Chapter H
BNC:FSF Session 4 Best Practices
and Training Techniques
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Building Native
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FINANCIAL SKILLS FOR FAMILIES
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W O R K B O O K
Fifth Edition
INSTRUCTOR GUIDE
Acknowledgments
This 2016 version of the Building Native Communities: Financial Skills for Families - Intructor
Guide was compiled and written by Krystal Langholz, Caleb Selby, Sarah Dewees, and Shawn
Spruce. A debt is owed to Vickie Oldham-John and Natasha Shulman and their Advisory
Committee for writing the previous edition of this guide. We thank The Rose Foundation and the
Paul G. Allen Foundation for funding this project and we thank the Fannie Mae Foundation for
supporting this project in its earliest phases.
In 2000, First Nations Development Institute and the Fannie Mae Foundation developed
the personal financial education curriculum Building Native Communities: Financial Skills for
Families. The curriculum has been revised several times, and in 2016 First Nations Development
Institute and First Nations Oweesta Corporation finalized the 5th edition of the Building Native
Communities: Financial Skills for Families curriculum and this Instructor Guide. First Nations
Development Institute and First Nations Oweesta Corporation thank The Rose Foundation and
the Paul G. Allen Foundation for funding this revision. To accompany the revised participant
workbook, First Nations Development Institute and First Nations Oweesta Corporation worked
with an Advisory Committee of practitioners led by Caleb Selby, Krystal Langholz, Sarah Dewees,
and Shawn Spruce to create this Instructor Guide. We would like to thank the following individuals
for their assistance, careful reading, and feedback: Arnold Blum, Gallup Central High School;
Lisa Garcia, Salt River Financial Service Institution; Sunny Guillory, Northwest Indian College;
Christopher Hansen, First Nations Oweesta Corporation; Spawn Spruce, Independent Consultant;
Dawn Wesley, Tlingit-Haida Housing Authority; Tawny Wilson, First Nations Development
Institute; and Shawn Winters, Chi. Ishobak, Inc. A special thanks also to TM Design for providing
design and layout services.
Disclaimer
All names and examples provided in the Building Native Communities: Financial Skills for Families
5th Edition Instructor Guide are fictional. Any resemblance to actual individuals or their financial
situations is coincidental. The Building Native Communities curriculum is intended to be used as
guidance and should not be relied on as legal or tax advice. Please seek the counsel of a qualified
attorney or tax professional for further assistance. The authors and publisher are solely responsible
for the accuracy of the statements and interpretations contained in this publication.
More Information
To obtain additional copies of this workbook, more information about training opportunities
for your community, or to become a certified instructor, please visit the First Nations Oweesta
Corporation website at www.oweesta.org or email [email protected]. You can also access these
materials at www.BNCweb.org.
© First Nations Development Institute and First Nations Oweesta Corporation 2016.
Chapter H:
Best Practices for Session 4
for Building Native Communities: Financial Skills for Families
This chapter is designed to help you teach the Building Native Communities: Financial Skills for
Families curriculum. It has ideas for games, exercises, and teaching techniques that will enhance
your delivery of Session 4. Answers to the exercises in this session are provided in Chapter K:
Answer Key.
Session Description
This session introduces the concept of credit. Participants will
· Discuss the transition from a subsistence economy to a market economy.
· Learn about the concept of credit.
· Learn how to read and work with credit reports.
· Become aware of their credit borrowing rights.
Games and Teaching Techniques
As participants often benefit from seeing concepts explained in several ways, the following section
presents games and teaching techniques for specific topics and exercises. See the Training Techniques
chapter for general ideas that can be applied to any exercise.
Traditional Migration Patterns – Page 71
Before diving into the topic of credit, participants should not only understand the need for credit
but also how it came about. The modern, Western credit market did not always exist as it does
now. Define and explain a market economy using the text on page 71. With this foundation, your
participants should understand the need for credit and its origin.
