Can Grocery Ordering Online Improve My Credit Score? – Episode #43
Can grocery shopping online improve my credit score? I’m going to make the case that it can. You see, things that save you money can ulitmately improve your credit score. Normally, when you shop in a store, it’s hard to catch all the sales items. You are stretched for time, you have a list, you are easily distracted. But when you shop online, Safeway offers a sorting feature to see which of all your past purchases are now on sale. This is a great feature.
At the time of this writing, there are 84 items that I’ve purchased before which are all on sale with my Club Card. There is no way, in an hour in the store, that I’d be able to find these items and I’d likely spend more on a per item basis. Now, I wonder if online grocery shoppers spend more on a per shopping trip basis? But that may not matter, as people may be less offline simply because they don’t want to carry all the items to their car and then into their house.
I know when I shop online, about half the items i get or more are on sale. I believe i’m spending less, so my credit card balances are lower and that helps my credit score.
Are Credit Card Limits Being Lowered? Will This Impact My Credit Score? – Episode #42
There is a lot of press around behavioral model induced reductions. Marriage counseling, charging for low price items, even not using your cards risks a credit limit decrease which can hurt your score. There are numerous things you want to do to avoid a credit limit decrease.
1. Read your statements. Don’t go into denial about your statements, that’s where the notice of a credit limit reduction will occur
2. Don’t change your charging pattern. Using credit cards at Starbucks or Peet’s this month when you’ve always paid for these with cash in the past signals that your credit may be shaky and this can lead to a credit limit decrease.
3. Don’t stop using your credit cards altogether. This can lead to signaling as well and some consumers are reporting that this is leading to credit limit declines.
4. Don’t use credit cards for “flags for risk”. Financial institutions are watching your transactions. A charge for marriage counseling can be interpreted as a potential for divorce and thus financial distress. Pay for these services in cash or debit cards.
5. Play the game. Life is often about negotiations. If can prove you need a bigger credit limit, ask for it. Or save this move until the credit limit decrease happens.
If you are married, don’t forget to watch all your authorized user and joint credit cards to see if limits have been impacted. If you are a recent high school grad, or in college, make sure you are watching your credit limits and your credit scores.
Credit limits being reduced is a big story in the media with stories from the WSJ, CNN, and other news agencies.
Here’s some stats from other articles:
A CNN article also illustrates this: Consumer Credit Limit Crackdown.
American Express has reported over twice as many credit reductions have occurred in 2008 versus previous years. Typically, Amex will change the credit limit for 20% of its customers, with 16% getting increases and 4% getting a credit limit reduction.
Starting in summer 2007, Amex gradually tightened its lending. Now, American Express is lowering the credit limits for 10% of its customers, said Kimberly Forde, a company spokeswoman.
62% of credit card issuers have cut back the credit lines they make available to consumers, according to a recent report by Javelin Strategy & Research.
Issuers are cutting down consumer credit lines – sometimes by more than 50%, according to the American Bankers Association (ABA), a bank industry trade group.
