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* Don’t leave your credit score off the post! The credit score that you can access through Weemba is available to you at NO COST and it WILL NOT AFFECT your credit in any way. You have nothing to lose by posting it.  If you leave it off, Lenders are likely to assume that it’s bad! Your credit score, even if it’s low, is a necessary yardstick for Lenders to see. Weemba has a variety of Lenders in the system, and some of them specialize in lending to people with bad credit or average credit.

* Don’t use slang, bad grammar or bad spelling. Lenders want to see that you are prepared to fill out paperwork for them, and if you don’t take the time to write and spell correctly at this stage, they are likely to assume that you will not do those things correctly later on either. Lenders are looking to close deals as quickly as they can, and knowing that you are able to help them do that by filling out forms correctly is a good step.

* Don’t leave fields blank or use just a few words without detailed explanation. The more lenders see from you, the better they will be able to gauge who you are. When you choose to leave information out, it doesn’t make you look good. Lenders will likely wonder WHY you left it out. It’s better to put an explanation of why you don’t have the information than to put nothing in the field. Again, they want to see that you can fill out an application for them, and leaving fields blank at Weemba doesn’t show that you can do that.

This, for example, is not a good way to tell Lenders what you need:

Detailed Project Description medical bills ac in truck went out

Borrower’s Net Worth and/or Income 230,000

Repayment Plan 60,0000 salary ach debit from checking once a month

* Don’t use a sad story. We know a lot of people are in very tough financial circumstances, but while Lenders may be sympathetic, they cannot make lending decisions based on how they feel about you – they have to have information to work with, including your income, expenses, debt and credit history.  Having the saddest story in the world won’t help if you don’t have the rest of the pieces they need to make a decision. The story below is heartbreaking, but Lenders can’t be moved by that, and the bad writing, grammar and spelling don’t help.

“My wife has been trying to find work for 4 years and employers think she is to old I guess. She’s strong,honest ingreat shape and was working in the max prison as officer/seargent but could’t do the 80 hrs ordered p.w. any more. She has been trying this whole time to get into airport security (homeland), but they have been stringing her on for all this time, jumping through hoops. She also was a cna for along time, but,with wisc. as it is,I guess you have to waite and see. My son just returned to ryocf prison, he got injured in a car accident and broke his neck, He had to go back, we will be homeless maybe as soon as next month. We just need to get some kind of break. Our familys, bothe sides don’t want to hear about it any more, all they do now is say we’ll pray for you, Creditors hear no prayers. This last summer, I ended up at fradort for 7 days w/4 infectious experts(drs.) trying to figuer out what i had, and it ended up with 4 weeks off work, then I had another bout of it in Jan. which left me off for 20 days. This is all reaction to the same llong that had the cancer new masses are growing, I had a1/3 of mylung out, some wind pipe and lobes, what this is all coming down too is we just need to get caught up. I’m not sure how long we all have but saddly, I’m leaving my wife of 39 yrs. w/nothing. We have been on the internet for a good 40 hr. and no place will give us a chance. we won’t let anyone down,we just need to feel secure, it’s not for lack of trying.”

* Don’t use “Other” as a loan type unless the others truly do not fit your need. We have “Other Personal Loan” and “Other Business Loan” as options for really unique loan postings, but we see that a lot of people use that to avoid taking the time to pick the loan purpose that matches their need. Picking “Other Personal Loan” when you REALLY need a debt consolidation or a home improvement loan is only hurting YOU because many Lenders only lend for VERY SPECIFIC reasons, and “Other Personal Loan” means they won’t find you! Take your time, and if you don’t understand what a type of loan is, we can help! You can look at two articles on our blog that will tell you everything you need to know: Business loan types available and Individual loan types available.  If you still have questions, email support@weemba.com for help.

* Don’t post pictures of yourself. They don’t help.

What can you do to make Lenders notice you?

* DO take your time, think carefully about what you want to say. If spelling isn’t your strong suit, have a friend proof read for you. Write your text in a Word document or text file if you’re concerned about the system logging you out while you work.

*DO ask us questions – we are here to help! Definitely read through our blogs and articles for tips and advice! There’s lots of it, including samples of great loan project posts: Sample Individual Loan Project;  Sample Sole Proprietor Loan Project;  Sample Small Business Loan Project.

* DO search for projects looking for the same kind of loan that you want. Pay special attention to the ones that have had Lenders contact them because those people obviously did something right!

