important Things you need to know before Filing for Bankruptcy
1. Chapters 7 and Chapter 13 are Important for Individuals and Businesses
Legal experts suggest that solopreneur ventures and sole proprietorships that are individual-centric should go for filing bankruptcy under Chapter 7. This puts a stay to debt and credit obligations and allows individuals to even retain control over their property.
Businesses that are well-established should opt for Chapter 11. This helps in keeping the business entity alive and allows for a payment restructuring plan that works to ensure complete repayment over a period of three to five years.
2. Hiring Legal Help is of High Importance
It is important to understand that individuals or businesses looking to file for bankruptcy should always avail of expert legal help. If you are trying to use Google to do all the paperwork, you might get into serious trouble in the near future.
Bankruptcy laws are incredibly complex and technical. In particular, Chapter 7 allows liquidation of debt to take care of financial obligations and absolve the individual from repayment. All collection attempts must stop. Subsequently, a bankruptcy trustee collects non-exempt valuable assets and sells them to pay off debt. The law discharges eligible debts, such as credit card loans, medical bills, and old utility bills. So, you need an experienced bankruptcy attorney to help you fend off the debtors, and work with the courts and the banking institutions. At the end of the day, you do not want criminal proceedings to be initiated by any of the parties.
You can hire an expert in your area, such as a Florida Chapter 7 bankruptcy lawyer. A bankruptcy lawyer’s job is to help you overcome debt, so they’ll guide you through the process by offering advice or assisting you in filing for bankruptcy protection.
3. Bankruptcy does not mean All Debts go away
If you were under the impression that bankruptcy is going to help you walk away scot-free think again. Legally, the following are some areas where bankruptcy will not be able to help you-
Alimony Payments
Student Loans
Taxes on Luxury Items
Taxes
Child Support Payments
All the above-mentioned areas and payments are not something that the court can give you relief from. If you miss your payments or taxes, new legal cases can be brought up against you in a court of law. The punishment and legal repercussions for the same will be different.
For this reason, it’s a must to talk to an experienced attorney and a personal financial advisor who can help you determine other options for addressing these problems. Social workers and community leaders can also help. The government and private sectors offer programs for citizens needing financial and social support services. They’ll help you get through difficult times, so don’t hesitate to consult them.
4. Your Credit Score will get Affected Post-Bankruptcy
According to leading legal experts, ten years is the period where your credit score will carry the blemish of your bankruptcy declaration. If you are looking to get loans or credit during the period, the same might get very difficult. You need to be prepared to address the credit score.
Some lending companies may offer you a personal loan. But the interest rates are high. You can take the risk to recover gradually from poor credit standing. However, you’ll have to make sure that you pay your loan on time.
Fortunately, there are some professional services that have come up in recent years that can help you improve your credit score within a short period of time. If you want to get back in the game, you can always avail of such services.
5. Bankruptcy can help you give Yourself a Fresh Start in Life and Business-
It can be stated that most businesses that suffered because of the pandemic did so for no fault of their own. In such instances, legal experts suggest that bankruptcy can be a sound tactical and strategic decision that can be taken by businesses and individuals.
Banks, lending institutions, and even the judges that will be hearing the case are already aware of the drastic and negative economic fallouts of the pandemic. In fact, there have been cases, where the banks have discussed with lenders and worked out a positive restructuring plan to help individuals and businesses affected by the pandemic.
The Bottom Line
Filing for bankruptcy can probably the single hardest decision you would have to take in your entire life. However, rather than make the decision an emotional one, it is best to exercise reason and proper judgment and take help from an experienced legal attorney to find your way.
Read Also:
Debunking 7 Notorious Bankruptcy Myths
What are the types of debt that can be discharged in bankruptcy?
Why should you consider investing in gold bullion even if you’ve never invested in an asset before?
Gold bullion is a potentially valuable investment option for beginning investors looking to build a financial portfolio that can minimize risk and maximize potential returns.
