Financial Tips For 2018

If you are not paying yourself first, are you financially stable? Financial experts repeat themselves quite often on the first rule of personal finance. Pay yourself first. Depending on your budget you should be paying yourself 5-20% of your net income. What to do with all of that money? Anything you want. Most create an emergency fund, then vacation fund, investment fund, and finally a retirement fund. This may seem overwhelming, but it is quite simple after the first several months. Wealth is not acquired quickly, instead, it is done slowly, yet surely. These are just some of the laws of money. The article sourced was written by Tina Santiago-Rodriguez is included in this blog post for your convenience.

Family and finance: Financial experts give their tips for the New Year

Did you make any resolutions for this New Year? Or set any goals? It’s not too late to do so even if the first month of the year is about to end. This applies especially to your family’s finances.

On my blog, TrulyRichandBlessed.com, I always say that our finances are part of our “riches,” i.e. our blessings from the Lord, so we must be good stewards and manage our finances properly. Here are some tips from financial experts that will hopefully get you started on the right path:

Obey the ‘laws of money’

Author, speaker, and Philstar.com columnist Rose Fres Fausto advises us to usethe simple three “Basic laws of money.” “They’re so simple that even young kids can understand, remember, and practice them throughout the year,” she adds.

The “laws” are described in Fausto’s book, “The Retelling of The Richest Man in Babylon,” which can be purchased from major bookstores. These are as follows:

1. “Pay yourself first”

2. “Get only into a business that you understand; and seek advice only from competent people.”

3. “Make your gold work for you. Make an army of golden slaves before you buy luxury.”

Fausto says COL Financial Chairman Edward Lee phrases this in a different way: “1) Save 2) Invest 3) Reinvest.”

Many Filipinos don’t even know about these “laws,” especially the first one: “Pay yourself first,” which basically means that when we receive any income, we should set some aside for our savings first beforewe spend money on anything.

The first law of money: Pay yourself first. www.fqmom.com/Rose Fres Fausto

In our family, we strive to follow this formula: Income less Tithes and Savings = Expenses. This means that we set aside money for tithing (to the Lord via our parish and community) and savings, and whatever is left is what we use for our monthly needs (or expenses). We are not yet 100 percent consistent in doing this but we do our best every month.

Don’t wait

Mon Santiago, a financial literacy crusader and educator of the International Marketing Group or IMG’s Wealth Academy, always shares this bit of financial wisdom to individuals and families in the free financial literacy seminars that he conducts: “Don’t wait. Start to save and invest as much as you can, as soon as you can.”

Financial educator Mon Santiago always emphasizes the importance of saving and investing your income during his free financial literacy seminars. www.fantasticfinancialeducation.wordpress.com

Santiago (who also happens to be my dad!) adds, “Procrastination is the enemy of saving and building wealth. When many people are young, they think they have a lot of time to save. Then they get married, have kids, and buy a house. With a home loan and new expenses, money becomes tight. They tell themselves they will start saving later.

“As they enter mid-life, their children go to college, and tuition takes a big bite out of their budget. Soon they will join the majority of people approaching retirement with little to no savings. They know they must save, but now they say it’s too late.”

So start saving money now. Every single peso counts!

Share your blessings

As I mentioned earlier, our finances are part of our “riches” or blessings from God. So we are not just supposed to use our money for ourselves, but we are also meant to share it with others.

Allan Ngo, founder of the Truly Rich Club Blog, shares how he does this: he created an “automated charity fund.”

“We normally think of money in terms of accumulation, but one of the most powerful impact money can have is through generosity. That’s why I created a charity fund. It’s a separate bank account I set up to which I automatically transfer a certain percentage of the money in my main bank account every month.

“I personally use BPI’s Save-Up account. You can inquire with your own bank for such facilities.”

Ngo says the transfer is automated or automatically done by his bank every month for a purpose.

“Remember, we are taking hard-earned money away from our own personal use, and that can be painful. So making it automated takes that emotion away and enables continuity,” he explains.

“I use this [fund] to support my sponsored children from World Vision, donate to charities when calamities strike, and help out a friend or relative in need. Mentally, since I’ve already earmarked this for helping others, it enables me to quickly help others wholeheartedly. Personally, this fund has made a tremendous impact in my life, and I hope it does the same to you.”

