Beating Broke

Personal Finance from the Broke Perspective

The Skinny On: Credit Cards

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Get The Skinny on Credit CardsThe Skinny On: Credit Cards

By Jim Randel

I’m sure a few of you have heard of this series of books by Jim Randel.  He was kind enough to send a few of them my way for review purposes.  <– That’s my way of disclaiming that I was given these books specifically for review.  My review remains honest, but the FCC says you gotta know that.  The first book that I decided to review was the Credit Cards one.  Seemed like a good topic to cover here and if the book was valuable to you, then it would be even better.

The Skinny On books are a somewhat novel idea.  They are put into a narrative and the narrative is given to you by stick figures in a layout that is reminiscent of a comic book.  The language used is simple and easy to read and understand.  Any jargon is explained, either with a definition or a short dialogue.  And, they’re short books.  This one is one of the larger ones and it’s only about 160 pages.  A quick read to be sure.

The content is incredible.  In less than 200 pages, Randel was able to give the basics (and even a few not so basics) on getting and using credit cards as well as the effect they have on your credit score.  He takes several pages to discuss paying off cards for those who are already in trouble.  The books remind me a little of Cliffs Notes.  All the highlights and none of the filler.  Well, except for a terrible joke about a guy with bananas in his ears.  😉

The one downside to these books is their size and format.  It’s not even really a downside, but I think that some might discount the books because of their size and format.  Which would be a mistake, but it could happen.  Overall, the book is well thought out and put together.  The information is up to date and well given.  This would be an excellent book for a teen or a less personal finance savvy person.  I did get a few things out of it, however, so give it a quick read before you gift it.

You can buy the book directly from theskinnyon.com or at Amazon.

Beating Broke Guide to Your Credit Score

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Almost a year ago, I released the Beating Broke Guide to your Credit Score.  Since then, a lot has happened and it seems to me that your credit score could become more important than ever as we recover from this economic disaster.  Previously, I had it set up such that you had to sign up for the newsletter to receive a copy.  I’m changing that now.  The graphic in the right sidebar now links directly to the guide in it’s pdf form.

It’s one hundred percent FREE, so please grab a copy and take a look.  I think you might learn something.

You can download it at https://www.beatingbroke.com/BBGCS/BBGCS.pdf

The guide is now available for the Kindle as well!  Please note that the kindle version is not free as the pdf version is.  The pdf version will remain free for downloading.

Free Credit Score Report

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Your Credit Score ReportIf you read this blog through a feed reader, or just haven’t visited in the last week or so, you likely haven’t seen the new banner that I’ve put up on the right side of the site.  It’s a lovely little banner (designed by me) for a White Paper / Report that I put together.  The subject, fittingly, is Your Credit Score.  In it, I write about what a credit score is, how it is used, and the steps that you can take to improve your credit score.

My hope is that the report will be help people learn what the correct usage of a credit score are, and what the benefits are of having a good credit score.  Which is why I’ve made it a FREE report.  All you have to do is sign up for the Beating Broke newsletter.

What is the newsletter?  Well, it’s a bit in the fledgling state, but the idea is that you will get the occasional update about the site with an article or two as well as some articles and information that won’t appear here on the blog.  I promise to not fill up your email inbox with the newsletter.  In fact, at the moment, I only plan on sending it out once a month at most.  More likely, bi-monthly.

The report is well worth it if you ask me.  I’m a bit biased since I wrote it, but I really do think it could be a very valuable resource for someone who doesn’t know much about credit scores.

Also, I want the report to get into as many hands as possible, so if you want a copy without signing up for the newsletter, just send me a note with the contact form and I’ll send you a copy.