How to Start Improving Your Credit Health Right Now

                              

 

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You might not think about your credit that often, but when it comes time to apply for a loan it’s a top priority. The thing is, if you wait until that moment to concern yourself with your credit health, it’ll may be too late to do anything about it.

So instead of waiting until you need it, anticipate that someday you’ll probably apply for a mortgage or auto loan—or even a credit card—and take a few steps to start improving your credit health today.

Get rid of credit errors.

Get in the habit of checking your credit report on an annual basis to make sure that it is accurate.

Check your three, free credit reports from AnnualCreditReport.com. You’re entitled to these once per year. After you’ve pulled your reports, go through them thoroughly to check for errors. You should look out for things like accounts you don’t recognize, late payments on accounts you’ve always paid on time, erroneous derogatory marks and even incorrect personal information. Small errors, like a wrongly reported mailing address, shouldn’t affect your credit score. But an incorrectly reported account could.

If you spot an error, use the FTC’s guidelines for disputing it with the credit bureau. If that doesn’t work, you can also go directly to the information provider to see if they’ll stop reporting the incorrect information.

Spot future errors early on by getting a credit monitoring service, like Credit Karma’s free one. You’ll be alerted to important changes on your credit report and can act quickly if you don’t recognize them. 

Get a higher limit.

One of the most important factors of your credit score is your average credit card utilization rate. This percentage shows creditors how much of your available credit you’re using. Ideally, you should keep this number to less than 30 percent for good credit health.

One way to ensure your credit utilization stays low is to get higher credit limits on your credit cards. This should not lead you to spend more on your cards; it should just give you a nice buffer to stay well below a 30 percent utilization rate.

Most credit card issuers review and raise credit limits every six months or so. If it’s been a while since your last credit limit increase, try the direct approach. Call up your credit card company to request one, calling out your responsible credit behavior. Keep in mind that a request like this can sometimes result in a hard credit inquiry, which will ding your score a few points.

Use your old credit cards. 

Unless you have a really good reason for closing out an old credit card account—like a high annual fee, for instance—keep these cards open and active. Creditors like to see long credit histories, especially if they’re clean. But it’s not enough to just keep old cards open; you also have to use them. The reason for this is that some credit card companies will close out inactive cards or at least stop reporting them to the credit bureaus. This can unexpectedly reduce your utilization rate, too.

Make a small purchase or two on your oldest card, or set up a recurring charge like a gym membership. Just make sure to pay off the balance each month.

Bottom Line: This should give you a good start in improving your credit health. Of course, make all of your bill payments on time; that’s the best way to maintain good credit health once you have it. 

Bethy Hardeman writes on credit, personal finance and the economy for CreditKarma.com, a free credit management website that helps more than 8 million people access their credit score for free.

 

Bethy Hardeman is not an Allstate employee and does not represent Allstate. She did not receive monetary compensation for this post.

Spring is Here: Get Your Home Ready!

                              

 

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Spring weather was a little late in arriving in many parts of the country this year. Chances are, by now, you’re probably seeing some daffodils and tulips and hearing birds singing in the budding trees.
The arrival of spring brings thoughts of spring cleaning — and getting some maintenance projects under way before summer means you’ll be able to relax and enjoy your home by the time spring gives way to summer. Here are some home maintenance tips to help you welcome the arrival of spring weather.

Weatherstripping

The U.S. Department of Energy says weatherstripping the windows on your home is an easy and effective way to save money on your energy bill. Weatherstripping is a material you can apply around your window and door frames to ensure there’s a good seal. During the harsh winter months, it can help keep the warm air inside the house, and the cold drafts out. In the spring and summer, weatherstripping works the opposite way, helping to keep the cool air inside and the warm air out.
If you didn’t install weatherstripping before the winter cold set in, you may want to take this opportunity to seal your windows before you have to turn on the air conditioner — which could help save you money on your energy bills year-round. In the summer, if the cool air is contained inside, then the AC will not have to work as hard, and that may help you save money on your energy bill. The same can be true of your furnace when winter rolls back around.
Thinking about installing weatherstripping? The U.S. Department of Energy recommends that you apply weatherstripping to clean, dry surfaces in temperatures above 20 degrees Fahrenheit. Click here for more information.

