Most people have never heard of the MIB (Medical Information Bureau) or even realized that a private company is tracking their medical history. The MIB formed in 1902 is owned by nearly 500 insurance companies. The insurance industry uses the service to deter fraud in life, health, disability, and long term care insurance applications. Think of the MIB as sort of a credit bureau for your medical history. The MIB also falls under the Fair Credit Reporting Act and this means that they have the same responsibility as a credit bureau for maintaining accurate information in your file. The MIB... Read more →

I received an e mail last week from a lady that was in a desperate situation. She had co-signed a student loan for a relative and had recently been notified that she must begin making a monthly payment of nearly $800 (since the student had defaulted). This is money she simply doesn’t have. While she thought she was doing a good deed helping a young person to obtain financing to go to college, she is now on the hook for nearly $10,000 per year in debt payments for the foreseeable future. "A person devoid of understanding shakes hands in a... Read more →

The idea of a forbearance or a modification on a mortgage has become extremely common. The next financial bubble expected to burst is the credit card market. There are now 1.2 billion credit cards in America today. The total credit card debt owed by Americans is nearly 1 trillion dollars. Today, I will address five major myths about settling credit card debt. Myth # 1 – It Is Easy To Settle Your Credit Card Debt For Less Than You Owe I wish it were true, but easy settlements of credit card debt for pennies on the dollar are extremely unlikely.... Read more →

It was not too many years ago that I was actively working in the real estate business. Of course, most clients needed a mortgage and if there was one major component to getting approved it was their credit file. Most people have no idea what is in their credit file or what their rights are to correct erroneous information. About two years ago I published a comprehensive guide to understanding credit and how to raise one’s credit score. Credit Scoring Secrets has been one of our most popular e Books in recent years. I don’t Plan On Applying For Credit,... Read more →

In May of this year, President Obama signed into law The Credit Card Accountability Act. While most of the provisions do not kick in until next year, some became effective this past week. The majority of consumer protections such as limiting when interest rates can be increased, banning universal default and double-cycle billing, and restricting credit cards for minors, among others takes effect Feb. 22, 2010. More than 70% of U.S. households have at least one credit card and more than half of cardholders pay their balance in full every month, according to the Federal Reserve. 1. 45 Day Notice... Read more →