I hope these finance tips will help you and your family to have a great year ahead financially. Remember, it’s not too late to put these tips into action, even if January is almost over—we still have 11 months to go before the next New Year rolls in!

thumbnail courtesy of philstar.com

Only you care about your finances. If you are not looking after it, who will? Personal finance is not difficult and is not very time-consuming. Where do you start? You need to start researching which financial book works best for your needs. A person who wants to pay off their debt quickly will read a different book than someone who wants to invest their money. It can be as simple as searching for “how to save money book”. You will probably come across a list of ten or hundreds of books to choose from. 99% of them will benefit you in some financial way. It can be as little as saving $10 a day by eating out less, debt consolidation, or paying yourself first. Research what works best for you and work on it. Enjoyed this article? Hopefully, you did. If so, let us know on social media about how much you’ve learned reading our articles daily.

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Excuses That Will Keep You From Becoming Wealthy

Are you wealthy? No? Well, why not? If you have a cliche answer like “Personal finance is confusing” or “I have too much debt”. Those excuses that everyone faces. No one is expecting to be a millionaire before 30, however, the average 30-year-old has an average net worth of $2,093 according to The College Investor. This may be caused by the cost of post-secondary, the price of Transportation, and the higher cost of housing.  The question you have been asking is probably “I’m tired of making excuses, what can I do?” The best options you have is to analyze the excuses and find solutions that best suits your situation.  Business Insiders have found the top 5 excuses that are holding you back from increasing your wealth. We, the employees at Loan Away, has cited the source article in our blog post for your convenience.

5 all-too-common excuses that will keep you from building wealth

One of the most important numbers you should calculate and track consistently is your net-worth, which is your total assets (those things worth money like your house and any investments) and your total liabilities (what you owe money on like credit card, mortgages, and student loan debt).

Your net worth is how much money you would be worth if you paid off all of your debts: Assets – Liabilities = Net-Worth

Over time as your investments grow and you pay down your debt, you net-worth will go up. This is why it’s so essential to invest while paying back your students loans. Ever since I started my financial journey I’ve been tracking my net worth using free tools like Personal Capital.

Median net worth in the United States

Recently, a friend and I were discussing an interesting statistic from an article about net-worths. The statistic that we were talking about was was from an article in Business Insider from Jim Wang showcasing the average net worth for the different age groups of Americans.

Given that the average savings rate in the United States has fallen to a 7 year low at only 2.9%, it’s not really surprising, but incredibly disconcerting to see that the members of my age group (under 35) have a net worth of less than $6k.

The 35-44 age group isn’t much better with a net-worth of $35,000. That’s crazy considering

• Average price for a car in the United States is a whopping $34,968
• Average student loan debt is $34,144
• Average credit card debt at $16,883
• the higher cost of living

This is a recipe for disaster. All of these numbers paint a bleak picture of Americans and the hole is getting bigger to get out of. It also doesn’t get any prettier for just millennial net worths either based on a more detailed analysis on The College Investor:

The College Investor

My friend asked me why I thought more people in our age group are stuck at a certain net worth or why I thought it was hard for many to change their financial situations. Then he asked, “Was it that hard for you to change your situation?” In a simple answer: yes and no.

Top 5 money excuses holding you back

But after we had some back and forth text messages, I realized there are are a few common excuses people make about money that keeps them from saving and investing. These are the same money excuses that are keeping people from pursuing (and eventually achieving) financial independence.

Send this to any of your family or friends who are making excuses and need to start saving more money. All of our futures depend on it. Let’s get those net worths up!

Excuse #1: I don’t have time to budget and look at my personal finances

Oil Scarff/Getty Images

One of the main excuses I’ve heard among my friends, colleagues, and others is the same old excuse for most things: a lack of time. Sure, pretty much everyone has busy schedules whether it be school, work, family, kids, etc. A majority of people lead extremely busy lives.

Yet, I bet that majority also find time to binge watch Netflix for hours (Hey, me too!), play sports, watch sports, and go shopping, etc.

