1. If you’ve been denied credit.  This could come as some surprise to you so you’re going to want to see if there’s been an fraudulent activity on your report that’s clogging up your rating.  Keep in mind that you have to do this within 60 of the rejection.  
2. If you are unemployed and looking for employment.  This is similar to getting ready to apply for a loan – you need to check your report to make sure everything’s as it should be.  Likewise, if you’re rejected for a job based on your credit report, you’re eligible to check out why.  
3. You’re on public welfare.  
4. You believe you’ve been the victim of fraud.  This could be the case if fraudulent charges have been discovered on your credit card.  If this is the case, you should order a credit report as soon as possible.  
5. Finally, if you have attempted to erase an inquiry and you want to make sure that the issue has been erased.

With grocery store prices on the rise and the cost to drive to the store getting higher and higher, finding ways to save money at the supermarket are on everyone’s mind. Co-op grocery stores are gaining popularity and offer customers a unique way to save money.

Co-op grocery stores are owned by members, who buy into the store by paying membership fees or by working part-time in the store. Food and grocery co-ops generate billions in revenues each year and pay members back when the stores are profitable. There are an estimated 40,000 co-op businesses in the U.S. today including electric co-operatives, credit unions and grocery stores.

The benefits of co-op grocery stores are many. Co-ops offer an abundance of fresh foods, including organic foodstuffs and fruits and vegetables grown by local farmers. Membership is typically not required to shop in a co-op grocery store and the food and products sold are offered at deep discounts to help customers save money.

A rewards credit card can also help you save money at the supermarket. Many rewards cards provide bonus points for customers who use the cards to pay for groceries. A gas credit card like the Chase PerfectCard provides rebates which can provide a real savings to people no matter where they choose to fill up on gas, while also offering rebates for grocery shopping, too. 

Earlier this week we talked about the high cost of airline travel fees. The list doesn’t end with pets and food. In fact, airline travel costs have increased for just about everything you can imagine, as airlines look for additional revenue streams to avoid bankruptcy and to stay in business.

If you like to make airline reservations by phone, you may want to reconsider this method of booking trips to save money on travel. Most airlines will charge a fee for calling in reservations over the phone. It’s a Pavlovian method used by many call centers to get us off of the phones; make calling customer service less convenient and more expensive, and maybe we’ll start taking advantage of the Web instead. USAirways charges a whopping $35 for phone reservations. You can save money on travel- and time- when you book online.

Another easy way to save money on travel is to use an airline credit card or a rewards credit card to make airline reservations. You can get double miles just for using the card to book your trip, which can help mitigate airline fees. You can compare airline credit cards and rewards credit cards online before you choose to make sure that you get the right card for you.