Author Archives: Darold Hogan

Inquiring minds would like to know

The Difference Between Hard and Soft Credit Inquiries - Rich Money

Credit is a topic that has several different facets that make it up. One factor that makes up a credit score (as much as 10 percent) is an inquiry. An inquiry is the beginning stage of beginning a new line of credit and shows how one is looking to seek a new line of credit.

A credit inquiry is a request by an institution for credit report information from a credit-reporting agency. Credit inquiries can be from all types of entities for various reasons, but they are typically made by financial institutions. They are classified as either a hard inquiry or a soft inquiry. Hard inquiries are a key part of the underwriting process for all types of credit. Soft inquiries help credit companies to market their products and can be used to help consumers and are good for reviewing with customers/clients.

Hard inquiries are requested from a credit bureau whenever a borrower completes a new credit application. They are retrieved using a customer’s Social Security number and are required for the credit underwriting process. Hard inquiries provide a creditor with a full credit report on a borrower. This report will include a borrower’s credit and details on their credit history. These are typically displayed on a credit report for approximately 24 months before falling off. Hard inquiries can be harmful to a borrower’s credit score. Each hard inquiry usually causes a small credit score to decrease for a borrower. Hard inquiries remain on one’s credit report for two years. Generally, a high number of hard credit inquiries in a short period of time can be interpreted as an attempt to substantially expand available credit, which creates higher risks for a lender. Hard inquiries can be harmful to a borrower’s credit score. Each hard inquiry usually causes a small credit score to decrease for a borrower. Hard inquiries remain on one’s credit report for two years. Generally, a high number of hard credit inquiries in a short period of time can be interpreted as an attempt to substantially expand available credit, which creates higher risks for a lender, usually within a window of 14-45 days. For those unable or unwilling to wait two years and who are comfortable paying a small fee, one of the best credit repair companies might be able to get the hard inquiries removed from a credit report sooner. In some instances, hard inquiries also may be used for situations other than a credit application. An employment background check and a lease rental application are two instances in which a hard inquiry also may be required. In some instances, hard inquiries also may be used for situations other than a credit application. An employment background check and a lease rental application are two instances in which a hard inquiry also may be required.

Soft inquiries are not included in a credit report. These inquiries can be requested for a variety of reasons. Credit companies have relationships with credit bureaus for soft inquiries that result in marketing lists for potential customers. These soft inquiries are customized by the credit company to identify borrowers who meet some of their underwriting characteristics for a loan. Credit-aggregating services also use soft inquiries to help borrowers find a loan. These platforms require information about a borrower, including their Social Security number, which allows for soft inquiries and prequalification offers. Many lenders also will provide a borrower with quotes through a soft inquiry request that can help them understand potential loan terms. Personal credit reports are also obtained through soft inquiries. Individuals have a right to obtain free annual credit reports from credit reporting agencies that detail their credit information. Individuals can also sign up for free credit scores through their credit card companies. These credit scores are reported to borrowers each month and are obtained by the credit card company through a soft inquiry.

Inquiries are an indicator of what makes up a credit score as well as seeking out new credit. The small components that make up something that most people shy away from are an integral part of your overall credit score. Given this new information may you have a better understanding of how this helps in shaping your credit history for future purchases. Until the next time dear reader. Excelsior!

Challenges of the young professional

The workplace can be a difficult terrain to navigate for any and everyone. It does not matter if it is a blue collar construction job or a white collar administrator role. Every position and environment has their own challenges. Throw in a new batch of college or high school graduates into the mix and you have an interesting mix of dynamics in the work place. Being a young professional in the workplace myself, here are some first and second hand illustrations of potential challenges and how to get through them.

A common struggle is the matter of being discounted due to age. Everyone has a beginning and needs to learn but after a while, skills are obtained and innovations and insights are developed. For those who are young (or in some cases young looking) there is a need to take an extra step and work a little harder to establish credibility. You’re a seasoned, skilled professional with years of valuable experience under your belt. These tips can make sure all of those things shine through at work—even if your gray hair doesn’t.

Navigating the professional world can be a little tough so it is important to have a career plan and set yourself in the trajectory to reach your career goals via advocating for yourself and setting clear cut goals for yourself. Build your network and share your motivation with your manager/supervisor to help with crafting an action plan to get you where you want to be. Even if you’re starting your own business make sure to get connected and voice your aspirations with those who are and have been where you want to go.