Indoor Maintenance

Spring cleaning is a time-honored tradition, an opportunity to sweep the cobwebs from your home, clear out the dust that accumulated during the winter and let the sunshine in. While you’re up to your elbows in soap, washing the windows, defrosting the refrigerator and tackling what seems to be a never-ending list of spring cleaning chores, you might as well make a maintenance checklist, too. On those warmer days, you may want to do the following:
Test and clean ceiling fans. According to the the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, an efficient ceiling fan in each room you want to cool can help allow you to raise the thermostat setting about 4 degrees Fahrenheit without reducing your comfort level.  Ceiling fans are not only a good way to air out the house and generate a cross-breeze, but they have the potential to help you save money on your energy bill. With ceiling fans keeping the house cool, you may not have to turn up the AC as high. So, now might be a good time to make sure your fans are clean and ready to start cooling you off this spring.
Replace your AC filter. While the warm weather is still technically several weeks away, you want to make sure your air conditioner is prepared and ready to go. The National Center for Healthy Housing recommends you replace the filters in the air conditioner in the spring. A new filter will optimize the efficiency of the unit.
Replace torn or damaged window screens. If you don’t have an air conditioner, or if you simply like to keep the windows open in the spring and summer, it’s a good idea to make sure your screens are in good shape — you don’t want to let flies in with all that fresh air! Winter storms and wind can damage window screens, so it may be a good idea to assess any damage and replace what needs to be fixed.
Exterior Upkeep
Your window screens aren’t the only parts of your home that can fall victim to nasty winter weather, so you may want to take stock of your home’s condition. The National Center for Healthy Housing suggests that in the springtime, you may want consider these outdoor maintenance projects:
Check your roof shingles. This should be done by a licensed professional, as working on the roof can be dangerous without the proper training. You should ask the roofing professional to make sure the shingles are not curling or clawing. If they are, they are susceptible to leaks and may need to be replaced.  
Replace rotten siding or trim. Make sure your home’s siding and trim aren’t damaged from windy, icy conditions. If your home is made of brick or stucco, look for any crumbling or deteriorated mortar. If you find a problem, contact a professional for help with repairing or replacing the damaged materials.
Clean gutters and downspouts. You’re making sure the inside of your home is clean; why not make sure your gutters are, as well? Get rid of any leaves of other debris that accumulated during the winter to make sure your gutters and downspouts are ready to take on those April showers. This job, too, is best left to a professional, as climbing on a ladder is required.
So, now’s the time to get those spring maintenance projects under way. By the time those May flowers start to bloom, you will be able to enjoy them with the peace of mind of knowing your home maintenance is up-to-date.
If you need a reminder to perform maintenance tasks at your home, click here to sign up for the Allstate Maintenance Reminder tool.

Check out more home-related topics on Allstate.com.

Stump the Identity Thief: 7 Tips to Create a Strong Password

                              

