Pierre Money Mart Blog

Most people do not know that bad credit auto loans are very easy to get online; they channel all their strength, energies, and resources into searching for bad credit auto loans offline. These set of people have failed to recognize the fact that bad credit auto loans can best be sourced for online.

Most people do not know that bad credit auto loans are very easy to get online; they channel all their strength, energies, and resources into searching for bad credit auto loans offline. These set of people have failed to recognize the fact that bad credit auto loans can best be sourced for online.

On the internet, there are hundreds of auto loaning schemes and auto loan lenders who are willing and have the potential, propensity, capability, and wherewithal to meet all your bad credit auto loan needs. Most of the online loaning schemes that exist online are trust worthy and very reliable to do transact business with. Their activities are regulated and governed by a government agency. The agencies that govern and control their activities vary from one country to another. Most online bad credit auto loan lenders not only operate online, most of them have physical presence offline. Some of them probably have offices in your in your city or neighborhood.

To avoid been scammed when applying for bad credit auto loans online, it is recommended that you should check and verify the website that you are transacting business with from the appropriate authorities. More also to avoid been scammed when applying for a bad credit auto loans online, it is recommended that you should try as much as possible to make enquires and seek the opinions of loan brokers and those who have experience with online auto loans before making out your application or applying for the loan.

Besides consulting the experts and the appropriate authorities, I would also advise that you should check the website of the lender to see or find out if they are affiliated to any bank or financial institution because chances are that every reputable lender should be attached or affiliated with a one financial institution or the other.

Online bad credit auto loans are honestly very difficult to come by. They are however very easy to apply for, take the chance today, your application might be granted approval.

If you are coming to this section, it means all the information in the previous sections, as well as reading through the money saving ideas on the site, has failed to resolve your debt problem. If you still can’t come up with a plan to pay off your debt, your final option may be bankruptcy. It should be an absolute last resort and something to be avoided if at all possible. First and foremost, bankruptcy in itself can be quite expensive. You will need to pay lawyer, court and filing fees upfront. The entire process can take months and you will have to endure exhaustive questioning from creditors. Your finances will become exposed to the public and the bankruptcy will remain on your credit record for 10 years meaning that obtaining credit at affordable rates in the future will be extremely difficult. Sometimes, however, certain circumstances dictate it as the only option. There are two possible forms of bankruptcy that may be applicable if you have reached this state.

Chapter 7 Bankruptcy is a straight forward bankruptcy that eliminates most debts and relieves you of your responsibility of paying most creditors. There are, however, some debts that you are still required to pay even when filing chapter 7 bankruptcy. These include taxes, child support, alimony, student loans, legal judgments against you, money you obtained through false financial statements and loans not listed in the bankruptcy filing. While the court may force you to surrender property you own in order to help satisfy the debt, you are usually able to keep your home, car, tools used in your job and personal property.

In Chapter 13 Bankruptcy, unlike chapter 7 bankruptcy where your debts are relieved, you are required to pay back all or part of your debt. You surrender control of your finances to the bankruptcy court which will approve a repayment plan based on your financial resources. The plan will lasts from 3 to 5 years. During the period of repayment, The chapter 13 bankruptcy plan provides that you do not have to pay interest charges on the debt during the repayment period and your creditors can not harass you for repayment during that period.

If you find that one of these bankruptcy options is the only one for you, then rereading this article will be of even more importance. It will let you take a preemptive measure to get your personal finances in order so something like this never has to happen again.

Little things add up fast. Learn from these mistakes and try these tips to start paying off your debt.

Sometimes the only way to stop a snowballing problem is to go back to the top of the hill and find out what started it. If you’re up to your eyeballs in credit card debt, take a step back and recount your money missteps. Knowing your weaknesses could help prevent you from falling back into the bad-credit pit and show you a way out. According to Gail Johnson, vice president of business relations at Consumer Credit Counseling Service of Greater Dallas, a nonprofit financial-management service, consumers mired in debt make common financial blunders, most of which they can prevent with discipline and behavior changes. Learn from these mistakes and start paying off your debt.

