Continental Finance MasterCard - Bad Credit MasterCard

By Dan Moskel

The Continental Finance MasterCard is an unsecured sub prime credit card. This means that this card is designed specifically for individuals with a low credit score.

When this card is issued it will give you an initial limit of $300. You will be able to receive semi-annual increases to your limit, with a maximum limit of $2000.

This card does report monthly to all three credit bureaus. It is frequently used as a second chance credit card.

This card can help your score because it will improve your ratio of credit to debt. In addition by paying your monthly bill you will create a positive payment history.

If you can improve these two factors you will improve your score. This is because these two factors are weighted almost as much as derogatory items on your credit report.

This card is unsecured which means that you do not have to put a deposit down. However you will have to pay an annual fee. This is typical with sub prime cards.

The benefit of this card is the very low 9.75% APR. The industry standard on sub prime cards is just under 20%. Your card can be used at millions of locations across the globe.

There are easy approval requirements including no minimum income. You can still qualify for this card even if you have a recent bankruptcy on your credit. They offer an instant decision if you apply online.

This card is issued by the First Bank of Delaware. This bank has been a leader in sub prime lending for years.

In addition you will receive online account access. This card works just like any other credit card, you will be responsible to pay your monthly bill.

With a sub prime credit rating your other options include a secured credit card. This is a good choice however the account is reported to the credit bureaus as a secured account and you will receive less benefit to your score because it is secured.

You also can qualify for a shopping card. We do not suggest these cards because they often come with large fees and only report to one credit bureau.

In sum we do suggest the Continental Finance MasterCard and with proper use you can rebuild your credit score. You don't have to just live with bad credit you can take steps to improve your score and lower the cost of getting credit.

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For more about the Continental Finance Credit Card or for a review of a suggested secured card the Orchard Bank Card visit us.

How To Improve Your Credit Score

By John Cooper

Improving your credit score can seem like a daunting task. The credit bureaus claim to factor in hundreds of things and you have no direct control over your score.

This is incorrect. If you take a few steps you can positively influence your credit score.

1. Dispute and remove negative items on your credit report. This can be done yourself or you can hire a service to do it on your behalf.

2. Pay off any verified bad credit item on your report. In exchange for your payment have the lender remove the item from your credit report.

3. Pay your bills on time. It is alleged that missing one monthly payment can cause your score to drop by up to 50 points.

4. Open a new line of credit. You will get the most benefit if this is a revolving line of credit. We recommend an unsecured credit card.

This will also help you build a positive payment history by paying your monthly bill. However if you can not qualify for an unsecured credit card then open a secured card, but make sure it reports to all 3 bureaus.

In addition try to keep your monthly balance at 10% of your available credit. Doing this shows the bureaus that you do in fact use your credit and you use it responsibly.

5. Pay down you large debts. This will help your ratio of available credit to debt. The bureaus want to see that you are not in over your head and the best way to show this to them is by having available credit.

These are the five factors you should focus your efforts on. There is however one last factor that is surrounded by controversy.

6. Piggy back credit, this is when you are added as an authorized user on an account with a high credit limit and low balance. The benefit you get is the account is not reported on your credit history.

This tactic was widely abused and the scoring model has made some changes. It is said to have removed the benefit however it is debated as to if those changes have taken place yet.

In sum if you can take care of steps one through five then you will improve your score. With a high credit score your quality of life will also improve.

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For more tips on how to improve credit score or for more credit repair tips visit us.

Relieve Stress, Find More Money, More Time And Free Your Schedule

By Christina Helwig

Take a good look around your life. Can you simplify the processes you use to complete your tasks and projects in anyway? How cluttered is your home? Your desk? Your calendar? Your bills, etc.

Simplification eases the stress that normal life places on you. When you simplify you are clearing away pressures and or items that get in your way of functioning. You cannot think clearly and focus on your goals if you are stumbling over items in your office, laundry, piles of mail or a stack of "stuff" that you do not actually need to keep.

To have a clear mind and the freedom to use your time efficiently to you need to simplify your life. You need to get rid of all the "junk" in your home that you have to move around for no reason. Right away you should clear yourself a work space in your home. This space needs to be completely yours and clean at all times. This area should be quiet and preferably be somewhere that you can shut a door and work by yourself.

In addition to cleaning up and simplifying your home you should take a good look at the activities that you have committed your time to. Often in the soccer mom culture we over-extend ourselves time wise. We say "yes" to dinner with a friend when we really just want to have a night off. We over schedule our children's schedules and by default our own time since we are responsible for driving them around and preparing them for events.

