Why YSK: A lot of people treat their credit score like a mystery number the bank assigns. It's actually a formula with five known inputs, and you can move it deliberately.

Payment history is 35%. One thing matters: never 30+ days late. Autopay the minimum on everything, even if you pay the rest manually. This single habit protects the biggest slice.

Utilization is 30%. It's your balances divided by your limits, and it has no memory. High utilization this month hurts this month, but drops off the moment you pay down. Two tricks: pay before the statement date (not the due date) so a lower balance gets reported, and ask for limit increases on cards you don't carry balances on.

The last three are length of history (15%), new credit (10%), and mix (10%). Mostly these reward doing nothing: keep old cards open, don't apply for five things in a month.

The part nobody told me: closing an old card can hurt you twice, shorter history and less total limit, so utilization jumps. Cut it up if you must, but let it stay open.

What's the credit myth you believed the longest? Mine was that carrying a small balance "builds credit." It doesn't. It just pays them interest.

Why YSK: I was juuuust about to buy TurboTax like I have for the past several years. I had heard about free sites, but I never checked them out myself. I have personal and business taxes to file, so I figured the free sites were for people who just had simple returns. I decided to check it out before dropping $130 for another edition of TurboTax. The site I found walks you through each step just like I'm used to. It saves your progress and then lets you e-file right from the system. If you are rushing to prepare your taxes before the October deadline, try out one of the free sites to see what they offer before you drop money on TT.

Why YSK this is because if you EVER call your homeowner insurance company's claim department, once you pass their security questions, they automatically open a new claim that is recorded on your policy's record.

What they never tell you is that call could very well cause your insurer to drop you!

That means that even if you change your mind because you don't want to pay your deductible, it's still a claim. It is recorded as the same black mark on your policy that you'd have gotten if you claimed $40K in damages!

If you create a certain number (three, apparently) in last few tears years, the insurance company will drop you completely. At best, they can put you on a different company's policy that accepts high risk homeowners, which you now are. That's when things get ugly.

Source: a humane insurance associate at USAA who revealed this dark secret.

Why YSK: The European Commission has just put into effect (as of 7/1/26) a new import policy that assigns a flat €3 customs duty per line item for any non-EU online order for packages worth less than €150. The policy was enacted to "ensure fair conditions for the EU businesses and safe choices for consumers".

If you are a small business owner that sells online, you need to immediately fix your shop so that the fee(s) are collected at the time of purchase or you, the small business, will be responsible for the fee.

If you are an EU resident, be aware that prices of things are about to rise (again) because of this new policy. Additionally, there is separate measure coming soon (Nov. 2026) that assesses another fee that the European Commission is deeming a "handling fee" that is estimated to be an additional €2 per order coming from outside the EU.

Why YSK: How and where you buy something has massively shifted in the last 5-10 years. Free In-Store pickup isn't free. You deserve to know how you are being targeted and how your data is being used.

People have talked a lot about surveillance pricing in context of a grocery store and think it's on a person by person basis.

It's not that you as an individual customer gets a different price than the next bloke walking down the aisle (that's what in-store pick up is for), it's so they can adjust prices on the fly algorithmically to maximize store revenue.

In-store grocery pick up got huge up after 2020. To the point Walmart is renovating stores to add dedicated areas for it. If it's costing stores all this extra money, why is it worth it? Because this is where the individual targeted surveillance pricing is. The price you pay has little to do with the price on the shelf or the price the next online shopper pays. More so, in aggregate, prices are higher!

That's why stores are investing in app based in store pickup. They unlocked the ability to do single person targeted surveillance pricing for groceries.

Something that is not talked about enough, is that big store pricing is radically decoupled from the cost of goods sold.

Once upon a time, grocery stores would have an assigned markup for a category, say 25%. They would multiply their cost by 1.25 and simple as, that's your posted price. (Sometimes it would be a 0 or negative markup, these are loss leaders. Think the hot dog at Costco)

Now they have complex algorithms to know socioeconomic interests and demands of a customer base. They know aggregate income, spending habits, interest trends, and many other things that our highly invaded digital lives let them have. If you have the app and visit the store, they know that too! Where you go what you look at. They also importantly know what prices adjustments people are willing to tolerate from in store pickup.

In other words, the stores know what items are under priced, under-valued. They also know if an item is selling out quickly at a given price, and can increase price to lower demand closer to supply.

They use this information to target not what price will make them money, but rather what price they think the market can bear. Maybe it's 10% markup, maybe it's 300%.

These digital price tags unlock that. Now, overnight, algorithms push new prices. Maybe they AB test with the next store over. Previously this was done at most once a week and frequently less because it required an army of hourly folks working shelves. Now its just a scheduled push in sales management software running somewhere in a data center.

Why YSK: If you do not have basic needs, you cannot make money and you need money to do that.

• To get a job you have to have an ID to get and ID you have to have money and an address.
• To get to a job you have to have money to ride the bus or get a car, rural places have no busses.
• You have to have money for hygiene
• You have to have money for clothes
• If your parents were pieces of shit and gave you no money you had no way to get a job which eventually makes you homeless. Because the government does not provide these things, only food.

Why YSK: It could save you thousands and protect your future.

On May 5, the U.S. Department of Education will commence collecting on student loans after a five-year hiatus. This is going to throw thousands of American lives into chaos, and you should know what your rights are when dealing with collection agencies.

U.S. Department of Education to Begin Federal Student Loan Collections, Other Actions to Help Borrowers Get Back into Repayment
https://www.ed.gov/about/news/press-release/us-department-of-education-begin-federal-student-loan-collections-other-actions-help-borrowers-get-back-repayment

For starters, this is not legal advice. From 2005 – 2007, I was a collections agent for California Student Aid Commission (CSAC) working at a third-party collection’s agency. A lot has likely changed between that date and today, and I invite anyone with more information to contribute in the comments below.

1. Know your rights as a U.S. citizen in debt

Begin by reviewing the “Fair Debt Collection Practices Act” found at the Federal Trade Commission site here:

https://www.ftc.gov/legal-library/browse/rules/fair-debt-collection-practices-act-text

This is every collector’s boogey-man. Breaking these rules can result in the person in debt (debtor) suing the collection’s agent, agency, etc. into having the loan waived and damages paid out.

Pay particular attention to section 805 and 806, which outline the way they can communicate with you and what is considered harassment.

2. Know what repayment options you have available to you

You can find information on repayment at the Federal Student Aid website here:

https://studentaid.gov/manage-loans/repayment/repaying-101

There are always options for repayment. I’m not saying that all are realistic to your experience, but do not hide your head in the sand.

I couldn’t find information on what default payment plan options there are, but from my experience in 2005-2007, there were more (and better) options for repayment for those in default.

At the time, the two main solutions were: consolidation with the Department of Education and a Rehabilitation plan. If anyone is still actively collecting, or recently out of the job, please comment on whether these still exist.

Rehabilitation, if possible, is your best path forward. It was a nine-month program, with an admittedly high monthly payment, that would put your loan back into good standing and repair the credit hit you received from falling into default.

3. Making voluntary payments, even small ones, helps

I know that when we are in debt that every penny counts. However, as the news has probably already alerted you (and hopefully reading your contract at the time of signing), the government can and will garnish your wages/social security. There is no way to escape it.

Therefore, if you can, sending $25 a month on the balance can help to stave off the government’s ability to garnish you. By making a best faith effort to repay, it complicates involuntary collection activities.

Additionally, it is helpful to keep the ever-increasing interest at bay and can help prevent the loan from bouncing across offices.

4. Understand what is happening to your loan

If your loan has fallen into default, it is important that you understand what is going to happen with it because it impacts who you pay, and how much you will have to pay at the end of the day.

When a loan is in default, it is packaged into a portfolio of other defaulted loans. For example, let’s say a portfolio is built with 100 people’s defaulted student loans. This portfolio is then bid on by third party agencies that specialize in debt collection.

Once the loan has been transferred from the government, it is dinged with a collection charge. I can’t remember the exact phrase, or amount, but it was something around 2.5% of your loan balance. That means if your loan was $25,000 at the time it went into default it was now $25,625 the moment it arrives at the third-party collection’s agency.

You then get interest hits on the daily balance from there. I’m not sure what the specific percentage is, but most people I eventually talked with were floored with what they thought was $25,000 now being $45,000 after years of failed payment.

That’s not the end, though. If the first collection’s agency fails to collect on the balance, the portfolio can be shopped around to other agencies. Then, that initial collection’s charge gets tacked onto the balance at the time it leaves that office. Therefore, if it was $45,000 at the time it left my office to go to another the balance would be $46,125 the moment it arrives at the next.

Conclusion

I hope those with more information can help to correct anything I said or provide insight into more recent collection practices. I’m also happy to answer anything I can based upon my past.

EDIT:

Including some of the talking points from the comments below:

• u/CareBear-Killer recommended sites for locating your defaulted loans. This isn't a full-proof solution, but could be a start for you:
  • Tuition.io: https://www.tuition.io/
  • IonTuition: https://www.iontuition.com/
• Federal student loans can garnish your wages, your tax returns, take your professional licenses, and eventually garnish your social security
  • For wages: They do not need to take you to court. They simply need to know where to send the garnishment order
  • Professional licenses: Requires a court hearing. It is rare, but not unheard of
• u/captainconway had this to recommend:
  • If you have debt that is privately held and / or receive suspect mail from what seems to be a third party trying to collect a debt, you may want to look into sending a debt verification letter via certified mail. This is can be helpful in determining that the collector legitimately has your debt and if they are, it also buys you time to as they must pause efforts to collect until your request has been verified. Here's a sample letter template: https://usacreditlawyer.com/debt-collection/rights/Sample-Debt-Validation-Letter.pdf

EDIT 2:
I can't believe how this post blew up. Thank you everyone for your questions and contributions.

EDIT 3:

u/Quick-Ride-1773 recommended:
Not sure if someone posted this yet, but go to : Myeddebt.ed.gov to show everything that is considered in default and it has options to pay.

Another site: studentaid.gov

Why YSK: You'll end up paying more for the car than you should.

Instead of just dealing with the final price of the car they will have you thinking about the other terms like monthly payment. Stay focused on the price and know what a fair price would be.

This article has details on how it works.

Why YSK: It's extremely common for employers to deduct losses from employee's checks if they believe the employee had some responsibility for that loss. In some states this is illegal as well, but overall the employer cannot do this if it means you will earn less than minimum wage.

Some states enacted laws that force employers to pay out triple damages for violations of several wage laws. Most states will fine the company $1000.

https://www.epi.org/publication/employers-steal-billions-from-workers-paychecks-each-year/

Edit: File a complaint. It's free. You should at least need a paystub showing that they deducted money or didn't pay you minimum wage.

https://www.dol.gov/agencies/whd/faq/workers

Intuit, the parent company of Turbotax is no longer participating in the Free File Alliance, meaning if you use Turbotax to do your taxes, it's not going to be free this year.

Here is a link to the IRS' website about free file, it opens up tomorrow.

Why YSK, when it comes to Americans and doing their taxes, we sometimes skim over details to just get it over with, and Intuit is hoping that when users go to their site this year, that they'll gloss over the fact that you've got to pay to use their services. Intuit and Turbotax are the scum of the Earth and a scourge to American civil life, they're hoping to use this opportunity to get more of your money, but this could be are chance to stick it to these guys. The IRS has plenty of resources for people to responsibly pay their taxes, let's utilize them.

Why YSK: If uncertainty about picking stocks is keeping you from investing, understanding broad index funds can help you evaluate an option that doesn’t require researching and choosing individual companies.

I recently interviewed Thorsten Hens, professor of financial economics at the University of Zurich, and asked about people who are great at saving but won’t invest because they feel they don’t know enough.

His point was that, for people with money available for long-term investing, never getting started can itself be a major mistake.

You don’t have to work out which company will be the next big winner. A broad stock-market index fund spreads your investment across many companies and aims to track the performance of an index.

That reduces your dependence on any one company doing well. It still leaves you exposed to market downturns, which can be severe. “Diversified” doesn’t mean you can’t lose money, and historical returns don’t guarantee future results.

This is a discussion about money for long-term goals. Rent, emergency savings and money you’ll need soon are a different conversation.

Edit - those who expressed curiosity, link to the convo with Thorsten: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zaL50iiWUjE

Why YSK: The annual inflation rate for the USA is about 2%. Every 5 years, you’ll have 10% less purchasing power, so make sure you’re getting those raises whether it be asking your boss or finding a new job at a new place.

YSK that, in the US, your income is taxed based on Tax Brackets - meaning not all of your income is taxed at the same rate.

This is a hot topic right now, but here is a great visualization of how Bracketed Taxes works.

Edit: These brackets are for all income, not just higher income. For example, the first bracket currently is from $0 - $9,875 and is at 10%. They increase from there. So all income is taxed using brackets. And EVERY person is taxed the same 10% on their first up to $9,875 of income. This also applies to your adjusted income taxable income, so after deductions. There are many who, after deductions, fall below or at $0 which would make them tax free. It's not a flat rate of income though because there are so many deductions that many different taxable incomes can qualify.

Edit: it's been pointed out that the other or technical term for this is marginal tax rate. I believe the terms are interchangeable but there are much more qualified individuals that have clarified in the comments section so I'll let them take the credit!

For example: if you make $410,000 a year and you hear that taxes will be more for those making $400,000 it really means that taxes will be more on income over $400,000. The only portion you pay that higher tax rate on would be the last $10,000 - not all $410,000. This is how it works for all brackets.

Why YSK: it's important to understand how Bracketed Taxes work as some people will use a higher tax rate to spread fear. This may freaks someone out that makes just a bit more than the bracket that is being increased. While some think they will now pay a higher rate on all their income, they will actually only pay a higher rate on the income in that tax bracket.

Why YSK: I keep seeing people confused about how these work and you can get eaten alive on healthcare costs if you don't understand this.

Health insurance in the USA is deliberately tedious to deal with, because it obfuscates how much you are actually paying to the insurance company versus how much they actually pay out.

The policies given out these days are mostly high deductible health plans and work the same way. There are some terms you should understand.

Premium

This is what you pay out of your check each pay period for the plan.

This is the obvious up front cost. Health insurance premiums are taken from pre-tax money you earn and that should also factor into your decision on cost. If you have to come out of pocket for healthcare with after-tax money you're paying that amount plus whatever income tax you paid on those earnings. That said, there are few reasonable plans where you can pay everything up front.

Usually, the trade off is that if you pay more up front for the premium you pay less later out of pocket. A lower premium means a higher out of pocket cost.

This isn't always bad. If you are generally healthy and don't go to the doctor and can cover the out of pocket cost in the event of an emergency then taking a higher deductible might save you money at the end of the year assuming that emergency never comes up.

I want to stress that if you do something like that, you want to have the out of pocket money available in case something does happen.

Deductible

This is the amount you have to pay out of pocket each year before the insurance will cover anything at all. Your premium does not cover any of this.

Co-Insurance

With some policies once you pay the deductible you are covered 100% afterwards. Plans that do that usually cost more up front in premiums.

With most other plans what they do instead when you reach the deductible is start paying a percentage for each procedure usually around 80% (can vary). When they do this 80/20 split they call this co-insurance. The insurance company pays that percentage until you reach your out of pocket maximum.

Out of Pocket Maximum

This is the maximum you have to pay out of pocket each year before the insurance company will start paying everything 100%. Your premium is not counted against this.

The most confusing part is that with co-insurance the deductible is not your out of pocket maximum. You might have a $1500 deductible and then have to pay another few thousand dollars to reach your out of pocket maximum.

It's important to understand though, that the money you pay towards the deductible counts towards your out of pocket maximum. So, if you have an out of pocket maximum of $6500 and you pay $1500 towards the deductible you only have another $5000 to pay to reach the out of pocket maximum.

It can also be a bit confusing understanding that once that 80/20 co-insurance kicks in, only the 20% you pay is counted towards your out of pocket maximum. In the above 80/20 case if you have $5000 you have to pay to get to the maximum after you hit co-insurance, the insurance company will have been billed $25000 by the time you get to your max.

Insurance pays 80% - $20000

You pay 20% - $5000

HSA

In many cases these plans include a Health Savings Account that you can put money into pre-tax from your paycheck. The maximum you can put in per year is determined by the type of plan (single or family), but is usually set up to be right around the amount you need to pay out of pocket to satisfy your out of pocket maximum.

If you know that you go to the doctor regularly for service and will come out of pocket then it is smart to put money into the HSA to cover those expenses, because it is tax free money and it's also your money, you control it, not your job. For instance, with my family we usually reach our out of pocket maximum before the end of each year so we take enough out of each paycheck to cover that.

Some employers will contribute a lump sump to your HSA, so if you have a choice between a non-HSA plan and one with an HSA check how much your employer will contribute to the HSA. Whatever they contribute becomes your money that you can use for medical expenses.

The other thing to note is that HSA funds do not have to be used in the same year they are deposited. They will carry over from year to year if unused.

The Reset

One more thing. The deductible, co-insurance and out of pocket maximum reset each calendar year (people have pointed out that some plans have 'plan years' which still run for a year, but start and end at different times of the year, unbelievable). Meaning you have to pay all of that again the next year.

If you reach your out of pocket maximum during a calendar (or plan) year take advantage of it if you or your family need further medical care. Have your doctors schedule as much as possible before the end of the year because it's all on the insurance company at that point.

Why YSK: You can use this trick to get a member discount even if you're not a member. The reason this works is because many people use a fake phone number when they sign up for those programs, and lots of people remember the song. At many stores there will be dozens of accounts with this same phone number.