Americans watch an insane amount of television each week. The average millennial watches television 26 hours a week (3.7 hours a day) and older Americans (35-44) watch it 36 hours a week (5.14 hours a day).

And those things are all fine to do in moderation, but it’s fairly easy to take 20-30 minutes a month to devote to planning and managing your finances. Seriously that not much time. And it actually takes a lot less time than you think.

There are tons of free tools out there like Mint and Personal Capital. Use them.

Excuse #2: Personal finance is too confusing

This was the biggest excuse that personally held me back in my own financial journey. Thinking personal finance was confusing was one of my biggest money mistakes.

The biggest reason people think that personal finance is too complicated is for two primary reasons.

The financial industry is set up so personal finance seems complicated, with its acronyms and fine print, so that some finance companies can make more money and we aren’t taught much about money in school.

The challenge here is, unless you were in accounting or some financial track in school or college, Americans really are not taught a lot about personal finances in the education system. Although “money management” is one of the most requested classes by high school students in the United States and it looks like the trend is starting to shift a little bit.

A vast majority of personal finance you can learn online for free by reading blogs and listening to money podcasts. Or by reading the best money books.

Excuse #3: It’s too hard to get out of debt

Virginia State Parks/Flickr

Whether it’s student loan debt, car debt, credit card debt, personal debt, or mortgage debt, it feels like everyone is swimming in debt these days.

But paying off debt is really a numbers game — always pay down the highest rate interest rate first, then move onto the next one. In almost all cases credit card debt will have the highest interest rate and should be paid off first.

No matter how large your debt is, some people actually have over $1 million in student loans and they were able to pay them off. While I used to have a lot of debt, every year I’m surprised how much more debt I paid off when at first it only seemed like a minimal amount.

The sooner you start crushing it the sooner it will be gone. No one likes having debt, but you need to face it head on instead of the, “I’ll worry about it later.”

Excuse #4: I’ll worry about it later

This is the money excuse that bothers me the most.

I’m guilty of it. Too many of us put off our finances until later. The longer you wait to invest or to save or to pay down debt, the longer you will miss out on potential investment gains.

The first company I worked for after graduating college had a pretty solid 401k, but I knew very little and wasn’t too concerned. “I’ll worry about it later,” I’d say to myself.

All I knew at the time was having a 401k was good to do, so I did sign up, but I only contributed 2% when the company matched at 6%. D’oh! Facepalm. SMH.

Well, then after working at the company for four years, I was let go. During that entire time, I never increased my contribution rate once! I easily missed out on $50,000 — $100,000 in future potential investment gains by not increasing my 401k contribution rate.

Now, of course, I got to keep the money I did save, but I kick myself for not spending the time (man excuse #1 keeps creeping up) and just looking into it.

No matter what financial decision you are putting off making, make it today, like right now. Get it off your plate. As an added bonus, current neuroscience research shows that making decisions makes you happy.

Excuse #5: What if I lose money?

Sarah Jacobs

Who hasn’t heard this money excuse? Seriously.

In my opinion, far too many people think that investing is gambling. They worry that they are either going to win big or lose it all. They see stories like the 20-year-old Florida man who won $450 million in the Powerball lottery and think that’s the way to get rich. The odds of winning that Powerball was 1 in 262 million (aka pretty much impossible).

But in reality getting rich isn’t about betting everything or putting all your eggs in one basket, it’s about coming up with a good investing strategy and keeping at it for the long haul. And taking calculated risks.

The stock market is going to go up and down, but it’s always gone up over the long run. And you’re never going to lose all of your money in the stock market (we’ll if that does happen we will all have much bigger problems like the entire financial system collapsing).

In reality, the stock market will only go up and down a couple percentage points a day — on the worst day the stock market was down was 22.61% on October 19, 1987. Here are the biggest stock market gains and losses in a single day.

So if you invest in a total stock market index fund then that’s about the most money you could lose in one day — and that was the worst day ever! And when you invest in the stock market it should be for the long haul so sure you can lose money investing, but over the long haul, the stock market is always up.

Final thought: Never get too comfortable

Many of us, myself included, often get too comfortable with our money strategy once we get it humming. Maybe your finances aren’t that bad, you have a decent job, some debt, but generally everything is paid on time.

