Steve Repak's Blog - Posts Tagged "budgeting"
Will My Future Spouse’s Bad Credit Affect Me?
In any relationship, each person brings his or her own baggage. I’m not just talking about emotional baggage—there is also financial baggage of which you should be aware. Before you say, “I do,” keep in mind that you’ll be making a promise to stand by your spouse for richer and for poorer because money is one of the top reasons many couples fight.
If your soon-to-be spouse isn’t as financially fit as you, it doesn’t mean you should call off the big day. However, you do need to have some discussions with him or her before you walk down the aisle.
Joint accounts vs. separate accounts
Before you get married, decide whether you will both deposit your earnings into a joint account or keep your finances separate. Joint accounts could potentially lead to a financial emergency, especially if one person is not tracking what he or she is spending or is spending more than what is in the account.
On the other hand, having separate accounts creates unique issues. For example, you might be unable to see what your spouse is spending or saving. This could lead to problems later because it could result in two people living off of one person’s savings and retirement.
There is no right or wrong answer, but you should have a plan before you tie the knot. In a healthy relationship, there has to be some give and take—an important concept when it comes to your money or any other important decision.
Your first house
The good news is that if you both are working and you apply for a loan jointly, the lender will look at your combined income. The bad news is that the lender will also look at each of your credit reports and your combined debt-to-income ratios. If one spouse has blemished credit or a lot of debt, that could mean a higher interest rate on the loan—or possibly a complete rejection of the application.
Does this mean that if your significant other has bad credit, you can’t get a house? Maybe, but it could also mean you can afford less house as you may face a higher interest rate that increases your monthly payment. You may simply have to apply for a loan in your name only, but this means you will only qualify for a home you could afford on your own instead of for a home you could afford on both salaries.
Credit cards
Bad credit can haunt you for years, so you should both be aware of your personal credit histories and debt situation before you get married. This may raise some red flags around which you will have to plan. Does your spouse have a lot of debt? You will need to make sure the accounts don’t become past due. Is your spouse a heavy spender? You may want him or her to start using a joint card to encourage wiser spending habits. Are you considering applying for a joint credit card with someone who might not have a stellar credit score? You might want to consider just adding him or her as an authorized user to get better terms.
If you are the one who doesn’t have stellar credit, you can be added as an authorized user, but be aware that not all companies report authorized users to the national credit reporting agencies (CRAs), so you might not get any credit for paying your part of the bill.
There are always pros and cons with each route you choose. The point here is that you need to have a plan before your wedding day. Love is blind, but lenders aren’t. They will look carefully at your credit history, so make sure you are making financial decisions with your head and not with your heart.
Article courtesy of http://blog.equifax.com/credit/will-m...
If your soon-to-be spouse isn’t as financially fit as you, it doesn’t mean you should call off the big day. However, you do need to have some discussions with him or her before you walk down the aisle.
Joint accounts vs. separate accounts
Before you get married, decide whether you will both deposit your earnings into a joint account or keep your finances separate. Joint accounts could potentially lead to a financial emergency, especially if one person is not tracking what he or she is spending or is spending more than what is in the account.
On the other hand, having separate accounts creates unique issues. For example, you might be unable to see what your spouse is spending or saving. This could lead to problems later because it could result in two people living off of one person’s savings and retirement.
There is no right or wrong answer, but you should have a plan before you tie the knot. In a healthy relationship, there has to be some give and take—an important concept when it comes to your money or any other important decision.
Your first house
The good news is that if you both are working and you apply for a loan jointly, the lender will look at your combined income. The bad news is that the lender will also look at each of your credit reports and your combined debt-to-income ratios. If one spouse has blemished credit or a lot of debt, that could mean a higher interest rate on the loan—or possibly a complete rejection of the application.
Does this mean that if your significant other has bad credit, you can’t get a house? Maybe, but it could also mean you can afford less house as you may face a higher interest rate that increases your monthly payment. You may simply have to apply for a loan in your name only, but this means you will only qualify for a home you could afford on your own instead of for a home you could afford on both salaries.
Credit cards
Bad credit can haunt you for years, so you should both be aware of your personal credit histories and debt situation before you get married. This may raise some red flags around which you will have to plan. Does your spouse have a lot of debt? You will need to make sure the accounts don’t become past due. Is your spouse a heavy spender? You may want him or her to start using a joint card to encourage wiser spending habits. Are you considering applying for a joint credit card with someone who might not have a stellar credit score? You might want to consider just adding him or her as an authorized user to get better terms.