These are Thaggan’s own words about her dream: “I would like to use the money to help with purchases of make up and hair extensions for women of color here in my small town. There is a major market here especially for college students who come here from living in large cities where variety is accessible to them, because there aren’t many variations of products for women of color here i would like to bring that to this to town. Although there two beauty supply stores here they try to cater to women but the supply and variations are in short supply. I would like to start out small work from home based business and grow to a brick and mortar business, When the time is right. I feel like i have the best opportunity here to bring some of the products that i am used to and some of the other women here are used to having accessibility to everyday without having to order over the internet and having to wait for it to be delivered. Also the money would be used for advertising to help get the word out about the products I am selling.”

Texas Business Borrower BRI,LLC is looking for an Asset Based Loan to expand their business. They want $500,000 for 10 years. BRI,LLC plans to buy properties at far below their market rates and manage them for investors, as well as rehabbing the properties and selling them. In their words, their business is “We provide intermediary financial support between real estate agents, contracted construction crews, financial investors, and prospective home buyers. The primary area of operations will be the Houston, Texas and surrounding areas. Services provided by us include acquiring investors, purchasing real estate, rehabilitating properties, and resale of properties. These services will be accomplished through partnerships with real estate investors, local construction companies, and real estate agents. We will also provide land contracts to persons that may not meet all requirements necessary to obtain favorable loans from financial institutions. We will target properties in Houston, Texas and surrounding areas. Residential properties in the Houston, Texas and surrounding areas range from $50,000 to $3,000,000. Target property values for investing will range from $50,000 to $500,000. Resale values are targeted to be between $65,000 and $600,000. With a goal of rehabilitating an average of 15 properties per quarter or more, resulting expenditures range from $10,000,000to $105,000,000 with revenue of $11,700,000 to $128,000,000 annually.”

They believe that their business model will allow them to repay the loan with a large balloon payment at the end of their ten-year term.

As far as Individuals go, there are a lot of touching stories posted by Individual Borrowers. CubFan822, who lives in Illinois, is one of those. He admits, in his project No. 3108, that he’s made a lot of bad financial choices over the years, but he wants to turn things around, inspired by his five-year-old son. In addition to making his own life better, CubFan822 wants to clean up his financial circumstances for his son’s future benefit.

He says, “I am someone who was really stupid over the years, and got buried in debt upon debt. Every time I got out of one hole, I dug another. No more. My goal is to have my car loan be my only outstanding note. I am doing what I can to wipe out bills.”

CubFan822 makes a good living – about $55,000 a year – but he also says he has had problems managing his money, and wants very badly to change his ways.

There are other heart-warming stories like CubFan822 in the hundreds of loan posts that are live now in the Weemba platform. To find more of them, go to the Project Search and take a look at the variety of ways you can find interesting stories!

Some of the things that will help repair your credit are echoed by dozens of financial planning websites. These are things that many people in good financial health do as a regular way of managing their money.

MarketWatch, which is part of the Wall Street Journal offers the following tips:

1. Monitor your credit reports, especially if you have filed for bankruptcy. Make sure they are accurate. If there are mistakes on your credit report, challenge them in writing. You are entitled to a free report, but NOT a credit score, from each of the big three credit bureaus (Equifax, Experian, TransUnion) every 12 months or in the event that you were denied credit in writing. To get your free annual report, go to https://www.annualcreditreport.com/cra/index.jsp

2. Do not max out your credit cards. Your debt to income ratio (DTI) is something lenders consider when they evaluate creditworthiness. If you constantly max out cards and only make minimum payments, you’re considered a less creditworthy risk.  Odd as it sounds though, having NO debt at all is also bad for your credit score. So if you have cards, use them, but carefully, and make on time payments that are larger than the minimum.

3. Make a budget and stick to it. It’s tough, but when times are tough, sacrifices have to be made. Make sure bills are paid FIRST, save what you can and cut back on extras. Pay bills with an automatic online payment when possible to make sure they aren’t late.

4. A secured credit card can help rebuild your credit score too. Watch out for ones that charge high fees!

The website 720creditscore.com advises people trying to repair their credit to get a credit card if they can, even if it’s very high interest, but to pay it off after each use. According to Philip Tirone, on 720creditscore.com, “If you are at lunch with a friend and have cash to pay the $12 bill, charge the lunch to your credit card. As soon as you return home, make an electronic payment in the amount of $12 (assuming you are not charged for electronic payments). My point is this: keep the cards active, but keep the balance as low as possible month-round.”

There are companies that promise to clean up credit problems, even after bankruptcy, but check them out before giving any of them money. Check the Consumer Reports website, the Better Business Bureau, RipOffReport.com and, if it’s a local company, your appropriate Chamber of Commerce, to make sure that the company is legitimate and won’t be wasting more of your money!