Yet, your saving rate stays stagnant and you do not see much growth year after year. As soon as you feel yourself being too comfortable, that is the time to recognize it and get ready for a change. The time to push the limits.

When it comes to time and saving money, there are plenty of unexpected surprises. Things like health issues, losing a job, and other unexpected costs, but you have to remember it’s a part of everyday life. If you are going through it, someone else is too or even worse, yet you have to fight through it.

I lost my first job during the month of December and did not find a new full-time gig for almost nine months. But I found a way to not only make enough to pay the bills but enhance my career worth as well.

I still have a lot of work to do on my own financial independence journey, but I want to see my friends and as many people as possible succeed with money.

thumbnail courtesy of businessinsider.com

Have you made any of these excuses before? It’s alright, we all have at some point in our lives. We ask the Loan Away employees which excuse they have used the most. The most popular was number 4, “I’ll worry about it later”. This excuse just may be the most popular for the majority of Canadians. If you are paying the bills and feel comfortable, the majority of us are content with just that, being comfortable. That transitions to the final thought of the Business Insider article, never get too comfortable. Imagine if something drastic happened like losing your job or health issues. Are you prepared for that? If not, you should save some money just in case. This is a part of life. Be financially ready for the unknown. Enjoyed this article? Great. Let us know via social media or email us your thought, suggestions, or concerns.

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The Main Reason Why People Get Rejected At Banks

The short answer is credit score. Most commercial banks do not want to take high-risk chances, however, just because your credit score isn’t perfect, does this make you high-risk? Yes and no. Yes because regardless of what happened in the past, it reflects on your current credit score. If your credit score is 600, but you haven’t missed a payment in over 2 years, by the bank’s standards, you are still high-risk. Even though your most recent years are flawless, your credit score determines everything for a bank. This is why Loan Away is a successful company. We understand that you have made mistakes in the past and are seeking a loan, however, the bank will say no based on credit score. Loan Away has tens of factors we consider when reviewing an applicant. This has led the company to have the highest acceptance rate in Canada!

The reason why most people get rejected for a personal loan

Whether you’re looking to do home improvements, tackle medical costs, or consolidate debt, you may be tempted to take out a personal loan. These short-term options are unsecured (meaning you don’t have to put up collateral), and can provide an influx of cash when you need it most.

The issue for many Americans is that they can be tough to get.

LendEDU, a marketplace for loans and financial products, just released data showing that 76% of people who apply for a personal loan are declined. One of the main reasons for rejection? A low credit score. The average American has a credit score of 687. Meanwhile, the average FICO credit score of an approved applicant was 741.

Of those who do get approved, LendEDU predicts that just 35% went on to accept the personal loan. It’s unclear why someone would decline a loan they applied for, but the financial site says it could be because they didn’t get the interest rate or loan size they requested.

While some consumers can’t get loans, and others reject them, the fact is more Americans are actually taking out personal loans. Currently, 16 million consumers have an unsecured personal loan. According to a TransUnion, personal lending balances grew a steady 10.8% in the second quarter of 2017, totaling $108 billion.

How to get a loan

The growth of financial technology lenders is one thing helping people gain access to personal loans. These fintech lenders differ from traditional banks because they use technology and algorithms to assess a borrower’s creditworthiness. In some cases, these platforms provide peer-to-peer lending and work as the middleman between borrowers and investors. Back in 2010, fintech only made up 3% of personal loan lenders. In 2015, Transunion says that number jumped to 30%.

If you’re unsure where to find a lender, NerdWallet has a great list where you can compare providers and choose the best personal loan offer based on your credit score and needs.

Popular options include SoFi, a fintech lending site that promises to offer fixed personal loan rates starting as low at 5.49% APR. Applicants can apply for their loan online, and can borrow amounts ranging from $5,000 to $100,000. LendingClub is also a popular peer-to-peer option that has facilitated the borrowing of $31 billion. Applicants on this site can get a personal loan with interest rates starting at 5.99%.

