Most bills still getting paid on time.

CNN’s Money.com is reporting that even though Americans are missing payments on their home loans, they are still managing to pay their credit card bills on time, which means that the pressures of the housing market are not having as big as an effect as people might think.

NEW YORK (Reuters) -- Americans are missing more payments on home equity loans, but credit card delinquencies are holding steady, suggesting that housing pressures have yet to make it tougher for people in general to pay their bills.

In its quarterly study of U.S. consumer borrowing, the American Bankers Association said late payments on home equity loans rose to 1.92 percent from 1.79 percent in the third quarter, and were the highest since the first quarter of 2006. Late payments on some auto loans have hit a 5-1/2-year high.

The rate of credit card delinquencies edged down to 4.56 percent from the third quarter's 4.57 percent. That rate was the highest since the spring of 2005.

"We're certainly concerned to see the rise in home equity loan (delinquencies)," ABA Chief Economist James Chessen said in an interview. "The increase raises a caution flag, but the rate had been lower in 2006 than in the prior three years."

The ABA surveys more than 300 banks nationwide. It considers payments late if they are 30 or more days past due.

Read the full story after the jump

Most bills still getting paid on time.

10 Reasons You Aren't a millionaire

I am guessing that if you are reading this post, you are not rich. Most people think they are not rich because they don’t make enough money, but in reality, it is our habits and how you treat money.

Thestreet.com’s Jeffrey Strain lists out 10 reasons that hold people back in their quest to becoming financially independent.

1. You Care What Your Neighbors Think: If you're competing
against them and their material possessions, you're wasting your hard-earned
money on toys to impress them instead of building your wealth.

2. You Aren't Patient: Until the era of credit cards, it was
difficult to spend more than you had. …

3. You Have Bad Habits: Whether it's smoking, drinking,
gambling or some other bad habit, the habit is using up a lot of money that
could go toward building wealth. …

4. You Have No Goals: It's difficult to build wealth if you
haven't taken the time to know what you want. …

5. You Haven't Prepared: Bad things happen to the best of
people from time to time, and if you haven't prepared for such a thing to happen
to you through insurance, any wealth that you might have built can be gone in an
instant.

6. You Try to Make a Quick Buck: For the vast majority of
us, wealth doesn't come instantly. You may believe that people winning the
lottery are a dime a dozen, but the truth is you're far more likely to get
struck by lightning than win the lottery. …

7. You Rely on Others to Take Care of Your Money: You
believe that others have more knowledge about money matters, and you rely
exclusively on their judgment when deciding where you should invest your money.
…

8. You Invest in Things You Don't Understand: Your hear that
Bob has made a lot of money doing it, and you want to get in on the gravy train.
If Bob really did make money, he did so because he understood how the investment
worked. …

9. You're Financially Afraid: You are so scared of risk that
you keep all your money in a savings account that is actually losing money when
inflation is put into the equation, yet you refuse to move it to a place where
higher rates of return are possible because you're afraid that you will lose
money.

10. You Ignore Your Finances: You take the attitude that if
you make enough, the finances will take care of themselves. If you currently
have debt, it will somehow resolve itself in the future. Unfortunately, it takes
planning to become wealthy. It doesn't magically happen to the vast majority of
people.

More at TheStreet.com.

Wanna raise your credit score?

You credit score. I am not sure if there is any other number that has a bigger effect on our lives. It can get you a 5% loan instead of 8%. It can make you eligible for that 2 year-no interest loan. Anything over 700 should be good enough for most loans.

Money.com has some tips on how you can bump it up and help yourself in the long run.

1: Pay off your debt: ‘…the best way to improve your credit score in the short term is to pay off the high balances on your credit card - that can raise your FICO score 60 to 70 points overnight, …’

2: Minimize your balances: …If you're within three months from applying for credit, make sure you don't charge a lot on your cards, or split the purchases between a few cards, so you keep the balances down. …

3: Hang onto older cards: ‘…the longer you've managed your credit wisely, the better your score…’

4: Don't sweat the little things: We've already told you what impacts your score. But here are some things that don't matter to your score at all. Your score won't be affected if you request your own credit record, or if you go for credit counseling.

More here.

6 steps to credit card serenity

USA is a country that is swimming in credit card debt. A quick Google search shows that the average US household debt is around $10,000. I was buried under a five figure credit card debt until a few years ago as well. For those of you who are trying to cope with it and working towards a place where you are debt-free, Bankrate.com has some tips on how to get there.

1. Know where you stand – …make a list of exactly how much you owe and
what rate of interest you're paying on each card. Then list your cards in order
of highest rate to lowest.
2. Pay highest-interest cards first – …
These cards are the ones that are costing you the most over the long run so you
need to make every effort to pay more than the minimum payment each month on
these bills first.
3. Get a better deal – Call the toll-free
number for your highest rate cards and ask the customer service representative
if she can give you a better deal.
4. Consider using a different card –
Hang on to all those zero percent and other low-interest credit card offers
you've been getting in the mail. Done well, transferring your high interest
balance to one of these cards can save you an enormous amount in interest and
put you on a solid track to paying down debt.
5. Beef up your credit score –
If you make all your payments on time over the next six months and aggressively
pay down your biggest balances first, you could improve your score as much as 50
points
6. Avoid penalties and fees – Interest rate hikes and hefty monthly
fees can ruin even the best-laid pay-back plans. Avoid: Late payment penalties.
Penalties for late payments on any card. Credit Limit Fees

More here.

How to get out of debt

A nice piece with a lot of suggestions on how to get out of debt posted on 'Free Money Finance'.

Look at what you could do without.
Cancel your cable.
Take your lunch and snacks to work.
Stop smoking.
Cut energy costs.

There’s no mystery to getting out of debt. It comes down to disciplining yourself to spend less money than you make on a consistent, long-term basis. And the benefits of living debt-free goes beyond the peace of mind you’ll experience today to knowing that you’ll be passing along a good inheritance for future generations.

A good read for anyone struggling to get out of debt and is looking for options or new creative ways to help the situation.

More after the jump.

10 Reasons NOT to get a credit card

After yesterday's post about why you should get a credit card and what benefits it could provide, here are 10 reasons NOT to get one and how it can harm you in the long, and sometimes even the short run.

1. They can damage your credit score
2. They can come with universal default
3. They charge huge interest rates
4. They come with numerous fees
5. Many cards have a hidden rule in the fine print
6. They have deceiving minimum payments
7. They encourage impulse purchases
8. They increase your spending
9. They encourage you to spend more money than you have
10. Credit cards will bait and switch

Details here.