Money Walks

Studies show that people tend to spend more on gift cards than on gift certificates. The average gift card in 2004 was $50, which was twice the amount people would spend on the average gift certificate. Although gift cards seems to be more popular than gift certificate, plastic still hasn’t completely killed paper yet. Gift certificate can still be purchased in various amounts, and are good at various shopping, dining, and entertainment establishments.

So whats the difference between gift cards and the gift certificates?

Well besides the paper vs. cards issue, for gift certificates, you may receive cash back if your purchase was less than your certificate amount. For example, you buy a $20 DVD with your $30 gift certificate and you can take your $10 and buy yourself lunch. If you buy a $20 dvd with your $30 gift card, then you will have $10 waiting for you the next time you stop by the store.

Now a question to those small business owners, do you offer gift certificates to your customers?

Many don’t because the potential of fraud scares them. However, with the right precautions, anyone can take advantage of this great sales tool. Here are some general tips on protection against gift certificate fraud:

• Record all the certificate numbers, date of sale, and the exact dollar amount. Make sure to note when each certificate has been redeemed.
• Do not buy generic gift certificates from office supply stores. These can easily be duplicated and not worth the trouble. Invest in custom designed certificates.
• Use security features like an embossed logo or watermark to prevent photocopying.
• Try to avoid huge cash refunds. It’s best to state on the certificate that if more than $10 worth of change is due, it will be reissued as another certificate.

The thing is, although this seems like a hassle to go through when you can simply go with cards, not all companies can afford cards. The cost of a typical gift card can easily range from $.50 - $3.00, and this is a fee you want to avoid if possible. So if you’re a small or medium sized company, chances are you can’t afford to give your customers the card option, but that doesn’t mean you should stay away from gift certificates. Gift certificates are a great way for you to expand your client base.

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Personal credit Reports include personal information, employment information, payment history, a list of creditors, any bankruptcies you may have or lawsuits.

Since credit reports are what many employers are using now days as a way to gauge one’s personal habits and tendencies, it’s a good idea to check your credit report once a year just to make sure that your report is indeed correct. It’s very important to make sure that your credit report is not only correct but also you want to show that your credit history is consistent and promising.

Here are some general credit report tips.

Some credit report payment history tips:

• Pay your bills on time. Delinquent payments and collections can have a major negative impact on your overall score.
• If you have missed some payments, get current and stay current. Be consistent. The longer you pay your bills on time, the better your credit report.
• Be aware that paying off a collection account will not remove it from your credit report. It will stay on your report for seven years.
• If you are having trouble makings ends meet, consult your credit counselor. This will not improve your report immediately, but if you can begin to manage your credit and pay on time, your report will eventually get better as time progress.

Some positives and negatives that will affect your credit score.

Positives:

• Steady/consistent employment
• Active credit use of few accounts.
• Remember, credit to debt ratio is very important.
• Do not request for new credit cards.

Negatives:

• Late payments
• Missing Payments
• inconsistent employment.
• Multiple credit card accounts
• Small finance loans
• Bankruptcies and Foreclosures

Many people assume that because they have never missed a payment that they have good credit. They are a few minor things that the average person overlooks that could be costing them points. These are all minor things that can be easily and effective taken care of if you know what to look for.

Check out your credit report and see for your self.

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Statistics show that the average American has over $8,000.00 in credit card debt. If you fall under that credit card debt range, then you’ve got some major cleaning up to do. There are millions of people who have come out of some heavy credit card debt, so now it’s your turn.

Follow these 5 steps to be on your way to being credit card debt free. 

1. First thing, you need to stop the credit card offers. You want to get away from all these tempting offers. You can actually force credit card bureaus to stop selling your information at 1-888-5-OPTOUT. Call the number to get the forms.
2. Reduce your interest rates. The average credit card interest rate goes for about 18%, which is really high. You want to be in the 7%-12% range. You can call your credit card provider and negotiate for a lower interest rate. If you have been a customer for a while, then it should be really easy to negotiate. 
3. Stop using your credit cards. If you’re trying to reduce your debt, the last thing you want to do is to keep adding to it. If you have a hard time not using your cards, then take them out of your wallet or purse and leave them at home. If those methods doesn’t work, you can even cut up your cards.
4. Always pay more than the minimum due amount. Credit card companies love it when you only pay the minimum amount because the balance is calculated based on a system so that they can extend your payment plan as long as possible to make optimal profit.
5. Consolidate your debt. Once you have reduce the interest rates of your cards, you want to combine your credit card debt into the card with the lowest interest rate.

