I know, I know, it all seems very overwhelming at times, especially in these times. I’ll try not to get all Suze Orman on you, but I’ve learned a lot working in the financial industry the past few years and if I could pass along one piece of information to my friends it would be to have a strong credit score! I know some of you may be familiar with your credit scores if you have bought a home, and having a high credit score can be HUGE in getting you the best interest rate on your mortgage, but there are other reasons to have a high credit score.

Those of you who know me, know that it is my passion to make us smarter, more supportive, knowledgeable and happy individuals. And part of that is being smart about our finances. It can be scary, trust me, I know. I’m single, and living in the middle of the city is very expensive. Sometimes making ends meet means working two jobs, and in times like these, you just have to let go of that pride and do what it takes. People will respect you for taking care of yourself and you will respect yourself, which is all that matters in the end belles!

So let’s start by finding out what we’re working with and learn what our credit score is. I’ve asked my friend Rich at www.mycreditscoreimprovement.com to answer a few questions for us about credit scores and why they are important, what areas of our life they affect, and what we can do to fix them. Here we go!

How much money could someone save on their monthly mortgage payment by raising their credit score from a 640 to a 720?

The difference of a 640 credit score and a 720 credit score could be a very large savings on a monthly basis.  Interest rates are based on the ability of a client to be able to repay their mortgage.  This is based on their financial track record (their credit report and the credit score they have obtained).  In today’s market this could mean as much as a 1% difference in interest rate.  For example, a 640 credit score could be a 7% interest and a 720 credit score a 6%.  Based on the loan amount, this could easily be a $150-200+ monthly payment difference.

I don’t own a home and I don’t plan on buying in the next year.  Why should I want to raise my credit score?

Credit scores are used for so many things today that a home purchase is just one of many.  The following is just a short list of what a credit score is looked at for:

Financial approval when renting an apartment

Financial approval when buying a car

Financial approval for any and all insurances (health, life, auto, home or renters insurance, etc)

When applying for a new job

Joining a health club

Applying for any and all credit cards

The biggest thing to remember is the better your credit score the less interest rate you will pay on financed items along with lower insurance rates.  What this means to you is money saved on payments and premiums.

Should I pay to get all three credit scores or just one?  What is a tri-merge?

When applying for an item that requires your credit score to be used as the deciding factor of approval and also interest rate and or payment amount, there are three credit reporting agencies that creditors report to.  This is why it is called a tri-merge, which means three credit reports combined to make one.  Many creditors will use the middle score for approval.  An example would be the following: 720, 667, and 708.  The middle score would be 708.

What are the easiest things I can do to raise my score?  What should I do first?

WOW, if you have read the answers to the questions above and feel that it sounds like a confusing process, well now you understand how important it is to have a good credit score.  So what is a good credit score?  A 740 middle score and above is what you need.  If you do not have a 740, the best thing to do is to hire a professional to help you increase your score.  The one thing we should all do is pay our bills on time, this will help keep your credit score constant, but it will not raise it.

My best answer is each credit report and financial situation is different.  Proper review and a proper plan for each credit report if followed will help each person obtain their highest possible credit score.

Thanks Rich!

If you have more questions about Rich’s services, check out the website at www.mycreditscoreimprovement.com. Let’s keep the conversation going, if you have ideas on ways to save money without completely sacrificing your lifestyle, leave a comment and share with the community. We’ll appreciate it!

I love to Jott

I recently had to come up with some “best practices” that I use to help me stay organized, or just stay on top of life’s chaos in general. So I thought I would share some of them in the next few posts in hopes that they will help you too!

Jott.com- I use Jott a number of ways. Jott takes your voice messages and transcribes them into text, and then delivers them to the specified recipient via email or text message (however you choose.) This is especially helpful when I am driving and need to email/respond to friends, family, or work items. I’ll call Jott and it works like this:

Jott: “Who do you want to Jott?”

Me: “Regional” (which is a distribution list I have set up for my regional team)

Jott: “Just to confirm, you’d like to Jott Regional?”

Me: “Yes”

Jott: “Okay, Jott…”

Me: “Hey guys, have you registered for the IMBA Annual Dinner? Are you bringing any customers? Let me know! Thanks!”

Hang up.

Jott will then take the message I left and send my regional team an email with my transcribed message. This way I don’t have to send the email on my blackberry while driving. Not only that but it allows me to get a lot of my follow up items done on my way home so I can spend time with my family (i.e. Henry.)

Jott will also transcribe your voicemail messages into text and send them to you via email or text message. I find this most helpful when I’m in an account or a seminar/meeting and I receive a voice message. Jott sends me a text message so I can see if the message is urgent and needs immediate attention.

You can listen to your favorite RSS Feeds via Jott as well, which is nice if you don’t have access to a computer or don’t have time to sit down and read them. There is a ton of information on the site and its simple to set up. The good thing is, once you have it set up, its done and you don’t have to constantly manage and update it. I’ve even set up a group (distribution list) with all of my family so I can send them updates without having to make 15 different phone calls.

If you have questions about Jott or want to learn more, go to www.Jott.com.