Ultimately, getting approved will come down to your creditworthiness. You may be able to find a lender if your credit score is below 630, but you’ll probably get hit with a higher interest rate of 25% to 30%. In these instances, an online lender wouldn’t be very helpful for consolidating debt because you may face higher interest rates than a credit card. For better results, applicants should have a credit score above 690 to secure a personal loan with a good interest rate.

thumbnail courtesy of finance.yahoo.com

It’s alright, the majority of us have been rejected by a bank before. It happens to the best of us. They only accept people who have an above credit score instead of the average. This means if you missed even a single payment, you may be declined by a bank. This is discouraging, but you have options for getting the loan you want. If you have a credit score that is deemed bad credit, our loans start at 19% which is the same as a credit card. Our rates are much more responsible than what Brittany Jones-Cooper of Yahoo Finance suggest you will have to pay for. Not only does Loan Away has the highest approval rate in Canada, but also some of the most reasonable prices for financial institutions that provide loans for people with bad credit. Our goal is to help as many Canadians as possible get the loan they want. Often, our clients use the loan to better themselves. Most use the loan for debt consolidation, business loans, or personal loans for emergencies. Overall, we are proud to help any Canadian in need of a loan.

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U.S. Dollar Falling is Good Or Bad For Canadians?

The answer depends on which Canadian you ask. Most Canadians will probably say yes, it is good that the Canadian dollars is worth a similar amount to America. Canadians have been taking out loans to accommodate the currency difference. If the value is similar, prices for consumer goods may be equal to the same as Americans. The other Canadians that think it is bad is because they are likely selling goods to Americans. Think about it, if you sell a product to an American for $40 USD instead of selling it for $40 CAD in Canada, you will make more money. That $40 USD will be around $50 CAD which is great if the USD stays strong. Buyers or consumers want the currencies to be similar while the sellers want the currencies to stay different. Loan Away believes that the Canadian economy would benefit more if the currencies had similar value. Which one do you prefer?

Why the US dollar has been tumbling

In the shadow of the stock market’s meteoric rise this year, the U.S. dollar has fallen faster and harder than most analysts expected.

The dollar took a beating in 2017, falling nearly 10%, its worst annual performance since 2003. Rather than reversing that trend as the U.S. economy grows and the Federal Reserve raises the country’s interest rates, it has continued with the greenback the weakest it’s been in more than three years compared to a contingent of world currencies used to track its value.

This has happened not just as the stock market has churned out almost daily record highs but as yields on the 10-year U.S. Treasury note have touched their highest level in three years and short-dated bonds have risen to their highest levels since around 2008. All of those things would typically back a strong dollar – one that would keep U.S. money at home and encourage overseas investors to park their money here.

But that hasn’t been the case.

Blame tax cuts

Analysts say one thing that’s driving stock, bond and currency markets in their respective directions is U.S. tax reform. The tax reform bill has equity investors excited about the windfall coming to shareholders, but it’s also expected to push the $20 trillion U.S. national debt higher. That’s driving up Treasury yields and pushing the value of the dollar lower.

“The tax cut is definitely responsible for the bulk of this (dollar weakness),” said Aaron Kohli, interest rates strategist at BMO Capital Markets in New York. “It was a huge deficit hole they were blowing and they’re doing it at a time when the U.S. economic cycle is moving and everything is going perfectly.”

The dollar initially gained as reports circulated that the tax plan would include a border tax or other offsets that would increase U.S. tax receipts. But when the final bill was delivered, it turned out to be more of a tax cut than tax reform and the $1.5 trillion price tag had traders piling into dollar-negative short positions, betting on further weakness.

Speculators’ recently raised net short dollar bets on the dollar to nearly $12 billion, according to calculations by Reuters and Commodity Futures Trading Commission data released on Friday.

As U.S. deficits rise, the country is forced to finance its debts by borrowing from other nations. That reduces the value of the dollar. There are also a number of factors luring cash out of the U.S.

Higher risk, higher reward emerging markets look attractive

The Bank of Japan and European Central Bank are expected to reduce their bond-buying program, which are pumping billions into their respective economies. And globally the economic recovery is making bonds and equities in emerging markets with high-risk, high-reward potential more attractive.

With no end in sight for the global growth story and central banks moving toward less stimulus, analysts also say they’re expecting further dollar weakness, at least in the near term.

