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@CruzImperial wrote:
Aren't the above #2 and #3 suggestions the same? lols
If living off every paycheck is the situation, I would try to cut down my budget so I have room to play and pay little more on my cards.
If there's a time of the year when you take your vacations or receive a bonification or extra source of income(for many of us the income tax returns around feb~mar, make sure to use it well.
Yes. Just emphasizing the "Never Ever" part.
I recently started using Mint.com and it is an excellent resource for managing your finances. What is nice about it is that you get a snapshot on one page of your balances and due dates of all your accounts (credit card, investments, student loans, bank accounts) and there is a handy budget page as well that let's you ponder questions like "Do I really need to be spending $87/month on Starbucks?". Check it out, it's a great tool for managing your cashflow.
@severine wrote:I recently started using Mint.com and it is an excellent resource for managing your finances. What is nice about it is that you get a snapshot on one page of your balances and due dates of all your accounts (credit card, investments, student loans, bank accounts) and there is a handy budget page as well that let's you ponder questions like "Do I really need to be spending $87/month on Starbucks?". Check it out, it's a great tool for managing your cashflow.
I use mint.com as well, it's also got a nice little app for cell phones. My only issue with it is the updating isn't really that quick. I checked out pageonce (I think that's what it's called) and it seems to update my accounts a lot quicker, only issue being you can't add GECRB credit card account.
I also recently started to use mint.com and the smart phone app. I've become obsessed with it and check it several times a day. It works off of your current bank online accounts, so all you have to do to set it up is create a mint account and then add in your other credit card and bank accounts. I have all of my accounts on it including my 401k and investment accounts. It updates ever time you log in with your 4 digit pin (on smart phone) and it is as current as your individual online accounts. It shows recent card activity including pending transactions, available credit and total amount used. It will also alert you if you have high spending in a category (preset or created by you). It's a great way to see everything in one view instead of having to log into individual online accounts or apps. It will also notify you when you have an upcoming bill.
I have several credit cards that I use for various points and miles. It was hard at first to manage all of them at once, but now I make sure that I never use more than 2 credit cards at once, rotating through them depending upon bonus point structures. I will pay a credit card as many as 4 times in one month as I get cash coming in. That way it doesn't seem like such a big hit if I have to pay a lot of money at once, and If I see a finance charge, it will be small. I setup my accounts to always pay the min amount each month, just in case I forget to pay one. Forgetting to make a payment is the worst excuse for lowering your credit score or standing with a bank. It's like running in to get a cup of coffee and getting a parking ticket because you parked in the wrong spot. You end up kicking yourself.
Before swiping your CC, you should have enough in your bank account to cover that charge right away.
Definitely agree on NEVER EVER pay late. If it ever comes down to it, and you absolutely HAVE to let something slide in a particluar month, even just by a couple of days, don't let it be a credit card payment! They may raise your rate, charge you fees, and/or decrease your credit limit.
+1 to the Mint.com recommendations. It's a great tool for seeing where your money goes and setting a budget to keep things in check in those areas where you tend to overspend.
Pageonce is nice, too, but I tried them both for a while and decided I like Mint's interface and budgeting tools much better.
However, for making sure I keep track of due dates and always pay on time, my favorite is Manilla. It does a much better job than Mint of keeping me alerted to upcoming bills, and it archives every bill or statement for me automatically. I check it once a day to see my account balances and upcoming due dates, and it always keeps me on track. Highly recommended. And of course, just like every web app these days, it also has a smartphone version!
Awesome advice coming from the posters. My advice to add would be...
1. Patience. Credit building is a marathon not a sprint.
2. Be very careful with these app sprees. Never been a fan of those.
3. Make credit work for you, not the other way around.
4. Carrying a balance is not the worst thing in the world. Just be in control of it.
I've had one of the worst looking credit reports that a person could have (minus a BK). I keep that report in my files just as a sobering reminder of what credit abuse can do. Now.... I sit comfortably at 813 and drive my own "credit boat". There aren't too many credit stories that I wouldn't be able to relate to. I really stand behind my points 1 and 2.