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Archives for February 2022

3 Ways To Better Manage Your Debt Repayment

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When you’re in debt, it can feel like a mountain that you’re never going to be able to reach the top of. But once you do reach the summit, you’ll be amazed at just how light you feel and how much more money you have to retain control of over the course of a month. However, to get to this point, you’ve got to have a plan in place for repayment of your debts.

To help you in doing this, here are three ways to better manage your debt repayments.

Get An Accurate Report Of All Your Debts

In order to really start making progress on paying off your debt, you first have to know where you owe money and exactly how much money you owe. Without this information, you can’t create an accurate and complete plan for how you’ll go about paying off this debt.

When making this calculation, make sure you calculate not only the total amount of money that you owe right now, but also how much you’re paying in interest and what your monthly payments are. This way, you can know how much you’re responsible for right now, how much more you’ll be responsible for when paying all of the interest on your revolving balances, and the total amount you’ll be paying to get completely out of debt.

Pick A Debt Strategy The Will Work For You

Depending on how much debt you have and how you feel about your debt, you’ll want to pick a debt repayment strategy that will work for you.

There are quite a few different strategies you can choose from for repaying your debt. One option is to get rid of the smallest amount of debt first and then add those payments to the next smallest debt until all your debt is gone, often called the debt snowball. You can also try paying off the debt with the largest interest rate first so that you don’t have to pay more interest than is necessary, which is called the debt avalanche. Or, if you have too many different debts to effectively manage on your own, you can also consolidate your debt payments and just pay everything at once each month.

Don’t Allow Yourself To Create More Debt

When you’re working hard on paying off your debt as quickly as possible, the one thing that can majorly set you back is if you continue to add to your debt. Knowing this, you should make it part of your debt repayment plan to not create any more debt at this time. Put your credit cards away and stop using them until your debt and spending is back under control.

If you’re having a hard time managing the repayment of your debts, consider using the tips mentioned above to help you overcome this.

 

How Shareholder Activism Can Help Make COP26 a Success? 

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Few could ignore the protests that surrounded UK’s finance day on November 2nd, which threatened to overshadow COP26. Green activist groups were protesting against ‘greenwashing,’ frustrated that the public has been misled about the success of green initiatives. 

Rishi Sunak made a speech in which he promised multi-trillion-dollar commitments. He said all the right things and even suggested that he would put the required pressure on the private sector. Surprisingly, he even said that the government would financially contribute more readily to green initiatives in developing countries. He then went on to avail that the United Kingdom would become the first Net Zero Aligned Financial Centre. What does this mean? In a nutshell, all financial institutions in Britain will soon be required to achieve net-zero emissions. Ambitious? Yes. Achievable? Perhaps.

His speech wasn’t warmly received by everyone, with a Net Zero Asset Managers report essentially suggesting that the gestures made by Sunak weren’t as they seemed. Specifically, the report highlighted that a bit of digging is enough to show that the numbers are misleading. As the UK continues its recovery from the pandemic, it’s not evident where the money will come from to fund climate change initiatives.

A commitment to net-zero 

Bringing our carbon emissions to net-zero won’t be cheap. However, it’s definitely cheaper than dealing with issues arising from climate change. For context:

  • The UK has suffered to the tune of £300 billion due to the pandemic.
  • Estimates indicate that the cost of getting the UK to net-zero would cost £1 trillion over 20 years.
  • If the government doesn’t take any action, the cost is likely to be nearer £2 trillion to deal with climate change.

Officials at COP26 made it clear that preventative measures must be taken as soon as possible. But what does the UK government think? Rishi Sunak highlighted the following:

  • 80% of the planet’s economy is committed to carbon neutrality or net-zero.
  • The UK has promised $100 billion to support developing countries with reaching net-zero.
  • An additional £100 million has been pledged to the Taskforce on Access to Climate Finance.
  • Mandatory sustainability disclosures will be created to hold the private sector to account.

What the chancellor omitted from his speech 

Despite his grandiose pledges, Rishi Sunak omitted one essential aspect from his speech: how on earth will the UK government achieve these targets? The financial sector is hardly squeaky clean when it comes to pledges and ignoring loopholes, so there’s a lot still up in the air about how things will play out. Given that so many governments are failing on targets laid out by the Paris Agreement – due primarily to Covid-19 – it begs the question, how will this be any different?

Activist investing brings hope to the table 

While the government’s announcement that they will pressure the financial sector is welcome, it’s not enough. For real, lasting change, investors must pressure their companies from within and develop metrics that can be tracked and evaluated. This is where activist investing has such an important role to play. It forces companies into action and necessitates compliance with key ESG initiatives.

