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If you are planning to rent a house, your credit report will most likely be pulled by your landlord or property manager to determine whether you pay your bills on time. If your credit report is spotty, containing problems such as bad debt, personal bankruptcy, or a history of late payments, then your application for tenancy could be turned down.

Qualifying to rent a home means employing certain techniques before you fill out an application for rental, steps which if followed can increase the chances that your application will be approved.

Check your credit – How is your credit? That step is easy to find out and an important one too: creditors as well as employers and landlords want to know if you have established good borrowing and repayment practices, positive traits which give people reason to lend you money, offer you a job, or allow you to rent a home.

Your credit reports can be obtained for free by visiting AnnualCreditReport.com and requesting one copy each of your credit reports from the three credit reporting bureaus. Experian, Trans Union, and Equifax are required by law to give you on demand one free copy of your credit report annually.

Fix your credit – Obtain your credit reports and examine each one to make sure that the information about you is correct. If there are mistakes, follow the credit reporting bureau's instructions for making corrections. Wait at least thirty days to obtain a follow up free copy of your amended credit report.

Find a home to rent – With your credit report cleaned up, now is the time for you to look for rental property. Once you have found a home that meets your requirements, speak with the property manager or landlord about the home. Discuss monthly payments, deposit money, and other requirements.

Negotiate a better deal if possible, especially if there are a significant number of available rental properties near you. Search Realtor.com to find out how many homes are for rent in your area, checking Craigslist.org for the same. You are in a much better position to obtain favorable lease terms if your credit is good and the number of vacancies is high.

Read your mortgage application carefully and ask questions if you do not understand one or more terms. Find out if garbage collection, water, and heat is included as part of your rent. If not, ask the landlord to provide examples of recent bills so that you will know what these costs will run. Finally, if you have bad credit, but are approved as a tenant, your utility companies may only offer to you service with a large deposit down.

Smart Tips

The landlord or property management agent should disclose to you on your rental application that they will be performing a credit check. You may be charged for this service.

If you are a low income renter, you may qualify for rental assistance through a government program such as HUD's Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher Program.

Caution

If your credit needs improvement, there are people who can help you with credit repair. However, some of these services are scams; follow FTC guidelines on how you can repair your credit yourself.

(2010/01/08) CONSUMER TIPS

Consumers who are considering making a new car purchase are likely to find some of the best buys this year. That is because auto sales are way down and car manufacturers are looking to move inventory and are willing to trim thousands of dollars off of the price of their vehicles. Clearly, it is a buyer's market when it comes to purchasing a new car, something that will not last as inventory is adjusted to meet sales expectations.

One area that consumers should consider when making any new car purchase is car insurance. You may be able to save thousands of dollars off of the sticker price, but you could end up paying thousands of dollars extra over the next five years in elevated insurance premiums, effectively eating up what you saved initially.

Thanks to a survey recently conducted by Insure.com, you can find out how some of the top cars rated, a good measuring stick to find out what your insurance costs will be. In all cases, call your insurance agent first to get an estimate of what your new car insurance will cost you. You may be in for the surprise of your life, hopefully a good one at that!

                  The 20 most expensive 2009 vehicles to insure

                   Average   Vehicle                      Class
         Rank      Premium
           1       $2,533  Nissan GT-R                  Sports car
           2       $2,446  Dodge Viper                  Sports car
           3       $2,236  BMW M6                       Sports car
           4       $2,186  Ford Shelby GT500            Sports car
           5       $2,088  Mercedes-Benz G-Class        Large SUV
           6       $2,071  Audi S8                      Passenger car
           7       $2,020  BMW M5                       Sports car
           8       $1,912  Hummer H2                    Large SUV
           9       $1,881  Lexus ISF                    Sports car
          10       $1,819  Porsche 911                  Sports car
          11       $1,762  Chevrolet Cobalt SS          Sports car
          12       $1,717  Jaguar XK Series             Sports car
          13       $1,714  BMW M3                       Sports car
          14       $1,694  Cadillac XLR                 Sports car
          15       $1,637  Audi R8                      Sports car
          16       $1,603  Land Rover Range Rover       Large SUV
          17       $1,592  Cadillac Escalade EXT        Truck
          18       $1,587  Honda S2000                  Sports car
          19       $1,584  BMW X6                       Large SUV
          20       $1,577  Mercedes-Benz SL-Class       Passenger car

If low premiums are more your speed, the "least expensive" list
contains a good selection of SUVs, minivans and passenger cars. Low
insurance rates tend to reflect a vehicle's safety because drivers of
those models have submitted fewer and less-expensive insurance claims.