Gold has a better portfolio weight than many other asset classes, and it’s also more affordable than other assets. (Silver bullion is even more affordable.)You don’t need to be rich to invest in gold bullion, nor do you have to invest in a lot of gold bullion for your investment to pay off in the short and long term.
Here are two reasons beginning investors may want to invest in gold bullion.
What Is A Gold Bullion?
First off, though, let’s define gold bullion.
Gold bullion refers to gold bars, ingots, and coins officially recognized as being made of at least 99.5% pure gold. Gold bullion is kept as reserves at banks, governments, and institutional investors.
The standard size of gold bullion bars and coins is 1oz.
In North America, you can use bullion coins as legal tender.
In Canada, sales tax doesn’t apply to gold bullion, and gold bullion can be included in RRSPs and other tax-deferred income plans. Some Canadian companies permit Canadians to include gold bullion in their retirement portfolios.
How To Buy and Selling Gold Bullion?
There are many reasons to consider buying and later selling gold in Toronto and elsewhere. Two reasons are that gold bullion is considered:
A safe-haven asset
A hedge against inflation
2 Reasons Are Making The Gold Bullion A Perfect Investment
You will hear millions of names and types of investments in the money market. But every investment has some risk factors. Unlike the other money investment types, Gold Bullion has multiple facilities, which makes this a safe asset.
Here are the two reasons. Take a look at these and know the advantages of the gold bullion investment.
1st Reason to Invest in Gold Bullion: Gold is Considered a Safe-Haven Asset
Gold bullion is a safe-haven-type asset. This is a specific type of asset that tends to increase or retain value over time.
That gold is considered a safe-haven asset doesn’t mean investing in it is risk-free. No investment is risk-free.
But gold tends to perform exceptionally well during times of economic uncertainty, like the earlier days of the COVID-19 pandemic and the 2007-2008 global financial crisis.
In fact, during the earlier days of the COVID-19 pandemic, the price per ounce of gold surpassed USD 2,000 for the first time in history.
Recently, the price of gold per ounce has been hovering around USD 1,800.
2nd Reason to Invest in Gold Bullion: Gold is Considered a Hedge Against Inflation
An asset that hedges against inflation is an asset that can keep pace with or even surpass inflation.
Investing in inflation hedges like gold bullion is a smart way to save money. During periods of inflation, gold tends to appreciate.
If you were to put your money into a traditional savings account, your money would likely fall behind the rate of inflation over time. Consequently, the value of your money in the future would turn out to be less than the value of your money now.
However, if you were to put your money in gold bullion, over time, your money might keep pace with or even surpass inflation, so that the value of your money in the future might turn out to be worth as much or even more than the value of your money now.
The Bottom Line
There are many reasons why beginning investors could benefit from investing in and buying and selling gold bullion.
In addition to being a relatively affordable safe-haven asset and hedge against inflation, gold is considered a strategic asset.
Also, gold bullion is easy to purchase. All you need to do is head over to your local gold bullion dealers (although to be sure, it’s always a good idea to try out a few options before settling on the one that will give you the best deal).
Later, when you’re ready to sell your gold bullion, you can take it to a gold bullion dealer that buys gold bullion. Your goal when doing so is to sell your gold bullion as close to the spot price as possible.
Read Also:
Is Investment Bankers/Brokers/Service A Good Career Path In 2021?
5 Reasons Why Bitcoins Are Considered Reliable Investments
5 New Assets To Diversify Your Investments In 2021
Top 5 Investment Decisions You Need To Make In Your Thirties
Any goal is more achievable when you breathe life into it. So create a vision board of your credit score goals and post it where you can see it daily. Talk about your plan with your friends and family to create an accountability team for your new credit-building habits. Monitor your progress regularly and course-correct if you need to.
The more you interact with your plan and assess your behavior, the more likely you are to be successful. Who knows? After a year of hard work, sacrifice, and intentional effort, your score could even climb from poor to exceptional.
Read Also:
