|
Help Me Keep This Site FREE! Please Visit My Sponsors 
|
| Listen to Tal Boldo discussing debit card traps on the Bob Conners Show, 610 WTVN |
 |
 |
Maximizing My Credit Card Rewards Points
by Tal Boldo
With credit card companies competing for my business, I've learned to maximize my credit card reward points by shopping around for the best deals. Some cards will offer 5% cash back on groceries but 1% on clothing. Some will offer hundreds of ways to spend your reward points, but others will have barely five options. Here's what I do to maximize my credit card reward points depending on how I want to spend them.
Special Celebrations
Some cards offer 3% to 5% reward points for restaurant charges and will typically also offer gift cards to restaurants as a way to spend your points. I maximize my credit card reward points by looking for a card that will offer me a rate of exchange of at least $1 per 100 points, which will translate to a $50 gift card for 5,000 points. Then I use my restaurant gift cards for special occasions like birthdays, graduation celebrations, mother's day or father's day get-togethers.
Exotic Vacation Packages
Unlike your cell phone minutes, credit card reward points don’t expire (although it’s always important to confirm this with your credit card company). This allows you to save your points until you have enough for an exotic vacation package. I maximize my credit card reward points by upgrading trips rather than saving for whole ones. This is a great idea for honeymoon upgrades, anniversary getaways or family vacations.
Grocery Shopping
Of all your family expenses, grocery shopping is the most frequent and necessary. I maximize my credit card reward points by paying with a card that offers 5% cash back on groceries. Since several credit card companies now offer this rate, I choose between them by reviewing their rewards program. I’ll opt for the card that offers many venues for spending my reward points at an exchange ratio of 1 Dollar per 100 points or better.
Airfare
If you are a frequent traveler, you’re probably part of a frequent flyer program. Add to this a good credit card rewards program and you can gain free airfare or free upgrades to first or business class. To maximize my credit card rewards points I chose a card that specifically targeted airline travel, offering the highest cash back option with frequent flyer miles.
Entertainment
You can cash credit card rewards points for movie theater tickets or Broadway shows. Movie tickets are ideal for summer vacation when kids have so much time on their hands. And I’ve cashed my reward points to see the Broadway show, The Phantom of the Opera. To maximize your rewards points, check out the program in advance to make sure that entertainment is included.
Gift Cards
Shopping gift cards to your favorite stores are a common way to cash your credit card rewards. To maximize my reward points, I make sure that my credit card offers gift cards as low as $25 for 2,500 points, which allows me to start enjoying my points fairly quickly. In addition, I check to see if my reward ratio improves as the gift cards rises in value. So, for example, I will get $50 for 4,500 points instead of 5,000 points.
Cash Back
Getting cash for your credit card points typically offers you less value. For example, one of my credit cards offers $50 for 6,000 points, whereas their store gift cards are $50 for 5000 points. To maximize your reward points, choose a credit card that offers the best rate of exchange, preferably $50 for 5,000 points, with an even better rate as you rack up more points.
Financial Steps to Take If You Are Getting Divorced
by Tal Boldo
If you're facing the emotional turmoil of an upcoming divorce, part of your worry is revolving around your personal finances. Fourteen years ago I was in your position and losing sleep over it. Divorce will affect your personal finances badly but, hopefully (and with a good attorney), only in the short term. And there are financial steps you should take during your divorce to shield yourself as much as possible.
Separate Your Credit Card Debts
Many people who are going through divorce charge their attorney fees to credit cards. At this point, it's a good idea to separate your credit cards from those of your spouse; otherwise you may find yourself paying for her attorney fees. If you use your cards, and she uses hers, your attorney can make a case for each of you paying his own debt. This said, get the divorce settled ASAP because until the final judgment is signed, any debt (no matter in whose name) is open to a fifty-fifty split.
Remove Your Name from Your Spouse' Cards
Before you destroy any credit cards your spouse may have given you, call the creditor and remove yourself from the account. If you don’t, the bank will continue to report the debt on your credit report, even if you are only a co-signee. This will increase your debt-to-income ratio by unfairly penalizing you for the debt of your spouse. When your credit score plummets your own credit cards will raise your APR’s.
Remove Your Spouse from Your Life Insurance
Remove your spouse from any life insurance policy or 401K plan. If you are naming minor children instead, keep in mind that your spouse (as their guardian) may be the one with access to the funds after all. If this is not your wish, name a grandparent instead or a friend.
Change or Write Your Will
If you have never drawn a Last Will and Testament, understand that, under the law, if you die intestate (without a will) your wife will automatically inherit a large portion of your estate. Therefore, take the financial step of drawing a will as part of your divorce. The same attorney who is handling your divorce can do it, or write an amendment to an existing will.
Attorney Fees
Divorce affected my personal finances severely because my ex-husband and I owned a business together. When we separated, I left the business behind. I needed to find a new way to earn a living. I took on the challenge of managing a law office. My generous employers, a delightful married couple, later filed my divorce and covered all my attorney fees free of charge. Despite this, I had been prepared to borrow with a credit card to cover my divorce attorney fees.
