Did you know that if you miss one payment on your mortgage over a two year period of time, it can drastically affect you if you try to refinance your house or apply for a new loan? The banks are becoming very strict, and just one missed payment within the period of one year will result in your application being rejected. This will also apply for any student loan, or other major loans for that matter. Unpaid credit card debt is generally the cause of many Americans being denied loans at their banks.

Unpaid credit card debt is now an epidemic in our country. If Congress had not passed a stimulus package that helps Americans with over $10,000 of unpaid balances get out of debt, most Americans would not be in a good position to function financially.

Unpaid credit card balances, again, is the highest cause of negative marks on all reports from the three major credit reporting agencies. Let's take a look at the average credit score for Americans and how unpaid credit card debt can affect it. The Fair Isaac Corporation uses a system called the FICO score that gives American's their credit score. This is also called a Beacon score.

According to a recent survey, 25% of Americans have a credit score between 500 and 600. The remainder of Americans is above 650, with a very small percentage below 500. Because of recent changes in American economics, the amount of unpaid credit card debt that Americans have; the distribution of credit scores has been shifting lower than ever.

Do not let unpaid credit card debt take control of your life and affect your beacon score in the FICO system. It is best not to let this score drop below 550 to show that you are not a credit risk. One last tip that can help you with your Beacon score: If you have under $10,000 in debt and are not able to get it erased when you pay off your debt, it is important for your creditor to list your account as current and not closed. This is because you don't want anyone to think your creditor shut your account, but that it was your decision. Unpaid credit card debt can be very damaging if you don't take steps to protect yourself.