What have you said "okay" too lately that you don't really want to be involved in or like doing? Make a list of all your commitments and cross off ones that are not important or that you hate doing. This includes doing things like shopping for food or other things that can be bought online. You can pay under ten bucks and have all your groceries delivered. The 1 1/2 to 2 hours you used to spend at the store can now be spent working on your important goals. Continue with this activity until you free up over 15+ hours a week.

If you are living with a significant other see if the chores are evenly spread between you and your partner. If they are not - redistribute them evenly or hire someone to do the things that you hate doing. Or trade time with a friend for something they do well and you do poorly. Both you and your partner deserve to have free time to work on your goals. Working as a team allows each of you to have time to work on projects that are important to each of you. Your spouse will be much happier and so will you.

An area that always needs serious attention is your finances. Are there items in your budget that you really do not need at the present moment? Are you paying for cable channels that you do not even watch? How about your home phone and cell phone? Do you actually use both? Can you switch car insurance to save money? How much food are you buying that just ends up being thrown away? If the family won't eat broccoli then don't buy it.

Please do not misunderstand the purpose of this exercise. Simplifying is purely to take pressure off your systems: mental and financial. The extra money that you "find" once you have simplified you will use to work towards your goals. Whereas before you believed that you could not afford to spend anything on your goals . . . simplification will start to give you room in your budget to afford to start putting money towards your purpose. Even if it you can only find $100 a month to spend on working towards your purpose that is a great start. Over time you will continue to make choices and decide whether a night out on the town or putting that money towards your purpose is the right decision.

About the Author:

When you change your habits, actions and attitude, your whole world will change. Set aside a few moments each day to work on your goals. Click here to learn about how to increase your income and create wealth in your world. This site covers topics from leadership, to tax strategies to growing your business and lot's more. Christina Helwig is an attorney and Vice-President of Wealth Expressions, Inc.

Is throwing money at the mortgage market the solution?

By Chris Clare

Over the last four weeks you may be aware that many governments have been pumping money into their failing banking systems in an attempt to salvage the mortgage markets. The reason for this is that all the bad debt, known as toxic debt, is having a detrimental effect on the financial institutions and is making us all worse off.

But the big question on everyone's lips is, will this have the effect of kick starting the institutions lending again, and if it does, what how will it affect the individual and the public in general. The analysis off this problem will be based on the UK as that is where my financial experience stems. The situation within the UK may bare similarities with that of other countries but I am not in the position to comment on whether the outcomes would be similar or not because I would not be as au fait as to how their markets tend to function.

The general public is under the impression that the credit crunch is due to the banks not having enough money to lend. Logic would then dictate that by giving the banks more money the problem is resolved. Unfortunately this is rather far from the truth. The lack of money to lend is only the tip of the iceberg. Banks have been burned by the bad debt accrued over the last few years and are therefore now much more cautious about lending again. Their careless actions in the past will prove much more difficult to rectify in times to come.

House prices are the most important element of the current financial situation, and the prices are dropping fast and are showing no sign of stopping any time soon. Because of this drop in value, lenders are having to be extra vigilant when it comes to lending money from now on. This is particularly relevant when it comes to loan to value (LTV), which is the amount lent in relation to the value of the property. For example, in 2007, lenders were giving 95%, 100% and even 125% of the value of properties.

Now in a healthy market there is nothing wrong with this type of lending. For example, if you give a 125% loan on a house valued at 100,000 then the resulting loan would work out at 125,000. With a buoyant market the house prices may increase at an average of 10% per annum over the next three years. The resulting LTV would equate to 93%. So mathematically we can see that there would be nothing wrong with the initial 125% loan in that there would be negligible risk involved.

But the problem that we face is that house prices are going in the opposite direction. The decline is at least 10% and analysts figure that it could get worse. So, if 100,000 was lent on an 85,000 property then in the same three year time span the loan could have actually increased to 118% LTV. Now I am sure you would agree that in this present climate that this sort of loaning is both irresponsible and detrimental to all involved.

So what does the future hold for the market and will the bailout be the solution to the problem. Well I can only give my own personal professional opinion and nothing is set in stone but realistically I would perceive the bailout as having very little effect. They simply cannot lend at the high loan to values even though they have been committed in 2009 to lend at the levels reached in 2007. You see the majority of loans being agreed at present are dealing with people coming out of rates that had been pre-arranged over the last 5 years. Due to the downward spiral of house prices these people are going to be pushing the LTV up.

Another thing to consider is the high amount of self certification mortgages that have been arranged over the last 5 years. These types of mortgages will definitely be a rarity because they are seen as to high a risk and the institutions don?t want to know. And even if they are available the LTV will be far lower so what are the consequences in that scenario?