Another important aspect in being a young professional is presenting yourself as such from your dress style, email and text etiquette, and how you communicate with others in a working capacity. That includes leaving the slang at the door during work hours because not everyone in the office is privy to the lexicon used on Instagram and other social media. Do not overconpensate by acting cocky but yet if you are skilled let it be on display in a way that doesn’t make you seem arrogant. And above all else be patient and humble and deliver constant results to show that despite your youthfulnes, you are a force to be reckoned with and the sky is the limit.

To the young and the young in heart I encourage you to use these principles and see how far they take you. Often times I hear “I’m/you’re too young/old” I am a believer that that is a crutch that is used to hold us back from your dreams. If a 20 year old can become a music producer and make over $160,000 a year, or a 80 year old pass the New York bar exam or start a business at 30 anything is possible. It all depends on the willingness to make things happen and the hunger to not stop until the goal is met and when the goal is reached they exceed it! Until next time readers. Excelsior!

Motivated May: The Vergil Workout

For those that know me personally, I am an avid gamer and a fan of working out and maintaining my physical abilities. I came across two websites called superherojacked.com and beagamecharacter.com which had many of workouts inspired by different characters and celebrities alike. I took on some of the different workout programs to much success and decided to attempt a custom program of my own inspired by a character of my choosing. For this series I will be drawing inspiration from Vergil from the devil may cry series. Vergil is an accomplished swordsman and has incredible superhuman strength and agility, I decided to craft my series based on this premise. I took the approach of using body weight exercises to make it more realistic for a wandering swordsman character such as Vergil. This is a six day program but go at a pace that will work for you and also remember to warm up beforehand!

Strength training (5 sets of 5-20 reps depending on experience follow up with low intensity cardio of your choice)

Workout 1

Step up lunges (5 x 5-20 each time)

Triceps dips (5 x 5-20, using a set of chairs work well for this)

Door rows (5 x 5-20 each side)

Plank (5x 30 sec-1 min or more)

Arm circles (5 x 5-20 both directions)

Workout 2

Pike shoulder press (5x 5-20)

Chin-ups (5 x5-20)

Good mornings (5 x 5-20)

Sit-ups (5 x 10-20)

Hindu squats (5 x 5-20)

Incline/ decline pushups (5 x 5-20, I switched from incline to decline to mix things up a bit)

Workout 3

Pullups (5 x 5-20)

Alternating width pushups (5 x 5-20, I switched from wide grip to closed grip pushups for this)

Shoulder touch (5 x 5-20 each side)

High knees (5 x 10-40)

Hanging leg raises (5 x 5-20)

Cardio

In conjunction to the strength training Vergil has a lot of endurance and cardio for fighting for extended periods of time. For cardio I suggest going with a HIIT approach with these (for those who do not know what that is, it is simply engaging in high periods of activity with resting intervals)

Cardio 1

Jog/run (one and one intervals for a 5k length or build up to it depending on your experience level) 30 min

Cardio 2

Shadowboxing (1 min work with 30 seconds of rest between sets) 30 min

Plyometrics

Vergil has explosive powerful movements with his fists and his sword, so it is only right to combine the two of them together. I also use a steel club to build on forearm strength and shoulder mobility. Check out my paid link for a good starter club.

Burpee (3 x to failure)

Plyo pushups (3 x to failure)

Medicine ball toss (3 x to failure)

Club/hammer swings (3 x to failure)

Club/ hammer abdominal twists (3 x to failure)

After giving this series a try I felt much stronger after the fact. Train well in preparation for the summer months and in general. Excelsior!

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A matter of the mind

In life you will come across different points of view on an argument, contrasting worldviews, and limiting beliefs that hold people back. What does this have to do with personal development you might ask? Simply put, looking at things from a different perspective and adapting a different mindset can help shape your way of thinking and how you adapt to changes or challenges presented in life

A prime example of how a mind set can help with priming you for success would be this video i came across in regards to one’s “inner game” and their ability to power through obstacles and get things done. Often times i hear things such as “i can’t” or ” i don’t know if i can” and my response is typically “yes you can” and “what makes you think you cant?” to challenge this limiting belief someone may have presented.

Limiting beliefs are things that can hold up back from where we need to be in life. Beliefs such as “I’m too young/old” i have an article that challenges that. “I don’t have the skill set or know how” there are hundreds of resources out there to educate yourself on different subject matters such as workshops, seminars and free classes for those who might pursue something without going for a degree. There are even websites like khan academy that are available for free for people to learn things such as coding, grammar, history etc. I am a firm believer of finding like minded people to collaborate ideas with to come up with innovative new ideas. Finding mentors to help you get to where you need to get to the next level of life and i strongly encourage finding one to help you push yourself to that level. Above all else, try and fail. You cannot learn without trial and error because when you have an error you can treat it as a learning experience to use for the next challenge. Do not be afraid to try for fear of failure but embrace it and treat mistakes and failures as something to use in obtaining wisdom for yourself those who follow after you.

