Difference Between Soft Credit Check and Hard Credit Check

By MoneyBlueBook

When you give out permission for others to make an inquiry on your credit report, did you know that the inquiry itself may have a negative impact on your credit score? Not all inquiries are created equal. An inquiry occurs when someone examines your credit history and credit score. While a hard inquiry will hurt your credit score, a soft inquiry will not.

Soft Credit Inquiry v. Hard Credit Inquiry

A soft pull describes an inquiry that does not affect your credit score. Soft pulls, or soft credit checks, frequently occur and oftentimes you may not even be aware of it happening. Each soft pull is noted on your credit history file but they are only for you to see and are not available for lenders to view. Examples of soft credit pulls include:

A hard pull, or hard credit inquiry, is very different anddoes negatively affect your credit score. When you give permission for a lender to check your credit history for the purpose of extending credit to you, the lender will make what is known as a hard credit check. A hard credit check is almost always voluntary and is noted on your credit history file by all

By MoneyBlueBook

I've written and posted a useful eBay Wholesale Guide for all the eBay wannabe powersellers. Many people are making money by selling products through online auctions such as eBay. I myself have sold and made some money by following the advice expressed in the comprehensive guide.

The guide is more for beginners or those who have had only light experience selling products on eBay. The pros probably already have a list of established wholesale sources that they closely guard. Ebay selling is very competitive as auction consumers have severely driven down the prices, but it can be done. I've never used it to replace my full time income, but it can be a worthwhile hobby and a way to generate a steady alternate income stream.

I recommend making sure you are familiar with the hazards of selling and buying on eBay first before diving deeper into running an actual eBay business. The world is full of many unscrupulous individuals who will try to take advantage of those who are unfamiliar with the process. Scammers are everywhere so please be cautious. Remember, if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.

It is important that you are well informed about the ins and outs of eBay before committing to purchases involving larger sums of money. To making money successfully through eBay requires a lot of preparation and work, and competition can be stiff at times, but if you persist you will find the business experience to be very worthwhile and financially satisfying.

By MoneyBlueBook

The Federal Reserve sets monetary policy largely by targeting the federal funds rate, which is a key short term rate that determines rates for banks, credit card loans, home equity loans, and other types of consumer and corporate loans.

Since the Fed is meeting in a few days to decide whether it will change the federal funds rate, let's get slightly technical and talk about one of the ways to predict what the Federal Reserve will do

In normal times, the federal funds futures market is usually a good predictor of what the Federal Reserve will do over the next several months. However, times are a bit out of whack right now and there is a growing disconnect between what people are fearing or hoping will happen and what a calmer and less pressured Fed will actually do.

Federal funds futures are contracts that are bought and sold on the Chicago Board of Trade and used mostly by speculators who want to gamble on interest rates. The prices reflected by the futures contracts represent investors and speculators' collective wisdom (or folly) about where short term interest rates are headed.

What Does the Fed Funds Futures Crystal Ball Suggest?

Based upon Friday, September 14's market close, the 30 day federal funds futures contract for the October 2007 expiration is currently pricing in a 100 percent probability that the Fed will decrease the target rate by at least 25 basis points from the current 5.25% to 5% at the Federal Open Market Meeting on Tuesday, September 18.

In

By MoneyBlueBook

I think it's time I posted a general liability and privacy disclaimer for this website. I personally find it very unnecessary since most people won't even bother to read it, but the legal realities of the world dictate that I issue one.

I recently read about this case that happened only a few years ago regarding a lawsuit filed by a company against a well known search engine optimization (SEO) blogger named Aaron Wall alleging unspecified defamation and unlawful publication of trade secrets. The trade secrets claim stemmed from comments made by anonymous third parties on the blogger's website. The case was ultimately dismissed due to a lack of personal jurisdiction, but the case stands as a stark reminder that bloggers have to be careful.

The reality is that writing and posting work online subjects one to the scrutiny of others. This also applies to comments and postings from third party readers as well. Freedom of speech is a constitutionally protected right that shields many forms of speech from government intrusion, but in the private sector it is often a different matter. Frivolous and threatening lawsuits designed to intimidate are all too often filed by parties in bad faith. Therefore, under this context, it is better to be safe than sorry.

I do not want readers to execute trades or take actions based solely on my advice. Please always carefully read the fine print before signing contracts and always conduct your own due diligence. You should not regard any information that I've provided as professional

By MoneyBlueBook

Yesterday, Bank of America raised its ATM surcharge fee for non customers at most of its ATM's nationwide to $3 from $2. The newsis significant for many people because Bank of America operates the largest ATM network in the United States and the higher fees could affect millions who do not hold consumer banking accounts there.

Such news barely raised a blip on my radar frankly. They could raise the ATM fee to $100 for non Bank of America account holders such as myself, and I still wouldn't be phased. That's because I pay for everything almost exclusively by using credit cards.

Switch From Cash To Credit Cards

Now is a good time to reiterate what I've been trying to tell people all along. If you are a responsible credit user, the simplest and most routine way to save money and even make some extra money is to use credit cards. It's time to stop paying everything using cash.

We've finally evolved from a trade and barter society into a cash market. Now it's time to take one step further and transition into plastic. ATM surcharges are sure to increase across the board to match Bank of America's move, so it's time to stop those daily and sometimes expensive visits to your neighborhood ATM to withdraw cash. Why carry around so much cash and end up with the inevitable jingling coins in your pocket or purse?

To be fair, the regular and exclusive use of credit cards isn't for everyone. Some people truly have difficulty handling

By MoneyBlueBook

I have been noticing a strange trend in the e-mail spam I've been receiving over the last year or so. There has been a steady stream of investment and stock related spam, each promoting a particular company's stock. Usually these are penny stocks of obscure companies in the lower rung of the stock market.

Do People Actually Fall For Spam Investment Advice?

The thing that makes me wonder is whether investment spam has a perceivable effect on market activity and spam targeted stock prices. My first guess would be that there shouldn't be an effect because who would be so gullible and naive to trade on information received in the form of spam? But sadly, as a testament to the fallibility of humankind, and the validity of the phrase "there's a sucker born every minute," spam DOES have a perceptible effect on targeted stock prices.

According to some research, investment spam does have a significant impact on certain parts of the stock market. One research indicates that:
Based on a large sample of touted stocks listed on the Pink Sheets quotation system and a large sample of spam emails touting stocks, we find that stocks experience a significantly positive return on days prior to heavy touting via spam. Volume of trading responds positively and significantly to heavy touting. For a stock that is touted at some point during our sample period, the probability of it being the most actively traded stock in our sample jumps from 4% on a day when there is no touting activity