“Until the dollar’s done losing, it’s losing,” said John Doyle, director of markets at Tempus Inc in Washington. “I’m staying the hell out of the way of it.”

While he’s also expecting the overall trend of dollar weakness to continue, Karl Schamotta, director of FX strategy at Cambridge Global Payments in Toronto, is cautioning traders that a short-term reversal could be on its way.

“We’re stacked into a huge short position on the dollar and it isn’t really all that justified,” Schamotta said. “If we have anything that triggers a rise in implied volatility in the dollar or a shock in (emerging markets)….the rise in the dollar could be very, very rapid and profound.”

thumbnail courtesy of finance.yahoo.com

Not everyone is a seller, but everyone is a consumer. That is why Loan Away believes that if the USD and CAD currency have the same value, Canada will overall be better as an economy. This is a likely scenario based on the trend the USD. Since President Trump was in office, the Amercian currency has been dropping. Based on the trend, CAD should be on par with USD within 2 years. This trend is happening because of several reasons, but the main reason is the tax cuts. Financial experts, including the one that wrote the source article from Yahoo Finance, believes the new tax is the source of the U.S. currency falling. The American national debt is at an all-time high and is only expected to grow each year. The American Government will be forced to increase taxes to get more funding to spend money they do not have. Now, this is not just an American problem, but they seem to be the only country to not be doing anything to reduce the debt. As a Canadian, how do you feel about the USD dropping? Let us know on social media or you can email us your thoughts.

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Follow this formula to become a millionaire – David Bach

Is there a secret to being a millionaire? Nope. There is a formula, however, it is unknown to most. It’s quite simple to follow once you focus on your goal. Ready? Save 10-15% of your net income for retirement. That’s it. Nothing groundbreaking, just a simple formula. Now, most will not become a millionaire because of two factors. One, the example is based on over 40 years of saving 10-15% of your income for retirement. Meaning if you are 40 years old and have little to no saving for retirement, it is very unlikely you’ll retire as a millionaire. The second factor is your income. Someone with a higher income will have more money for retirement than someone with a lower income if they both saved the exact same percentage over the same amount of years. The average American nets about $40,000. 15% of that is $6,000. If you invested $6,000 from 20 years old to 60, at an average interest rate of 7%, you will have 1.3 million dollars for your retirement.

Wealth manager David Bach: Follow this formula to become a millionaire

According to New York Times-bestselling author and co-founder of AE Wealth Management David Bach, getting rich boils down to a simple formula: Setting aside at least 14 percent of your income.

It’s “what the average American has done to become a millionaire by the age of 59 years old,” Bach tells CNBC Make It. “You need to be saving 14 percent of your gross income. That’s the formula.”

14 percent may sound like a lot, but it’s the equivalent of just over one hour’s worth of income each day, the self-made millionaire points out: “I want you to keep the first hour of the day of your income. So from 9:00 a.m. to 10:00 a.m., that hour goes to you.”

Think about it this way, he suggests: “You’re going to work 90,000 hours over your lifetime. Most Americans get to the age of 60 and they have nothing to show for it. What you’re going to have is at least a million dollars in your retirement account if you pay yourself first, one hour a day of your income.”

You may be thinking, “I don’t make enough money to save and invest, let alone save and invest 14 percent of my income.”

That’s “poor thinking,” says Bach. “Chances are, you actually do make enough money to be rich — you’re just spending it on little things. I call this ‘the latte factor.‘”

The basic idea of “the latte factor” is that eliminating your $5 daily coffee, or any other regular splurge, could help you save significantly over time.

“I don’t know what you’re spending small amounts of money on, but I know this: $10 a day can change your life. If you’re in your 20s and you start investing $10 a day automatically into your retirement account, at a rate of 8 percent, by the time you hit 60, you’ve got over a million dollars.”

Writers who take issue with Bach’s idea of “the latte factor” argue that it’ll take more than giving up small, daily luxuries to save big or really solve financial woes. As Helaine Olen, personal finance expert and author of “Pound Foolish,” says, the bigger issue for most Americans is “the fixed costs, the things that are difficult to cut back on. Housing, health care, and education cost the average family 75 percent of their discretionary income in the 2000s.”