As we mentioned above, although you are entitled to a free credit report from each bureau every year, those reports do not come with a free credit score. As a validated Borrower registered in Weemba, you CAN get a credit score at absolutely no cost, without signing up for a credit monitoring service, and it is the kind of credit score that WILL NOT affect your credit in any way. A lot of people are concerned that getting their credit score can make it drop, but Weemba’s credit score, provided by Equifax at NO COST to the Borrower, has no impact on your current credit score.

To get that credit score, just register as a Borrower, and create a loan project post. Even without posting your loan project to the site for Lenders to find, you can get your credit score! When you DO post that project for Lenders to see, then you will be able to show your credit score if you want to, or hide it if you don’t want it seen. It’s also protected by your Borrower ID, so no one will know your real name to connect it to your credit score.

To learn more, go to https://www.weemba.com/Membership/Login and follow the system steps! It’s fast and easy to register and you have nothing to lose!

Organic farming is a HOT topic right now. Weemba Borrower Principo, who lives in South Carolina, wants $20,000 to do exactly that. The project is focused on starting an “organic vegetable farm that will emphasize the short distance from farm to market.” Although the plans are to start locally, Principio is thinking globally, and wants to have similar farms in suburbs across the United States. Principio’s project description for his project No. 3306 does a great job detailing these goals.

This project has received one contact request from a Lender!

Also community-service oriented is the project No. 3070, Art For Autism, created by Wisconsin Business Borrower 078425858.  The goal of this business is to expand the local district by opening a center for art and music, and the Borrower’s autistic son was the inspiration for this.

In addition to helping children with autism and other special needs, the Borrower hopes that the proposed center will “provide work and community aid that is never offered or funded by our county, and bring more life to a dying city. In turn it will bring economic stress to a fall so that families can live happier. The center will have an art room for art therapy , community art sessions while helping kids with autism or cerebral palsy, etc., learning to communicate through music and art, a reading room with computers and other means to help ease children that may be home schooled.”

Project No. 3062 is for a $50,000 home improvement loan in Ohio. This Individual Borrower states that she is woman who wants very much to stay in the community she grew up in, and she wants to remodel a home there. The Borrower was living with her mother, and when her mother passed away, bought a home in the same community. The home is paid for but requires a LOT of work and this industrious lady has done most of it herself – she has a good income, and assets in the home, just needs a loan to buy a lot of materials at once. Read her story in HER words:

“In November 2010, my oldest son passed away. A few weeks later, I also lost my mom. I had been living with her and caring for her in her home. Once she passed away, my brothers and sisters decided to remodel her home and sell it. Since the house was only in my brothers name, I was forced to move and find another home, as I could not afford what they wanted for my parents home. I found a home close by with the cash I had from my divorce settlement. It was going to be a total remodel, which started in May 2011. I purchased the house and paid taxes current. First, we totally gutted the house. The roof was leaking so badly, it was like walking in a marsh in the carpeted master bedroom. Also, all copper wiring and plumbing had been stolen. I have already replaced the roof, furnace, plumbing, all windows (except living room and kitchen) – doing a majority of the work myself. Drywall is hung in 3 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms. Before the drywall can be finished, the foundation needs to be fixed on one of the walls. The kitchen is the most expensive portion left to be completed. One of the outside walls needs to be moved and several joists replaced. Luckily, the roof line will not need to be touched (yeah!). Kitchen cabinets and counter tops will need purchased. Also, the master bathroom needs completed. The outside will need new soffit, facia and siding. I keep hoping someone from DIY will show up and help – but not so far. So far, everything has been paid, but I have run out of funds and can only purchase materials each payday. At that rate, it will be years before I can live in my home. Right now, I am staying with my son until my home is complete. I grew up in the area where I purchased this home, so it is close to my parents home. The area is residential and low crime rate and sort of in the country.”

Our final Borrower in this installment is another Business Borrower. The New Jersey-based Borrower nicknamed Industry Leader wants to borrower $100,000 for five years in loan project No. 3228. The business does both preservation of property and restoration after a disaster, giving them two markets: properties before something happens and those which have already suffered a disaster. They want to franchise the business within the next three to five years. Two lenders so far have made contact with this Borrower. They go into detail in their project description, talking about their experience, what they own, their skills and their plans to grow from their current operation in New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Delaware.

“Our company specializes in property preservation and disaster restoration. Principal has over 25 years of trade, disaster restoration, and property preservation experience and we are poised to provide superior service to our customers 24/7/365. As an innovative leader in the property preservation and disaster restoration industries, our specialized expertise and resources will help our clients to receive unmatched service and professionalism from an innovative leader.

Our practical knowledge and impeccable customer service will make our service an essential resource to property owners, insurance professionals, banks, mortgage companies, realtors, attorneys, and more. Our company offers a wide range of restoration and property preservation services tailored to help clients minimize damage, disruption, and expense associated with property loss, and foreclosure activities.

