Playing Catch-Up, Downplaying and About That Credit

It's been a while since I've posted "fresh" pictures of the shop (Corner Nest in Elizabethton, TN) and thought you might want to rest your eyes with a little eye candy. Most of these pictures are not of our booths - I like to take pictures of all over the mall so you can see the diversity of antiques, gifts, and handmade items offered there: What's an antiques shop without quilts? And here's a new addition: home made preserves! YUM! Here's a little something special for you (us) shabby chic lovers: And here's a chest we just added a couple days ago: If you want to see more pictures of the Corner Nest, click HERE. And here's a twist on an idea I picked up from Joy at Joys of Home! I've had this olde battered and severely discolored tray with this cool patina and character scars for several months. It looked like it could be easily made into a frame but, uh, I couldn't figure out how I wanted to do that. At least, not until I saw Joy's post. Long story short, remember that flower fairy that had been sitting in the midst of my studio mess? Well, now she has a permanent home - one where she is safe and prettily framed on a background of aged wallpaper. Finally, I promised you I would share some of the things I learned during my 20+ years of working in the mortgage industry. There is so much that goes into credit that it would be impossible to put all the information into one little blog post, so let me share a few things that seemed to surprise a lot of people while I was pouring over their credit reports with them: 1. The history of how you pay or paid an account will remain on your report for ten years. (Used to be seven, now most creditors are keeping the info there for ten.) If you were ever 30 days or more late paying a bill, your report will code not only how many times you were late but the dates you were late. This history WILL stay on your report after you pay off this bill. (I can't count the number of times people would look at me and say, "But I paid that off!") It doesn't matter. History is history. 2. Tearing up a credit card and never using it again does NOT close that account. Unless that card had an expiration date that was not renewed, the account remains open. If it's one of those lousy charge cards that charges $39 or whatever annually just for the "privilege" of using it, that charge will be billed to you and if you don't pay it you COULD be charged late fees. If it's your intention to close an account, call or mail the creditor to inform them of such. Simply not using the card doesn't do it. 3. The credit of similarly named individuals in a family could show up on your credit report. It's not unusual for "Senior" and "Junior" accounts to criss-cross. Expect this to happen - another reason to stay informed of what is on your report by pulling it yourself once a year. (Especially if the other individual has bad credit.) 4. Using a company that helps you reduce the interest on your accounts WILL affect your credit history. Although you may be making payments on time to one of the many nonprofit organizations designed to help you, you are NOT making on time payments under the rules of your original agreement with the creditor. Yes, I am saying that those creditors affected will still report you as making late payments to them. 5. Making your rent or mortgage payments late is basically the "kiss of death" when it comes to mortgage loans. Mortgage lenders expect you to ALWAYS put the roof over your head first; don't expect them to grant you a mortgage if your car payment is always on time but you run late on your mortgage. As always, thanks for stopping by and God bless!