Still, many people find it helps them gain control over their finances to start with small changes.

More importantly, automate your finances so that 14 percent of your income, for example, goes straight from your paycheck to your retirement savings account. You’ll never even see the money you’re setting aside and will learn to live without it.

After all, “you can’t spend what you don’t have in your pocket,” says Bach.

thumbnail courtesy of cnbc.com

There you have it. You can now become a millionaire. This process is not meant to be quick, but safe and effective. With personal finance, there is no real secret. If there was a secret, it would be “Pay of high-interest debt, create an emergency fund, invest for your retirement, then invest in yourself.” Another one would be “Live within your means”. Don’t buy a brand new Mercedes-Benz, buy something that practical and reliable. Don’t buy the consumer goods just for the image. Instead, buy what is necessary only. The last secret is a summary of the first two “You can look rich or be rich.” Unless you make twice the average salary of the state or province you live in, it is almost impossible to look and be rich.   Choose wisely which one is more important to you. The Loan Away team has already decided they rather be rich than looking rich and hopefully you feel the same way. Liked this personal finance article? Let us know what you liked and how we can improve on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, or any of our social media platforms.

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Effective Tips That Will Help To Repair Your Credit

When attempting a credit repair to make your credit right once more, it is imperative that you present a solution to all those that you owe money to, and don’t deviate from anything you commit to once it is in place. You need to make a commitment to changing your spending habits. Only buy what you absolutely need. If you had to buy something, ask yourself whether every purchase is both affordable and necessary, and only buy.

You must continue to pay your credit card until the balance in a month is lower than 50% of the credit limit. When your debt is over 50%, credit ratings usually go down. With that said, try to spread out the debt that you have or try paying it off.

Try and maintain good credit.  You can receive a better interest rate if you have excellent credit. This means you won’t have to pay too much on your credit cards.   The interest rate on a credit card can add up to your original loan which can become quite substantial in the end.

Another thing that will help with your credit repair is getting a debt consolidation loan.  Even if your credit is bad, you can still get bad credit personal loans in Canada with guaranteed approval.

Be very wary of programs that do not sound legal.  Some claim that they will legally remove bad credit from your credit history.  Needless to say, this is against the law and any company offering such survives can get into trouble with the law.

Find out how your debt settlement contract will make your credit score look. There are methods that are going to be less damaging than another, and all should be researched before you enter an agreement with a creditor. Remember creditors want their money. They really don’t care about your credit scores. That is up to you to protect.

Dispute any errors that you find on any of your credit reports by sending them a mail, either via the post or by email. If you send the letter by mail, make sure that you send the letter via recorded delivery, to have a receipt of the post.

Credit Repair Dos And Don’ts

For the credit repair plan to work, you need to quit this immediately, if you are currently spending more than you earn. You need to change your way of thinking in this regard. Getting credit has never been easier, making it just as easy for people to buy items they simply can’t afford. Comes with a hefty interest price tag, even though this. Take a realistic look at your financial situation and determine how much you can actually spend.

Avoid bankruptcy at all costs. One way of getting out of debt quicker is to declare bankruptcy.  However, there are consequences for declaring bankruptcy.  Therefore, unless your credit history is so bad already, and therefore getting into bankruptcy will not make much difference to your credit history immediately, avoid getting into bankruptcy

You should pay your credit card balances as fast as possible if you need to repair your credit score. Begin by paying down those credit cards that carry the highest interest rates or the highest balances. This can prove to creditors that you are serious about paying down your debt.

To help improve your credit score, make sure you keep low balances on your credit cards. Making a full use of the credit card limit will not help your credit history improve.

An unfavorable credit score can be brought about by multiple outstanding accounts and no means of settling those debts. Make sure you pay all your creditors instead of limiting it to just a few. Even a minimal payment can satisfy your creditors and keep your accounts from landing in collections.

In order to start the process of credit repair, it is wise to seek new credit as a way to re-establish yourself. By doing this you will be proving to potential lenders you are credit worthy and capable of paying money when you are required.