If you are the one who doesn’t have stellar credit, you can be added as an authorized user, but be aware that not all companies report authorized users to the national credit reporting agencies (CRAs), so you might not get any credit for paying your part of the bill.
There are always pros and cons with each route you choose. The point here is that you need to have a plan before your wedding day. Love is blind, but lenders aren’t. They will look carefully at your credit history, so make sure you are making financial decisions with your head and not with your heart.
Article courtesy of http://blog.equifax.com/credit/will-m...
Don’t Bust Your Budget with Back to School Expenses
Proverbs 27:23-24(NIV) “Be sure you know the condition of your flocks, give careful attention to your herds; for riches do not endure forever, and a crown is not secure for all generations.”
It’s hard to believe that it is time once again to start planning for back to school. Having children myself, I understand the struggles because of the cost of school supplies and clothes. So what are some ideas you can use to make back to school shopping a little less painful on your checkbook?
1. Buy in bulk
#2 pencils, spiral notebooks, folders, and paper. Every child needs these basic supplies in school and most of the time it makes sense to buy these in bulk. Unless you have a child that is graduating this year, consider buying their school supplies like pencils, paper and glue sticks, which by the way do not spoil, in bulk because it will turn out to be less expensive and your child will likely need to replace these throughout the year, and will definitely need those items again next year. When buying in bulk though, just make sure you remember where you put all of the excess supplies for the following year so you aren’t wasting money buying them again.
2. Recycle supplies from last year
My child’s standard ruler, safety scissors, hand held pencil sharpener, pencil pouch, and sometimes even their book bag are still in great shape at the end of the school year and it makes financial sense to use them again for the upcoming school year. Take time to do an inventory with your children to see if they truly need new supplies or if you can get away with using some of the previous year’s items again.
3. It’s Okay to say no
While you can’t avoid back to school expenses altogether, there are ways to control them so you can keep a little more of your hard earned money! I have written a few articles in the past for back to school shopping where I have said, “It’s Okay to say No”. In the previous articles, the “No” was meant for the child. Saying “No” this year is going to be for the lists I get from my childrens’ schools. For example, this year I am going to say “No” to purchasing hand sanitizer, paper towels, 3 boxes of tissues, 2 reams of copy paper, 1 ream of colored paper, the Swiffer duster, zip-lock bags, a four-pack of Dry Erase markers, disinfectant wipes, and Band-Aids. When I take these optional items and multiply it by three (for my three children) that comes out to a lot of money!
Article courtesy of Choose Now Ministries http://nicoleodell.com/2014/08/dont-b...
It’s hard to believe that it is time once again to start planning for back to school. Having children myself, I understand the struggles because of the cost of school supplies and clothes. So what are some ideas you can use to make back to school shopping a little less painful on your checkbook?
1. Buy in bulk
#2 pencils, spiral notebooks, folders, and paper. Every child needs these basic supplies in school and most of the time it makes sense to buy these in bulk. Unless you have a child that is graduating this year, consider buying their school supplies like pencils, paper and glue sticks, which by the way do not spoil, in bulk because it will turn out to be less expensive and your child will likely need to replace these throughout the year, and will definitely need those items again next year. When buying in bulk though, just make sure you remember where you put all of the excess supplies for the following year so you aren’t wasting money buying them again.
2. Recycle supplies from last year
My child’s standard ruler, safety scissors, hand held pencil sharpener, pencil pouch, and sometimes even their book bag are still in great shape at the end of the school year and it makes financial sense to use them again for the upcoming school year. Take time to do an inventory with your children to see if they truly need new supplies or if you can get away with using some of the previous year’s items again.
3. It’s Okay to say no
While you can’t avoid back to school expenses altogether, there are ways to control them so you can keep a little more of your hard earned money! I have written a few articles in the past for back to school shopping where I have said, “It’s Okay to say No”. In the previous articles, the “No” was meant for the child. Saying “No” this year is going to be for the lists I get from my childrens’ schools. For example, this year I am going to say “No” to purchasing hand sanitizer, paper towels, 3 boxes of tissues, 2 reams of copy paper, 1 ream of colored paper, the Swiffer duster, zip-lock bags, a four-pack of Dry Erase markers, disinfectant wipes, and Band-Aids. When I take these optional items and multiply it by three (for my three children) that comes out to a lot of money!
Article courtesy of Choose Now Ministries http://nicoleodell.com/2014/08/dont-b...