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According to the Internal Revenue Service, identity theft and credit card fraud are growing global concerns. From phishing scams to sophisticated hacking rings, cyber thieves continue to develop creative ways to compromise your personal information.
Internet security can be tenuous and, at times, easily breached, and both the IRS and Federal Trade Commission recommend you safeguard your personal information with a strong password. Here are seven password tips that will help you stump an identity thief and keep your information and financial accounts protected.
1. Don’t use your dog’s name. The IRS suggests that you refrain from using any personal information in your password. That includes Social Security numbers, maiden names, birthdays, anniversaries, the names of children, pets, or anything else that can be guessed, researched or discovered by a hacker.
2. Make them hunt through the “haystack.” Steve Gibson, security expert and president of Gibson Research, suggests using a password that is long and contains upper-case and lower-case letters and special characters. Using various types of characters in a long password increases the number of combinations a hacker has to try in order to crack your password. Gibson likens these attempts to figure out your password to finding a needle in a haystack; so, to hide that needle, you should use more characters, and characters of different types, to make the “haystack” larger.
3. Old passwords = vulnerable. According to the United States Computer Emergency Readiness Team (USCERT), it’s a good idea to change your password on a regular basis, especially after accessing accounts via a public computer.  If you keep the same password to a certain website for many years, identity thieves have that much more opportunity to decode it. A rule of thumb is to change your password every 45 days. It’s especially important to change your password after using it on a public computer, because browsers on public computers can, in some cases, store your passwords, making them vulnerable to theft.
4. Try a pass phrase. If you feel your memory is sharp, then consider creating a pass phrase. A pass phrase is a long string of unrelated letters, numbers and punctuation marks. While a pass phrase can be difficult for a user to remember, this type of password is also very difficult to crack.
5. Use a sentence. If you don’t think you’re going to be able to remember a cryptic string of characters, one idea is to think of your password as a sentence and then use the first letter of every word, mixing in caps and lower-case letters and a few numbers that you can remember, as the actual password.
6. Memorize all passwords. Do not store the information in a wallet, in a purse or on a cellphone. If you need to write the password down, be sure it’s stored in a secure location.
7. Do not use the same password for work and personal accounts. In fact, the USCERT recommends that you use a different password for each website account you access. That way, if one of these passwords becomes compromised, the thief will not have access to a second account.
While identity theft and credit card fraud are a risk, you don’t need to feel vulnerable or unprotected. Use these seven tips to create a strong password, and you’ll not only stand a better chance of stumping an identity thief, but you could also give yourself greater peace of mind when it comes to Internet security.

Looking for ways to defend yourself against identity theft? Consider identity restoration coverage.

Not All Smoke Alarms are Equal: Knowing the Difference Could Save Your Life

Wednesday, April, 3rd, 2013 at 6:08 am

Tags: Fire Safety, Home Safety, Safety

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You change the batteries in your smoke alarms twice a year, and test them every month. But do you know what type of smoke alarms you have? Or, that having one kind over another can make a difference in getting out safely in a home fire?
There are two chief smoke alarm types, and each has a sensor that detects smoke and fire differently depending on the origin of the fire.

Ionization vs. photoelectric smoke alarms

The most common smoke alarm type, Ionization alarms are generally more responsive to a flaming fire ( for instance, when a lit candle tips over and ignites a towel), according to Underwriters Laboratories. These alarms use “ions,” or electrically charged particles, to detect smoke in the air. UL says that, because they are inexpensive, ionization detectors are the most commonly found smoke alarms in North American homes.
The second type of detector is the photoelectric smoke alarm, which uses a light beam to detect the presence of smoke. According to UL, these alarm types are more effective at sounding when a fire originates from a smoldering source, like a lit cigarette that falls into a couch cushion. Smoldering fires can fill a home with dangerous gases before a fire ever erupts.

Which smoke alarm type is best?

So, which alarm to choose? While both types of smoke detectors are designed to detect any house fire, no matter the source, each technology has its advantages and can offer an earlier warning over the other, depending on the origin of a fire.
The challenge is that it’s impossible to predict which type of fire could erupt in your home, which is why the National Fire Protection Association says the best protection is offered by having both alarm technologies in your home.
There are a couple of ways to get this done.
If your existing detectors are ionization smoke alarms, you can purchase photoelectric smoke alarms and install one next to each ionization unit. If you don’t know what type you have, check your owner’s manual. (Or, try this tip: Take the smoke alarm down and look at the back. Because ionization alarms all contain a trace amount of a radioactive material, Americium 241, they contain a warning about the material on each alarm. If you see this warning on your device, you have an ionization unit.)
Another option: If budget allows, consider replacing all of your existing smoke alarms with dual-sensor devices, which combine both ionization and photoelectric technologies in a single unit.

