The time is 2:00 AM. The place is that lonely little alley leading to the nearest convenience store. The person standing in front of you is brandishing a gun in your face. "Gimme your money," the gunman demands. You frantically search your wallet and pocket for some cash to give to the gloved man. After a few minutes, it becomes apparent to the gunman and you that you don't have any. Your fists close in on the one thing you always bring with you: your Master Card.

With a sick feeling at the pit of your stomach, you give the gunman a weak grin and offer him your plastic. "Credit is as good as cash," you whisper, hoping against all hope that the gunman has a sense of humor.

Yes, credit is as good, if not better, than cash. This is why in today's world, a Master Card can be better than a sack full of money, and why filling out a Master Card credit application is worth its weight in gold.

Dollar Bills and Billing Statements
In theory, one could buy a car or house in cash or with a check. But with the cost of living increasing each year, most people have fallen short of saving up a briefcase or suitcase full of Benjamin Franklins. This is where credit comes into play. By charging certain items and then paying your credit card bill on or before the due date, you can build up enough good credit to convince creditors that you will pay off your auto loan or mortgage. So completing a Master Card credit application makes sense, since good credit is better than no credit.

Emergencies Arise
While you can plan to build good credit, you cannot always plan for emergencies. Perhaps you have never really owed any money to anyone. When you buy something, you always pay in full, by cash or check. When you borrow money, you pay it back the same day. If you were to request a credit report, it would show a clean record...of no credit. Still, regardless of how diligently you try to avoid emergencies during future purchases, things happen. When you lack cash, you have three main alternatives: checks, debit cards, and credit cards. The problem with checks is that they require time to clear. This can create headaches when you do your personal bookkeeping. Debit cards are convenient, but they are accepted in fewer businesses than credit cards. Moreover, they do not let you establish credit. So it is prudent to fill out a Master Card credit application, to prepare for those late night runs to the convenience store, or to fill up our vehicle.

Something for Everyone
The advantages of Master Card credit cards do not end with emergencies. In addition, they offer several features that can make your shopping experiences a treat. They typically have low annual percentage rates, or APR, and annual fees or even none at all! In addition, when you fill out a Master Card credit application, you can choose a card that is right for you. Some cards are ideal for travellers and businesspeople. Others are perfect for students. Still many others cater to people's interests, such as entertainment. If you want to earn rebates or products via bonus points, then completing a Master Card credit application should be your next step. Master Card credit cards provide perks ranging from movie tickets on films' opening weekends to personalized cards and $0 fraud liability.

People often link the idea of credit cards to images of never-ending debt. But if a credit card is used wisely after filling out a Master Card credit application, it can provide things that having no credit cannot.

A payday loan company is a company that lends payday loans or cash advance loans. These kinds of loans are short-term loans that need to be repaid by the next payday. In today’s fast-paced world, many people live from payday to payday. For them any emergency expenses that may arise in between like an unpaid bill or a vehicle to repair often leaves them in a financial crunch situation. In such a situation, a payday loan is one of the best ways to get some fast hassle free cash.

Now that a payday loan service is extremely popular in the United States, there are many payday loan companies sprouting up every now and then. The easiest way to find a payday loan company is by searching online in the internet. You can go to a search engine or simply follow the links at the end of this article. The most important thing is to shop around by comparing at least four different companies to find one that offers you best interest rate, smallest fee, quickest loan approval process, and easiest repayment method.

Terms and Conditions

You need to understand that a payday loan is not free money. There are charges like the interest rate on the loan that apply every time you borrow money from a payday loan company. Hence, it is recommended that you seriously consider all the implications of such a loan and understand the terms and conditions properly before signing up.

While the charges may vary from one company to another, the terms and conditions for the loan are the same universally. Try to compare between a few companies before you hire the services of one of them. The fee schedule, the payback process etc should be the things that you look at while choosing the company.

