How to Benefit from a Balance Transfer Credit Card

Choosing a 0% balance transfer credit card offer can be an excellent way to cut down your interest costs. It can also be the ideal way to reduce your debt levels very quickly. If youre happy to use your new card for debt reduction purposes and nothing else, you could find that you can pay off your debts much sooner.

Yet there are some traps and pitfalls you should try to avoid. If youre not careful, its possible you could lose all the benefits you thought you were getting by applying for one of these cards.
Heres how to avoid losing all the benefits you should be getting on your 0% balance transfer credit card.

0% Does Not Mean $0 Payments

Its surprising how many people assume that 0% interest means the same thing as zero payments. They think that because there is no interest being charged on their balance transfer amounts that the minimum payment will also automatically become $0.
Dont fall for this. You still have to make at least your minimum payment every month. Some credit card providers have it written into their fine print that if you miss a repayment during the introductory term your interest rate could revert to the normal purchase interest rate, which is usually much higher than your balance transfer rate.

0% on Balance Transfers Does Not Mean an Interest Free Credit Card

The advertising spiel for these types of deals makes a fuss of the interest rate being only

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Watch Out – Credit Score Determining Auto Insurance Cost

You hit another car; your auto insurer probably raises your premiums. But you may not know that your premiums can shoot up much higher if your car insurance company is using a new breed of credit score, even if you have a pristine driving record. Known as credit-based insurance scores, these numbers are computed from your bill-paying and loan data collected by the major credit bureaus. In recent years, the scores have become as important in determining your annual premium as your driving record and the neighborhood where you live.

Hundreds of insurers are using models created by ChoicePoint and Fair Isaac, the Minneapolis company that invented credit scoring. Others have developed their own systems. The scoring models stress bits of credit data that would seem to have little to do with a driver’s tendency to make claims. There are no standards: Each company uses different models and weighs different credit-report information. Some big companies find scoring useful only for new customers, not renewals, while others may use it for both.

Auto insurers use this credit information to produce an -insurance score- because they believe it allows them to more accurately assess and price a risk. In conjunction with other information such as years of driving experience, previous accidents, the type of car or home, and where the driver lives and drives, credit-based insurance scores allow insurers to differentiate between lower and higher insurance risks.

These scores are not a measure of someone’s financial assets, but of

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Debit & Credit Card Processing In Your Dental Practice Are You Playing Your Cards Right

Making significant changes for your practice doesnt always have to take up valuable time. Switching card processing providers, for example, can prove to be an extremely beneficial exercise for both your practice and your patients. BDA Plus has put together a case study highlighting the benefits of switching from typical bank rates to the exclusive card processing services available to you as a BDA member.
Streamline introduction
One of the major advantages of arranging your card processing facilities through BDA Plus is that we have negotiated exclusive rates from Streamline (part of RBS WorldPay), the leading provider of merchant accounts in Europe*. Switching providers is actually a lot simpler than it sounds. The process usually takes around three to four weeks to complete, and does not require the need to disrupt your practices schedule in any way.

Rates
There are various options available to suit every practices needs. As an example of rates, looking at a typical practice with an annual credit card turnover of less than 100,000, the following demonstrates our exclusive rates for BDA members:

Maestro & Solo- 16p per transaction
VISA Debit & VISA Electron – 17p per transaction
VISA Credit Card – 1.21% per transaction
Master Card – 1.24% per transaction
Commercial Cards – 1.76% per transaction

If your credit card turnover exceeds 100,000, percentage based rates can be lowered by 0.02%, and by a further 0.04% should your credit card turnover exceed 250,000.

A standard payment

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Understanding The Key Elements Of A Balanced Investment Portfolio

The term investment portfolio can be defined as collection of different investments held by an individual, organization or financial institution. Each investor wants to maximize his wealth by investing funds in multiple investment options. So the diverse investment portfolio makes it easier for the individual investors to manage his assets in a systematic and organized way. Further, a balanced investment portfolio can also be effective in meeting your short-term financial objectives along with accumulation funds for your future. As you take investment decisions by keeping in mind certain objectives, the right investment portfolio will enable you to monitor your investments, and change the investment strategy to accomplish your financial goals. If you are new to building investment portfolio, it is advisable to spend some time in understanding some of its key elements.

Identify Individual Investment Options:
The size, structure and constituents of an investment portfolio vary from one investor to another. Each investor wants to get higher returns, while keeping his principal amount of funds intact. Some people prefer investing funds in term deposits and debentures to take minimum amount of risks, whereas the people willing to take risks choose investment options like stocks, bonds, equities and mutual funds.

So each item of a single investment portfolio can have a distinct risk/reward ratio. Also, an investor can decide about investing funds in a single item or diversify his investment options. Normally, a balanced investment portfolio consists of both high risk-high yield investments and low risk-low yield investments. However,

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How To Pay Off Credit Card Debt

Being overwhelmed by credit card debt can be a challenge. Constant late fees can quickly add up resulting in over the limit fees. For those tired of the never ending credit card battle, understanding how to pay off credit card debt and implementing a strategy will not only help improve your credit rating but also stop harrassment from creditors. Consider these options before choosing credit card settlement or other bankruptcy alternatives.

First Step – Your Credit Report

Any time a person applies for a loan or credit card, their credit history is checked. A potential lender or creditor will review the number of open accounts, balances and payment history on record. This information is used to determine if the applicant is a good candidate to receive the loan or line of credit. It is not just lenders who check credit; banks, insurance companies, property managers and even some employers review credit history.