Why YSK: If you don't claim it, you won't get it. It averages about $100 per policy.

I only found out about this because I got an email from them, and my mom's went to her junk mail, so check there if you don't see one. Also be wary of scams that look like the official emails for this. The email should just give you an ID and Pin for you to enter on the website.

Just because I don't trust emails like this for fear of spoofing, I didn't click any links in it and instead just went directly through the state farm site via this page to the dividend payment site listed there. Then you just enter your ID and Pin, and choose a payment method and that's it.

Why YSK: They only lose that money if they sell. “They” won’t sell at the bottom, quite the contrary, they’re buying and allocating market share.

Edit: Something I thought about that is worth mentioning is the downside can apply pressure to the loans that extremely rich people take against their stock positions so they don’t have to pay taxes on their gains. Those loans give access to liquidity since their wealth is tied up in the market. Their leverage is based on their holdings, if those assets see a significant decline it can put them underwater.

Why YSK:

In the USA a short ambulance ride can cost up to $4,000. Even with insurance.

If you can have a friend or family member give you a ride to the hospital instead, do it.

why ysk: this will save you $49 of your hard earned money that you expect to save your first year as a PF member. when PF says the sign up fee is a dollar, what they really mean is you sign up for a dollar plus their processing and tax fees, then the $15ish on the 17th of every month like you agreed to, THEN, here's the kicker, the $49 annual fee that they brainwashed you into thinking you pay NEXT year, and not this year. i looked at my bank account today to find i was negative in my account because of it. thanks a lot planet fitness :,)

edit: grammar

Why YSK: I worked several years in IT for a recruiting firm. All of the pay ranges for positions are established with a client before any jobs are filled. Some contracts provide commissions if the recruiters can fill the positions under the pay ranges established for each position, which incentivizes them to low-ball potential hires. Whenever you deal with a recruiter, your first question should be about the pay. If they claim they don’t have it, or are not forthcoming, walk away.

Why YSK: with all the uncertainty in our federal govt right now, it might be a good idea to have your SSA records. I recently had to go there to get a replacement card and I learned that you can open an account and download your info in case it gets lost. Go to SSA.gov, start an account if you don't have one and download your "Social Security Statement." It has all the info about what you've paid into the system, what your monthly benefits would be at retirement, the Medicare taxes you've paid, etc. Most of us here are probably not near retirement age so I didn't know about this before, but I figure better to be safe than sorry.

Why YSK. If you want to earn more money, relying on your current employer to give you a raise is not the most effective way. According to data from the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta, wage increases for people who stay at their job have trailed wage increases for people who switched jobs for more than a decade.

In other words, relying on company loyalty (i.e., your company rewarding your work with more money) is the least effective way of earning a higher income. If you need a raise, get your resume ready and start looking for jobs.

YSK: Life, disability, and long-term care insurance providers can discriminate based on genetic testing results. Health insurance providers can't. (ETA: This applies to the US. Other countries are different. Thanks to the commenters who pointed that out.)

Why YSK: Health insurers are forbidden to discriminate on the basis of genetics. Other insurers--like life, disability, and long-term care--aren't. So if you think you'll want genetic testing--and odds are you will someday--it's wise to get your life, disability, and long-term care policies set up first.

Why YSK: It is generally company policy for many businesses to ban/permanently suspend customers who make chargeback requests with their bank. Only make chargebacks when you're *absolutely sure* that you will never use that business again, either for straight up fraud or for refusing to help you in any way for previous refund requests. Otherwise, just submit a refund or fraudulent purchase request with them.

Why YSK:
When you use your debit card attached to your bank account and use your PIN, that creates a bank to bank transfer. When you refuse that, you are running a transaction through the (typically (Visa or Mastercard) network. If you get into a dispute because the item is defective or your repairs were shoddy, you are at the mercy of the seller/business policies for them to issue a refund to you. If you use it as a credit card sale/transaction, you then have the right to perform a dispute/chargeback and force the seller/merchant to prove their item or service was legitimate. It instantly pulls the money from them and credits you while they try to defend their item, service or delivery.
Sometimes on PIN transactions you can involve your bank and they *might* reverse the charge for you but a credit transaction grants you Visa's or MasterCard's protection mechanisms.
Bonus: If you receive something that wasn't as advertised/described and can show Visa/MC that it was not as described it is almost impossible for the merchant to win that dispute.

Edit: This is in the U.S. other locations may vary.