The world is vastly changing in the digital age. There are more resources on the web, in person and even courses one could take to better a skill set or give people the starting tools for a new chapter in life. But it starts with having a mind to be open and willing to absorb the material required to get to the next level of success in your adventure of life. In my own experience I’ve trained with some of the best people in my position, took on some self study in my own time and above all took time and developed a system that works for me through trial and error to help me become a top producer in my position at work during my first few months. I had to challenge things i knew and didn’t know and learn from the best and find a way to take my game to the next level. Beforehand i had limiting beliefs that held me back on my overall workflow and production and once i obtained the training, self study, experience and getting a mentor I haven’t looked back since. Anyone can do it and so can you!

Challenging and changing one’s inner game is imperative to reaching the next level of success for whatever you are seeking to obtain in life. If you can change your mindset into what it needs to be to reach new heights you’ll find that those limiting beliefs are merely lead shoes that weigh you down. Remember change your mindset from limited to limit breaking and you will see results. Don’t wait what better time to start than right now. Excelsior!

Streams of flowing income

What is Multiple Streams of Internet Income (MSII)? Why is it important to have MSII? – The Internet Income Academy

This time a year ago the entire world was turned upside down by a pandemic. Lockdowns ensued and people lost jobs, lives, and there was so much panic and confusion and uncertainty. Fast forward a year later and we are still feeling the effects of this ongoing issue in every way possible. One of the lessons that cannot be emphasized enough is the need for an alternative stream of income in the even one stream dries up there are others to keep funds flowing through into your accounts.

There are several different types of income, the first of which is the most common being earned income. We earn it by the hour, by the sale, by the project or by the salary. We get up most days to report to our employers to earn this income. The second type of income is profit income. When goods and services are sold there are costs associated. When businesses sell at a price higher than the cost incurred there is profit earned on the sale of the good or service. These are what are called active income streams because when one is trying to obtain income  they are actively pursuing it.

Another type of income earned is what is called passive income, this comes without action and money is made typically around the clock. One type of passive income is interest income from placing money in an interest-bearing account such as a high yield savings account or CD or any other interest-bearing products offered by your financial institution. (if you have not read my article on money market savings or CD accounts please refer to those articles for more information). Another passive income source is dividend income which comes from investments in stocks or bonds or mutual funds which pay out a dividend on a regular basis. This goes hand and hand alongside capital gains income from buying and selling assets can provide you with an income (you buy stocks and shares worth $100 and then sell them on for $120, the capital gain is $20.). Another passive income type is real estate income from the sale and renting of property to tenants and buyers. Lastly, royalty income from intellectual property such as books, film and music being sold or used by third parties. There are so many ways to make an alternative stream of income some big, small conventional or unique.

In light of this past year and the years to come, now more than ever, is this a time to keep an eye open for opportunities to obtain income. Diversification is useful in today’s times given the current state of the world. After reading this I hope this inspires you to open your mind to the different possibilities of generating income and maintaining a living in a way that works best for you. In the meantime, stay inspired and motivated. Excelscior!

Taking a time to take a time out

Here’s a cup of chill for your chill pill

Life moves fast. We’re constantly on the go and it is always a steady hustle and bustle. We as a society are busy to the point of it gets stressful to keep firing on all cylinders. One thing that is neglected often is the importance of having time to take off from our busy plates and take the time to recalibrate and rest.

As someone who is a self professed workaholic, i am an advocate of taking some time for a vacation or even a personal day to just unwind from being always “on”. There many benefits to being able to take some time for yourself especially for your career. Taking a personal day/vacation time is important for a healthy work life balance. Once you take some time off from what you have focused so much of your time and energy on you’ll find yourself psychologically refreshed , improved focus, overall better balance between work and life. You will also notice that you’ll have time to catch up on things you might not have had time for when you didn’t before and even time to enjoy things you normally don’t such as a hobby or time with loved ones. You don’t need to have a two week retreat to tahiti necessarily (though if you want to do that I say go for it!). Even if you take a personal day per month or a leave for specific purposes like our friends in the uk. You will be able to find a better balance and it will help you in your longevity and satisfaction in your career.