Because credit plays such an important role in everyday life, it is important to maintain a good history as it can impact where you live and work or even health, auto and life insurance rates. If you have not checked your credit history lately, this should be the starting point when considering how to pay off credit card debt. Any negative or inaccurate information should be disputed in writing. This may take some time, but it will result in an improved credit score and is therefore well worth the effort.

Ignoring letters from creditors will not make the

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Add protection to credit card storage and database to prevent hacking

As a businessman one has to brood over a number of issues related to his/her own business. Worrying over issues like security is something which should always be left to the professionals to deal with. These days, technology has made such progress that it can be quite dangerous to let the rein of the business fall under the hands of the wrong guy. If you haven’t opted for a secure database, then even an innocent looking employee may easily access confidential information and sell them to rivals.

External hackers are also harmful agents who need to be tackled using the latest technological tools. Most of these hackers are highly intelligent and they have a way with these software programs and codes. No matter how difficult or unimaginable your password is, they can crack it in a very short time. Another thing about these hackers is that they are very egoistic and gritty. Once they set their eyes on a company or a website, they do not rest until and unless they have hacked it to their satisfaction. So, it is crucial to hire the services of IT giants and avail appropriate services to secure database. You may have to make a small investment for the same, but the amount will be miniscule and the expenditure will be worthwhile, given the level of security you can avail.

While the hackers are very smart in stealing information hidden on your computer or in cloud-based platforms, they are also very successful

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All Access Prepaid Credit Card – Review

The All Access Visa is a great choice for a prepaid credit card. This card will give you free direct deposit, free account alerts, free bill pay and many more.

This card offers guaranteed approval for everyone. It does not matter how bad your credit history is, or even if you have been placed into chex systems.

A great and unique benefit of this card is you can get a free savings account. This account will be FDIC insured and you will earn 5% APR on the account. This benefit was designed to help encourage savings.

Also you can have 3 additional cards issued to you for family members or friends. This can be a helpful tool to help teach your children financial responsibility.

You are allowed to transfer funds from one account to another account. For example instead of giving your child cash for their allowance you can simply transfer the money into their account.

This is ideal for students who still rely upon their parents for some financial assistance. Should you find yourself in a position where you need cash your card is accepted at over 1 million ATM locations.

As an added bonus you can receive free account alerts, via e-mail and text messaging. There is zero liability for unauthorized purchases with you All Access visa.

If you take advantage of free direct deposit and bill pay you can save money on check cashing fees and buying expensive money orders.

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Make Settlement on Your Credit Card Debt – Credit Card Debt Settlement

There is many a credit repair service which is operational to provide help with debt. They help and also advice in order to debt-ridden consumers. Potentially one has a great amount of credit card debt which ensures you keep on growing and getting it down is not easy. You will need to then look out there for a good settlement associate company.

This credit card debt settlement organization will mainly act as your broker who will adeptly manage debt. You wouldn’t get filthy enquiries at work to get rid of your debts and even no coercion calls. In its place, everything is going to be handled by means of debt settlement benefits. This will help prevent the stress as well as lowering you and your family with the great mental and economical burden.

Listed below are the methods which a settlement deal company really does:

All the debts are renegotiated and recalculated. When there is a good mediator available as Debt Settlement Firm, it is always useful. Usually you will find that you emerge from the deal owing 40% to help 60% less money and that is an awesome amount of bad credit debt relief! Trying to get it all done because of oneself is definitely tricky and may also one in problems, even boost chances of extending the burden undoubtedly one is struggling with. Hence you need to take aid from experts.

The monthly installments which were extremely hard to manage can be combined within

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Credit Card for Students

For most university students, credit cards arent high on their priority list for things to take care of after all, students with loans can pay for things with direct debit from their bank accounts, as can students that are being assisted financially by their parents.

The simple truth of the matter is that most students dont think about credit cards, so that when it gets to the point that they need one, they end up rushing through the selection process, ending up with a credit card that isnt optimal for their needs or worse one that actually ends up being detrimental for them in the long run.

So what should a student seeking a credit card do? Simple, they need to research! Look at a wide variety of student credit cards, their benefits and their drawbacks. Only select one that you feel comfortable with and that you feel addresses your needs well, while not providing you with too many setbacks.

So what characteristics should you look for? Well, here are a few things to keep in mind in your search for the perfect student credit card.

Fees

Some credit cards charge you an annual fee for their usage; I like to counsel students to stay away from these types of credit cards, as usually their good points are not enough to outweigh the fact that you have to pay for them. Youve already good tuition, textbooks, residence and many other things to worry about, no sense in adding another

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Capital One Secured Credit Cards Why Are They So Attractive

Capital One secured credit cards have broken the mold when it comes to secured credit cards. Instead of ridiculous processing charges and annual fees, Capital One secured credit cards offer credit-bruised consumers with extremely reasonable interest rates and perks that other secured credit cards wouldn’t ever think of offering.

The Interest Factor

You’d think that because secured credit cards are backed by money you deposit into an account, the interest rates would be reasonable. Unfortunately, many of the companies that offer secured credit cards could care less how much money you have guaranteeing your account — they still charge an arm and a leg for interest.

Unlike many other secured credit cards, Capital One secured credit cards actually have very reasonable interest rates. Unlike many other secured credit cards, you won’t pay a ridiculous interest rate of 20 percent or more when you have a Capital One secured credit card.

The Application Fee

It’s not uncommon for companies offering secured credit cards to charge an application fee. Of course, you usually are only charged this fee if you’re approved (and if the company is legitimate, they put the fee on the credit card they are issuing you). However, why pay an application fee for other secured credit cards when Capital One secured credit cards have no application fee attached?

The Credit Limit

When it comes to secured credit cards, the credit limit you’re approved for really depends on the amount you deposit into your secured account.

While many secured credit

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