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 Focus
on reducing your debt
By
Bankrate.com
Actively reduce debts accumulated
in college or in establishing your residence. Credit card
debts are particularly heinous. Make a concerted effort to
live within your means and be debt free.
Links:
7
steps for building financial fitness, Understanding
credit, Living
below your means: Control vs. competence, How
to retire credit card debt, Cut
credit card fees, Drowning
in credit card debt
ABCs of student loan paybacks
You have a six-month grace period once
you graduate before payback time begins for the student loans
that helped to make your education possible. If you are off
to graduate school or working with a federally funded volunteer
organization, such as AmeriCorps, the loans can be postponed.
But for everyone else, the clock is ticking. Here's how to
set up your loan repayment plan so that it is most advantageous
for you.
Links:
Good
deeds help pay down college debt,
Lock
in low student loan rates, Invest
or pay off student loans?, Student
loans and taxes: interest deductions, Cashing
in an IRA to pay college loans, December
grads can cash in on consolidation, Repaying
student loans: Slow is OK, but never stop
Meet your credit report
What it says about you matters! Your credit
score affects most lending decisions, from credit cards to
auto loans to mortgages. Your credit standing can influence
whether you'll be able to rent an apartment, qualify for competitive
insurance rates or even get a job. A bad credit report costs
money and is most inconvenient.
Links:
FICO
-- friend or foe?, Credit
reports: Get one free under the right circumstances, Getting
all your credit history reported, Loan
surfing hurts credit, Dealing
with lousy credit, Vigilance
best option to fight identity theft, ID
protection tips from the real 'Catch Me If You Can' man
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