Importance of Credit – Page 72
Use the illustration on page 72 to demonstrate the importance of credit. Tell your participants
that Ray did not have enough capital to open his laundromat business but he recognized there was
a great demand for a laundromat in his community. Credit allowed him to get his laundromat
business started.
The drawing can also be used to explain how businesses make a profit. Suppose that Ray netted
$30,000 dollars in his first two years of having the business open and borrowed only $20,000 to
help jumpstart the business. What is the growth in this example? Answer: $10,000.
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Advantages and Disadvantages of Using Credit – Page 73
Use the list on page 73 to go over the advantages and disadvantages of using credit. Share an
advantage or disadvantage you have personally experienced. Allow the participants to share their
answers to the questions on the bottom of page 73 if they feel comfortable, or encourage them to
work in small groups to discuss the topic.
Using Credit – Page 74
The goal of this section is to get participants to think about credit and when they would or would
not use credit to make a purchase. There will be different answers. Refer to the illustration on page
74 and talk about the questions he is asking himself – these are good questions to ask yourself when
using credit to buy something.
Using Credit Exercise – Page 75
This exercise lets students think more about when to use credit. Again, it is useful to refer to the
illustration on page 74 and talk about the questions he is asking himself – these are good questions
to ask yourself when using credit to buy something. It is recommended that you conduct this exercise
one of three ways:
· Small Groups. Break your participants into small groups and instruct them to go through item by
item and decide, as a group, whether or not they believe it acceptable to use credit. After all the
groups have finished, have each small group select a speaker who will report their decisions and
reasoning to the rest of the class.
· Magic Wall. Before the class, you can prepare the Magic Wall (see the Training Techniques
chapter of this Instructor Guide) to look like the table on the bottom of the Participants
Workbook on page 75. Each participant can then places sticky notes labeled with their names
in the ‘Yes’ or ‘No’ box for each item/situation. After everyone has placed their sticky notes, for
each row, allow a few participants to make comments. Allow debate on those rows where there
are sticky notes in the ‘Yes’ and ‘No’ column. Do not specifically call out participants if their
sticky note resides in the ‘Yes’ box and all other sticky notes are in the ‘No’ box – or vice versa –
but allow them to speak out if they wish to defend their placement of the sticky note.
· Walk to It. Put signs that say ‘yes’, ‘no’, and ‘maybe’ around the room. Make each student walk
to where they would personally fall in this spectrum. Make someone from each group share why
they chose their answers. If it is a nice day, do this exercise outdoors to rejuvenate the class.
Note: if doing this exercise in an interactive way, make sure to give a common definition of “using
credit to make a purchase.” Otherwise, there will often be confusion, as some students will say things
like “well, I use my credit card for everything for the points!” while others will assume that they are
incurring a debt that they carry over into the next month. This confusion will detract from the overall
fun of the exercise.
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Types of Credit – Page 76
Go over each type of credit. Highlight common examples by utilizing the pictures to the right of
each type of credit, as participants tend to understand the types of credit better when you use a
common example.
· Revolving Credit: credit cards, department stores, gas cards.
· Installment Credit: student loans, car loans, and home loans.
· Non-installment or service credit: some trading posts, utilities companies.
Secured and Unsecured Credit – Page 77
Go over the definitions of secured and unsecured credit. This is a chance to talk about that fact that
when you are using secured credit, like a car loan, there is a chance the lender can repossess the car
if you don’t pay the loan. So you don’t really “own” the car until you have paid off the loan.
Types of Credit Overview Exercise – Page 78
These questions are meant to let students apply what they just learned about the different types of
credit. You can do this exercise in small groups or individually.
Money Math Bubble – Page 78
This Money Math Bubble asks how much money Jody needs to borrow in order to purchase a car.
Assist your participants in the calculation. If your participants do not know what a down-payment
is, be sure to define it before this Money Math Bubble. Mention that down-payments are useful in
that they reduce the total amount of money borrowed. This concept is discussed further in Session
5 of the Participant’s Workbook.
