5 financial numbers, what you need to know

11:00 AM financial, numbers No Comments

| By Mike Anderson, US News & world report

Stay in solid financial shape requires more than just knowing the balance of your checking account.

When we talk about personal finance, we throw a lot of terms: APRs, credit scores, mortgage principals... you get the idea. It is easy in all these numbers, so that we're here, lost to enter it for you.

These five may be the most important. You are the difference between a healthy bank account and debt collectors knock at your door:

This can be the most important number that ever linked with your name. Their credit score determines your agreement for a mortgage or car loan; It also plays a role in the credit card, that offers itself to qualify. It affects your interest rates for loans, too, and much more. In addition, many employers evaluate the applicant's score during the hiring process.

To create a high score you have to responsible borrowers. This task is a bit more complex than it may sound, so that we can start at the beginning: to pay your credit card bills on time and in full.

Once you have, is another way to increase your credit score, make several types of loan lenders to impress. Their thinking is: If you can handle such tasks, you are creditworthy.

That is, let's not all these loans at the same time, because each results in a tough investigation, to taking a flip on your credit score. Your length of credit history affects your guests and opened at the same time too many accounts can creditors you're desperate.

If you file taxes this year, you find yourself in one of the six clips from 10% to 35%. Don't assume, but if you fall 15% in the mounting bracket, you flat 15% the Federal Government annually pay - pay less.

Therefore, because the 15% bracket is not your effective interest rate (the final amount you pay at the end); It is your marginal tax rate, indicating how much to tax your last dollars.

Confused? Think of taxes as a ladder: for individuals, 10%-Klammer ends at $8,700. The next step on the ladder is 15% from $8.701, the clip $35.350.

If you $30,000 last year made the first $8,700 made taxed 10%; and the rest, the other $21.300, which you earned is taxed 15%. To sum up, $4,065, which is at the end of numbers, again assuming you do not claim your effective interest rate not 15% but rather 13.55%, that tax deductions, credits or how.

Here's why this is important: If your employer withholds more than you clearly the Federal Government thanks to, you might wonder to hold back a little. This way instead of spending more money as a federal tax return in spring back, can immediately deposit the money into a savings account and earn interest.

In America may be a large part of his income save the past. The personal Sparquote--how much of your income is hidden way is rather verbracht-- just 4.6% from the fourth quarter of 2012.

While this shocking deep has improved by one by 1.5% in 2005, it is still a major decline decades past, if Americans saved more than 10% of their income. What is worse, in the year 2010, according to the Federal Reserve, only 52% of Americans spent less than she deserve.

With interest rates so low, it is no surprise, the people are not depositing as much as in the past. Even long-term CDs, the usually much higher yield than the daily savings account, not much; CD rates are on average less than 1% APY. Nevertheless, consumers are out of options. If you are looking to save, check out online banks or local credit unions that offer usually better prices than the big banks.

Americans keep more student loan debt as credit card in the amount of $1 trillion. Although interest rates for most public and private loans than on credit cards, can the shear amount of debt-sometimes more than $100,000 or more - even the minimum payments make it difficult. Make sure know your future obligations for student loans, and benefit programs from beneficial repayment of your lenders offered.

You need to get student grip on your debts, because the loans you take out influenced it in the future. How treat your student debt and really no debt, has an influence on your credit score, which in turn affect your interest rate-has or if you are approved for the loan.

It sounds scary to try your name set a dollar value, but know this value helps to put you to smarter objectives and to create a solid financial plan. To calculate your equity, you need a list of everything you have to do, you debt, and then subtract to learn the difference.

First add your assets then your liabilities (or Their total debt). Its gross assets equation should read as follows:

NET value = (cash + properties + investments)-(credit card debt + loan + outstanding payments of any other kind).

If you are positive, issues you are: "I'm resource allocation I mean so well to my short-, medium - and long-term goals can?" If everyone sits in a low yield savings account, your money hard to beat inflation, invest a part of it, to diversify your portfolio.

If you are negative, is not stress but rather to develop a plan. The most important step, which you can take, you begin your debt as quickly as possible, starting is the loan, downloaded the most in the interest.

Once you know where you stand as a whole, you can get better for future expenses, such as preparation, to buy a car or saving for a retirement budget.