Don?t get me wrong, I am all for the government trying to give the economy a much needed boost, but I just think that the institutions will be unwilling to take the risk on loans at the 2007 and before levels. They will most probably stockpile for the future. This will mean that house prices will continue to spiral downwards due to the LTV not being at a suitable level and the banks will be even more cautious about the type of loans on offer and also the vetting process. It really is a difficult situation and I think that the only way around it if for one of the institutions to bite the bullet and take a calculated risk with regards to their lending.

About the Author:

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Learn 5 Easy Steps on How to Raise Credit Score

By Marcus Duke

If your credit score is low and you need to purchase a home or buy a car or open a credit account you may find that these privileges are extremely difficult with less than perfect credit scores.

A bad credit score does not have to be a permanent fixture on your credit report. You can greatly improve your credit score by making simple changes to your credit report which in turn will improve your credit score in the long term.

By implementing small changes daily you can see your credit scores improve gradually and improve your chances of getting approve for credit.

1. Pay every bill before it is due. If you make it a habit to pay your bills on time you can improve your credit rating and credit score.

1. Pay your current bills on time.

Tip #2 - Get Current on Missed Payments - If you have missed payments in the past, make sure that you get current on them as soon as you can.

Late payment can have a negative effect on your credit report and in some cases can even lower your score even further. When your bills are paid on time your credit report will reflect this.

2. If you have outstanding bills it's a good idea to contact the companies and make arrangements to make these bills current.

Many times they will be willing to work with you so you can work on raising your score and settling your debt in a way that makes it a little easier on your financially.

Tip #4 - Keep Balances on Credit Cards Low - If you have credit cards, then you need to keep the balances on them low.

The higher your debt is compared to the credit available, the lower your credit score is going to be. So, keep the balance on those credit cards as low as possible.

Tip #5 - Avoid Just Moving Your Debt - Many people merely move around their debt instead of paying it off, which will not help you out when wanting to know how to raise credit score. Instead of moving your debt to another card, you should be working to pay it off instead. This is the way that you can lower that score.

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Teenagers and Checking Accounts

By William Blake

The rather demanding social lives that most teenagers lead require money to be kept up. Once teens start earning their own money at a job, many parents are concerned about how to ensure that their money will be well spent. This might be the right time to get them a checking account.

Children will develop their own financial habits as a result of observing how their parents handle their money. Even though many people think that thirteen or fourteen is too early to open a checking account for a teenager, they need to be able to develop good financial habits before they leave the house for a college dorm. They need financial guidance before they go out on their own.

While children can still be influenced by their parents is the time to help them make good choices regarding their money. Once they are ready, slowly introduce them to the financial world by getting them a checking account.

The money that teenagers earn at summer or after school jobs can be managed by means of a checking account. Before they even start to work, it would be wise for parents to sit their teens down and discuss some important financial details with them, always emphasizing the importance of not spending everything that they earn.

As a teenager, they can learn to "help it". Dividing their income between a checking and a savings account will ensure that they still have money left at the end of the summer. To give them an incentive, ask them if they have a goal for the saved money. That will be their motivation to continue to save.

A checking account sets limits on your teen that are imposed by someone other than you. A checking account is funded by the money that is put into it. Teens will learn that if the well runs dry, they have to wait until the next pay period to get more. That is how parents have to deal with money and now they will learn too.

Using their checking account to make purchases will be easier for teenagers if they can use a debit card. Even though such cards with Visa and Master Card logos function similarly to credit cards, they are limited by the amount of money in the checking account they are attached to. Teenagers can also keep track of their account information with online banking.

A checking account is not a headache but an opportunity. Once a week, why not have a meeting to ask and answer questions that they have about money. As their confidence with money increases, so will the responsibility. As a reward, your teen can enjoy more freedom.

About the Author:

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Help Yourself Get Rid of Credit Card Debt

By James Johnson

Many of us are simply spending too much just on credit card interest to really get a handle on our debts. At some point you may be saying "help me get out of credit card debt". As long as you are only making the minimum payments on your credit card, you are going to be spending a lot more than the item originally cost.

If you face the situation and make a plan to get out of debt quickly, you will be much further ahead in the future. Keep in mind that the money you spend now to get out of debt will save you far more in the future.


The most important thing to do for getting a handle on your finances is to make a list of your debts, including the creditor and the amount due. Devise a spreadsheet either on your computer or manually for each creditor and show the balance due, minimum monthly payment and applicable interest rate. You will refer to this "get out of debt" worksheet each month as you make credit card payments.


Once you know how much is owed, you need to get rid of the debt. You at least need to increase your monthly payment to pay more than the current minimum amount to get rid of your debt more quickly. Any "help me get out of credit card debt" plans you had in the past probably didn't work put because you didn't put more money towards your monthly payments. Its best to try for two times the minimum monthly payment.