Bad Habit No. 1: Misusing balance transfers Transferring balances on high-interest cards to lower-rate cards can be an effective technique, but it’s easy to make it a good idea gone wrong. Transfer a balance onto a card with a low introductory rate and you can potentially save money on interest if you refrain from charging on it and focus on paying off the balance before that introductory rate expires. But most people continue to charge on the new card and wind up with more debt once the teaser rate expires, says Johnson. In fact, new purchases may pull an altogether different interest rate. Read the fine print very carefully, and only attempt the balance-transfer maneuver if you can control your spending on the new — and old — card. Try this: If you can’t refrain from charging, balance transfers won’t get you out of debt. If you’re really in the hole, consider getting a part-time job and dedicating your earnings to your debt load. If that’s not possible, go back to your budget and cut back on unnecessary expenses such as restaurant outings and cell phone extras. Put the money you save toward paying off your balances. Pay for new purchases with cash or a debit card.

Bad Habit No. 2: Not checking credit reports — you can’t change them anyway. Wrong. If you have credit cards, pull your credit report at least once a year and check it for errors. Purging your record of inaccuracies can be crucial for getting better interest rates, landing the job you desire and stopping an identity thief from ruining your credit rating. Your credit report also affects your credit score, which determines how high your interest rates will be on future loans. Dispute anything you think should not be there. The Fair Credit Reporting Act allows for the correction or deletion of inaccurate, outdated or unverifiable information, provided that a reinvestigation into the disputed data sides in your favor. Unfortunately, negative but truthful data must stay put. A Chapter 7 bankruptcy filing, for instance, will remain on your credit report for 10 years, a Chapter 13 for seven years. Try this: You can request one free copy from each of the big three credit reporting bureaus, Experian, TransUnion and Equifax, every year. Why bother? Errors on your report, such as a payment marked late that came in on time, could raise your interest rates, lower your credit score and affect your ability to obtain credit in the future.

If you do find a mistake, send a correction letter to each of the credit bureaus that show the error. Experian allows you to dispute errors online, as do TransUnion and Equifax . Don’t bother with so-called credit-repair clinics that aim to charge you hundreds or thousands to fix your credit record. “Anything you can legally do to repair it you can legally do for free,” says Johnson. Of course, if you’re not willing or dedicated enough to write those letters and follow up with the credit-reporting agencies, paying someone else to do it for you may not be such a bad idea. Better to have someone dispute the errors rather than no one. But be extremely careful in selecting such an organization — try to get referrals and seek out others who have been satisfied with the service.

Bad Habit No. 3: Failing to alert creditors about a financial hardship You heard the rumor: Layoffs are coming to a department near you next week. Don’t wait until it happens to worry about how to pay your bills. Do some damage control right away. Try this: “The best time to negotiate is before the problem spirals downhill,” says Johnson. Call the credit card company and explain the problem you’re about to have. Ask if they could temporarily lower your interest rate or extend your payment deadline. Some issuers have in-house help programs that provide such short-term services to customers.

Bad Habit No. 4: Thinking of ‘budget’ as a dirty word The word may call to mind tedious self-trickery meant for those with low incomes, but everyone could benefit from deciding on certain amounts for spending, and sticking to the amount no matter what. It also makes sense to budget for known future expenses, such as quarterly insurance premiums, college textbooks and rent. Not saving up in advance means you’ll have to charge expenses or cut into funds set aside for necessities. Budget these fixed costs while you can handle small financial pinches.

Try this: To find out what’s draining your finances, keep track of where your money goes for a month. Use a spreadsheet, financial software or a pen and paper and categorize your expenses. Doing this will reveal whether you’re spending too much on expenses you could trim, such as restaurant outings and gas. Then you can consider cooking at home more often or consolidating driving trips. Cut back as necessary without cutting out expenses important to you. Johnson suggests that if you enjoy watching TV, but don’t tune in to a majority of the 300-plus channels you have, consider cutting back on your cable package instead of cutting out TV altogether. For a detailed household spending plan, try this home budget work sheet. Plan for future costs by figuring out the total amount you’ll owe and divide by the number of months you have until that day, says Johnson. If you have money due next month, divide by the number of weeks you have and save that amount every week.

Bad Habit No. 5: Using retail store credit cards to make use of discounts Chances are, that card carries a high interest rate you’ll be forced to deal with if you don’t pay off your balance each month. Try this: If you must charge your purchase, use your general-purpose credit card, says Johnson. If you can’t pay off the balance, at least you’ll pay a lower interest rate. Limit the total number of credit cards you have to just two, if you can: one you can pay off each month and one with a low interest rate for those large purchases you’ll pay back over time.