Repairing your credit rating and cutting down your debt involves a lot more common sense than anything else. You can easily achieve your goal by using these tips.

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How Wealthy Do You Need To Be To Live In Major USA Cities?

The article by CNBC explains how much your net worth needs to be to be financially comfortable and how much you will need to be wealthy. The source of this information is from Charles Schwab report “more than 50 times greater than the actual median net worth of U.S. households”. The report is interesting because it goes into details for the major cities that Americans live. The report also has a poll of 1,000 Americans were asked what does wealth mean to them. 27% say wealth means the amount of money in your saving account, 24% say experiences, 22% affording consumer goods, 19% say peace of mind and 12% say good relationships. Wealth means different things to everyone. At Loan Away, the majority of us concluded that peace of mind also known as financial independence is what wealth means. Knowing that you have enough money to live comfortably for years to come is true wealth.

Here’s how much money Americans think you need to be wealthy in 10 major US cities

When it comes to defining wealth, there’s no clear cut answer.

In fact, according to a 2017 survey from Charles Schwab, Americans are split on what rich means: Some describe wealth as a specific dollar amount and others as a state of mind.

Survey participants were also asked how much money is required to be considered “financially comfortable” and “wealthy” in their cities.

In the notoriously expensive San Francisco Bay Area, locals say you have to have a net worth of over $1 million just to be financially comfortable. To be rich, you need $4.2 million, which is “more than 50 times greater than the actual median net worth of U.S. households,” Charles Schwab reports.

Read on to see what residents of other major U.S. cities think it takes to be financially comfortable there and how much it takes to be wealthy.

Charlotte, North Carolina

To be financially comfortable, you need a net worth of $540,000

To be wealthy, you need a net worth of $1.8 million

Anne Rippy | Getty Images

Charlotte, North Carolina

Denver, Colorado

To be financially comfortable, you need a net worth of $540,000

To be wealthy, you need a net worth of $2 million

Bridget Calip | Getty Image

Denver, Colorado

Chicago, Illinois

To be financially comfortable, you need a net worth of $560,000

To be wealthy, you need a net worth of $2 million

George Rose | Getty Images

Chicago, Illinois

Boston, Massachusetts

To be financially comfortable, you need a net worth of $660,000

To be wealthy, you need a net worth of $2.1 million

Education Images | UIG | Getty Images

Boston waterfront

Dallas, Texas

To be financially comfortable, you need a net worth of $670,000

To be wealthy, you need a net worth of $2.1 million

David Sucsy | Getty Images

Dallas, Texas.

Seattle, Washington

To be financially comfortable, you need a net worth of $570,000

To be wealthy, you need a net worth of $2.4 million

Getty Images

Seattle

Los Angeles, California

To be financially comfortable, you need a net worth of $830,000

To be wealthy, you need a net worth of $2.6 million

David Sucsy | Getty Images

Los Angeles

Washington, D.C.

To be financially comfortable, you need a net worth of $780,000

To be wealthy, you need a net worth of $3 million

Danita Delimont | Getty Images

Washington, DC

New York, New York

To be financially comfortable, you need a net worth of $1.1 million

To be wealthy, you need a net worth of $3.2 million

Dave Kotinsky | Getty Images

New York, New York

San Francisco, California

To be financially comfortable, you need a net worth of $1.1 million

To be wealthy, you need a net worth of $4.2 million

thumbnail courtesy of cnbc.com

How does this make you feel? As a Canadian in Toronto, Canada, this is not surprising, to say the least. The housing market in large cities is expensive. A prime example is Vancouver, Canada. The housing prices over there are comparable to San Franciso, New York, and other large Amercian cities. What does this mean? Well, you will have to earn more money than the average person to even consider living in one of these cities. Furthermore, expect to be paying more money for a longer period of time each year you wait to buy. The housing market will only become more expensive as time goes on, so we recommend that you do two things before buying a home. 1. Wait for the bubble to pop. It will happen in the 2018 or 2019. Once it pops, the housing market will slow down. 2. Save every dime from now or increase your income. I know this is difficult, but if you don’t do one of the two, you will might not even be able to afford anything in any big city. We hope you enjoyed this article. If you did, please let us know on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram.

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