Once you have stopped using your cards, reduced your interest rates, and have consolidated your debt, then you’re heading in the right direction for paying off your credit cards.

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One of the most important life lessons you can teach your kids is to develop successful money management habits  and  a sense of financial responsibility. When it comes to teaching your kids about money, the sooner they learn the better.

1. Help your child understand the value of saving money.  Here is where you start showing them the importance and the  benefits of saving money. This can be done with a simple but balanced form of an allowance. While they are young, giving them small amount of money will help them prepare for the future when the amount becomes larger.
2. Discuss the privileges and pitfalls of owning a credit card.  Show that credit cards can be a very powerful tool which could help you dramatically with your finances and also in return, how you could misuse a credit card and how much that could affect your life.
3. Give your teen ‘real world’ experience with money and budgeting. Instead of buying their yearly school clothes yourself, give them a set amount and let them decide what they need and what they don’t need. Emphasis that that is all they are getting so chose wisely.
4. Teach your child how to track spending. Get them in the habit of tracking their spending by either getting a notebook or a creating a simple excel spreadsheet on your computer.
5. Cover the basics of investing. It’s never too early to start explaining the general overviews of investing. The earlier you start, the better they’re equipped when it’s actually time for them to start investing.

So I managed to bring my credit card debt down to an even $4,000.00 just this past weekend. Paid off $1,404.22 out of the $5,404.22  which brought my total to an even $4,000.00 I plan on paying off a little more as soon as I receive my refund from my federal return. My goal is to bring it down to $3,000.00 by next week. It would be nice if I could have it completely paid off before summer starts but I doubt that will happen, simply because I am only working part time and spent money on worthless junk. However, this will not stop me form trying to get it down as much as possible. Here is a general idea on how I plan on getting it down as much as possible. Some of the stupid/unnecessary things I spend on includes:

1. Chinese food - This one is really stupid considering I have a meal plan on campus which is completely already paid for. I just need to throw out all my carry out menus from my room.
2. Starbucks - Ah, how I love coffee. This one is going to be a little hard to stop but I am going to try to cut down little by little. I go about 5-7 times a week. I love their new Dulce de Leche Latte. Such temptation makes this one quite tricky.
3. Random grocery shopping. Yes, I am truly a college student. I all I do is eat and study. Although I love the infamous Ramen Noodles, I tend to spend a little more on the hot pockets and frozen pizzas.
4. Car gas. Gas price is no joke. Especially since my car only takes premium fuel.
5. Pure junk. Stop carrying my cards and cash everywhere. Simple.

I think that if I am able to cut down on these 5 things I can save so much more. I’m going to set my target date for May 21st. Until then, I plan on keeping a record of how much I would of spent and instead saved.

Did you know that the average American household with at least one credit card has nearly $9,200 in credit card debt? That’s quite amazing isn’t it? Looking at the number, it is a little hard to believe that the average is so high, but when you realize that our nation is built on credit, it becomes a little more easier to gulp down.

There’s the good and the bad:

When I look at debt, I see it as two kinds of debt. There’s the good debt and the bad debt.

You accumulate good debt when you’re borrowing money for a student loan or for a home. You just have to make sure that you don’t borrow more than you can pay back.

Bad debt is using your credit card to buy things like food, clothes, DVD, etc. This is the easiest way to fall in debt. When you get in the habit of buying things with your credit card, in return you also want to get in the habit of paying it off in full that month.

The general rule is that you don’t want to get in a habit of using your card unless you plan on paying every back that month, this is the fastest way of falling in debt. Here I have gathered 3 general debt management tips.

Debt management tips:

1. Make a budget journal. Most people spend thousand of dollars without too much though as to what they’re buying and that’s why people are surprised at how high they’re credit card is. Get a nice journal and start writing down everything you spend. At the end of the month you’ll know not only how much you spent but also what you bought. This way, you will know what you can cut back on and how much less you want to spend the following month.
2. Pay off your highest-rate debts first. On average, most people have more than one credit card. The key to getting out of debt is to first pay down the balances on credit cards that charge the most interest rate while paying at least the minimum due on all your other debt. Once you finished paying off the highest rate, then start tackling the one next highest.
3. Expect the unexpected. You want to expect the worse can happen at any given time, so start making an emergency account. You want to have enough saved to last you 3 - 6 months of living expenses in case of those emergencies. If you don’t have an emergency fund, a trip to the hospital or damaged car can seriously upset your finances.

If you end up with more debt than you can manage, then you should get some help whether it’s from a professional or someone you know before it’s too late. It may be embarrassing to ask a relative for some help but that’s alot better than ending up with bad credit.