No one ever said that managing your finances is an easy thing to do. Many of us have a difficult time living on a tight budget. One positive is that through smart planning with the help of some basic knowledge of refinancing, you can save a good deal of money. Better yet, you can watch it grow. That's why you need to find ways of financing to put more money in your pockets.
There are a number of different options you can take when it comes to learning more about finances. The most important is probably have some good common sense. The trick is to focus in on your goals and find solutions to what's holding you back from having money. Here are some simple ways you can begin putting money back into your pocket instead of paying it out to someone else:
* Start with debt management - If you are buried under credit card debt, one thing to take refuge is the fact you're not the only one. Nearly everyone you meet has some sort of credit card problems. One way to If you're mired in credit card debt, you're not alone. I recommend refinancing your mortgage as a way of cutting into that debt. A mortgage refinance can get you a lower interest rate than most credit cards, leading to significant savings of money in the long run. Another option is for you to consolidate those debts too.
* Be aware of all your interest rates - Ok, maybe you're not in financial debt or trouble but you may be losing money by not paying attention to it. If you have money saved into account or in investments with too low of an interest rate, you're losing money that can be potentially be making. This happens most often in checking and savings accounts that pay extremely low interest rates. That interest rate can even be voided from the the pace of inflation. Financial experts are saying to move your money to a liquid money market. This pays a higher return.
* Open a home equity line of credit - I'm sure you've heard to save your money for a rainy day. The old line of thinking was to save three to six months worth of your salary on hand in case you ever found yourself in a financial crisis. You can do that or you could use that money for more lucrative money making potential. Try going with a home equity line of credit for your emergency or rainy day fund. This way the only risk you face is paying on the interest rate of any money you use from that line of credit.
* Refinance - Refinancing isn't the end all answer to your financial problems. It can , however, make life a little easier but saving you a good deal of money. Do some research on current mortgage rates and then compare them with your mortgage. If you discover you are paying a percentage or two more than you should be, I recommend refinance your loan. Another option is to refinance to one with a shorter term. This can save you thousands of dollars in long-term interest.
Debit Card - What It Is And How It Works
Do you remember the days when the debit card was the most important means of transacting business? Very few people then had credit cards. Together with the check book, it was the primary means of doing transactions. Those were the days when there were very few credit-card owners.
So what exactly is a debit card and how does it work? It is like a credit card, made of plastic and is used as an alternative payment methods to cash when purchases are made. Typically, it is directly linked to the card holder's account. Whenever they are used to do transactions, the card holder's account is automatically deducted.
Here is an example of how it works. John Doe has one that is tied to his savings account. He has an opening balance of $15,000. Now since it is tied to a savings account, John Doe can use his card to do $15,000 worth of transactions, either in the form of purchases or ATM withdrawals.
Many debit cards have a maximum withdrawal amount per cycle built into them. For instance, you may have a withdrawal limit of $3,000 every three days. What this means is even though there may be more than $3,000 in your account, they can only withdraw up to $3,000 in any three day cycle. This particular feature was used to safeguard cardholders against possible theft and the subsequent draining of the cardholder's account.
Coming back to the example above - assuming John Doe had a three day cycle limit of $3,000, and he made a purchase of a stereo set costing $1,500 on day one, the balance on his savings account would now stand at $13,500, and over the next two days he will only be able to do ATM withdrawals and or purchases to the tune of a $1,500. Again, this feature is designed to protect the card holder against theft.
If after doing a number of transactions, John Doe brought down the balance in his savings account to $1,000, then this is all that will be available to him even though he has a three day withdrawal cycle of $3,000.
Debit cards are a safe means of making purchases since it saves the purchaser from having to walk around with cash in order to make his or her purchasers.
When this was the primary tool for making purchases, it kept card owners out of financial trouble since they could only use or withdraw what was in their account, and could not overdraw their balances.
Now how is John Doe's account updated each time a transaction is done? Each debit card has a black strip at the back of it. This is known as the magnetic strip and contains information about the card holder that cannot be seen by the naked eye. This information includes the card holder's name, banking institution, bank account, branch, and other pertinent information. When the card is used to either do ATM withdrawals or purchases from merchants, a card reader is used to initiate and conduct the transaction. In the case of an ATM withdrawal, the debit card owner place is the card in the card reading mechanism, and enters a Personal Identification Number or PIN that identifies him or her to the system. This is validated by the machine and opens the way for the cardholder to do an ATM transaction. Withdrawals of amounts that fall within the account owner's balance will be honored. All others will be declined.
