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DALLAS, Jan. 7 /PRNewswire/ "Many people will have their credit scoreslowered this year if they're not watchful, know what to do and take action,"said Eddie Johansson, president of Credit Security Group, a leading nationwidecredit score analysis and rescoring firm.Credit scores are used by lenders to determine credit risk. Lower scoresresult in loss of credit and higher interest rates. Financial analysts predictcuts up to $2 trillion in credit card account lines over the next 18 months."This will have very bad consequences for consumers who are not prepared,"said Johansson, speaking recently about credit scores at the Texas BankersAssociation's Financial Literacy Summit.Analysts predict many card companies will be canceling unused cards andlowering limits this year. You don't know it, but your credit score has just takena hit and it's only beginning." Johansson says credit companies constantlymonitor your credit score, which causes the trap to spring."Another company lowers your limit and increases your interest rate, 'dueto decreased credit score.' This lowers your credit score further Anothercompany cancels an unused card.

The cycle snowballs with other cards, and thenthe same ones over again. If you are planning a major credit move say,refinancing your house for lower rates, your lower credit score hurts yourchances of refinancing and greatly increases the interest rate offered."Johansson points out that the consumer here has done nothing different,hasn't gone into more debt, hasn't missed any payments. Yet, his rates havegone up and his ability to use credit has been damaged while he wasunaware And once ensnared it's difficult to get out. "This is why it's atrap," Johansson said."You can prevent this from happening to you," he said, "if you know how.""The critical piece of this trap is your credit score," said Johansson."It's what keeps the snowball rolling. Your credit score is also the solemeasure used to determine your credit risk and interest rates in the future.You should carefully guard it as it comes under attack this year," he said.With the amount of credit reduction projected, almost everyone will losesome credit availability, Johansson said. "You can't control credit cardcompanies reducing the amount of credit in the system, but you can make sureit does not hurt your credit score- and this is critical to maintaining yourability to manage your finances in addition to saving you thousands of dollarsin fees and interest payments."Johansson gives specific advice on what to do. The key is in your creditscores knowing how the scoring system works and how to avoid hits to yourscore.

In brief, the steps are:1)Keep your balances low on existing cards.2)Remember it's the balance/limit ratio that counts not the balanceamount. If a credit card company lowers your limit, immediately lower yourbalance if necessary to stay under eight percent. This makes themactive which increases the limit portion of your balance/limit ratio.4)Avoid opening new lines of credit if at all possible. Thisincludes homes and cars among other products and services. If you're not sure,make sure tell them not to pull your credit report.6)Whatever it takes, avoid any negative events on your credit report.7)Monitor your credit reports; be alert for any changes. Correctinaccurate information in your report, or hire a professional to do so.Besides keeping your score from decreasing, many people increase their scoresby correcting their data at the credit bureaus.More detailed information on these steps and what to do can be found atthe Credit Security Group web site, http:// .Johansson said that consumers' lack of knowledge about the credit systemsis especially costly to them in these times and there is a great deal ofmisinformation. "Common sense and credit sense are not the same thing."About Credit Security GroupCredit Security Group serves consumers and lending organizationsnationwide and advises major banks and mortgage lenders and their clients onhow the system works and how to improve credit scores.

CSG President EddieJohansson has appeared on television and radio programs as the consumer creditscore expert. http:// Topic Expert(s): For information on the listed expert(s), clickappropriate link.Eddie Johansson Security GroupJohn Johansson of Credit Security Group, 1-903-533-0456,. Today, the Veterans Committee for Managers and Umpires elected Whitey Herzog and Doug Harvey into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.Herzog or the “White Rat” as he was so often called because of his white hair spent 18 years managing the Texas Rangers, California Angels, Kansas City Royals, and the St. Louis Cardinals.However, it was with the Cardinals were Herzog made a name for himself as a manager. Herzog was elected to the HOFIn 11 years managing the Cardinals, Herzog won three National League pennants and a World Series title in 1982.His teams played a certain brand of baseball known as “Whitey Ball.”“Whitey Ball” consisted of lots of lots of singles, doubles, bunts, and stolen bases.His teams usually finished last in home runs, but at or around the top in most other offensive categories.As a kid growing up in Queens and in a New York Mets house, there was no better rivalry in the '80s than the Mets and the Cardinals.The Mets and Cards were in the same division back then, and Herzog was a big part of that rivalry.To this day, I remember my dad screaming at the TV, because Gary Carter could never throw out Tommy Herr or Vince Coleman.Doug Harvey was an umpire for 31 seasons and umpired five World Series.In 1999, the Society for American Baseball Research ranked Harvey as the second greatest umpire in historyTwelve-of-16 votes were needed for election.Herzog received 14 votes, and Harvey received 15. You can follow The Ghost of Moonlight Graham on Twitter theghostofmlg. This article is also featured on The Ghost of Moonlight Graham. Holyoke, Massachusetts Residents to Benefit From Verizon Wireless NetworkExpansionInvesting to Stay Ahead of Growing Demand for Wireless Voice, Multimedia andInternet Access HOLYOKE, Mass., Jan. The new site increases wireless data coverageand capacity in Holyoke, Massachusetts, as well as the surrounding area.Verizon Wireless has invested more than $48 billion since it was formed toincrease the coverage and capacity of its national network and to add newservices like BroadbandAccess and V CAST. Regionally the company has investedover $2.2 billion into its New England network.