The workforce is changing and according to a study the work day has lengthened and people are taking less breaks making it harder to find balance. Did you know in 2018 768 million vacation days were left unused? That is a lot of unused pto that is lost if it’s not rolled over or cashed out. Some occupations lack paid time off which forces workers to miss pay if they are not present. We know making money is important but we are human and we have other obligations outside of our career such as family, friends, hobbies and interest and our own sanity. Our constantly bustling culture is making us lose our sense of self and lose sight of things we enjoy. If left unchecked there are consequences from our health, relationships and overall career satisfaction and performance (burnout, health issues, poor performance etc)

Taking time off is an often neglected part of our busybody culture. We need to place more emphasis on taking time to step away to refocus and recalibrate for the sake of longevity and satisfaction in terms of one’s career. For those that do not offer pto i encourage a way to find a way to make them happen and for those that do not take a personal day or vacation to take one. It will do wonders for you. Until the next time my friends excelsior!

Opinion: The Retail Investors vs the hedge funds (the short squeeze)

Wallstreetbets a popular reddit forum

In my years of studying/working in finance, I’ve seen a few things but never as eventful as this. From what started as a far fetched speculation of GameStop shares going up to the discussion on Reddit forum r/wallstreetbets about an impending short on the gaming retail store, has evolved into one of the most interesting topics I’ve read all month. In the span of a month retail traders, billionaires, celebrities, and people in overseas markets have joined in on the events transpiring. If you would have asked me if GameStop would have hit $400 a share I would have thought that was a great joke but here we are in a time where GME stock was over $400 a share last week. The sheer leaps this stock has taken in a month have been mind-blowing and has been a part of some feedback, both positive and negative. From the media slamming those involved as “unsophisticated investors” who manipulated the market (while trading platforms such as Robinhood have blocked new shares from being bought which one would consider manipulation) to those that just like the stock and see the potential for the retailer to grow with the new console releases and acquisition of new talent on their team.

As an investor myself, I am a firm believer in letting people trade to their heart’s content. It’s a risk that most everyone involved should already know. It’s speculative and volatile and for the paper-thin arguments for platform restriction on stocks like GME, AMC and others are blatant manipulation to protect hedge funds from losses but also the media slanting is heavily skewed against the retail investors who have been apart of this. Needless to say, there are talks of class action lawsuits against Robinhood for restrictions on trade and it will not be the last I suspect. I suspect this time to be a transfer of generational wealth and people are missing the good people have been doing with their newfound wealth. If you get you to give. And that is what is happening here. I say let them trade. My only other word of wisdom with this is doing your homework and don’t just get on the bandwagon for the kicks and giggles. This is a great time to witness history and I cannot wait to see the final chapter in this saga. As always my friends invest responsibly and stay safe out there. Excelsior.

A year in review

Goodbye 2020 Funny Illustration - Vector Download
Photo credit Vexels

As this year comes to a close let’s look back at the past year. Look at the world around us and the current circumstances. Look at your situation. Look at the road ahead. We live in an uncertain time with a plethora of things that can happen. Life comes hard and fast, but we cannot let things that are important to slip by in the rapidly accelerating stream of time. Things such as family and friends, your goals and dreams, your finances and future.

This year I made several posts on personal finance, taking a departure from personal development topics, in an attempt to raise awareness and education on financial topics that are often not taught and/or oftentimes neglected. Personal finance is an important topic that is not meant to be taken lightly. It is something that has been in our past, working in our present and shaping our future. This year I have shared my expertise and knowledge of finance from my education and expertise working in the finance sector for the past few years now.

I encourage you, dear reader, to read my past posts on personal finance if you have not already. These are very insightful topics that will help with gaining more understanding on this topic. It has been a delight to bring such material to a wider audience and gain more readers. I will be uploading more regular content in the upcoming year for personal finance as well as bringing back more personal development content for your reading pleasure.

Before this year draws to a close, I will share one last lesson for the year. And that is the importance of the emergency fund. In a previous post of mine, I mentioned the importance of establishing emergency savings. This year is the prime example of why everyone can benefit from an emergency fund. If one would not believe me look at the current state that we are in as a country and as a civilization worldwide. We live in an uncertain time and we must make decisions and investments and goals to help us out when we need it the most. From your insurance to your warranty, to your very own shoebox under the mattress if need be. Everyone needs their ace in hand at the ready because you will never know when it is time to use it. Stay healthy and safe dear reader. Happy holidays and I wish you a happy new year. Here is to a better year and a better road ahead through taking control of one’s financial future. Excelsior!

