Has anyone read the book "7 Steps to a 720 Credit Score" by Philip X. Tirone?  Is it worth it?
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I can save you the money by giving my answers to his questions:\n\n    * A dirty little trick that credit card companies use to lower your credit score to keep their competitors away from you; learn if you're a victim of this, including how to fix it.\n\nThis trick is cards like CapitalOne don't report your credit limit, only your high balance.  This can make your utilization appear higher.  To see if you are a victim of this look at your credit report and verify that the reported credit limits match your actual credit limits.  Fix it by either getting rid of those cards or disputing the information with the credit bureau.\n\n    * Which errors on a credit report are a waste of time to fix and which are a high priority (helping you to raise your score by 5, 10, 15, 20 points at a time).\n\nBad advice, if you see an error go ahead and get it fixed.  The low priority items are inquiries greater than 6 months ago and pretty much any incorrect but positive item.  Negative items are obvious, late pays, etc.\n\n    * How to build credit (if you have none) and rebuild credit if you've gone through a divorce, bankruptcy, or other major delinquency.\n\nSmall secured bank loan, secured credit card, small car loan.  Make sure they report.  \n\n    * Why you should NOT become a cash-only citizen; at the same time, learn how to keep credit active without putting yourself into debt.\n\nCredit is handy, no reason no to keep some credit cards around, no need to do more than place an occassional charge on them to keep them active.  No need to ever pay interest.\n\n    * How paying collections can HURT your credit score.\n\nIt re-ages your account.\n\n    * How to prepare for a loan by improving your credit score.\n\nReduce utilization (either increase limits or pay down cards), age off inquiries (more than 6 months and they don't matter).  Dispute off negative items.\n\n    * How to maintain a high credit score for the rest of your life!\n\nPay your bills.
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Yes, it's one of the better choices, when trying to keep your credit rating good. Often, you end up paying less than you owe, or get a lower payment, that enables you to pay off the whole amount easier. It's better that you call them too, instead of waiting for them to find you (and find you they will!). I did that with a credit card and got my payments lowered to less than a third of what they were demanding. Of course, I told them it was either that or bankruptcy. They chose the reduced payment. And because of that, my credit score goes up every year that I keep up with my payments. And, I raise the payment by a couple of dollars every 6 months, showing that I'm making an attempt at paying it off quicker, which is something they like. All in all, you owe them money, so it just makes sense that you make whatever arrangements you can to pay it back. <*)))><
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Credit: What it is, why it's important, how to maintain good credit, protecting yourself from credit fraud, etc\n\nMaybe lump it into a big "Personal Finance" course encompassing checking, savings, retirement plans, doing your taxes, credit, rent, credit cards, student loans, car loans, etc etc.\n\n[edit]\n\nThese may seem like easy concepts to some people, but there are alot, and I do mean alot, of people out there who have no idea about these things.  Many companies exploit this ignorance to make big profits.
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I hear this alot from people and how can I do it the FAST.  I can tell you when I first got in the bezzz that I read everything at the book store(2-3 books per week).  I my first year I was at over 20 classes.  I did learn alot, but at the same time it was like putting my money in the trash.  If I was to do it all over again find a REI club in your area.  Go there and learn, find a mentor and read everything you kind find.\n\nDeal Maker Denney Charles Denney
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I highly recommend Jim Cramer's book called Real Money - Sane Investing in an Insane World. It's written so that anyone can understand it. The knowledge in there is worth way more than the $15 it costed me on Amazon.
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Now you can completely ERASE your bad credit and smash\nall your debts using just 2 simple, "magic" letters!\n\nBOTH are found just inside "My FREE Credit Repair!"\n\nIn straight-to-the-heart-of-it, down-to-earth,\nrealistic style, Howard L. Moreland reveals exactly\nword-for-word, the exact 2 letters he's used to help\ncountless people forever fix their credit, and smash\ntheir debts! But now you can do it yourself FREE! (Just\nwith these 2 magic letters Howard gives you!!)\n\nHoward L. Moreland guides you through the entire\nprocess of completing each letter with the particulars\nof your own unique situation – just fill out the forms\nwhere he tells you – it's just that simple!\n\nHoward's NEW ebook is expected to take the Net by storm\nand surely shake up the world of credit and finance, so\nbe sure to be among the first to get your copy online\ncontaining these 2 very "secret" magic letters NOW! ...\nand before everybody else beats you to them!\n\nYou'll learn exactly what you need and only what you\nneed as Howard doesn't waste your time, but just gives\nyou instant, straight-forward directions showing you\nhow to erase all your bad credit & smash all your debts\n-- and for FREE since you won't have to use a so-called\n"professional!!"\n\nWith FREE ***PROVEN*** LETTERS you have absolutely\nnothing to risk and everything to gain, so find out how\nto get started right away!!\n\nTo learn exactly how Howard does it and how you can do\nit too, I HIGHLY RECOMMEND that you visit:\n\nhttp://MyNetMarketingCenter.com/r/freecredit/laitcaramel/
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Yes. Don't waste my time. If you can't refinance me a loan for the past due balance or refinance me with a credit score below 500, then don't waste my time I have done my homework.
