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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (April 5, 1999)
Aggielife Page 3 • Monday, April 5, 1999 Spend Now, Pay Later 145 to 75 Ith program ■read of dii lizards, 'les, respom ' and acce;i s School oft!, ic Heath \fc i publicM' rider standing bad credit key to controlling debt, avoiding financial woes BY MICHELLE MCNEELY The Battalion to live long: to take tte se. ate-night phone calls from credit-card companies threatening to take away prized possessions, credit cards being rejected by the store clerk and letters of complaint asking for money: if these scenarios familiar, it is time to wipe the slate clean and discover the benefits )®ood credit. The number one cause of bad credit is the late payment. Other caus- UBfbad credit include delinquent charges and charge-offs — debts that “Spmtua companies finally stopped trying to collect. -and Prose lh at nothing is free. Charge-offs are extremely detrimental to a 1271 for •reil t: record and are fatal to loan applications. iBZredit reports can help students monitor their credit. There are three HHjor credit reporting services that students can call to check their cred- here willt-A Status: Equifax (800-685-1111), Esperian (800-682-7654) and Trans ; U9C J I on (800-916-8800). l-8280fe® t costs $10 to obtain a credit report, but for those who have been de nied credit in the past 60 days, its free. Credit reports contain informa- :ioi such as occupation, annual salary, student loans, balances in cred- t and loan accounts and the number of late payments made to creditors ■Creditors include not only credit-card companies but also banks, cred- t unions and any other lender — including Texas A&M. Iff ^BfW^ggy Carey, supervisor of Financial Services at TAMU said credit re ports are extremely valuable. jupcnAY “When trying to buy a house or car, companies use credit reports to I'itoUA letermine if a person is going to pay them off,” Carey said. ■Showcase j s ver y important for students to talk to their creditors if they are un casing jbi e to make payments on time. Believe it or not, creditors want to help, -villbetie yiost are willing to set up payment schedules that are feasible for both = located parties. ■yn at 7/&C •■Carey said the main thing students should know is to not ignore pay- mem. ■“We try to help students in any way we can, but we can’t help them Vomen Enpf they do not call,” Carey said. a genera "A jCreditors will take what they can get, so it is unnecessary to feel un- :p.m. comfortable when talking with them. Students should simply explain gman a: problems to their creditors and set up a reasonable amount of money they nation ian pay out each month. nanity: •; • setingi#®* Gay Awareness Week April 5-8, 1999 lub: There officer elei r COUfT June i Wednesday, 4/7 - “Hate Crimes” Gender Issues Education Services Rudder 601,7pm Thursday, 4/8 - “Gay & Greek” GLBTA, Governance Room, 7pm Friday, 4/9 - “ALLY rALLY, March on TAMU” ALLIES, Rudder Fountain, Noon : or more information please contact Gender Issues Education Services at 845-1107 n /ISITY Editor n ion Edit° r : h j-fe Editor ;<jitor -jio produ# 1 Cariiio G ^rkMcPW^ 1 ■,r Van Serf ^ USiUMl W A One-Day Conference Sponsored by the TAMU Navigator Ministry Battalion ng SUHW# 1 Speaker: Jerry Bridges Author of several books including The Pursuit of Holiness. The Practice of odliness. Trusting God. Transforming Grace. he Discipline of Grace. The Crisis of Caring, and The Jov of Fearing God WHEN: aturday, April lOth, at Rudder Tower on the A&?M Campus. Registration opens at 8:00 a.m. sM on Level 2; Meetings are from 8:30 a.m. to 5:15 p.m., in Room 601 TOTAL COST: Registration $ 10 ea. at the door Carey said there are some myths that need to be corrected about pay ing off late charges. “Students think if they make a payment for the entire amount they owe, then we can take the charges off their record. The charges must stay on their record for seven years,” she said. “It is illegal for creditors to delete anything on their account except for mistakes.” The good news is that it is still possible for students to obtain credit even if their previous record is blemished. The bad news is that their in terest rates are usually higher. Carey said credit-card companies can usually distinguish good credit from bad credit. “People with the best credit