Collect call

What Happens If You Don't Pay a Debt Collection

Dealing with credit can be tricky, there are different types of factors that build your credit and factors that hurt it. One such factor that hurts your score is having collections out against you. Collections are oftentimes neglected and can come back around in the future.Did you know that 71 million Americans have collection debt of some sort or another? (courtesy of urban.org)

Collections come from when a loan or bill has gone unpaid or was charged off/ listed as a loss on a company’s profit and loss statement and is given over to a collection agency. The collection agency then goes to contact you to collect the debt to be paid off. Once the collection is paid then it is cleared from the book of the collection agency and is reflected on your credit report if it is paid off. The same applies if a bill is listed as a collection on your credit report.

In my field of expertise, I have come to know that letting collections sit is not conducive to a healthy credit rating and can serve as an annoying anchor weight stopping your credit from reaching new heights. It is imperative to get rid of collections as soon as they are discovered or If something is going towards collections. Even if a bill disappears somehow and it was not paid there could be a chance it was sent to a collection agency to pester you to get their payment. These are not to be taken lightly. Even if a collection is paid it remains on a credit report for seven years but despite this, it could show that it was paid and prevent a collection agency from bothering you about the same debt. This is because a collection agency has seven years to collect this debt before they lose their chance to get paid. If it is coming down to the wire the collection agency can sell this debt to another agency and the “doctor’s bill from 10 years ago” could be lurking around for the next 20 years! Like dirt under a rug, it is waiting to be disturbed and make a mess again.

Collections can hurt your FICO credit score, contrary to a commonly held belief I have come across in my time in the field and research. The claim is that when updated from “unpaid” to “paid,” the collection can appear to the scoring formula as having originated more recently than it did, which, if true, could lower the score. However, the “assigned” date on the credit report does not change when the collection status is updated, nor do the credit scoring formulas give fewer points for a paid than an unpaid collection. Due to the length of time since the debt was assigned to a collection agency weighs so heavily on a credit score, the removal of the most recent collections can often be expected to raise a score. On the other hand, if there are multiple collections and it’s the older ones that you’re able to get removed, such as via a “pay for delete,” you may not see any improvement in your score following the removal of these older collections. So there is no evidence to support the myth that paying a collection can lower a score.

Collections can happen to anyone, whether you are already managing your credit responsibly or have hit hard times financially. Separating the facts from the fallacies about collections and credit scores can help you make more of the right moves and avoid some of the bad ones that can have an undesirable result. One way to check on the impact a collection might be having on your credit is to obtain your credit report from your bank, credit union, or from even the bureaus themselves. You can also go to sites like annualcreditreport.com to get your report for free as well. Do not let collections sneak up on you, something that might seem insignificant can still have an impact in the long run. Until the next time friends, excelsior!  

In your best interest

Interest Rate Definition

You hear about it, you probably pay it, you probably get paid in it. Love it or hate it we are going to talk about interest, what it is and how to make sense of it. Interest is a simple concept but there is often misconceptions about it and confusion. Let us get started in debunking that confusion.

Interest is payment from a borrower or deposit taking institution (such as a bank) to either a lender (someone who you took out a loan from) or a depositor (someone who puts money in the bank) above the principal sum (the original amount of the loan or deposit).at a particular rate. It’s not like a fee which gets paid to a lender and it is not like a dividend that is paid to a shareholder. When interest is paid to a lender or a person depositing money in an interest-bearing account more money comes out on the principal balance. The rate of interest  is equal to the interest amount paid or received over a particular period divided by the principal sum borrowed or lent usually expressed by a percentage (such as the annual percentage rate for loans or average percentage yield on interest bearing savings). Wen dealing with interest you also have compound interest (this is the fun one to get paid but not so fun if you are the one paying) which makes the total amount of the debt grow. Interest can be compounded daily, monthly, or on a yearly basis and the impact is affected by the compounding rate.

When dealing with interest you have some rules of thumb to consider. First, the rule of 78s which helps with calculating interest during the life of the loan as you pay on it. (i.e. on a 1 year loan in the 1st month 12/78 of all interest owed over the life of the loan is due and so on and so forth until the 12th month where only 1/78 of all interest is due. The rule of 72 can be used to approximate how long it would take for money to double at a given interest rate, for the compounding interest to reach or exceed the initial deposit, divide 72 by the percentage interest rate. When dealing with interest you always have options to refinance as well as find interest bearing accounts for higher interest to be paid. There are more technical aspects to interest as one looks into the markets and economics outside of the simple aspects of getting pair or paying interest but that is a topic for another time.

Until the next time, stay safe and continue to learn. Excelscior!