Searching for a Reputable Company

You should be extremely selective when choosing a payday loan company to avoid any unpleasant surprises later on. Look for a company that has been around for the last few years. If the company is listed in the better business bureau, then it means that the company has a good reputation.

It may be necessary to talk directly to the loan officer over the phone before you decide to apply from them. A reputable loan company should have a number to contact to and perhaps an online chat facility to facilitate first inquiry from a customer. Searching online not only easy but also gives you benefit of doing everything from the comfort of your computer.

One of the most important ways to achieve and maintain excellent FICO credit scores is to carefully manage your revolving credit.

When I say, "revolving credit," I'm referring to any credit account you have where the monthly payment can vary. Credit cards are the most common form of revolving credit.

Of course, "revolving credit" refers to almost everything in your wallet or purse that's plastic that you can use to buy something. This includes American Express, Discover, MasterCard, or Visa credit cards. This also includes retail store cards such as Macy's or Target, and gasoline cards.

The exceptions are check cards and debit cards. These little dudes may be plastic and have a MasterCard or Visa logo, but they aren't really credit cards. They're more like plastic checks than anything else. Debit cards have nothing to do with your credit scores.

Why your credit reports can show that your credit cards are maxed out when they're not

In my case, my credit scores were lower than they should have been because I was using my personal credit cards for my business. An easy fix...I just applied for a corporate card and began using only that card for anything business related. (You should do the same if you have a small business.)

A few small business leases were also reporting as revolving accounts on my personal credit reports. Those were simple to resolve by just paying the small amounts off.

Then, I did a quick analysis of my credit reports.

The only way to really discover if revolving credit is lowering your scores is to do a quick analysis of your revolving credit accounts. (I'll show you how at the end of this newsletter.) That's how I found the big culprit that was destroying my credit scores...

Beware of home equity lines of credit

When I analyzed my credit reports I got a big surprise...I discovered several of my home equity lines of credit (HELOCs) were being misinterpreted as credit card accounts.

This was fooling the FICO scoring model into thinking that I had an enormous amount of credit card debt. But of course, I didn't.

What I learned was that HELOC accounts can look exactly like a credit card account on your credit reports.

When I was trained by Fair Isaac Corporation, I got a different story. I was told there are two situations when a HELOC won't be mistaken as a revolving credit card:

1. When the original amount of the line of credit is more than $50,000
2. If the account has a narrative attached to it (e.g., equity line of credit or real estate)

Even though Fair Isaac claims the above is true, I didn't find that to be the case with my HELOCs.

It's bad enough that my HELOCs were being mistaken as credit cards...but to make matters worse...all of my HELOCs were maxed out!When a HELOC is mistaken as a credit card, and it's maxed out, then it looks like you have a high-limit credit card and you're using all of its available credit—which lowers your credit scores. Ouch!

My HELOCs were lowering my FICO scores, and it was making it more expensive for me to get personal and business credit. This HELOC issue was a tough nut to crack. We were able to pay off a few of the smaller HELOCs. But we couldn't afford to pay them all off. So we decided to refinance them into home equity installment loans (HEILs).

What's better—a HELOC or a HEIL?

There are a couple of important differences between a HELOC and a HEIL. Once you understand the differences you can strategize on what's best for your credit and financial situation.

Here are the differences:

- A HELOC is a revolving account. This means you can have variable monthly payments determined by the balance you owe each month. A HELOC also allows you to take some or all of the available credit out as you need it...just like a credit card.

- A HEIL is an installment account (just like a car loan or mortgage). This means you'll have the same payment every month until it's paid in full. A HEIL lets you take out only a fixed amount in one lump sum.

- A HELOC could be mistaken as a credit card account by the FICO scoring model because they report as revolving accounts. However, a HEIL cannot be mistaken as a credit card account because a HEIL appears on your credit reports as an installment account.

Because of the effect HELOCs may have on our credit scores, my wife and I are now committed to always using HEILs to tap equity in our properties even though the interest rates are usually higher.