Answer: Since Jody’s mom is providing $3,000 as a down-payment, Jody needs to borrow
$7,000 in order to purchase the car.
$10,000 (asking price) - $3,000 (down-payment) =
$10,000 - $3,000 = $7,000
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Additional Exercise:
Types of Credit
This exercise requires some preparation but is an interactive approach to learning about the
types of credit.
1. Prepare a Magic Wall.
2. Prepare index cards. Label three cards for the types of credit – installment, revolving,
service (non-installment). Label fifteen cards with examples such as student loans,
Sears, cell phone, rent, mortgage, etc.
3. Place the three types of credit on the magic wall.
4. Give each participant several of the example cards.
5. Ask participants to hang the examples under the type of credit they believe it is.
6. Read about the types of credit out loud from the Building Native Communities:
Financial Skills for Families Participant’s Workbook.
7. Go back to the wall and check if the examples have been placed properly.
Discuss the business of credit. Help participants to see how advertising is used to encourage
them to use credit. Bring in examples from local magazines and newspapers.
Review questions that participants should ask when choosing a credit card.
1. Gather credit card application forms from the mail and financial institutions.
2. Copy Appendix H-1: Questions You Might Ask if You Are Applying for A Credit Card.
3. Ask participants to answer the questions using information from the applications. If
they are unable to answer a question from the information provided, encourage them
to use the toll-free number provided by the credit card company to complete the
exercise.
4. Discuss participants’ findings as a group. Make sure to talk about the characteristics
of a good credit card such as a low interest rate and a minimal annual fee.
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Additional Exercise:
Types of Credit
You can use role play to show the difference between secured and unsecured credit. Select two
participants to act out a script that is broken into two parts. The first part of the script can be a
scene that shows someone applying for unsecured credit. A credit card can be a good example.
The second scene could show someone applying for secured credit. A loan with a collateral
requirement would be a good example. After the two participants act out their script in front
of the class, have the class decide which script deals with secured credit, and which deals with
unsecured credit. Liven this up by having the lender providing the secured loan try to “hide”
the fact that the loan requires collateral.
Your Credit Report – Page 79
This section is designed to help students learn about a credit report. Tell students that a credit
report is like a report card that shows how well you manage your finances.
Accessing Your Credit Report – Page 80
This section is designed to help your students learn how to access their credit report. Your
participants may be puzzled about the existence of three different credit bureaus and the different
scoring method that each uses. After all, how is it that one person could potentially have three
different credit scores? Consider giving a short back-story of the credit bureaus so that participants
know why there are three major bureaus. Explain that not all lenders report credit activity to every
credit bureau – thus the difference in credit scores.
Reading Your Credit Report Exercise – Page 83
This exercise is designed to help students learn how to read a credit report. You will be using the information presented on pages 81 & 82. Direct participants’ attention to the tri-merge credit report that
begins on page 81. Inform them that this is a merging of credit reports and not all credit reports look
exactly like this. Allow a few minutes for participants to look over this.
Encourage participants to break the credit report down. For example, the answer to the question
“Whose credit report is this?” will most likely be found in the consumer information section of the
credit report. This will show participants that credit reports are easy to read, despite their initial
overbearing appearance, so long as they know it is broken up into sections. However, make sure that
they understand that this report is simplified for the sake of understanding. If your group is more
advanced, bring in copies of real credit reports. The BNC:FSF trainer’s toolkit in the online portal has
sample credit reports that you can use for this purpose.
After students have studied the material on pages 81 & 82, ask them to fill in the questions on page
83. You can have the students work individually or in small groups. After all the questions have been
answered, you can discuss the answers to each question as a class.
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Disputing Information on Your Credit Report – Page 84 & 85
This section will help students understand that they can dispute errors on their credit report. Have
them read the information on pages 84 & 85 and discuss common credit report errors. You may
wish to have them practice writing a letter of dispute.