Joint Bank Accounts
Separate your bank accounts while the divorce process is going on. If you still live in the same home, keep a bank account open for household expenses only and establish auto debits with payees, to prevent your spouse from withdrawing funds for his or her own ends.
Drop Your Lifestyle
Though you may feel like pampering yourself as a way to reduce stress, now is the time to tighten your financial belt. You don’t want to give the judge the impression that you can afford to live beyond your means—and hence afford to pay off your wife’s debts for her. If you work hard for your money, respect it in your spending habits and the judge will show it equal respect in court.
Plan for the Future
You are about to become a one-income household. This may increase or reduce your lifestyle; though, most likely, if any increase was probable, you will be slapped with alimony of some kind. To deal with the upcoming change to your personal finances, make plans for lowering your car payment, mortgage (or rent), and any other large fixed payments and discover new ways to maximize your money.
No Fault
The law has changed in the last few years, and in most states it no longer matters if one spouse had given grounds for the divorce. Therefore, keep your personal finances free of revenge and focus on concluding the divorce proceedings swiftly. This will reduce your vulnerability and enable you to get your personal finances back on track as soon as possible.
Loan Fine-Print to Watch Out for
by Tal Boldo
Both in my business loans, personal mortgage, car loans and credit cards, I have missed fine-print details that cost me sometimes as much as 100% of the original amount borrowed. Knowing which details to look for any
given loan agreement is vital to choosing the best financing option for you. Here's important loan fine-print to watch out for before you sign the dotted line.
Annual Percentage Rate (APR)
When talking to a lender always discuss the APR on a loan, not the interest rate. Though the interest rate represents the rate you will pay for borrowing the funds, the annual percentage rate includes additional costs, which the lender may add to the loan for its procurement or maintenance. Be sure to find out if the APR is fixed or variable, and, if variable, what are the terms of the increase and at which point will it be capped. So, for example, a 4.5% variable mortgage rate for 5 years may increase by half a percent every 6 months until a cap of 7% is reached. The Tip to remember is this: judge a loan by its APR not its interest rate.
Loan Term
Keeping reading on Yahoo! Contributor Network...
The 6 Risks of Using Personal Checks
by Tal Boldo
Stolen Checks
When my car payment and water bill were stolen from my mailbox, my personal checks were forged by the thief and cashed for four times the original amount, withdrawing $1,600 from my checking account. Though my bank ultimately reimbursed me, I had to prove that I had not written the checks despite the fact that my signature was on them. To protect yourself against check fraud, use a fraud-proof pen with ink that can't be washed off your check (you'll find cheap options at office supply stores). And drop your envelope in a post office mail collection box instead of leaving it in your own mail box.
Risk of Insufficient Funds
If you miscalculate your bank balance and your personal check bounces, you'll incur double fees. Your bank will charge you for a bounced check, while the person you wrote the bad check to will be charged for a failed transaction, a fee that he will pass on to you. To avoid this risk of double penalty, enroll your checking account in your bank's overdraft protection plan. Your bad check will then be accepted, preventing a fee from the recipient bank, though you will still be charged an overdraft fee from your own bank.
Cost of Checks
There are three risks involved with ordering checks. You may make a mistake in the personal information printed on the check and have to pay for a corrected order. Your address or phone number may change before you use up all your checks. Or your checks may be stolen while on their way to you. To avoid these risks, carefully review your order before buying checks. Order one box of checks at a time in case your information changes in the near future. Shop around with check printing companies instead of ordering directly from your bank. And ship your checks by express mail, which is safer and allows you to track your package.
Cashing Personal Checks
If you wish to cash a personal check without a bank account, consider your options carefully. If you visit a branch of the same bank from which the check was written, you may have to pay a small fee for the service but you will likely be able to cash the check without waiting for the funds to clear. For an out-of-state personal check, your best option for receiving the funds immediately is a check cashing store. However, most will charge a 5% fee ($50 for a $1,000 check). If you have a Wal-Mart near you, visit their in-store check cashing service which charge a nominal fee of $3 for a $1,000 check and even less for smaller amounts (see restrictions).
Risk of Accepting Personal Checks
Unless you are cashing your tax refund or a check from an established company, you stand the risk of incurring bounced check fees every time you deposit a personal check. In addition, between the time you make the deposit and the actual clearing of the funds, the writer of the check may place a stop payment with his bank, in which case any credit of the funds to your account will be withdrawn by your bank and you will be charged the failed transaction fee. To protect themselves, small businesses typically refer to a "bad check list" for information about persons passing bad checks. But as an individual, it is best to accept personal checks from people you know and trust only.
Check Scams
When I advertised my Ducati for sale on Craig'slist, a buyer offered to get the bike sight unseen. "After you deposit my check, you can ship me the bike," he said. Had I done so, the out-of-state check would have bounced a few days after the bike was gone. According to Fraud.org fake checks are commonly used for advances, down payments, and purchases. Once the victim deposits the check, he is asked to wire a fee or release merchandise. Only after several days does he realize that the fake check never cleared. To avoid the risk of check scams, always wait seven days for a check to clear if you are dealing with someone new. Do this even if your bank reflects the funds in your account immediately, because when a check bounces your bank will withdraw the funds.
©
MyMoneyLifeLessons.com 2011