          The 20 least expensive 2009 vehicles to insure

                Average    Vehicle                    Class
     Rank      Premium
       1         $832  Hyundai Santa Fe             Midsize SUV
       2         $840  Kia Sportage                 Small SUV
       3         $848  Hyundai Entourage            Minivan
       4         $857  Kia Sedona                   Minivan
       5         $870  Kia Rio5                     Small wagon
       6         $871  Honda Odyssey                Minivan
       7         $881  Smart Fortwo                 Passenger car
       8         $911  Saturn Vue                   SUV
       9         $913  Mazda Tribute                SUV
      10         $915  Chrysler Town & Country      Minivan
      11         $921  Scion xB                     Small wagon
      12         $929  Mazda Mazda5                 Minivan
      13         $936  Volkswagen Passat            Passenger car
      14         $939  Jeep Wrangler                SUV
      15         $951  Honda Accord                 Passenger car
      16         $954  Suzuki Forenza               Passenger car
      17         $955  Lincoln Town Car             Passenger car
      18         $957  Mazda Truck                  Pickup
      19         $959  Chevrolet Impala             Passenger car
      20         $960  Dodge Grand Caravan          Minivan

"If you're looking to get the lowest car insurance price possible, these rankings can point you in the direction of vehicles that can help you get there," said Amy Danise, editor of Insure.com. "Maintaining a good driving history and good credit are also crucial to getting good rates. Your age and location also have a big impact. Shopping around is the No. 1 easiest way to lower your rate, even if you can't change your other 'risk' factors."

Source: Insure.com

(2010/03/09) CONSUMER TIPS

If you are planning to rent a house, your credit report will most likely be pulled by your landlord or property manager to determine whether you pay your bills on time. If your credit report is spotty, containing problems such as bad debt, personal bankruptcy, or a history of late payments, then your application for tenancy could be turned down.

Qualifying to rent a home means employing certain techniques before you fill out an application for rental, steps which if followed can increase the chances that your application will be approved.

Check your credit – How is your credit? That step is easy to find out and an important one too: creditors as well as employers and landlords want to know if you have established good borrowing and repayment practices, positive traits which give people reason to lend you money, offer you a job, or allow you to rent a home.

Your credit reports can be obtained for free by visiting AnnualCreditReport.com and requesting one copy each of your credit reports from the three credit reporting bureaus. Experian, Trans Union, and Equifax are required by law to give you on demand one free copy of your credit report annually.

Fix your credit – Obtain your credit reports and examine each one to make sure that the information about you is correct. If there are mistakes, follow the credit reporting bureau's instructions for making corrections. Wait at least thirty days to obtain a follow up free copy of your amended credit report.

Find a home to rent – With your credit report cleaned up, now is the time for you to look for rental property. Once you have found a home that meets your requirements, speak with the property manager or landlord about the home. Discuss monthly payments, deposit money, and other requirements.

Negotiate a better deal if possible, especially if there are a significant number of available rental properties near you. Search Realtor.com to find out how many homes are for rent in your area, checking Craigslist.org for the same. You are in a much better position to obtain favorable lease terms if your credit is good and the number of vacancies is high.

Read your mortgage application carefully and ask questions if you do not understand one or more terms. Find out if garbage collection, water, and heat is included as part of your rent. If not, ask the landlord to provide examples of recent bills so that you will know what these costs will run. Finally, if you have bad credit, but are approved as a tenant, your utility companies may only offer to you service with a large deposit down.

Smart Tips

The landlord or property management agent should disclose to you on your rental application that they will be performing a credit check. You may be charged for this service.

If you are a low income renter, you may qualify for rental assistance through a government program such as HUD's Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher Program.

Caution

If your credit needs improvement, there are people who can help you with credit repair. However, some of these services are scams; follow FTC guidelines on how you can repair your credit yourself.

(2010/01/08) CONSUMER TIPS

One of the big downsides for automakers who provide financing for vehicles through their own financing companies is that these businesses are losing a lot of money. Contributing to the losses is the huge decline in resale values on big trucks and SUVs, vehicles that General Motors, Ford, Chrysler, Toyota, and Nissan have sold in abundance over the past few years.

