Pillar 3
Debt and Credit
Debt and credit are two of the most misunderstood areas of personal finance. This section explains how credit scores are calculated, how credit card interest actually compounds, how debt payoff methods work, and what happens when debt goes unpaid. Understanding how these systems work is the first step to navigating them.
23 articles
The 5 Cs of credit are character, capacity, capital, collateral and conditions, defined in the OCC's examiner handbook. Where your credit score actually fits.
16 min read
Every page ranking for loan against property is written by a lender. None says what happens when you stop paying, or names the tax conditions.
13 min read
RBI's gold loan rules from 1 April 2026: tiered LTV of 85, 80 and 75 percent, a 12-month cap on bullet loans, and Rs 5,000 a day for late return.
12 min read
The 43% mortgage rule was removed in 2020 and India's regulator sets no income ratio at all. What the primary rules say, and what lenders decide themselves.
15 min read
How debt and credit work in India and the US, in one guide: CIBIL and FICO, EMIs and revolving cards, and the RBI and Fed rules current as of July 2026.
13 min read
What a payday loan costs: the 391% APR, the rollover cycle, how it compares with a personal loan, and why India has no regulated equivalent.
14 min read
A debit card spends your money, a credit card borrows. How that changes fraud liability under RBI and US law, credit building, disputes, and merchant holds.
23 min read
How the pay-in-4 model works, what BNPL really costs when you miss a payment, and how it compares with a credit card in India and the US.
8 min read
Check your CIBIL score free in India: the two kinds of free, the RBI one-report-a-year rule, whether PAN works without OTP, and if self-checks hurt your score.
15 min read
RBI barred pre-payment charges on loans sanctioned from 1 January 2026, but only on floating-rate loans. Most personal loans are fixed, so check which you hold.
11 min read
Income-driven repayment now has five plans. What the Repayment Assistance Plan changes, who lost access on 1 July 2026, and the tax on forgiveness.
16 min read
The three forms debt consolidation takes in India and the US, and the conditions under which it saves money rather than just rearranging it.
11 min read
TransUnion CIBIL calls 30% a healthy ratio but sets no official cut-off, and FICO publishes none either. What the data shows, and why top scores sit under 10%.
14 min read
A good credit score is 670+ on FICO (max 850) and 750+ on CIBIL (max 900). See every band, what each one unlocks, and what a good score really saves you.
14 min read
The timeline from missed payment to lawsuit: RBI's three-day buffer, the 90-day NPA rule that turns on your minimum due, and US charge-off at 180 days.
21 min read
Six months on US federal loans, course duration plus 6 to 12 months in India, and the interest accrual rules that decide what you really owe.
10 min read
Daily simple interest accrual, capitalisation rules, and the actual rates on US federal loans and Indian education loans, in plain English.
11 min read
How long to pay off a credit card? A payoff table by payment level, the minimum-payment trap, the best time to pay, and worked examples in rupees and dollars.
12 min read
Pay the smallest balance first, roll each payment forward, and stay motivated. Worked payoff examples in both rupees and dollars.
12 min read
The five steps and their real timings, what consolidating actually does to a credit score and when, and why the US balance-transfer playbook fails in India.
15 min read
The debt avalanche saves the most interest, except when it barely does. Two worked examples with real month-by-month math, for India and the US.
10 min read
How credit scores are calculated: FICO's five published weights, why CIBIL publishes none, what both models ignore entirely, and what changed in 2026.
19 min read
Credit card interest is charged daily on your average daily balance once you carry a balance. The real math, grace periods, and the minimum trap, in ₹ and $.
13 min read