Joshua Heckathorn

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Joshua Heckathorn

Joshua Heckathorn is a credit expert and has been featured on CNNMoney, FOX Business, Yahoo Finance, The Street, and many other national publications during the past twenty years.  He received a Bachelor of Science in Management (Finance) from Brigham Young University's Marriott School of Business and earned his MBA from Seattle University.

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Recent Blogs

Ask Creditnet: What's the Difference Between DOFD and DOLA?

March 7th, 2012 by Joshua Heckathorn

debt calendar

Dear Creditnet: I'm trying to clean up my credit reports so I can get approved for a mortgage this year. While I've already removed a lot of errors, I still have a few old credit card debts I think are ready to drop off at any time.

What confuses me is how to determine exactly when these debts will fall off my credit reports. Should I be trying to determine the "date of first delinquency" or the "date of last activity", and can you explain the difference between the two terms?

United Mileage Plus Explorer Card Review

March 5th, 2012 by Joshua Heckathorn

United and Continental merged both their reservation systems and websites over the weekend, which was essentially the last big step in their transition towards operating as one airline. As you might expect, there have been reports of some minor system glitches and delayed flights across the country today, but it appears that the transition has been an overall success for United. The successful merger of United and Continental also presented the perfect opportunity for Chase to launch a new version of its popular MileagePlus Card, which is now called the United MileagePlus Explorer Card. Here's a brief breakdown of the pros, cons, and my final take on how the United MileagePlus Explorer stacks up against its competition.

Ask Creditnet: Credit Card Options After Bankruptcy

February 29th, 2012 by Joshua Heckathorn

Dear Creditnet: My FICO score has climbed to 668 after going through a bankruptcy in 2008, and now I'm looking to improve my credit even more by getting an unsecured credit card. However, I don’t want to apply and hurt my score if I'll just get an automatic rejection due to the bankruptcy. I know that I can probably go through Orchard Bank (HSBC) for an unsecured credit card, but are there are other viable options?

How Credit Builder Loans Work

February 27th, 2012 by Joshua Heckathorn

I'm not a big advocate of credit builder loans because they essentially promote taking on debt for the sole purpose of building credit, and I don't think that's a very smart way to approach the credit-scoring game. However, credit builder loans might be a decent option for those who feel like their back is up against the wall because they've run out of traditional ways to build credit. If this includes you, here's a brief explanation of how credit builder loans work and why you might find them useful on your credit-building journey.

Will You Pay the Tax Man with Plastic?

February 23rd, 2012 by Joshua Heckathorn

IRS Form 1040 I pay for every expense I possibly can in life with my credit cards, but I've never paid taxes with plastic. Paying the tax man is painful enough in the first place, so I simply can't come to terms with handing over a dime more than I have to for the "convenience" of using a credit card. I'd rather use whatever free method of payment still exists. In fact, e-filing and setting up a free electronic funds withdrawal from my checking account feels just as convenient to me anyway.

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