Credit & Coffee

5 Tips for Dodging a Holiday Credit Hangover 02.01.2024 3:06 ↓

All the glitz, glamour, gatherings and good tidings over the holidays can easily make you forget your disposable income has limits. Who wants to think about overspending when the jingle bells are rocking, the mistletoe is beckoning, peace and goodwill to men abound and the gifts are flowing like sweet, rich hot chocolate? As long as you plan ahead, you should be able to enjoy your fair share of th...

5 Mistakes Gen Zs Make When it Comes to Credit 04.12.2023 3:24 ↓

If you’re part of Gen Z, you’ve probably heard enough of grumpy Baby Boomers, Gen Xers and Millennials grumbling about how lazy the kids are these days or how the younger generation doesn’t have a work ethic or has a sense of entitlement. Yes, it’s true the older generations, who grew up at a time when college cost a fraction of what it costs today and renting an apartment in the cool part of the...

Pursuing a Mortgage with “Less-Than-Perfect” Credit 13.11.2023 4:37 ↓

Owning a home is the cornerstone of the American dream. There’s nothing like having a permanent plot of land you can call your own. But, if you’ve hit a rough patch with your credit score, this dream might feel like it’s out of reach. However, finding a suitable mortgage with a “less than perfect” credit score is still possible.  Listen in to learn how. 

Finance for Teens: 5 Ways Young Adults Can Learn Good Money Habits 24.10.2023 4:16 ↓

If you’re a tween or teen trying to earn money or save for a goal, it can be hard to sort out the mixed messages about money you hear from the media, your friends — and even your family. Sometimes parents don’t like talking about money matters, or they may not always practice what they preach. How can you be smart about your own money?  It's never too soon to teach yourself effective money ma...

The Top 10 Student Loan Questions and Answers 02.10.2023 5:43 ↓

One of the most significant developments to hit consumer pocketbooks is the requirement that they begin repaying federal student loans after payments were deferred during the COVID-19 pandemic, as a way of providing financial relief.   Payments and interest on Federal Student Loans re-started on September 1, 2023. The Biden Administration has also introduced a number of programs aimed at helping c...

What Are Credit Scores Actually Designed to Do? 18.09.2023 3:32 ↓

Credit scores have become a ubiquitous and valuable component of lending and borrowing.  They revolutionized underwriting by streamlining the process and permitting centralized lending, where a policy can be deployed with ease across a bank’s entire network of branches.  But the one question that lenders that use scores, or consumers who are trying to improve theirs rarely asked is, “What is a cre...

4 Ways to Establish Credit if You Are Credit Invisible 05.09.2023 3:01 ↓

Are you “invisible” when it comes to getting the credit you need? According to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) there are approximately 45 million people in the U.S. who can’t get the credit needed advance their lives. These people are disproportionately from minority groups and are often people living in low-income neighborhoods with few banking services.   But there is good news....