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well if you are willing to do some reading, just get stuck into these for a couple of days, hope they are of any help, hope things work out you sound decent what's up with those GW Bush  lot:\n\nhttp://finance.ebookorama.com/\nhttp://credit-cards.ebookorama.com/
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Most of the people answering in the credit section have no clue about FICO credit scoring.\n\nIf you have a "dormant" (your term) credit card that you have had for a long time and it is not reporting any late payment then having that account and not using it will be a positive factor for your score. The thought that you can have too many cards and that is risky isn't proven in the credit scoring model used by FICO. People who get into trouble usually carry balances on all their cards. If you have lots of accounts with zero balances that shows credit responsibility.\n\nFrom a practical standpoint having 3-6 revolving accounts(with near zero balances) and 1-2 installment accounts(car, mortgage) will be "optimal" for attaining an Excellent credit score (720+) If you have more revolving accounts then you might consider which ones you don't ever use and close them.\n\nGood Luck
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I know that Primerica shows people how to get out of debt. As for as controlling, its up to the client to keep it under control. Primerica is only company that shows people how to get out of debt as to keeping them in debt.\n\nIf a debt solution comes up that they were able to save you tens of thousands of interest and that you will be out of debt 7 years sooner, would you be interested? This is done by paying bi-weekly. Most people usually gets a check every two weeks. If not, then there's other payment options like bi-monthly. The point is, the debt program allows you to put more money into the principal and by paying off the principal, you will build equity in your home and get out of the mortgage sooner. I have seen solutions that saved a client over $100k in interest. Then there's other solutions that has came back badly, so Primerica use a 2nd alternative to pay off the debt faster, which is debt stacking.\n\nAs for people saying its a scam, they have no clue what they are talking about. They base their knowledge on what others say and don't even do the research themselves. Primerica been mentioned in many journals and magazines such as Wall Street Journal and Forbes. Primerica is a member of Citigroup and been in business since 1977. Primerica has over 6 million clients worldwide, while Citigroup has over 100 million clients. So, if Primerica has offices in other countries, do you think Primerica is still a scam?
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there are many excellent credit counseling agencies.  I know this one helped a friend of mine.  She thinks they were great, and was able to manage her debt, and improve her credit rating within 5 years, and that was after nearly declaring bankruptcy.
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I have the book.  I've read the book.  It is non-fiction.  It is a book about serious spiritual warfare.  I have no reason to disbelieve any of it.  I believe Rebecca's experiences are so "severe," because she had dabbled in the occult before she became a Christian.  In other words, she opened herself up to the troubles she has faced.\n\nI do not believe what you will read in this book will be a typical representation of what most Christians will face, spiritual-warfare-speaking, in their lifetimes.  But those who've been involved in witchcraft, the occult, etc. prior to becoming a Christian already have Satan's full attention.  And he does NOT like to lose a good servant.  So he tries to get them back any way he can.  Rebecca is one of those people.\n\nBe prepared for nightmares if you read the book.
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This was a very enjoyable book, I first read it about 15 years ago.  It is semi-autobiographical in that the author is a pilot and the narrator of the book is a pilot who meets a man with an interesting insight into the human condition and who appears to be a messiah.\n\nThe book is full of memorable lines and makes the reader contemplate life and why we are here.  I definitely recommend it. \n\nThe following link has a number of quotes from the book.
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Without question the best book I ever read on the subject was by Michael Masterson. It is titled Automatic Wealth. You should also subscribe to his daily newsletter: Early To Rise(free).
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My husband and I learned a great deal from just studying our own credit on experian.com.  You pay $10 a month and you can view your credit and history anytime.  We disputed many old or false credit histories and now our credit is much better.  About 100 points higher.  It also has a credit score simulator where it points out the things you personally could do to make your score this number or that number.  I would recommend doing that first.
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yes, you will likely qualify for a higher limit. Mine is similar and I reject more offers than I accept.  One of my finance professors used to categorize people with FICO of 720 and above as those who would skip eating before making a late payment.  He also used to give advice to young female students regarding who to date based on credit scores.  He was funny and the advice seemed pretty valid in my experience.
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Ha ha that guy was funny!  Anyway..........I went on myfico.com and paid the $50 or so bucks to order all three credit reports.  It will show you what is on your reports.  Then it has an interactive area where it can give suggestions on how to improve your scores.  For example, it showed me that if I paid off one of my credit cards, it would raise my score 100 points.  I did and it worked.  I also found several discrepancies on my reports and the program generates a letter for you to each agency telling them what you want to dispute and most of the times they will just remove the item from your report, raising your scores.  After fixing several things on my reports, my scores jumped.  I bought a house the first time I applied for a loan, just after a year of working on my credit scores.  You also need to get references so make sure you are being a good renter!  A little prayer wouldn't hurt either.  Good luck and God Bless!