Understanding the FICO Score – Page 86
Explain to your participants that even though it is not publicly known how the FICO score is
calculated, it is still known what practices create a healthy FICO score. Discuss some online
resources that can be used to get a free credit score (which is different from a FICO score, but is
still very useful). CreditKarma.com is a good resource for getting a free credit score. If appropriate,
discuss how to use that website to access a credit score. Also, many banks now give you a free credit
score as part of their online banking. Ask if any of your participants get a free credit score through
their bank. Discuss the tips on page 87. Challenge your participants to relate the tips on page 87 to
traditional Native American practices. For example, you can ask “How does remaining cognizant of
your credit card limit connect with traditional Native American practices?” and “How does taking
care not to max out your credit cards connect with traditional Native American practices?”
FICO Score Exercise – Page 88
This exercise can be conducted in small groups or as a class, if you have a small class. If participants
have just learned about practices to keep a FICO score up, it may be difficult to apply that theory
right away. The collective brain power of a small group makes this question easier to understand.
After deliberation of the small groups, invite a participant that has not done as much speaking as
others to report out to the class.
Understanding Collections – Page 89
Participants often wonder what happens when borrowed credit is not paid back. The
“Understanding Collections” section on page 89 describes some things that can happen if you do
not pay back the money you have borrowed.
Invite participants to share whether they have had bad experiences with bill collectors. Ask them to
share whether bill collectors have employed any of the tactics listed. As they do share, ask if they
know about the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Most participants will be unsure of their
rights and be surprised by their legal protections. Discuss the complaint process that the Consumer
Financial Protection Bureau offers.
Money Math Bubble – Page 89
Another Money Math Bubble problem is on page 89 of the Participant’s Workbook. Note that
while these problems main function is to increase the amount of math your participants are
performing, they can also spur discussion. Ask your participants, has anyone ever totaled their late
fees for a year and been surprised?
Answer: Gabe paid $210 dollars in late fees.
5 X $30 (rent late fee) + 4 X $15 (cable late fee) =
5 X $30 + 4 X $15 =
$150 + $60 = $210
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Additional Exercise:
Understanding Collections Role Play
Write out a script and have your class role play the following situation: You are eating
breakfast at 7:30 a.m. with your family and a bill collector calls you for the third day in
a row. They don’t identify themselves as a bill collector. You figure out that it is a bill
collector and inform them that legally cannot harass you. You let them know that you will
call the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau if this continues.
Let the class identify which forbidden tactics were employed by the bill collector. Show
participants where you make complaints on the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau
(CFPB) website.
Tips for Creating, Maintaining, and Reestablishing Your Credit History Exercise –
Pages 90-93
This exercise can be approached as a group discussion or a game.
· Create flip chart sheets that list one tip on each page. Ask participants to go around and write
up ideas to help each other take actions.
· Develop a “Family Feud” game (Contributed by Jennifer Cadotte)
1. Divide the group into two teams.
2. Read each tip and give each team an opportunity to list “actions” they can take.
3. When one team is done, the other team can try to add some additional actions to the list.
4. Give out points for each action listed.
5. Winning team gets a prize.
Additional Exercise:
Fact or Fiction
Have prepared a series of “statements” that you would like participants to classify as either fact
or fiction. Example statements include:
· The FICO score ranges from 200 to 900.
· All three major credit bureaus will have exactly the same credit score for you.
· Each credit bureau allows one you to request one free credit report per year.
Answers: The first two statements are false. If your participants classify either of them as fact, be
sure to correct that mistake. The third statement is a fact.
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Additional Exercise:
Jeopardy
Develop a “Jeopardy!” game to reinforce the concepts discussed in the session.
1. Refer to Appendix H-2: “Jeopardy!” questions for suggested game card values and questions.
2. Use folders or folded paper as game cards. Make or purchase play money.
3. Create your game cards and topic areas. Hang them on the wall or the Magic Wall
where participants can see them. If you will be reusing the game over time, you might
consider using a piece of poster board and attaching Velcro to the back of each of the
game pieces.
