All Forum Posts by: Mac F.

@Sam F., I spend a fair amount of time in both SW and SE DC (both sides of the river). The police presence (both housing authority and metro PD) seems to be significantly higher in SW than in any of the other areas of the District with high concentrations of poverty-- even on non game days. I haven't dug into the data closely, but the rise in homicides and property crimes seems to be happening in other areas. Not sure how you're factoring municipal buy-in into your model, but this might be important.

That area would have probably developed without Audi Field-- the location is great. A better local comparison might be the fight for the new Redskins stadium in the early 90's. Two of the final competitors were the Potomac Yard area in Alexandria, VA, and Landover, MD. Landover won. Landover has struggled to develop, while the Potomac Yard hasn't.

@Ron Gallagher is right about the concentration of public housing. It's mostly low rise projects. I think there are two or three high rises in the early stages of development going up. 

I think it depends on who is asking. Navy Federal ran a hard pull when I joined and I've never requested credit from them. They're the only bank I've ever had an account with that's done this. I've learned to ask if there will be a hard pull every time I request a new service. 

In my experience, a single hard pull had little to no impact on my credit score. A lot of hard pulls will only be reported to one of the three agencies. I found that a focus on the debt side of the equation had a bigger impact on my credit score-- low consumer debt utilization rates; paying consumer debt prior to the date its reported to the credit agencies rather than the due date; challenging erroneous information; etc...-- had a bigger impact. Steadily paying off consumer debt, and maintaining low consumer debt utilization, had the biggest impact.

Also, you have multiple credit scores. The most important credit score to you should be the one your most important lender uses, and how that score measures creditworthiness. For instance, there is a 41 point difference between my lowest and highest FICO score. I have no idea why.

Also, for the most part, government travelers don't necessarily care what the rate you charge-- as long as it doesn't exceed the authorized government lodging rate (i.e. they're not out of pocket). If you're under that rate, you're competing on quality and convenience, not price. 

For government employees on official travel, use of the government travel card is generally strongly encouraged (from a legit fraud control perspective). The agency they're with may allow them to separate the rate and lodging taxes on their reimbursement request (as long as it's specified on the bill).  If that's the case, and you can bill for it that way, it might more than make up for the credit card fees. 

@Josiah Patrick Zebarth, having multiple options is always a good thing-- ideally you want to put yourself in a position to enjoy the career you end up in (while making a good living). 

To build on what @Joshua Hardy said, if I were you I would seriously look at the military. At least close enough that you won't look back with regret later if you decide not to do it.  All four services have their pros and cons, and the reserves/NG are a good option too.  You can pretty easily get your first two years of college out of the way for free if you go active duty, and if your contract gives you the new GI Bill, you can pass it on to your spouse or kids if you don't want to use it. There's a sense of belonging and pride that former and current servicemembers share that you won't get anywhere else.

Not sure how it works in your state, or the state you'll end up in, but even with a lot of trades you'll need a two year degree unless you go to a formal trade school. Working in a trade while you get a college degree is a good option to consider too. You can get the hours that you will need to become a journeyman while you're going to college. Depending on your state, you might be able to go to a two year college for free.

Four year degrees vary in their broader usefulness. A business degree (any specialization), for example, will give you skills useful to running any business. 

Going nuts on applying for scholarships can get you through college for free.  

@Adam Bush has the best answer over the longer term.

Over the short term:

1. Make your credit card payments prior to the reporting date (when the card reports your balance to the credit bureaus) rather than the due date.

2. Challenge any inaccuracies yourself with both debtors and reporting agencies if you have proof.

3. Use an agency to clean up harder late payments and chargeoffs (if you have them). Lexington Law is legit, their service will run you $100 a month, and it will take several months to see results. A lot of the other credit repair services are scams.

4. Pay everything a bit earlier to limit the risk of being late.

5. Lines of credit, especially from local banks or credit unions, are not always reported to all three credit bureaus. 

Other than that it really depends on why your score is low. 

Phase 1: give money to Morris Invests

Phase 2: ...

Phase 3: Profit!

You might want to check into a mortgage lender that can do manual underwriting. Here's a basic primer that helped me understand it:

https://firstquarterfinance.co...