Bad Habit No. 6: Procrastinating on creating an emergency fund Learn to save for financial emergencies. Even if you feel robust and invincible, a single emergency room trip or car accident could force you to put large balances on credit cards, causing interest to accrue and more debt to pile up. “That rainy day will happen,” Johnson says. “It’s not a matter of if, it’s a matter of when.” If your tire goes flat and you can’t pay upfront for the replacement, for instance, you’re stuck with charging it or reducing funds earmarked for necessities. That’s where the emergency fund fits in. Try this: Maintain an emergency fund of at least three to six months’ worth of living expenses, and keep your insurance policies up to date. Work toward that goal by socking away 10% of your take-home pay each month in a liquid savings account, says Johnson. If you receive a raise or bonus, add that money to savings. Since you’re not used to the extra cash flow, you won’t miss it.

Bad Habit No. 7: Paying bills in no particular order While the order may not matter if you can pay all the balances, it will matter if you fall short one month. Say you pay off the balances on your credit cards first, then find you can’t make the minimum on your house payment or monthly rent. You’ve put the roof over your head at risk. Try this: “Pay for living expenses first,” says Johnson. After the house or rent payment, necessities such as utilities, groceries and medical care should top the priority list. Next comes the car payment — you want to avoid repossession, obviously. On down the line, secured loans and co-signed debts follow in importance, then unsecured loans and credit cards. “Ideally, everyone can get paid, but if a choice has to be made, paying in this order will do a better job of keeping the home life stable.” Since bills often aren’t due in this order, you’ll need to work out a payment schedule and set aside money from each paycheck. See No. 9.

Bad Habit No. 8: Charging purchases instead of paying in cash or with a debit card How many times have you charged services or merchandise when you had the money to pay with cash or debit? Insignificant purchases of $20 and $30 made several times over can quickly add up, particularly if you already carry a balance. Balances you can’t pay off each month mean paying interest charges and, subsequently, more money for items you could have bought outright, interest-free. Try this: Make a habit of paying for purchases under $50 with cash, debit or check. Knowing that the money has to clear the bank sooner could help curb your spending habits. Just be sure to check your balance regularly to ensure that you have enough funds.

Bad Habit No. 9: Making credit payments late After all, it’s only a $39 late fee. Besides wasting money you could’ve put toward the balance, a payment that arrives at least 30 days past due can throw your account into default and triple your interest rate. Plus, other creditors may start charging you a default interest rate as well, thanks to a universal default clause buried in your contract. “Creditors are constantly reviewing your credit activity, and if they see you falling behind with one creditor, even if you have a perfect payment history with them, they can raise your interest rate,” Johnson says. Try this: On a calendar, mark upcoming paydays and payments that should come out of that paycheck, she says. If you’re mailing payments, send them seven to 10 business days in advance. Better yet, sign up for online bill pay. Just check that the address on file and the address on the statement match, or the payment might not arrive on time. If you’re still late, call the creditor, explain the situation and ask them to forgive the late fee. Check your credit report and be sure the information shows up correctly.

Bad Habit No. 10: Making the minimum payment only Paying the minimum is better than paying nothing, but it doesn’t do much to pay off most balances and forces you to keep paying interest. By paying interest on interest, you lose any savings from buying a dress on sale, Johnson says. Try this: If you can afford to pay more or in full, go ahead and pay as much of the balance as you can. You never know when you’re going to have a tough month. Pay in full every month and you can avoid interest charges altogether. Or, if paying more than the minimum proves difficult, consider working an extra part-time job or decreasing your expenses — or both, says Johnson. Put all of your extra earnings toward the debt.

There are many commercials on television promoting certain auto sales, such as MK auto sales, which announce that they give auto loans with no money down and bad credit. This is especially true on late night television. I decided to call them one night just to see if they were promoting truth or just using an attention getter.

The person I got on the phone I asked a certain question, “Hello, I just wanted to ask you about the commercial which states no money down for any auto loan regardless of credit problems.”

The response I got started out with a “yes” and within about 10 minutes they asked me for my social security number for a credit check and how much money I would be putting down. You can imagine my surprise. I reiterated the commercial and specific quotes from the advertisement and again they insisted that they had to run a credit check. This was only the first subject I tackled.

“Why would you need to run a credit check if all credit issues do not matter to the eligibility of the loan?” Unfortunately no one could answer this after being transferred to several people.

