Help for Katrina Victims
The Gulf Coast has been devastated. People need our help! Even though we have
our own debts and struggles, we still are rich compared to others, especially
those who have lost their homes and some even their families. Anything you can contribute will
help. Donate to the Red Cross.
Paying online
I can't freakin' believe it! I went to pay my NJ Natural Gas Bill online,
directly with them, as I always do, and they changed the web site. The only
problem is that now they want to charge me a 70-cent "convenience fee"
for paying online! What convenience is that? I'm doing them the favor! So you
know what...I'm sending the check by snail-mail from now on! This only costs me
37 cents and is quite convenient for me. Also, NJ Natural Gas should find it
convenient to wait for the check to arrive, process the mail, cash the check,
and wait for it to clear.
Free Credit Report--really!
It's finally up and running (since 9/1/05)! The only real place you can get all
three (3) of your credit reports hassle free. And it's the law! Once a year, everyone can
take a look at these reports. I urge you to get yours now. I just got mine. All
three totaled 100 printed pages! Well, I do have 80 credit cards. The online
process was fairly easy. You'll need to know a few historical details about
yourself and your accounts. But that's a good thing since you don't want anyone
being able to get your info. I created a PDF file out of all the reports to save
on paper costs. If you have Acrobat, or a PDF print driver, I would highly
recommend doing the same. Of course, be sure to back up all your data!
Here's great personal story I received from Cindy Bevington
---------------------------
Hello Scott,
Here's my buying-a-truck story: This March, my fiancé and I bought a 2005 GM
Silverado, 4x4, crew cab elongated bed pickup. Its list price was just under
$46,000. We had seen it at the National Wild Turkey Federation convention in
February and liked it then. I signed up to win one at the convention but, alas,
we didn't, so the next month we decided to buy one instead. The dealer gave us a
little over $6,000 off the list price. I had seen on the Internet that GM wasn't
going to offer 0 percent interest anymore after March 31, and this was March 31,
so I insisted that the deal be closed that day, or there would be no deal at
all. So, we qualified for the 0 percent and got it. We also qualified for no
money down, so we decided not to use any of our cash on hand for that either.
On top of that, we also were able to finance the sales tax, license fees and
plates--which the dealer paid by writing a check for about $2,600 to the
state--all for no money down and 0 percent. So we didn't have to use our own
money for that either. We knew we had a great deal: 5 years of using this truck
with no interest and no up-front costs. But then, the day after we took delivery
of the truck, GM sent me a letter thanking me for my interest at the turkey
convention and offered to give me $500 toward the purchase of a truck should
we decide to buy one. Oh dear! But the deal was closed the day before! Not to be
discouraged, I took the $500 certificate to the dealer anyway, and he promptly
wrote me a check for $500. So, we got the truck, tags, license and tax all
financed for 0 percent down with no money down and took home a check for $500
to boot. We love telling this story!
Thanks,
Cindy Bevington
---------------------------
I have debts that have different interest rates:
9 percent, 10 percent, 28 percent and 29 percent. I want to consolidate my debt
at 16 percent interest rate. But my spouse doesn't agree! Is this a wise move on
my part? If I do this, we will reduce our monthly payment from $1,700 to $612.
But we will end up paying twice the amount of the principal of the loan over a
ten-year term. What I can't figure out is how much we will pay in interest if I
don't consolidate all the debts and how long will it take us to pay them off
when we can only afford minimum payments each month on all the cards?
"I am in the same field as Scott, and have
recommended his book countless times to consumers. With credit card companies
raising rates, fees, etc. his advice could not be more timely.
I just interviewed Scott today (8/11/05) on my
EverydayWealth Radio program and he told me how he just got a 10 month old late
fee waived! That's practically unheard of."
Household Math™: Debt Snowball (Myth or Magic): Paying back
lower-balance cards first
by Scott Bilker
David Sheepsley has two credit cards with
balances. Card A has a balance of $8,000 at 19.8% and minimum payments of $160
per month. Card B has a balance of $6,000 at 5.9% with minimum payments of $120
per month. David has a total of $400 per month to use for repaying his credit
cards. What's the better plan for David?