4. Divide the group into teams.
5. Play the game and keep score.
6. Award small prizes to the winning team.
Additional Exercise:
I Can’t Pay This Bill-What Should I Do?
This is an exercise to get participants thinking about how to manage credit and negotiate
with creditors.
1. Review the story in Appendix H-3: I Can’t Pay this Bill - What Should I Do? and ensure
that it adequately reflects participants’ life experience. If it does not, modify the story.
2. Make several photocopies of the exercise for participants.
3. Divide participants into small groups and ask them to complete the exercise. Provide
each group with a piece of flipchart paper to record their answers to the questions.
4. Ask each group to present their answers.
5. Discuss participants’ thoughts and feelings as a group.
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Additional Exercise:
Credit Scoring (Contributed by Ben Helgren)
Use Credit Scoring to facilitate a discussion about how real life events affect your credit score.
1. Make a copy of the worksheets in Appendix H-4: Credit Score Worksheets.
2. Make three copies of the situations found in Appendix H-5: Credit Score Situations. Cut
each situation into a separate card. Distribute cards randomly among groups.
3. Divide participants into three groups to complete the exercise. Participants should go
through each situation and calculate how it affects their credit score. If you have enough
time, have each group go through each situation.
4. Facilitate a discussion about how the situations affected the credit score.
· Which situations affected the credit score the most? Positively and negatively?
· Were you surprised how any of these situations affected the credit score?
· Does this change how you think about managing your money and credit? How?
Homework Ideas
Homework can be used to reinforce concepts discussed in the session. Consider encouraging
participants to:
· Pull a credit report at www.annualcreditreport.com.
· Make a list of the types of credit they have.
· Create an action plan to strengthen their credit.
Commonly Asked Questions
The following are question that have come up in the past during this session. Often, there are no right
or wrong answers to participant questions. Try to take questions that you are asked and pose them to the
group for discussion before you share your opinion.
Questions: What actions can you take if a collection agency is bothering you and
your family?
Answer: Collection agencies should respect the following requests:
· Please do not call me at work.
· Please do not call me more than once a week.
· Please do not call my home after 7 p.m. on the Sabbath.
It is best if these verbal requests are followed by a written request. If your desire is not respected, we
suggest that you tell the collection agency that you will report them to the Better Business Bureau
or the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Also, remember that a collection agency must take
a payment of any amount despite their claims of all or nothing. Any payment shows good faith. In
this same regard, never make a good faith payment with a post-dated check.
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Question: Whom can you contact to get assistance with your credit issues?
Answer: Some Native communities have credit resources (e.g., a loan fund, credit assistance
department, a housing counselors) that will assist community members. If a community-based
program is not available, there are also several national nonprofit organizations that you can
contact for a local referral. People’s experience with these organizations varies, so be sure that you
understand all of the terms and conditions of the working relationship before you commit to a
program. National credit counseling organizations include:
· National Foundation for Credit Counseling 800-388-2227
· Money Management International 866-226-0278
· American Financial Solutions 888-282-5899
Question: What is the difference between the three credit bureaus? Which one is better?
Answer: There are no definable differences between the three major credit bureaus. Theoretically,
they all could have the same information about your credit history. In reality, many creditors only
report to one or two of the agencies, so the information about your credit history is likely not to be
consistent between them.
Session 4 Review
After completing this session participants should now be able to:
· Understand the purpose and importance of credit.
· Obtain, read, analyze and dispute errors on their credit reports.
· Maintain a good FICO score.
· Identify their rights as a borrower of credit.
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Appendix H-1:
Questions You Might Ask if You Are Applying for A Credit Card
1. What is the interest rate on the credit card?
2. Is the rate quoted a promotional or introductory rate?
3. If it is an introductory rate, how long will this rate last?
4. Does the credit card company charge an annual fee on the credit card?
5. Are there any penalties if the card is not used for a period of time?
6. Is there a penalty if the credit card holder goes over the limit?
7. Can the payment due date be changed if the cardholder needs to?
8. Is the interest rate for the credit card a fixed rate or a variable rate?
9. If it is variable, how and when does it change?
10.Would the interest rate be different if I needed a cash advance?
