Credit
How credit scores work and how your choices move them.
CreditWill a Debt Consolidation Loan Hurt My Credit?
Short answer: maybe a little at first, and potentially a lot better over time. Here's what actually moves your score.
By Marcus Ellery · 6 min read
CreditHow Credit Card Interest Is Actually Calculated
Your APR is an annual number. Your card charges you daily. The gap between those two facts is why balances grow faster than people expect.
By Dana Whitfield · 6 min read
CreditYour Grace Period Disappears the Month You Carry a Balance
Pay in full and purchases are interest-free for three weeks or more. Carry $50 over, and every new purchase starts charging interest the day it posts.
By Marcus Ellery · 5 min read
CreditAvalanche vs. Snowball: Run It on Your Own Cards
Avalanche saves more money. Snowball keeps more people going. The right answer is whichever one you'll still be doing in month eight.
By Dana Whitfield · 6 min read
CreditThe Five-Minute Call That Can Lower Your APR
Issuers reduce rates for customers who ask, more often than people expect. Here's what to say, what they'll say back, and what to do if the answer is no.
By Marcus Ellery · 5 min read
Credit0% Intro APR: The Fee, the Cliff, and Deferred Interest
Three different products get called "0% financing." One is a good deal, one is a deadline, and one is a trap that charges you interest retroactively.
By Dana Whitfield · 6 min read
CreditCredit Utilization and the Statement-Date Trick
Your score doesn't see what you spend. It sees the balance your issuer reports, on one day a month. Move your payment ahead of that day and your utilization drops without paying a dollar more.
By Marcus Ellery · 5 min read
CreditThe Minimum Payment Is Designed to Keep You Paying
It's not a suggestion of what you can afford. It's the smallest amount that keeps the account current while the balance barely moves.
By Dana Whitfield · 7 min read
CreditThe Warning Box on Your Statement, Decoded
Federal law has required that box since 2010. It tells you exactly how long the minimum will take and what a 36-month payoff would cost. Most people have never read it.
By Marcus Ellery · 5 min read
CreditThe $25 Floor: Why Small Balances Take Years
A $1,500 balance feels manageable. At the minimum, it takes almost a decade. Here's why small balances have the worst ratio of all.
By Dana Whitfield · 4 min read
CreditFixed Payment vs. Minimum Payment: One Change, Decades Saved
You don't need a new loan, a better rate, or a budget overhaul. You need the payment to stop shrinking.
By Marcus Ellery · 5 min read