get to shop around, find different levels of interest and receive the best rate,” Carey said. “While people with bad credit have to take what they can get.” The number two myth is that paying off the minimum balance each month is a good thing. Carey said students get in a rut when paying only the minimum balance. “It will take years to pay off your balance if all you are doing is pay ing the minimum amount due because all you are doing is paying off in terest,” she said. For example, by paying the minimum amount each month on a $3,000 charge with an 18-percent interest rate, it would take eight years and $5,690 to pay off the balance. That is an extra $2,680. Eric Tyson, author of Personal Finance For Dummies, says one answer is to investigate is lower-interest-rate credit cards. “Here’s one of the few times in your life when you want to be below average,” says Tyson. “Until you get your debt paid off, make it more dif ficult for your debt to grow. Once you are approved for a lower-interest- rate card, you can simply transfer your outstanding balances from your higher-rate card.” For those who think emergencies include buying new threads for a blind date on Thursday night or purchasing the new Britney Spears al bum, help is soon on the way. Debt Management will be a new organization on campus to help stu dents deal with their credit problems. Carey said the debt council will explain to students how to pay their creditors on time and the effects of bad credit now and in the future. “If students are having credit problems or need help making a bud get, we will help them find solutions to get their finances under control,” Free Food! Rowe^ ^ BBQ/V ckv Students . 100 Lucky Students Will Be Selected To Have Free BBQ At The President’s Home With Ray and Sally Bowen Entertainment A by ampus Group WA' Thursday, April 15, 1999, 6:30 p.m. (Rain site: Clayton Williams Alumni Center) ► """" """" mmm m " m ™ amm Students sign up at: http://rev.tamu.edu/freebbq Registration deadline: April 8, 1999 For more info call the Office of University Relations 845-4642 Winners will be notified via e-mail or phone April 9 Avrm 6 (S)& ? Class of 2000 Week Nintendo 64 A “ Chil iV’ Night 6-9 James Bond-a-thon A 4 AT J Wear 2000 T-shirt *2 P er entrant Preliminaries IVlOnaay Free awesome blossom 10:30-l:30pm Rudder 410 per table with entree 7:30-9:30pm Rudder 601 James Bond-a-thon Finals MSC Breezeway 11-1 Cash Prizes Tuesday Baseball Game/Tailgate Party Left Field @ 7:00 Only*l per plate! Silver Taps—9:45 Cain Eagle Carnival Day 10-3pm Rudder Area WT J -I free Food! Wediiesclay FREE Prizes! Wolf Pen Bowling 8pm FREE Cookies! 11-lpm Rudder Area Thursday Karaoke at Chelsea’s Street Pub at 9pm Epicenter 11pm FREE BBQ 4-6pm Research Park Friday A f 5th - Come join us and show your Aggie Spirit! Whoop! 'ik April Bth Carey said. Heather Lowrey, a junior business major, said students should think twice before using their credit cards. “It’s very stressful being in debt,” she said. “After paying off my credit cards and cutting up the rest, I feel a huge weight has been lift ed of my shoulders try to resist the urge because you’ll pay for it lat er, literally. ” MIKE FUENTES/Tm: Battalion NOW HIRING TOUR GUIDES for the AGGIELAND VISITOR CENTER FIRST FLOOR, RUDDER TOWER Applications available & accepted April 5-9 for more details, call 845-5851 Your backpacking & travel gear store! Traveling overseas this summer? Endless Journey By 1406 Texas Ave. South Redmond Terrace Shopping Center College Station, Texas 695-2807 burdett@txcyber.com Converts from luggage to backpack Retachable daypack and fannypack 6100 cubic inch capacity Lifetime warranty The Biotech Century Biotechnology: Natural Linkages between Agriculture and Medicine As a new millennium dawns, the biotechnology field is growing in order to meet the needs of the increasing human population. Wed., April 7, 1999 7 p.m. MSC 292B Featuring: Dr. Fuller Bazer, Director of the Institute of Biosciences and Technology Texas A&M University Health Science Center Discussing: The historical efforts of humans to use biotechnology to ensure that they had an abundant supply of food and how those technologies have benefited human and animal health in the past and the high expectations for even greater breakthroughs in the future. Presented: By /MSC GREAT ISSUE 6- For special needs please call 845-1515