11.What is the grace period before I am charged interest on the owed balance?
12.How do your rates compare with other institutions?
13.Who would I talk to if there were problems or questions I might have about my credit card bill?
This exercise is adapted from a piece developed by Lavaun Moulten and can be found in the Fannie Mae
Foundation’s Money Management and Homebuying Readiness Sourcebook for Teachers for ESOL and ABE.
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Appendix H-2: Jeopardy Questions
Value
$10
$50
Types of Credit
What type of
credit allows you
to pay for used
services at a later
date?
Answer:
noninstallment
or service credit
What type of
credit allows
you to borrow a
specific amount
of money at one
time for a defined
purpose?
Answer:
installment credit
What type of
credit allows you
to borrow money
at any time up to
a set limit?
Credit History
Your credit
history is
maintained
by what
organizations?
Answer: credit
bureaus
Where do credit
bureaus get their
information?
Answer: banks,
department stores,
credit card
companies, etc.
What do credit
bureau records
indicate?
$100
Answer:
revolving credit
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Answer: Whether
you pay your bills
on time
Credit Report
What are credit
reports used for?
Answer: To
evaluate your
reliability and
your ability to
manage your
finances
How many major
credit bureaus are
there?
Answer: three
What are the
seven types of
information
contained in a
credit report?
Answer:
identification,
credit history,
collection accounts,
courthouse records,
additional
information,
and inquiries
Correcting Your
Credit Report
Building Your
Credit History
Does a credit
report always
show accurate
information
about your credit
history?
What is the best
way to build your
credit history?
Answer: No
How often should
you receive a copy
of your credit
report?
Answer: pay your
bills on time
If you cannot
pay your bills on
time, what should
you do?
Answer: contact
creditors and
make other
arrangements as
Answer: Once a
soon as possible
year
What actions
To correct an
can you take to
error on your
avoid excessive
credit report,
inquiries into
what do you
your credit
need to send to
the credit bureaus? report?
Answer: A letter
of dispute, a copy
of your credit
report with the
error highlighted,
and additional
information that
proves your claim
Answer: Write the
credit bureaus and
request that they
not share a copy
of your credit
report without
your permission
Appendix H-3: I Can’t Pay This Bill- What Should I Do?
Recently Christopher and Ann had a car accident. Their truck was significantly damaged. They
needed it fixed immediately since they both used the truck to get to their jobs. Christopher’s cousin
Ron was out of town, so they brought it to a nearby auto shop. Several weeks later they received a
bill for $1,000 from the auto shop. If they didn’t pay, it would go on their credit report and create
problems for them later when they wanted to buy a house or get any other type of loan. They had
only $300 in their savings account. Together they sat down and brainstormed ways to come up
with some extra money. This is the list they came up with:
· Have a garage sale. They figure they can sell some crafts and other odds and ends lying around
the house.
· Take a few things to the pawn shop down the street. Ann has a hand-woven blanket, and
Christopher has a watch that the pawnbroker would take. Between the two items, they think
they could get $400. The only problem is that the pawnbroker will charge 20 percent interest,
and if they don’t repay the loan in three months, they will lose the watch and the blanket.
· Borrow money from family and friends. This is the most inexpensive option, but they are not
sure how many people they will need to ask to pull $700 together.
· Hold a raffle. They can sell $10 tickets to family friends and raffle off some beadwork jewelry
that Ann has collected. They realize that they will need to sell 70 tickets in order to raise enough
money to pay the auto shop.
· Negotiate a payment plan with the auto shop. They can call the business and explain the situation.
· They can offer to pay a set amount of money each month until the loan is paid off and in return
not be reported to a collection agency.
· Take out a payday loan from the Fast Cash store in town. Both Ann and Christopher make
about $600 each pay period (every two weeks). So, if they take out a payday loan, they will
have $1,200 immediately. Of course, they will pay a service charge of 15 percent, and they will
still need to pay back the $1,200 as soon as they get paid. If they cannot repay the $1,200 right
away, they will pay an additional 15 percent each pay period on the original $1,200 loan.
