I don’t think there is one person right now that isn’t affected in some way by the current economic downturn we’re experiencing. In some ways, I’m thinking that maybe what is happening right now is a good thing in some respects. Credit limits are being cut, and people can no longer “consolidate” their debt into home equity loans, because most of us don’t have any equity available. Don’t get me wrong…these are not “good” things, but I do believe that all of us are having to re-think our spending habits, and THAT IS a good thing.

Do You Really Need Everything You Charge On Credit?

For too long, we have been on the “gotta have it now” program, which has thrown a majority of people into more debt than they can ever afford to pay back. I reflected back myself on things I’ve bought that I never even used or really needed. Did I really need to spend my money on that? No, not really…I just “had to have it” for some reason or another that I can’t even remember now.

We Need To Cut Back

We are all so rushed in this life. There is never enough time to get everything done that we want to do. Our life has taken on “outsourcing” to complete the tasks we either don’t want to do, or don’t feel we have the time to do, or just don’t know how to do. Outsourcing takes money and the majority of us just don’t have the disposable income we once “thought” we had to pay for these services. We’re having to cut back now. The housekeeper and gardener services are being cancelled. We’re not buying things we don’t really need. We’re not going out to eat as much, nor are we going out for our entertainment as frequently as we used to.

I think we all need to get back to basics and learn how to do some things on our own, and for ourselves. We need to re-think our spending habits, focus on reducing our debt, and learn how to “save” money instead of “spending” it. We need to invest in ourselves, our own security, and our own future. We need to set an example for our own government by not spending beyond our means. We need to have emergency funds saved for ourselves, so we can bail ourselves out of our own mess. We need to be accountable for how we got into this position, change our habits and take personal responsibility.

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A great credit history is established by keeping your commitments to repay credit cards or loans as agreed, making your payments on time and in the amounts required.

Neglecting to do so make it difficult and costly for you to borrow money for the things you need for yourself and your family. This can affect essential areas in your life such as renting an apartment or buying a home, getting insurance, an education or even medical care.

Plan for emergencies!

Things in life occur that are not under our control, such as losing a job, or getting into a car accident, which can impact your ability to repay your bills. This is why it’s critical to set up a savings account and contribute to it on a regular basis. This will ensure you have emergency funds available to honor your credit agreements in spite of any unforeseen challenges.

Unfortunately, creditors don’t care what your situation is. If you’re late on a payment, they’re going to report it as late, and that late payment will remain on your credit report for 7 years. It will also have an impact on your credit score for the first two years. That’s pretty harsh for just one 30 day late payment, but that’s how it works.

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Possessing and using a credit card can be an advantage for our financial health. Many of us look at a credit card as something that can get us into trouble, as free cash or a trap. Let us look at this piece of plastic as a tool to be used to benefit our financial well being.

There are not many families that operate on a pure cash basis. Most of us have loans on homes, cars and student loans. Debt is part of our society. Being financially responsible with our payments is our goal. We make these payments on long term loans and credit is established. According to the credit reporting agencies, Experian, Transunion and Equifax, we need fresh debt to keep our good score and make it increase.

Using a credit card for monthly budgeted items will satisfy this need. A card used for gas or groceries will certainly meet this criteria. Paying the balance at the end of the month will avoid interest charges and late fees.

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A foreclosure will greatly affect one’s credit standing. It is believed by many that a short sale will lead to a shorter credit recovery period. Does this mean that a foreclosure damages one’s credit more than a short sale? The truth is that a short sale offers very little advantage over a foreclosure when it comes to preserving your credit standing.

Let’s be clear about it. Although there may not be an advantage in using a short sale instead of entering foreclosure when it comes to preserving credit standing or recovering FICO points sooner, using a short sale does have its advantages.

As of May 31st 2008, Fannie Mae will not allow loans for five long years to those who entered foreclosure. Fannie Mae’s current rules state that it will take two years for you to re-establish credit once you use a short sale to dispose of your property. Two years is not really that long compared to the length of time it will require to get credit once you enter foreclosure. That is a definite advantage of using a short sale instead of entering foreclosure.

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There are several things that you will have to provide proof to any lender before you will be approved for any home mortgage loan that you apply for. The 5 things that can shoot you down are: Inadequate Income, Too Many Outstanding Debts, Poor Credit, Improper Documentation and Lack of Information.

Inadequate Income

Your income, or lack of enough of it, is one of the determining factors that a lender will use when approving any home mortgage loan. From the lender’s standpoint, if you are barely making enough to make ends meet currently, you will not be able to afford the mortgage payments and they are likely to end up having to foreclose on the property.

Too Many Outstanding Debts

This can also cause you to be turned down for a mortgage. When a lender sees that you have a lot of credit card debt, too many open lines of credit or owe too much on current loans, they might turn you down based on this. If you cannot afford to pay your current debts, you are going to be considered a bad credit risk.

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