Activist investing platforms like Tulipshare are already doing what they can to drive change from within. This collective approach to investing is undoubtedly a step in the right direction, at least where holding the government and private sector to account is concerned.

3 Things You Can Do To Make Your Home Renovations More Affordable

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If your home is in need of some renovations, taking on these types of projects can get very expensive. So if you’re trying to make the necessary improvements while sticking to a tight budget, it’s vital that you find some ways to save money and get what you need for a lower price.

To help you see how both of these things can be possible, here are three things you can do to make your home renovations more affordable.

Revive Rather Than Redoing

Depending on how extensive your renovations need to be, you might want to consider reviving what you already have rather than completely redoing parts of your home in the renovation.

For anything structural, you may not actually be able to revive your existing situation. But for renovations that would be cosmetic, you might be able to get away with simply giving a little extra love to your finishes, which can save you a lot of money as opposed to getting something brand new. Especially for things like hardwood, cabinets, and caulking in the bathroom or kitchen, cleaning up the materials can make your space look fresh and new without having to pay for a brand new version.

Help With Demolition

Demolition is one part of home renovation that you may be able to do primarily on your own

For minor renovations, you may be able to take care of the renovation and debris removal without the help of a professional. However, if you’re going to be doing a lot of renovations that will require a big amount of demolition, or if the parts of your home that you’re renovating are structurally important to the home, you’ll likely want to hire a professional in demolition to take care of this for you. But if you are able to do even some of the demolition yourself, you’ll be able to save yourself the money of having to pay someone else to do this work.

Get The Floor Model

When it comes time to bring in the new appliances, furniture, or other features for your newly remodeled home, buying these pieces can be a huge cost for you.

One way you can save money on these purchases is to get the floor model of whatever product you’re wanting to buy. Once you find what it is you want, try visiting various stores or retailers who sell this product. And if you’re able to find one that they have help on the floor for display, you might be able to purchase this exact piece at a huge discount, since it’s been out in public and touched by other potential buyers.

If you’re going to be making some renovations at home and are wanting to do this an inexpensively as possible, consider using the tips mentioned above to help you see how this can be done.

You Can Get Top Business Credit Cards Even With Bad Credit: Here’s How

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For many companies, having a business card seems essential. It makes paying for materials, office supplies, and other operational expenses much easier. But if you have poor credit, you may wonder if you can even get access to a business card. The short answer is yes!

There are plenty of top business credit cards for business owners with no or poor credit. You just need to know where to look and how to find them.

How to Find the Right Business Card With Bad Credit

If you want to find a business card that accepts you with bad credit or no credit, it is as simple as knowing where to look.

Some Great Suggestions

We have two great suggestions for top business credit cards for those with poor credit or no credit. These are Capital One Spark Classic for Business and the Wells Fargo Business Secured Credit Card.

Capital One Spark Classic for Business has a 26.99% variable APR interest rate and no fees. Just keep in mind that it requires a credit score of at least 580. If your credit score is lower than this, consider the second option, the Wells Fargo Business Secured Credit Card. There is also no annual fee, and because it is secured, you can get it with nearly any credit score. However, you will have to deposit into the account to use the card.

Be Prepared for Higher Fees or Interest Rates

There is one important caveat. As with personal credit cards, business credit cards are more likely to have higher interest rates or annual fees if you have poor credit. So, don’t be surprised.

Alternatively, you can look for a secured credit card for your business. These function like any other secured credit card, requiring you to pay a deposit upfront. As a bonus, a secured card is an excellent way to build your business credit.

How to Build Your Credit

As mentioned, a secured credit card can help you build your business credit, but there are also other things you can do. Just establishing your EIN will help boost your business credit score. This is also important as it separates your business and personal finances.

You can also try applying for a credit line with your vendor if you can’t find a credit card yet. This is an alternative with a similar result, and it helps you build your credit. You could also try getting a small loan for working capital.

Finally, be sure to regularly check your business credit report, just like you would your personal one. This lets you ensure there are no errors that could be bringing the score down lower than it should be.

Conclusion

Just because you have bad credit or no credit, that doesn’t mean that you won’t have access to any top business credit cards. While your options will be limited, there are still some great choices. The only caveat is that you’ll have a higher interest rate or need to use a secured card. You also don’t want to rule out alternatives, such as a line of credit with your vendor or a working capital loan.

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