Featured credit cards can save you money now!
by Scott Bilker
Your
best defense against any one bank is to have credit options. That means, being able to
transfer your balance to a lower rate. That's your only real power against high
fees. That's how to be DebtSmart®! Make the banks fight for your business! Be
sure to add this web page to your favorites list so you can keep applying for
new credit when you need it. Which credit card is right for you? Select from the
list below and apply online right now!
How to save money on your phone service within minutes!
by Scott Bilker
For a limited time, I'm going to throw in a free
download of my DebtSmart Loan Calculator ($9.95 value) when you sign up for
this prepaid phone service. Both the calculator and the phone service are
worthwhile, or they wouldn't be here. I personally wrote the calculator software
and stand behind it.
I always use everything I recommend to make sure that it's good! Ready for
this...their claims are 100% true! Great service! Great price! I signed up for
$25 and got the free minutes. So, the total time I received was 1,578 minutes!
That's 1.58 cents per minute!
The online reporting was instant and accurate! This is all I'm going to be
using for a while. If you let them know what numbers you're calling from, and call
their local access number, you get the lowest rate, And, you only have to enter
the PIN to make the call. It's easy to use, cheap as can be, clean connection,
organized online, and simple. Works just like you would want and expect!
My phone service is getting me for 10 cents per minute for in-state calling
and 7 cents per minute for long distance! What a rip! I can't believe I've been
overlooking this big potential savings. I'm going to easily cut my phone bill by
two-thirds! I figure that I'll save $1,000 per year with this new service.
I'm so lost! I'm about to obtain my first credit
card, and I do not know where to start or even how many to take out. What deal is
the best? Do I look at the APR or the nice rewards they have? I'm just trying to
establish a good credit history, because I am aware that you need one if you want
to eventually buy a house/car. It's so hard to get the ball to start
rolling--especially with the limited knowledge that I have. Thanks so much for your
help.
Helping you with your debt is very important to me personally! If you've been
reading my articles, you know that I always encourage self-help as a first step.
However, being buried in debt can be very overwhelming, which is why you may
want to explore other options.
One of those options is professional, ongoing help with credit counselors.
I've started to personally check out certain companies so I can recommend the
ones that are worth considering!
If you would like to speak with a representative from a...
"CardRatings.com has been offering
ratings of credit cards since 1998 and has been featured by Good Morning
America, The Wall Street Journal, Consumer Reports®, NPR, PBS, etc.
Thanks to consumers like you, CardRatings.com has become the most
comprehensive free source for comparing credit card offers."
Credit card protection insurance--should you get it?
by Rebecca Lindsey
When sorting through various files regarding
credit cards, many people may happen upon information regarding credit
insurance. In fact, many people may be paying for this insurance and not even
realize that they have it. Not a good idea-fees can sometimes be as high as $25
to $30 a month.
When sorting through various files regarding credit cards, many people may
happen upon information regarding credit insurance. In fact, many people may be
paying for this insurance and not even realize that they have it.
The author(s), Press One Publishing, and DebtSmart.com shall have neither
liability nor responsibility to any person or entity with respect to any loss or
damage caused, or alleged to be caused, directly or indirectly by the
information contained in this email newsletter and/or at the DebtSmart.com web
site. The information, methods and techniques described may not work for you and
no recommendation is made to follow the same course of action. Every effort has
been made to verify the accuracy of all content contained herein. However, there
may be mistakes; typographical, mathematical, or in content. This email
newsletter and the DebtSmart.com web site have been created for your
entertainment only. You must always seek the proper professional advice before
taking any financial or legal action. You have been warned.
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cutting-edge strategies for
solving credit problems. I
highly recommend it."--Gerri
Detweiler, radio host and
author of The
Ultimate Credit Handbook
