If you’re stuck under some high credit card bills and your credit rating is slipping, one of the best ways to immediately improve your credit is a home equity loan. When the loan closes, home owners have cash-on-hand to pay off bills. The result: their credit rating starts to improve immediately.

Banking executive Dan Ambrose refers to those as the “band-aid loan”, also known as the 2/28 in mortgage lingo.

“Most sub-time loans are short term loans, not A paper market, which means a fixed rate for two years then the loan adjusts.”

He’s talking about 30 year refinancing mortgages for people with less than stellar credit. Lenders offer a home-equity loan at a set interest rate for two years, and then the loan converts to a variable rate loan, where the interest rate fluctuates with the prime rate at the time.

That’s the down-side to the “band-aid loan.” Lenders usually charge higher interest rates for people with lower credit scores. Dan warns consumers to prepare themselves for when the loan converts. Home owners could face a higher interest rate than the original home loan, and their monthly payments could hit them harder.

If consumers take the cash from their equity loan and pay-off their bills in full, after 18 months of perfect mortgage payments, Dan says the consumer’s credit improves to the point that “now every bank will deal with them.”

If you think a home-equity loan could save you form your creditors, watch out for the current housing market in your area. “Watching the marketplace, I saw the writing on the wall”, says Dan. “The real estate values are going down. They’re starting to slow down drastically.”

And there’s the other potential roadblock for homeowners in this situation. Lower home values means less equity and possibly not enough equity to satisfy their payment needs. If the equity isn’t enough to pay all of your bills, and after two years your payments are even higher than before, you could possibly put yourself in a worse situation.

“People with marginal credit or no equity do have some options such as the 125% loan to get ahead.”

A 125% loan offers you a loan for more than your home is actually worth. Talk to a mortgage professional to make certain the credit risk is worth the return. Dan says most importantly; use the equity cash to pay-off those bills before you splurge on your dream vacation.

Many people in our modern society live from paycheck to paycheck. Most of them do not even see where the money they earn from a month long work goes a day after the payday.

Looking for low interest credit cards? There are many options out there. With so many companies and banks offering many different styles and types of cards, it’s good to know the basics about how credit cards work so you can find out what type of card would work best for you. Many cards offer an introductory interest rate, which can be as low as 0% on purchases for up to the first 12 months of your card’s use. Banks such as Citi, Chase, and American Express offer many varieties of cards including some with this illustrious introductory offer.

However, once this initial period of your card expires, you are subject to a “Purchase APR” interest rate. APR stands for Annual Percentage Rate. This number can be quite high, or low, usually depending on your credit score. A fairly low interest credit cards APR is around 9% or lower.

There are cards out there that you can obtain with an APR of as low as 5.5%, given a good credit score and some searching. Another thing to note when looking at APRs would be the letters “V” and “F”. These seemingly harmless looking letters that appear after interest rates can mean a lot. “V” stands for variable, which means your rates are subject to change. “F” stands for “Fixed”, which means your APR will stay at a certain rate. Obviously, it is good to get a card with a fixed rate.

It all depends on your credit score on how much credit and what apr you will normally be given. However, you can obtain a decent card if you shop around for the best deals. Some companies will negotiate with you if your credit score is poor, as long as you can show that you have had income for the past several months. They will normally come up with a deal to suit your needs and income.

Be careful however, as some companies will put you on a very high interest rate which can be hard on you if you mount up debt on the card. Once you have made payments for around a year on this card, you can then apply for much lower APR card and start building an excellent credit score up.

Many bankruptcy filers are wondering whether they are entitled to keep one or several credit cards for emergencies backup. In general, you may not because your credit cards will be cancelled regardless, since you file the bankruptcy. The credit card issuers tend to punish their card holders for filling any kind of bankruptcy; in most cases, the credit cards of bankruptcy filers will be terminated once they file for a bankruptcy. But there are some exemptions where terms and conditions will be applied to enable the bankruptcy filers to continue holding their credit cards.

There are some exceptions applicable only to chapter 7 bankruptcy filers. Some credit card’s issuers will allow you to keep your credit card but with a sized down credit limit, and in return you need to repay them for some of your debts. In fact, some companies will automatically send you or your attorney a proposed reaffirmation agreement, a contract between you and your creditor that you will pay all or a portion of the money owed, despite the bankruptcy filing, in exchange for a minimal amount of new credit.

Beside the sized down credit limit, a chapter 7 bankruptcy filers may allow to keep their credit cards by some of their card issuers but the interest rate will be revised to a higher than the normal interest rate. But, if you can always pay your credit balance in full each month, you will never incur a finance charge, and the high interest rate won’t hurt you.

Other than chapter 7 bankruptcy filers, all credit cards must be given up at the filling of bankruptcy. However, there are credit card holders who have maintained their credit cards at zero balance for a long period of time do not report their credit cards during the filing. This action can be considered illegal since in effect your preference on one creditor (your credit card issuer) over other creditors, because repayment ordination is a trustee job.

If you are not eligible to file under chapter 7 or even you are filling under chapter 7 but you didn’t manage to get approval from your credit card issuers to keep your credit cards, the best thing is report all your credit cards and give them up. In most cases, your need to wait until the bankruptcy filing has cleared and then work with a debt management consultant to rebuilt your credit step by step. Of course, in the months and years after the bankruptcy filling, you may not be eligible for top-tier or even middle-tier credit cards.

But with some efforts and fiscal strategy such pay your monthly credit balance in full and on schedule will help you to rebuilt your good credit record and you can begin to erase the stigma of the bankruptcy; and eventually put you back in the realm of good to high credit score.

As a consumer you’ve learned the importance of
establishing a good credit rating with your lenders. Whether you are shopping for a new home or auto, or searching for the best deals on insurance, your credit worthiness will be judged by your credit rating or credit score.

A bad credit history or bad credit habits will place “black marks” on your credit profile. These include things such as late payments, having an account assigned to a collection agency, and of course bankruptcy.

Establishing good credit habits and therefore a good credit rating will improve your credit worthiness. This will be reflected in potential lenders offering you substantially lower interest rates and better deals on credit offers.

Here are 4 tips to help you create a shining credit profile:

1) Pay Your Bills On Time

Lenders only have your past payment history on which to decide the type of credit risk you present to them. How you pay off your debts now indicates to them how you will pay off future debts.

2) Don’t Use Too Many or Too Few Credit Cards

How much is too much ? How little is too little ? Many credit experts and financial planners suggest two to four credit cards is just the right mix.

3) Pay At Least The Minimum Due

Always pay at least the minimum due payment, but never less. And remember, just paying the minimum payment means it will take you years and years to pay off that credit card.

Example: Paying off a $2,000 credit payment at 18% APR with a minimum monthly payment of 2% ($40 dollars or less) will take you 30 years to pay off the amount plus interest.

4) Review Your Credit Report Regularly

Monitor your credit report from all three major credit bureaus – Experian, TransUnion, and Equifax – on a regular basis. Check your credit profile at least annually. Review it carefully and make sure that any past mistakes or disputes have been corrected.

Also, if you notice an account listed that you know that you have not personally opened, contact that creditor and the credit bureaus immediately. This could be a sign that you’ve had your identity stolen. Request to have a fraud alert placed on your profile and account to protect yourself and your credit. Identity theft is the fastest growing consumer crime in America, with an estimated 1 million people victimized each year.

Establish good credit habits early in life and reap the benefits that your good credit rating will provide you for the rest of your financial future.