As a result of current market conditions, GMAC, Ford Credit, Chrysler Financial and other automotive manufacturer's financing arms are losing hundreds of millions of dollars annually. In a bid to stem losses, the companies are no longer accepting new leases or severely restricting what they can offer. Clearly, one important financing option is no longer available for consumers, though there could be some benefits which are offered instead.

Can't Lease From The Manufacturer? Other Options Are Available!

For some consumers, losing the lease option means that they'll take their business elsewhere. For whatever reasons are important them, holding onto a car longer than the typical 24-39 month lease period is not something they want to do. Fortunately, there are some options for consumers to consider:

Take Your Business Elsewhere -- Inasmuch as leaving your favorite automotive brand could be a big move for you, if you want to lease a new car every two or three years, then finding a manufacturer who offers this option is one way to go.

Take The Financing Deal Or Shop Around -- In a bid to offer customers an attractive alternative to leasing, automotive financing companies are sweetening their deals. Here, you could find additional bargaining power: instead of financing your car through the dealer, take the rebate and seek financing elsewhere. Your credit union can often match the best financing rate out there allowing you to pocket the $2000 to $5000 rebate offered in lieu of financing.

Take Your Leasing Elsewhere -- If you would like to continue with your favorite brand (Chrysler, for example) and the manufacturer is no longer offering leases, you can seek third party leasing elsewhere. Your leasing options (higher down payment, bigger monthly payments, other restrictions) won't be as attractive as what you would have received previously, but this option is still available to you. In some cases you could get a rebate from the manufacturer while leasing your new car with a third party.

Even BMW is rethinking leasing which is 60% of its U.S. business. Though the German automotive company will not be getting out of this business angle completely, it just may pay for you to consider leasing elsewhere and taking whatever other incentives are being offered instead.

Clearly, the consumer is in the driver's seat as year to date vehicle sales are down by more than 10% this year. Just like in the housing market, if you are a buyer then deals can be had, but carefully weigh every offer to find the best plan for you.

(2009/12/31) CONSUMER TIPS

If you take several medications on a regular basis, keeping track of each one can be a bit of a challenge. Add in one or more family members and you can easily miss a refill or take the wrong medication. Drug reactions, interactions and side effects are
additional areas of concern – no wonder some families feel so overwhelmed!

Fortunately, there is now an online tool available to help families stay informed about medicines: MedNotes (www.Drugs.com/mednotes). MedNotes is a free, award-winning, easy-to-use, personalized medication management program that can be used to track the whole family's medications. Developed by Drugs.com, the online medicine information web site, MedNotes helps parents and caretakers stay informed about their family's prescription and over the counter (OTC) drugs, safety news and possible allergic, food and drug interactions.

"Moms are gatekeepers of their family's health, from their children to their elderly parents so it's critical for them to stay informed about their families' medications. But the reality is it's hard to keep up with new drug safety information coming out nearly every day," according to Alison Rhodes, "The Safety Mom," and nationally-recognized expert in child safety. "MedNotes gives mothers the important medication use and safety information they want -- and peace of mind when it comes to monitoring and managing their family's medication needs."

Important MedNotes Features:

• Add your medications to instantly assemble relevant medical information in a simple, easy to read personalized format.
• Gain immediate access to in-depth consumer information, drug comparisons, historical news, FDA alerts, drug interactions, plus food, allergy and medical condition interactions.
• Choose to be notified when new FDA alerts are issued and when any new drugs become available for any of your existing medical conditions.
• Print health and medication records, including physician and emergency contacts, allergies and medical conditions.
• Use MedNotes to manage medications profiles for yourself and your family.

MedNotes gives caregivers the chance to create profiles for different family members, enter the names of all medications being taken and register to receive -- all in one easy-to-access place -- drug safety or interaction alerts, new drug and specific condition news that is released by the FDA or drug makers. Moms can also print portable personal health and medication histories, including physician and emergency contact information.

Feedback from early users recognizes MedNotes as a valuable aid to their everyday health management, and in some cases, as a potentially life-saving information source. One consumer shared his printed MedNotes medication profile with paramedics in the ambulance and credits MedNotes with saving critical time and, potentially, his life on the way to the hospital.

To create your own personalized MedNotes medication profiles or for more information, please visit: www.drugs.com/mednotes

(2009/12/31) CONSUMER TIPS

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