Only 43% of consumers will cut back on holiday spending this year, compared to 55% in 2008, according to a Consumer Federation of America survey. While increased consumer optimism spells good news for retailers, for Americans planning to “stretch” the budget, the New Year could bring falling credit scores, and with it, serious consequences. Here are some fail-safe tips from FICO Credit Guru Shon Dellinger to help enthusiastic shoppers stay financially sound: 1. Be Smart with Credit. Using a credit card is ok – experts agree having 3-5 credit cards helps your credit, if used responsibly. But carrying a balance on your credit card leaves you (1) stuck paying interest that could cost you, in some cases, double or triple the cost of those gifts in the long run and (2) with a much lower credit score, which could jack up interest rates on your credit cards and jeopardize your chance of getting lines of credit elsewhere (buying a house, a car, etc.). Services like FICO Score Watch combat this by providing emails or texts alerting you to any changes [...]

A few months ago, Mr. Money had issues with his Capital One credit card where they kept charging him a $39 annual fee. While we’re thankful to be done with them because of the horrible customer service we’ve received, we are also facing a problem. Mr. Money doesn’t have any credit cards on his credit report now. The only credit cards we have are our National City Everyday Rewards and a Home Depot credit card that we used to purchase our appliances. I have a card and Mr. Money is an authorized user as well on both accounts. He’s got his own card so he can access the accounts, but the payments are not showing up on his credit report. I’m a little concerned about his credit score being negatively affected because he has no revolving lines of credit on his credit report. These are the options we’re considering: opening up a credit card in just Mr. Money’s name, or closing out my National City credit card and applying for a joint one. If we open a credit card in [...]

I received an email the other day from Wamu/Chase informing me that my FICO credit score had changed 20 points.  I logged in to their website to see what had happened. It is down 25 points! The only things that I can think of are that I applied for that auto loan a couple months ago. It’s either that or because Wamu closed my card the other day. I have no idea. Those are the only two things I can think of. I’m not that upset about it because it’s still 809, but the point is it was 834 and I worked my butt off to get it there! I’m just bummed.  Just for the records, here’s the history of my credit score (keep in mind I’m 25): 12/07- 781 1/08- 781 2/08-810 3/08-801 4/08-801 5/08-801 6/08-803 7/08-814 8/08-834 9/08-820 10/08-834 11/08-809 Am I being too crazy about my credit score?