3.1.1) Get your finances in order
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This article is from the NewlyWed FAQ, by Vicky Larmour vicky@jifvik.org with numerous contributions by others.
3.1.1) Get your finances in order
>Order copies of your credit reports. Clear up any discrepancies now.
>Creditors and credit reporting houses sometimes just plain screw up
>-- you don't want to be denied a mortgage because Equifax has you
>confused with someone else or because your car lender wrongly
>reported a 90-days past due.
>Also, if you have a number of credit cards that you don't use,
>close the accounts. Mortgage companies sometimes look at the amount
>of debt you *could* run up if you used every single credit line to
>the max. Then avoid applying for any new credit, as some mortgage
>companies get antsy if your credit report has been pulled "too
>often" recently.
-Wende A. Feller
>It helps to do this *early*. I closed out most of my credit cards
>60 days ago and they're still shown as active in some instances.
>Even if you don't pay up and close all your cards, PAY THEM ON TIME.
>I cannot believe how finicky some places are. In fact, if you have a
>choice between taking out a loan to pay bills on time it almost
>looks better if you take the loan out.
-T
>Run out and get a copy of quicken or other financial software that
>can let you track many different kinds of accounts. Take your last
>bank statements and your last credit card statements, and start
>figuring out your true worth (savings/checking/etc vs. credit cards
>and school/car loans). Quicken is also GREAT for looking at how your
>expenses are currently broken down, and is a good tool for setting
>up a budget for your current situation(s), so you can see how things
>would change if you moved to a house or condo or townhouse.
>Look into consolidating balances on high-interest credit cards to
>lower-interest cards.
-Kate the Short
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