In case the number of dollars that you have for paying off your debts is limited then you must pay off the credit card bills with the smallest outstanding balances first. The reasoning behind this is, instead of adding a little bit to paying down several credit cards your goal will be to pay off one credit card at a time. This looks much better on your credit report and you will be solving your own help me get out of credit card debt" problem.


Completely paying off at least one credit card balance will have a positive psychological effect. By paying off even the one credit card, you will have eliminated a portion of your debts and you will feel like you are making progress toward your goal. This can encourage you to continue in your quest to get out of credit card debt.


Stay firm with your goal to pay off your credit card balances and in no time at all, you will not have to say, "help me to get out from under my credit card debt." You will have your finances back under your control and will be able to put your income to use for more important matters.

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How To Obtain Great Computer Deals

By Chris Channing

Older people are quickly learning that the next generation of technology is not only sometimes hard to learn- but not cheap in the least bit. Technology can be a tough pill to swallow under these two conditions, but with a few tips, obtaining it isn't near as expensive as most would think.

The age old debate of obtaining a laptop versus obtaining a desktop is a long-winded one. Desktops are usually the best choice for family situations, since they allow for more power for less money. Laptops are a must for students and businessmen, who need the extra mobility in their school and places of employment.

There has been so much advancement in the computing industry that there are also different computers according to what they accomplish. A workstation computer, for example, is usually a computer that is built to process a large amount of data in small amounts of time. Programmers, web designers, and other technology experts will appreciate this speed. Others are not likely to notice much of a difference if all they do is email and browse the Internet.

If you need a good computer, but it's still too expensive, there are also other ways in obtaining them for a discount price. One way to do so is to catch electronics on sale at key points in the year. Christmas time is usually a season in which price drops are experienced- as well as "Black Friday"- a time after Thanksgiving in which large sales are seen. August is another important month, as students are going back to school and retailers give out moderate discounts.

Another option that very few people investigate is to go through a wholesaler to buy their computers. This can sometimes be less appealing, as some wholesalers won't have extended warranty plans, return policies, or other benefits a normal store would provide. This varies, however, and most wholesalers will have electronics at vastly discounted rates. Most wholesalers will also charge a membership fee, too- so keep that in mind as well.

One of the most valuable things that can lead to a discount is simply visiting online retailers and local retailers alike. Consumers will be surprised to learn that many times Internet retailers will have much cheaper prices, but will also see that local retailers will have special in-store discounts: so visiting both is a good idea to ensure one certain product is obtained at the cheapest price.

Closing Comments

Computers are quite handy in providing us with information and giving us the gift of communication. Just follow the mentioned tips above to get the most out of the computer in question- and don't be afraid to opt for a good deal when you see one.

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Learn more on Dell Studio Computers and Dell Laptop Computers Offers.

Medical Malpractice And How To Handle It

By Chris Channing

When medical malpractice occurs, the patient victimized in the situation will likely go through life-altering effects. This, under United States law, in most cases warrants the reward of a monetary sum to help the traumatized patient get through the struggle.

Medical malpractice occurs when a physician behaves or acts in a way that is questionably dangerous to the patient. While the most obvious would be surgical accidents, this can also be stretched to include the prescription of harmful drugs. Obviously medical malpractice is no laughing matter, since more often than not a patient is put through very strenuous circumstances.

It is sometimes concern that those being sued don't have the money to pay the reward being sought. This isn't the case with physicians, since most are required to have medical malpractice insurance to protect themselves with. This means that insurance companies will be paying for the penalty of the physician- who also has to pay a deductible and will likely face increased premiums from the ordeal.

Once some patients take a look at how much a medical malpractice attorney charges, they will give second thought in hiring one. However, representing one's self is poor idea due to lack of experience, and normal lawyers may not have the necessary experience to argue a proper case in medical malpractice. In this case, it's best to bite the bullet and hope for the best.

The average cost of a medical malpractice attorney is going to be somewhat high, since the amount of money that is going to be won by the patient is usually quite large in sum. Since the patient has more to gain, or even more to lose, a lot is dependent upon the attorney's ability to argue the situation, make a clear and present case, and present a compelling list of backup arguments to win the judge or jury over.

When opting for a medical malpractice attorney, do go ahead and research several attorneys in one's area. The most inexpensive attorney isn't always the best choice, since not winning the court case will mean the patient doesn't get the money reward, and on top of that they have legal fees to pay. Clients are encouraged to go for a firm that is reputed first, and worry about financing later- since it can cost a win for the client.

Closing Comments

One may also consider settling out of court, although that may lead to a smaller reward. Whatever the case, be sure to make an informed decision so as to make the best of an unfortunate situation.

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Learn more on Product Liability Lawsuits and Construction Site Injury Accident Lawyers.