How to protect yourself against holes in the credit system

Here's a strategy you can use to insure yourself against the flaws we've been talking about in the credit system. If you want to tap into your home's equity, apply for the highest HELOC amount you can qualify for. Just don't use more than 10% of the limit. The most essential part of this strategy is your discipline after you're approved. If you can keep yourself from going out and buying things with your new line of credit, you can really protect your credit scores.

This way, even if your HELOC is misinterpreted as a credit card, your credit scores can't be hurt...in fact, it could even help them. So, a HELOC can be a good thing if your balance is extremely low or nonexistent.

My Wake-up Call

Had I not performed a quick revolving analysis of my credit reports—I never would have known my credit scores were suffering because of a simple credit misinterpretation.

Think about all of the things that can lower your FICO scores...late payments...too much credit card debt...too many inquiries, etc.

These are legitimate and understandable reasons why your scores would go down. But to lose points for a silly loophole in how HELOCs are reported is just...irritating.

It goes to prove what I've been teaching for more than 10 years now...having good credit takes more than paying your bills on time. Way more.

No matter where you go and what you do, you will need a means to pay for it. More often than not, you will be using some form of credit card. Credit cards are accepted by almost every vendor across the world.

Each has different rates, requirements, restrictions, rules, and yes, perks too.

The following are six easy steps to find the right credit card for you:

1.) Understand your credit - You must have a thorough understanding of how credit works before applying for credit cards in the first place. First, understand that the issuance of credit is a loan that must be paid back. Second, understand that you should pay your credit card bill on time monthly to avoid adverse information being placed on your credit file. Third, review your credit regularly; every 60 to 90 days is adequate. Fourth, if something is out of the ordinary, report it immediately.

2.) Know Thyself - Before you begin your investigation into currently available credit card offers, first evaluate your credit card needs, especially your spending habits and bill-paying habits. Why do you want another card? What do you plan to use it for primarily? Big purchases, regular use, or emergencies? Do you pay your monthly balances in full or do you pay them off slowly over time? Are you looking to consolidate debt or take advantage of an enticing rewards program? Once you know why you want a credit card and how you plan to use it, you're better able to evaluate which credit cards world best suit your needs.

3.)Prioritize Features - What qualities of your ideal credit card are most important to you? Low interest rate? Special 0% promotion on balance transfers? High limit? Airline miles? Cash back at the gas pump? Longer grace period? By the same token, ask yourself if there are any features that really don't matter to you that much at all.

4.)Compare, Contrast, and Narrow Your Choices - Now it's time to look closely at credit card offers currently available. Check with banks. Check online credit card directories and review sites. Check your mailbox for the latest offers. Check everywhere you can think of and rule out all those that don't meet your criteria. Now let's take a look at what you've got left.

5.)Look Deeper - Take this, hopefully, fine-tuned list of offers that meet your basic criteria and read the Terms and Conditions to all of them. Read all the fine print, no matter how tedious it seems. They may all look alike, but they're most definitely not. Find out what makes each of these cards different. Maybe one has an annual fee. Maybe one has a fee for balance transfers and another doesn't. Maybe one offers lower APRs on cash advances or better protection against identity theft or a heftier penalty for late payments. Each institution can devise their own rules and restrictions because as long as you agree to it by signing on the dotted line, it's valid and enforceable. What Terms and Conditions are you most willing to sign? Or, to put it another way, which one are you least unwilling to sign?

6.)Confirm - Confirms everything you've just found out about the card that you've decided to apply for. Applying for too many cards can damage your credit. Better to find one or two that seem right for you and apply only for those. Check with the bank or financial institution directly to confirm the terms of the offer and see if there are any additional stipulations not listed in the offer. Check third-party sources for reviews and customer feedback on your chosen credit card(s). Check with the Federal Reserve for the most updated version of any card's Terms and Conditions.