I was then asked how much I was willing to put down on the auto loan. I did first explain that I was not interested in buying a car, I was merely interested for future reference if there was any truth in the auto sale pitch. They said they could not help me without some percentage on the table as a down payment on the loan.

From choosing the right type of car to comparing loans, there are five important things you can do to maximize your car shopping experience. Get a great deal on the car of your dreams.

Tip 1: Buy it used – We’ve all watched friends buy a brand new car. They are really excited about their purchase…for a few months. After a year or two, they usually complain about their high loan payments. Don’t make the same mistake! Buying a used car, even if it is just a year old, can help you save big. A new car drops in value dramatically as soon as you drive it off the lot. Plus, used cars these days can come with warranty and service packages, just like a new car. If the car you want isn’t available used or comes with a 0% APR offer, buying it new may make sense.

Tip 2: Research prices online – Buyers have the upper hand now that they can easily research prices and features of cars online. Before you go to a dealer, investigate the blue book price, MSRP, and other details of the car you are interested in buying. Print out these documents and take them with you. When a salesman tries to offer you a high price, you can use these facts in the negotiations.

Tip 3: Order a CARFAX report – Most sellers will give you a free CARFAX report for the vehicle you are thinking about buying. If not, go online and order one yourself. This $20 report will show you how many owners a car has had, where it’s been located, if it was in an accident and other “lemon” indicators. It is especially important to check out a car’s history, as recent floods in the south have put a lot of damaged cars on the market.

Tip 4: Check your credit – Reviewing your credit standing before you start to shop for a car can help you save big. If you have a high credit score, you may be able to qualify for the dealer’s special financing offers. You’ll also have extra bargaining power when negotiating a deal with a salesman. If your credit score is low, work on improving it for a few months before your application and take extra time to shop for the best loan offer.

Tip 5: Save on financing – The cheapest way to buy a car is in cash, but there are also ways you can save if you buy with a loan. Put down the largest down payment possible and choose the shortest-term loan in order to reduce your loan costs. Compare loan rates from banks, credit unions, and online lenders by using their free calculators. Once you’ve found the best deal, apply for the loan and take the financial paperwork with you to the dealer. You’ll usually get a much better rate through a bank or online lender than from the dealer’s financing office.

These tips can help you save hundreds, if not thousands, on your next auto purchase. Take control of the car buying process today…

Everyone I have ever spoken with claims to have the desire to be in control of their money. Most of these people will admit that they don’t feel like they have very much control over where their money is spent and a surprisingly large number tell that their money is in control of them. The people who feel like their money is out of control are not the same people who don’t know how to stop spending when they are out of cash, or when their checking account is perpetually overdrawn

If your money is controlling your life, you may have the feeling that you get up in the morning and go to work for the sole purpose of bringing home a paycheck and signing it over to the mortgage holder, the auto finance company, the utility providers, your eldest child’s college tuition office, your youngest child’s youth activity director and every door-to-door child pitchman selling school fund raising items.

How can you tell when your money is out of control? You fell as though it is simply getting up and leaving your wallet whenever it darn well feels like it. So what are you to do about your money and controlling where it goes?

Know Where You Stand

Anytime you are going to go change anything in your life, you have to know what it is that needs changing. This is the same whether you are talking about your finances or your weight.

What you need is a snapshot of where your finances are right now. The only way to do this is to create a Net Worth Index.

There is only one way you can create a Net Worth Index – and that is honestly. Drop the kids off with your in-laws, sit down with your spouse and start writing everything down on paper. You can use a computer spreadsheet if you want to.

Start by listing everything you have that can be sold, and how much you could reasonably expect to get for it. Do not claim your 19th Century rocking chair from Grandma Hopscotch is worth $500 if someone who isn’t sentimentally attached would only pay $100.

While you and your spouse are taking inventory, remember to include watches, diamond earrings, boats, vacation time-shares, stocks inherited from Uncle John and your retirement accounts. List everything and its’ sale value. When you do things like Certificates of Deposit and IRA’s where there is substantial penalty for early withdrawal use the face value. For our purposes we’ll figure you won’t be taking the money out until it has matured.

Now that you have inventoried everything of value and totaled up what it is worth, do the same for your debts. Add in loans from family, friends, banks, businesses, and mortgage companies, past due accounts with the Gas Company and all credit card balances. This is not the time to “forget” someone you owe.

