Girl, Get Your Credit Straight!: A Sister's Guide to Ditching Your Debt, Mending Your Credit, and Building a Strong Financial Future [Paperback]

Glinda Bridgforth (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 31, 2007

Is “retail therapy” your favorite pastime—even though you really can’t afford it? Do you ignore the balance on your credit card statements, vowing to pay them off at some point down the line? Is your debt preventing you from living your dreams—like buying a home or starting a family? If so, girl, it’s time to get your credit straight!These days, with easy access to multiple credit cards and glossy advertisements that entice us to spend at every turn, it’s all too easy to start racking up debt—and even little slip-ups can lead to real damage over time. In this highly practical follow-up to her bestsellers Girl, Get Your Money Straight! and Girl, Make Your Money Grow!, financial expert Glinda Bridgforth delivers a power-packed plan for paying down debt, repairing your credit score, and securing your financial freedom—along with a future that makes your heart sing.Beginning with simple, engaging exercises to help you assess your spending habits and get clear about what you owe, Girl, Get Your Credit Straight! presents a detailed road map for eliminating debt, one step at a time. You will learn how to: • Devise a system for tracking expenditures, anticipating end-of-month shortfalls, and paying bills on time, every time• Find ways to supplement your income• Consolidate loans to pay off debt faster, decrease stress, and save time and money• Negotiate with your creditors to come up with a payment plan that works for you• Discover the best loans to use for refinancing debt or making major new purchases• Understand how credit bureaus work--and take steps to improve your scoreFilled with Bridgforth’s warmhearted wisdom and advice, and complete with worksheets, affirmations, and inspiring stories of African American women who’ve restored their credit and built new wealth, Girl, Get Your Credit Straight! is a fresh, empowering guide for any woman who wants to say goodbye to debt—for good.

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

Money manager Bridgforth follows her Girl, Get Your Money Straight! (2000) and Girl, Make Your Money Grow! (2003) with a focus on credit. Recalling her own early financial woes, living from paycheck to paycheck and well beyond her means, Bridgforth speaks from experience as a tapped-out consumer and as a financial advisor. Focusing on the types of behaviors and emotions that often fuel overspending and the bad credit that results, she advises readers to consider how and why they spend. The book is organized in three parts: the basics of understanding credit and credit ratings, a step-by-step guide to establishing a credit repair strategy, and advice on maintaining good credit, including ideas about earning extra money. Bridgforth examines the cultural and economic factors most likely to result in poor credit for black women, but her advice is widely applicable. Vanessa Bush
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Review

Praise for Girl, Get Your Money Straight! and Girl, Make Your Money Grow!“A must-have guide for any woman who wants to have power over her money. Warmth, energy, and financial savvy radiate from every page.”—David Bach, New York Times bestselling author of The Automatic Millionaire and Start Late, Finish Rich“Thoughtful, holistic, heartfelt advice.”—USA Today“Girl, Get Your Money Straight! and Girl, Make Your Money Grow! speak to the heart and soul of sisters everywhere, and give us the practical tools we need not only to conquer our money fears but to lift our spirits and achieve our wildest dreams!”—Cheryl D. Broussard, author of Sister CEO and The Black Women’s Guide to Financial Independence“A motivating guide to claiming financial health and success that speaks to the unique money challenges of Black women and offers empowering steps to healing.”—Ebony“This book is a must for every wise woman and her household.”—Bertice Berry, author of When Love Calls, You Better Answer and I’m on My Way but Your Foot Is on My Head

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 352 pages
• Publisher: Broadway (December 31, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0767926749
• ISBN-13: 978-0767926744
• Product Dimensions: 5.5 x 0.8 x 8.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #360,248 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

19 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Girl, Get this Book!!!, February 7, 2007

By 

Kathy "Gratefulfor2007" (Atlanta, Georgia) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Girl, Get Your Credit Straight!: A Sister's Guide to Ditching Your Debt, Mending Your Credit, and Building a Strong Financial Future (Hardcover)

I recently went to her book signing in Atlanta and bought all three of her books. She is an awesome author. I am a forty something woman who makes a good living just made a lot of mistakes. This is an excellent book to help you straighten out a mess that you have made in easy terms to understand. We have all had our share of credit "issues" but this will put you back on track. It is not just for sisters, it is for men and women, black and white or others with credit problems but want a book that is easy to understand for the regular person and it will help you. I can not wait until her next book signing to tell her where I am in "Getting my credit straight"!!!

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Girl Get That Credit Right!!!!!, June 19, 2007

By 

Queen Of Books "Viva La Diva" (Hampton Rds Va) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Girl, Get Your Credit Straight!: A Sister's Guide to Ditching Your Debt, Mending Your Credit, and Building a Strong Financial Future (Hardcover)

Wow! Ive Been Reading This Book & Must Say , That It Has Taught Me About So Many Things I Didnt Know About. This Book Has Educated Me in So Many Areas In Life,Its Taught Me About How We Should Manage Debt. Paying Bills On Time, My Credit Score, & So Much More. This Book Is A Must Read For All Women...

18 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Nothing New, May 10, 2007

By 

Warren (Seattle) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Girl, Get Your Credit Straight!: A Sister's Guide to Ditching Your Debt, Mending Your Credit, and Building a Strong Financial Future (Hardcover)

This book takes an interesting topic and makes it booooring. The author takes 50 pages worth of information and streeeetches it out to over 300 pages. Way too much verbiage. Basically, a rehash of information that's already been out in the news for years. Nothing new.

One of the main reasons I got this book was because I wanted to read the "101 Ideas to Increase Income." I wonder how many of these ideas the Sisters are going to be able to use:

Get a raise. (None of the Sisters could have thought of that one?)
Be an actress. (Like Hollywood is waiting.)
Own a vending machine.
Own an ATM. (It's getting funny now.)
Be a house sitter.
Be a singer. (Like Fantasia.)
Write plays.
Direct plays.
Be a comic strip artist.
And other equally "helpful ideas."

I'm sure Glinda is a very nice lady, but this book is a total disappointment.