Maintenance is key, regardless of type

Knowing the type of smoke alarm you have is clearly an important part of fire safety, but experts also warn that, regardless of type, smoke alarms won’t protect you if they’re not working properly.
According to UL, an estimated 20 percent of homes have detectors that do not work or are missing batteries, and two-thirds of reported residential fire deaths occur in homes without working smoke alarms, or with no smoke alarms at all.
So, start by making sure you have the right number of smoke alarms in the right places. The NFPA recommends a smoke detector in every bedroom, outside each separate sleeping area and on every level of your home (smoke rises, so install them high on the walls).
Then, set reminders to swap out the batteries on each unit at least once a year, and to test the units monthly.
Are your smoke alarms ready to alert you to a home fire? 
Recommended by the editors:

• Common Mistakes in Smoke Alarm Maintenance
• Room by Room Safety Fixes for the Entire House
• 5 Hidden Dangers in Your Home: And How to Foil Them

For advice on how to help keep your family safe during all sorts of emergencies, visit Allstate.com

The silence of suicide

 

By Arianne Brown, ksl.com Contributor

March 31st, 2013 @ 8:01pm

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SALT LAKE CITY — The other day, when my husband came home from work, he told me that something terrible had happened in our community. A 15-year-old girl had died from self-inflicted injuries. She had taken her own life.
When I heard the news, my heart ached for her. I hurt, thinking of all the torment this young girl must have gone through in the days, weeks, months and perhaps even years leading up to her death. Then my thoughts turned to her family. My heart sank. How were they doing? How were they feeling? What was in store for them in the coming days, weeks, months and years?
Although I do not know this family, nor the situation surrounding the young girl's death, I understand much of what they may have gone through, as well as what is in store. There is one word that describes it all, and that word is “silence.”
I know this because I have been through it.

As if the grief and guilt weren't enough, we were suddenly one of "those families" who had someone commit that unspeakable act — the unspeakable act that nobody wants to talk about.

Nearly seven years ago, my family was shaken up by the sudden and unexpected death of my oldest sister. She was a beautiful, funny, smart, educated woman. Above all, she was a mother to three beautiful and perfect children — one of the best mothers I have ever met. She was so loving and patient — everything that a mother should be.
A few years prior to her death, things started to get quiet. She didn't speak much. She didn't call as often. When we spoke, things were brief but sweet; just very quiet. There were times when she spoke of difficult things that were happening in her life, but never in a way that would indicate what was to come … or so I thought at the time.
On Nov. 5, 2006, she slipped quietly away from this earth after taking her own life — quietly, silently … gone.

A pencil sketch done by a friend after my sister passed. (Credit: Jean Keaton, www.jeankeatonart.com)

Like many victims of suicide — and I say “victims” because even though they did commit the act that took their life, there were many outside factors that had influenced their decision — the decision to “go” is not telegraphed for the world to know. In fact, most go just as my sister did: quietly, as to not disturb, hoping to leave this earth as if they had never entered.
Those of us she left, known clinically as “suicide survivors,” were left with the whys and what-ifs. We were confronted with the guilt of what we could have done differently, and longing to ask the one person with the answers. … Silence. She's gone.
As if the grief and guilt weren't enough, we were suddenly one of “those families” who had someone commit that unspeakable act — the unspeakable act that nobody wants to talk about.
We are now silent.
All too often, survivors are forced into seclusion. When asked how our loved one died, there is a hesitation, and many times a sense of shame. What do you say? How much do you say? Do they really want to hear it? Will they judge me? Will they judge her? So, we remain silent — silently mourning the loss of our loved one.
Suicide is the silent killer. So many each year fall victim to this terrible tragedy, and even more “survivors” are left suffering in silence.
When confronted with someone who may be suicidal, or with someone who is a “survivor,” lend an ear, be a friend and don't let them suffer in silence.