Business Marketing & Finance Resources

A good credit rating is important you need it to buy many things. You might need a new car to get you back and forth to work, or a boat, so you can take your kids or friends fishing. You might be renting an apartment and want to go buy that first house. Then you must have a good credit rating most people do not have thousands of dollars to just go pay cash for these items. They need to get a loan from a lender to buy them.

A bank or lender will look at your credit score first in considering you for a loan. If they see you have a poor score you will not get one for that item you need to buy. If you do have a good score there is a better chance you will get this loan you need. A good credit rating also will effect the interest rate that you can get with your loan. The better your score is the better chance you will get a lower interest rate.

Some of the things that will affect your score are.

1. Your credit history, do you have a credit card that you have been using and for how long. It is a good thing if you have been using it for a long time. So credit cards can be good or bad for your score depending on the way they are used. If you use them for a small purchase once a month or every other month if you have more than one. Then you make that payment at the end of the month so you do not have high interest payments and keep that card going for a long time it will improve your score and give you that good credit rating. You do not want to over use a credit card to where you are not able to pay it off each month increasing your debt and paying high interest.

2. Your history of payments, have you made all your payments or did you miss any of your payments, it is best if you haven’t missed any. So it is a good idea to concentrate on not having any late or missed payments. Keep your monthly payments up to date and paid on time.

3. Your current debt, if your debt is to high it could effect you getting the loan. If your debt is higher than your income the lender will not like this. They will look at how much money you are paying out and how much money you are bringing in. If your pay out is above your income then getting another loan that will increase your debt is unlikely.

4. Your loan applications, did you apply for a loan lately and did you get it or not. If you have a lot of applications for loans recently that could be bad. You do not want to apply for to many loans if a lender sees you have applied and you were turned down to many time they will not give you one.

5. Your loan history, if you have had different types of loans and have made your payments on them this will improve your credit. Different types would be like a car, personal loan and house loan. As long as you made the payments to these on time. Then this shows to the lender that you have had a good history of paying your previous loans and increase your chance of getting approved.

It is important that you watch these things so you keep a good credit rating going. They will help you get that loan and get it at a lower interest rate. You will save money and be able to get the things you need. If you do have problems there is a lot of credit solutions out there that can help you get back on track.

When people hear the term business credit cards, they get many different ideas. Mostly people link the concept to the famous cards offered by companies like Visa, MasterCard, American Express and other famous companies.

But there is really a big difference and most people do not even know about it

These type of companies give you credit cards that look very neat and you will also see your name on the card. In fact, you may also get your business name on the card. But this is just a personal card that you are getting from these companies.

The credit cards that are of the business kind are in most cases always linked to the personal credit of the person who owns the business. This is more likely when the business is small or totally new. All the liability that goes with the card is borne by the owner of this card. The worst part is that if any payments are late, the personal credit score of the card carrier is affected.

The downside of owning a business card of this type

A real business card is never ever linked to the owner. This kind of a card is based on the credit profile of the business organization that offers the card to its employees.

If you think that you could very easily get this kind of a card from one of those big companies then just forget about it. If you have a card of this kind in your name and it is attached to your credit account, then it is really bad for you as it could severely damage your credit scores in case something went wrong.

If you are looking for real business credit cards, then you need to think – Retail!

If you want a good card for your business, one that is in the name of your business, but is not going to affect your credit score negatively and also have no negative effects on your personal credit scores, then you need to start thinking – Retail!

You can very easily get these cards for your business that are retail specific from places such as: Office Max, Staples, Home Depot, and many other places. You will also find that the requirements are far less strict as compared to those of other business credit cards and this will also help you in establishing a good credit for your business.

Ideas on how you can Rebuild your Credit after Bankruptcy:

Get a Secured Credit Card
For consumers who have recently gone through bankruptcy, a good choice would be to obtain a secured credit card. Secured cards required the applicant to open a bank account with a balance that matches the credit limit of the secured credit card. Typically, the limit will amount to $500 maximum, but be prudent about the usage and limit your charges to no more than approximately 30% of your credit limit. Focus on light, regular use of the card to help rebuild your credit. It is important that your credit card gets reported to the credit bureaus, but try to prevent having it reported as a secured card. Also, don’t just grab any secured card that is available. Take a close look at possible huge upfront charges and annual fees. In addition, ensure that your payment history is being reported to the three major credit bureaus: Equifax, Trans Union, and Experian.

Open a CD
Using a certificate of deposit (CD) as a method to rebuild credit is another option. A small personal loan is used to open a CD for a minimum of one year, and the loan payments that are made on-time will show good credit history during the length of the certificate. This strategy is helpful to re-establish credit without having the temptation of a credit card.

Installment Loans
Student loans (not typically dischargeable in bankruptcy), can be used to rebuild your score with timely payments and possibly paying more than you owe if possible will help even more. Other types of installment loans include auto loans (expect a very high interest rate initially), and a high-rate mortgage, sometimes available in a little as six months after your bankruptcy case is closed. Just make sure you can really afford a home before buying it.

Additional Ideas
• Pay every bill on time
• Check your credit reports regularly
• Save as much money as possible
• Minimize the number of inquiries on your credit report

Banks offer credit cards for college students for a very simple reason; they want to be able to introduce their brand to these college students so that once these students are already working, they would now choose financial institutions which they are familiar with. Another reason is that they could immediately build a credit reputation. In order to promote this, most credit cards that are being offered to college students include low interest rates, no transaction fees, and other packages the a student might need.

We are all familiar with the importance of building a great credit as soon as possible. It would allow us to make big purchases both for our basic necessities and our heartfelt desires. This could also give us the power to purchase other things or services that we might need in the future. By having a plastic card at a young age, you will be able to build a good credit thus investing for future purposes.

Now, what would be the best plastic for a college student? The best card must offer rewards points, low interest rate, and possibly a discount on some services if I use their card. A type of credit card that will be useful for a student is immediately a prepaid debit card or a secured credit card. A prepaid debit card has the same concept as a credit card; the only difference is that it has a pre loaded amount in the card. The pre loaded amount is the one that is being decreased every time you purchase it, this would mean that there will be no bills and no interest rates. The amount you put into the card is your only limit, a perfect card for people with bad credit and also students.

The secured card, on the other hand, requires you to deposit a certain amount before you could use it. The amount you deposited would be the predetermined limit of the card; the concept is that you told the bank the maximum amount that you can afford to pay. Perfect for teaching people their credit limit and also teaching them a sense of responsibility. This type of card could eliminate your chances of having a record of a bad credit history while at college.