How To Recover From Bankruptcy

No doubt about it, filing for bankruptcy is scary.  When you’ve hit the point where filing is the only option, fears and questions of how to get back on track can be crippling.  We’re here to help.  Recovering from bankruptcy isn’t easy, but it is possible!

1.  Evaluate yourself and find your weakness: It’s important to take a step back and take an honest look at where you went wrong.  Were there aspects of what got you to bankruptcy that you could have controlled and changed? Take a good, hard look at your spending habits and finances and figure out what to do differently.

2.  Make sure your credit reports are up to date and monitor them: You should check your credit reports every few months to make sure every discharged debt or closed account is reported correctly.  You may consider signing up for a credit monitoring service, but be careful and research the company before signing up for anything!

3.  Set a budget and pay bills on time:  Check out our Budgeting 101 or the budget templates in our Home Management Binder for budgeting tips.  Stay organized and pay everything on time.  Your payment history is a huge chunk of your credit report and missed payments will have quite an impact, especially after bankruptcy.

4. Get a secured credit card and pay it in full every month: Secured credit cards have low credit limits and high interest rates.  It requires a cash collateral deposit which becomes the credit line.  Paying your balance every month will help you establish a positive credit history, as secured cards report to the credit bureaus just like regular credit cards do!

5. Read, read, read: Take your time before you sign anything.  Read the fine print and do research on any offers that are presented to you.  After you file bankruptcy, you may be targeted by predatory companies.  Be wary of credit repair businesses and companies offering you loans to fix your credit.  Keep in mind, you are the only one that can improve your credit.  No program, especially one that charges a fee, can have things removed from your credit report or promise an improvement in your score.  Take your time when making financial decisions and going over offers, read everything, ask questions and be sure you fully understand what you are signing up for.

Bankruptcy is hard.  Life after bankruptcy is hard.  Hang in there, and you’ll be on your way to a debt free, financially responsible life!

Cash Direct Express Home Management Binder

Our slogan at Cash Direct Express is “We’re here to help when you need it most.”  Financially, we do this by offering our customers a short term and longer term solution.  Personally, we’re here to help you with other aspects of your life on our blog, Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest! Today, we’d like to take that one step further and help you organize your home!

Having your finances in order is one part of getting your household organized, but what about everything else? We’ve got it all broken down for you in easy- to- maintain printables.  This binder had been designed so that you can print out as many pages as you need from each of the templates.  Here’s the CDe Home Management Binder:

Understanding Short Sales

Even though experts are saying that the real estate market is on the upswing, short sales are still a reality for many people.  Knowing exactly what a short sale is, if it’s an option for you, or if you should buy one, can help you understand today’s housing market.

A short sale is a house or property that sells for less than what is owed on the mortgage.  In other words, the balance of the mortgage is greater than the current market value of the home.  This can also happen if the accepted sale price is higher than the mortgage, but not high enough to pay off closing costs and commissions. A short sale can be beneficial to both the seller and the buyer, but there are details to be aware of when considering a short sale.

Keeping Your Information Safe on Social Networks

Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and other social networking sites have become a big part of our everyday lives.   These sites can be a great way to keep in touch with friends, help market a business and share important news.  However, social networking sites have also become huge targets for scammers and hackers.  Knowing how to keep your information safe and secure should be part of your social networking routine.   It takes more than just a good password to safeguard your identity.  We’re here to help!

Having a good password is your first step towards online safety.  Try having a different password for every login and try to avoid making them obvious.  For example, using the password admin or password, your address, or other identifying information are a hackers dream.   Using a mix of numbers, letters and symbols will ensure a secure password.  Change your passwords often and be sure not to share them.

Take a good look at your social profiles.  How much identifying information do you include?  As all good Facebookers know, having your birthday on your profile is essential, but what else are you revealing?  Including your year of birth could be too much depending on what other information your profile holds.  Avoid having your address and phone number publicly shown on your profile.  These, along with your full date of birth provide just enough details for potential identity theft!

What Are Credit Card Skimmers

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In today’s tech-savvy world,  consumers have to be alert at every turn.  Even when filling up your tank, scammers could be gaining access to your information.

Card Skimmers are a portable device that is attached in front of or on top of the actual card scanner.  It captures your card information as you insert your card into the real scanner.  Some skimmers record your data using a magnetic reader and use a miniature camera to record you typing your pin number.  Others will place a fake keypad over top the actual keypad that captures your pin number.  This captured information can be make into counterfeit cards, sold on the black market, or used for online transactions by the scammers.   Card Skimmers are often found on ATMs, gas station card readers and movie rental kiosks.

To protect yourself against Card Skimmers, there are some steps you can take.

How To Report Fraud

Finding out that a stranger has access to your banking information can be a scary discovery.  We’re here to help with all the steps you need to take to clear your credit!

First thing’s first, you need to put a “fraud alert” on your credit file.  This should slow down anyone trying to open more credit in your name.   A fraud alert is attached by the major credit bureaus to your credit report.  When someone then tries to open a line of credit in your name, the lender should contact you by phone to verify that you really want to open a new account.  However, this is not required by law.  When you activate a fraud alert, your name is removed from all pre-approved credit and insurance offers for two years.   You’ll want to contact Equifax, Experian and Trans Union.  Here’s how:

Equifax: 1-800-525-6285
Experian: 1-888-397-3742
Experian National Consumer Assistant Center
PO Box 9530
Allen, TX 75013
Trans Union: 1-800-680-7289

After putting out fraud alerts, you’ll need to notify the following:

• Contact your current creditors and financial institutions
• Ask banks and card companies to send you new cards, deactivate old cards and reset your pin numbers
• Contact companies on your credit report that you don’t recognize and verify the information in their system and let them know about the fraud.
• Contact the Federal Trade Commission to report the fraudulent activity.
• Contact your local law enforcement agency and file a police report

Be sure to keep a log of who you speak and report things to.  Keep copies of all legal documents and affidavits and make records of everything!  Effective October of 1997, if you are a victim of Identity Fraud, you are entitled by Federal Law to a free annual credit report.   Keep these reports and check them for accuracy.  Be smart, be organized, and be alert!

Save Money While Paying Off Debt

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It’s a problem that so many people face:  How do you save money while paying off debt?  The good news, is that it’s possible!  Making small changes to your everyday habits will have you paying off your debt while bulking up your savings account!

As with the first step in creating a budget, the first step in the process is tracking your spending.  You can’t save if you don’t know where you can cut back!  Take one month and track where each little penny goes.  Then, focus on cutting back.  Can you make your own coffee instead of buying one every morning?  Cut your cable bill down?  Paying for minutes you don’t use on your cell phone? Take any money you save cutting out unnecessary spending and put it in savings.