Subtract how much you owe from how much you own. This number is your Net Worth and should be a positive one, though it could be kind of tiny. You won’t need to use this number again until next year when you calculate your Net Worth Index again.

If your Net Worth Index reveals a negative number you are definitely doing something right by working to bring your money under control. What you’ll have to do is follow these four steps, and if necessary taking drastic measures such as a second job, selling valuables, or even selling your current house and moving into a smaller, less expensive dwelling.

Develop Your Goals

After you know where you stand financially, you need to decide where you want to go. This involves setting some reachable targets or goals.

Goal setting is not very complicated and in this instance, we are referring to the overall target of gaining control of your money. To do this requires a few measurable small goals, sort of like baby steps.

Your first baby step is to create a plan to pay off your debts. Look at your list of debts again and find which one is the smallest. This is the one you want to pay off first. Pay your minimums on all the others, and then pay everything you can extra a month on the smallest debt.

When it is paid off, take all the money you had paid on the smallest and add it to what you are paying on the second smallest. Keep doing this until you are out of debts to pay off. It doesn’t matter if your debt is for a house or for your soda pop at the corner gas station Following this plan you have created to pay them off is your first baby step.

The second baby step will be the creation of an Emergency Savings Account. This account needs some money added each month until you have accumulated enough money to equal six months of your income. The money you set aside here will help you avoid debt when you have to make a surprise car repair or meet the deductible for your child’s appendix operation.

Your third baby step will be found in the next paragraph, under the heading of Spend with a Plan.

Spend With A Plan

Now that you know you are serious about controlling where your money goes, and you are seriously doing something about your debt it is time to make a plan. A spending plan is comparable to a budget in the same way an imported pickup compares to an F-150. When you use a spending plan to guide your finances, you know critical work is getting done.

You need to know what your take home, or net, pay is. Start with your gross monthly salary and deduct all taxes and Social Security contributions. Next you should subtract how much you tithe or contribute in charitable giving each month.

The amount you have left is your Spendable Income. The next thing to pay for is your house expenses and your grocery bill – include only the food you buy in a grocery store to prepare yourself, no eating out or fast food here.

The very next thing to subtract is your debt payment. Once this is taken out, you are left with the money you can spend on everything else you require to live on for the month – also known as your Disposable Income. Write down everything what all you spend money on and see just how much it costs you.

Since it wouldn’t do any good to be working at paying off your debts if you are adding to them every month, you had better find a way to cut your spending down below your Disposable Income or else you will never have control of your money.

Working with your spouse you can decide how to buy store brand things for a fraction of the cost, do without the monthly beauty saloon treatments, cancel club memberships and eat at home instead of dining out 3 nights a week. Perhaps you could even take your lunch to work instead of eating in the cafeteria every day.

The key is to find fun ways to decrease your spending amounts. Involve the children and find small ways to reward them for their practical money saving ideas, after all, they are part of the family and can help too.

Once your spending is under control and kept below the level of Disposable Income available, start to enjoy life. While you are probably not quite as materialistic as the Jones’, you can enjoy a great quality of life than they do as they run controlled by their money.

Clean Up Your Clutter

I’ve found that after setting debt repayment as a goal, wrangling the spending into line and in general improving my life by gaining control of my money there is too much stuff in my life. Not activities, but material things.

This is a good time for you to have a garage sale and clean out your closets, the attic and wherever you have hidden all that stuff over the years. The money you raise could be applied towards your smallest debt to speed along its repayment.

Another thing you can do is look for larger things in your life you can dispose of that will help you reach your goal sooner. Do you have a vacation home you haven’t taken a vacation to for several years? What about that second or third car – can you sell it, pay off the loan against it and use cash to outright buy a good used car?

You might think it will hurt to make large changes like this, and it might. Once you have taken the step though, you will feel an easing of the burden on your shoulders.

These four things are just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to controlling money. This short over view is enough for you to get started thinking about ways to begin taking control of your money, but it doesn’t begin to be a step by step guide. Those kinds of guides are out there, but they are too thick to include here.

Using this as a quick start guide to controlling your money will get you pointed in the proper direction. As you progress you’ll find dozens of ways to write your Spending Plan, a hundred more goals to set, and plenty of ideas on how to cut costs. When you are debt-free and telling your money what to do, instead of following it around, you’ll be a happier person.