Our technicians will be highly trained individuals who are familiar with all aspects, guidelines, and procedures associated with providing superior property preservation and disaster restoration services. Our company is committed to providing clients with one resource for all of their property preservation, restoration, maintenance, and repair needs. Our company is well positioned to serve its’ clients throughout the Tri-state area of NJ PA DE.”

All of these Borrowers put a lot of work and effort into telling their fantastic stories. Tell your story today by posting a loan project for whatever dreams you have!

Next to mortgages, car loans are the most popular loans with lenders in Weemba, but lenders have also shown interest in medical and dental loans and other unsecured loans such as debt consolidation.

Business lending is also easiest to get with an asset involved. Alternative financing such as accounts receivable financing and asset-based lending has had lender activity within Weemba, as have posts for SBA loans, business expansion loans, commercial vehicle loans, working capital loans and loans related to purchasing or refinancing property.

Whatever your loan need is, post it even if it doesn’t match the loans have had the most activity so far. With new lenders being added all the time, the right lender for your need could be register any day.

With the housing marketing in the US improving, more people are buying homes now than in the past few years. About 15% of the loan needs in Weemba are home-related: mortgages, reverse mortgages, home improvement loans and home construction loans.

Car loans, student loans and loans for medical and dental procedures are some of the other most popular type of loan needs posted on Weemba.

Business Borrowers make up far less of the Weemba community than individual Borrowers, but their needs are amazingly similar. Business owners are also looking to save money on interest payments and to take advantage of lower interest rates and property prices. Some businesses are also looking to invest in new equipment or vehicles and to expand, which are good signs for the economy in general.

Next to filing for bankruptcy protection, nothing wrecks your chances of qualifying for a home loan like a foreclosure.

And if you got out from under an oppressive mortgage through a short sale — when the bank agrees to accept less than what the homeowner owes — lenders can look upon you just as unfavorably.

It’s a reality that the former owners of the more than 4 million homes lost to foreclosure in the six years since the housing bubble burst will have to confront if they want to own again. But the passage of time makes all the difference.

That’s because mortgage-lending guidelines that most banks follow prohibit them from making loans to people with foreclosure or a short sale in their credit history, often for years. Never mind the hit that one’s credit score takes.

Still, some of the homeowners who were foreclosed upon when the market first started to skid are now looking to buy and getting loans.

“They’re probably going to pay a little higher interest rate, but with rates so low, a higher interest rate of 4 percent is not a big deal,” said Rosa Herwick, a broker and owner of Century 21 JR Realty in Henderson, Nev.

So how likely are banks to approve your mortgage application if you have a real estate-related blemish on your record? And can you do anything to spring yourself from the mortgage penalty box?

It depends on several factors, but largely on whether you had a foreclosure or a short sale.

Read the rest of this article at Google News.

Lenders are charging U.S. car buyers the lowest interest rates in at least four years as fewer borrowers fall behind on their payments, supporting demand for new vehicles, according to researcher Experian Automotive.

The average interest rate for a new-vehicle loan fell to 4.52 percent in the fourth quarter, Costa Mesa, California-based Experian said today in an e-mailed statement. The rate dropped from 4.84 percent a year earlier and is the lowest since Experian began tracking the figure in 2008.

Financial companies are boosting lending in the automotive industry after U.S. light-vehicle sales climbed to 12.8 million last year, the second consecutive annual increase of at least 10 percent, according to researcher Autodata Corp. The Federal Reserve in January committed to holding short-term rates near zero through at least 2014.

Read the rest of this article at Bloomberg Business Week.

Micro businesses in the United States represent an important economic segment and will be an important factor in our economy. They are major contributors to job growth and form a huge block of the total outstanding business community and tax base. Today Micro Businesses face five major challenges in order to flourish and survive:

• Capital or Finance
• Technological Advances
• Embracing E-Commerce or The Internet Advantage
• Navigating Health Insurance
• Outsourcing When Available

Many businesses today cannot find funding or loans for their business. Whether a business owner is looking to refinance existing bank debt or growth capital, money is hard to come by. Without funding, micro businesses across the US will struggle. The bank-lending crisis and depressed equity values in homes have reduced the amount of available dollars to micro business. The Small Business Authority has programs suited for business with modest employee headcount.

Without understanding what software, hardware and business processes are the latest, greatest and most cost effective, micro businesses cannot compete. Products such as cloud computing can turn a struggling micro business into a profitable machine by reducing cost, improving security and enhancing business functionality. The Small Business Authority has solutions for Micro Businesses in the Cloud that can turn micro business owners into strong competitors.

Read the rest of this article on Forbes website.