Best Credit Cards for You!

When a loved one passes on, financial burden can increase the family’s hardship and suffering. With so many life expenses ranging from mortgages to car loans to credit card debt, student loans, and everything in between, it’s a common worry to think about the future of large debts and whether or not that debt is inherited. Before worrying too much over inheriting debt, it is important to understand what actually happens when a loved one passes on and leaves a large debt behind.

So what happens when someone with a large amount of credit card debt dies? Is the debt left behind for their families or surviving spouse to pay off? Is the debt forgiven? Is it settled somehow, along with the funeral arrangements?

The answer is, it really depends.

“Whether you inherit debt or not depends on the state you are in ,” says Assistant Professor Mitzi Lauderdale from the Undergraduate Program Director in the Division of Personal Financial Planning at Texas Tech University.

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Tags: Debt, Debt Need

With Earth Day 2011 upon us, the recent meteoric rise in gas prices remains a major focus.   Personally, every time I drive by a gas station my anxiety level causes me to hyperventilate and lose consciousness (thankfully my dog Buster knows to seize the wheel in such situations).

In any case, with gas prices what they are these days, has there ever been a better time to live a greener lifestyle and save a little money to boot?  Here are 10 great ways to give your credit cards some rest and rediscover your eco-conscious side at the same time.

Your car is specifically designed to get its best fuel economy at 60MPH.  Resist the urge to ride with the speedsters in the left lane and your piggy bank and gas tank will thank you accordingly.

In today’s digital world, there’s hardly ever a reason to print things anymore.

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Tags: Day, Earth Day

A couple of weeks ago I did a review of Betterment, a cool new super-simple investing platform that I had discovered. I have since signed up for an account, and am now investing a portion of my money with them. What I like about them is that they keep everything extremely simple for newer investors or average Joes, giving just a few options to choose from when investing. You just choose your stock/bond allocation, link your account, and start investing. You can even make it automatic every month and theyll re-balance your portfolio on a regular basis. Simple, and very accessible to new investors.

It seems like a lot of companies are realizing that new investors want to be able to invest, but sometimes theyre just intimidated by the number of options available to them when they sign up for a brokerage account, and they want things simplified.

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Tags: Review, Review Sharebuilder

Countless small business credit card offers are just waiting for the next business account to open. You may have even received these specialized small business offers in the mail. Building business credit can be very important for the future of your company. Just like a good personal credit history, a strong business credit history shows your creditworthiness and also gives credence to your business as a legitimate company.

When you have your own company, you may have to juggle business credit cards, business lines of credit, and small business loans to keep your company moving forward. Your credit behavior with these forms of borrowing for business can help you to build strong business credit if you play your cards right. One thing to remember when working to build corporate credit is the importance of separating your personal credit and spending from your business credit and spending.

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Tags: Building Business, Business Credit, Credit

What was it Jack Nicholson said? “You can’t handle the truth!”

No, the truth about student credit cards isn’t all that drastic, I promise! Credit is a fact of life; everyone needs it if they want to get what they need. Yes, that even includes a job. So, having a student credit card is not a bad thing because it is a necessity.

Wrong Reasons for Opening a Student Credit Card

Having said that, students need to be cautious when applying for a credit card for certain reasons. They shouldn’t apply for the one that gives away what they consider the coolest gift. You know those gifts, the hottest new CD or a free t-shirt to add to your closet.

Students should make sure they aren’t applying to credit card companies because they are giving away free stuff in general.

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Tags: Cards, Credit Cards, Student Credit, Student Credit Cards