When the cardholder makes a purchase, pretty much the same steps are carried out as if he were going to do and ATM transaction. The only difference here is instead of the big ATM machine, the merchant to have a much smaller hand-held cards Reading machine. The steps a pretty much the same. The merchant swipes the debit card in the card Reading mechanism then enters the amount of the transaction. The card owner must now validate the transaction by entering his of her Personal Identification Number. Once all is correct up to this point, the card reading machine would now use the network that is in place to determine whether the cardholder has funds in his or her account. If they do the transaction is completed. If they do not the transaction is declined.
While debit cards are not as popular as credit-cards, they're certainly a very valuable tool for anyone who is serious minded about savings and monitoring their indebtedness to financial institutions. Since the debit card typically works with the card owner's available balance, it negates the whole credit process thus helping the cardholder to avoid on necessary indebtedness. It disciplines the card owner into managing their personal finance and thus saving credit facilities for when they are really needed. That being said, they are an excellent means of rebuilding your credit.
So what exactly is a debit card and how does it work? It is like a credit card, made of plastic and is used as an alternative payment methods to cash when purchases are made. Typically, it is directly linked to the card holder's account. Whenever they are used to do transactions, the card holder's account is automatically deducted.
Here is an example of how it works. John Doe has one that is tied to his savings account. He has an opening balance of $15,000. Now since it is tied to a savings account, John Doe can use his card to do $15,000 worth of transactions, either in the form of purchases or ATM withdrawals.
Many debit cards have a maximum withdrawal amount per cycle built into them. For instance, you may have a withdrawal limit of $3,000 every three days. What this means is even though there may be more than $3,000 in your account, they can only withdraw up to $3,000 in any three day cycle. This particular feature was used to safeguard cardholders against possible theft and the subsequent draining of the cardholder's account.
Coming back to the example above - assuming John Doe had a three day cycle limit of $3,000, and he made a purchase of a stereo set costing $1,500 on day one, the balance on his savings account would now stand at $13,500, and over the next two days he will only be able to do ATM withdrawals and or purchases to the tune of a $1,500. Again, this feature is designed to protect the card holder against theft.
If after doing a number of transactions, John Doe brought down the balance in his savings account to $1,000, then this is all that will be available to him even though he has a three day withdrawal cycle of $3,000.
Debit cards are a safe means of making purchases since it saves the purchaser from having to walk around with cash in order to make his or her purchasers.
When this was the primary tool for making purchases, it kept card owners out of financial trouble since they could only use or withdraw what was in their account, and could not overdraw their balances.
Now how is John Doe's account updated each time a transaction is done? Each debit card has a black strip at the back of it. This is known as the magnetic strip and contains information about the card holder that cannot be seen by the naked eye. This information includes the card holder's name, banking institution, bank account, branch, and other pertinent information. When the card is used to either do ATM withdrawals or purchases from merchants, a card reader is used to initiate and conduct the transaction. In the case of an ATM withdrawal, the debit card owner place is the card in the card reading mechanism, and enters a Personal Identification Number or PIN that identifies him or her to the system. This is validated by the machine and opens the way for the cardholder to do an ATM transaction. Withdrawals of amounts that fall within the account owner's balance will be honored. All others will be declined.
When the cardholder makes a purchase, pretty much the same steps are carried out as if he were going to do and ATM transaction. The only difference here is instead of the big ATM machine, the merchant to have a much smaller hand-held cards Reading machine. The steps a pretty much the same. The merchant swipes the debit card in the card Reading mechanism then enters the amount of the transaction. The card owner must now validate the transaction by entering his of her Personal Identification Number. Once all is correct up to this point, the card reading machine would now use the network that is in place to determine whether the cardholder has funds in his or her account. If they do the transaction is completed. If they do not the transaction is declined.
While debit cards are not as popular as credit-cards, they're certainly a very valuable tool for anyone who is serious minded about savings and monitoring their indebtedness to financial institutions. Since the debit card typically works with the card owner's available balance, it negates the whole credit process thus helping the cardholder to avoid on necessary indebtedness. It disciplines the card owner into managing their personal finance and thus saving credit facilities for when they are really needed. That being said, they are an excellent means of rebuilding your credit.
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