Questions:
1. What are the pros and cons of each option?
Pros
Cons
Garage sale
Pawn shop
Friends and family
Raffle
Payment plan
Payday loan
2. What do you think that Ann and Christopher should do?
This exercise was developed by Vicky Vanderpol and can be found in the Fannie Mae Foundation’s
Money Management and Homebuying Readiness Sourcebook for Teachers for ESOL and ABE.
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Appendix H-4: Credit Score Worksheets
Credit Score Worksheet 1
Your Starting Credit Score
692
Action
Impact
Ending Credit Score
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Appendix H-5: Credit Score Situations
(Exercise developed by Inger Giuffrida, Financial Educator and Asset Building Consultant;
Email: inger.giuffrida.com; Phone: 405-819-7039; Please cite when using.)
1. Because of the loss of a job in your
family, you have run your two credit
cards up to their credit limits during the
past two months.
2. Your car breaks down. With no
emergency savings, you max out one of
your credit cards again.
Credit Score Impact: - 60
Credit Score Impact: - 80
(These are estimated credit score impacts.)
(These are estimated credit score impacts.)
3. You continue to struggle to make
ends meet. You miss payments on your
credit cards, and they are still nearly
maxed out. You are also late with your
mortgage payment.
4. You steadily pay down your credit
card balances while staying current on
all of your other accounts (mortgage,
auto loan payment, student loans).
Credit Score Impact: + 40
Credit Score Impact: - 100
(These are estimated credit score impacts.)
(These are estimated credit score impacts.)
5. You find another job. You start
making payments on your credit cards
and bring your mortgage current. You
bring the balances down to 50% of
the available credit limit within three
months.
6. You decide it is time to get a new car.
You go auto loan shopping over the next
few weeks resulting in several inquiries
to your credit reports.
Credit Score Impact: + 40
Credit Score Impact: 0 during the time
you are shopping. -8 the following
reporting period.
(These are estimated credit score impacts.)
(These are estimated credit score impacts.)
7. You get a notice from Blockbuster
that you still owe $47.98 in late fines and
that this debt has been outstanding for
10 months.
8. While purchasing groceries at Super
Target, you are offered 15% off of your
total if you apply for a Target credit card
today. You do!
Credit Score Impact: 0
Credit Score Impact: - 8
(These are estimated credit score impacts.)
(These are estimated credit score impacts.)
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9. You just had a birthday. You’re now
47 years old.
Credit Score Impact: 0
10. You take on another job to help
pay down your debts. With the new
schedule, you miss payment on your
student loan for two months.
(These are estimated credit score impacts.)
Credit Score Impact: - 50
(These are estimated credit score impacts.)
11. You want to make sure you are not
overlooking any debts, so you pull your
credit reports.
12. Realizing your error, you immediately
pay the two months you missed and pay
all of your other bills on time.
Credit Score Impact: 0
Credit Score Impact: + 20
(These are estimated credit score impacts.)
(These are estimated credit score impacts.)
13. After reviewing your credit report,
you decide to close the credit card you
opened during college since you don’t
use it any more.
14. You co-signed for your daughter’s
automobile loan. She is 60 days late with
her payment.
Credit Score Impact: - 60
Credit Score Impact: - 15
(These are estimated credit score impacts.)
(These are estimated credit score impacts.)
15. You continue to steadily pay down
your credit card balances while staying
current on all of your other accounts
(mortgage, auto loan payment, student
loans).
16. Your daughter catches up on her
auto loan payment and you continue
to steadily pay down your credit card
balances while staying current on all
of your other accounts (mortgage, auto
loan payment, student loans).
Credit Score Impact: + 40
(These are estimated credit score impacts.)
Credit Score Impact: + 30
(These are estimated credit score impacts.)
128
Notes
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Notes
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