Canceling a credit card that you rarely use or have paid off can feel good. It can give you a sense of accomplishment while lightening your wallet and giving you one less bill to worry about. It can, however, also cause your credit score to drop. But if you want to maintain your current credit score or improve it, then you may want to hold onto that card a little longer.

Closing the account doesn’t remove it from your credit report. Your payment history and credit history length will stay on there for 10 years. It will, however, affect your credit utilization, which is the percentage of the available credit used. The lower your credit utilization, the more it will increase your credit score. About 30 percent of a credit score comes from the credit utilization ratio.

By canceling a card, you’ll have less available credit to spend. Instead, you can improve your credit utilization ratio by paying off most of your credit card balance and then using your credit card less. There are also other options.

In addition to using your card less or not at all, you can call your credit card company and ask them to waive the annual fee. The company’s retention department is likely interested in keeping you as a customer instead of canceling your card because it’s cheaper than trying to acquire new customers. They may also offer you other incentives, such as bonus points.

Another option is to switch to a no-annual-fee card. You’ll have the same credit limit and account number, and the account’s age won’t change on your credit report. Along with no longer paying an annual fee, you’ll likely lose the rewards points program that annual fee cards usually offer, which is fine if you’re not going to use the card anyway.

If you decide to leave your card open, but leave it at home unused, you’ll want to keep it active so that the credit card company doesn’t cancel it automatically. Put a recurring charge such as a subscription on it, along with an auto payment, so that it stays active.

Having all of your family’s money in one bank account can make keeping track of your money easier, but it might not help your family meet its financial goals.

Instead of one big fund for everything — such as a checking account — you might be better equipped to meet several small financial goals with multiple bank accounts. If you’re smart about them, you might also save on fees and make more money off of your money.

Here are five bank accounts every family should have:

1. Regular savings. This is an account to hold money in and only use when needed. You can attach a goal to it, such as saving for a down payment on a house or a family vacation, or it can just sit around for life’s unexpected expenses. Try to save up to three months of living expenses in this fund in case of a short-term emergency.

2. Emergency savings. This account should be used as a last resort and is for big emergencies, such as losing a job and having enough money set aside for 6 – 12 months of living expenses.

3. Joint checking account. This is used to pay your regular bills and other family expenses, though not medical bills, which we’ll get to soon. It’s an account you probably already have and is where most of your income should go before it’s used to pay bills or moved to other accounts. This account should at least cover your monthly expenses.

4. Spousal checking accounts. Each spouse should have their own checking account so that they can buy something however they see fit. The amount shouldn’t be a secret from the other spouse, and it can be used as “fun money.” If everything else in your budget has been paid for, the money in this account is each person’s spot to use as they’d like to.

5. Health Savings Account. Also called an HSA, this is a tax-free account to hold money for medical expenses, from prescriptions to hospital stays. There are some rules to understand before using an HSA, so ask your Human Resources department at work or search online for details. If you’re spending a few thousand dollars a year on your family’s medical costs, a tax-free HSA can make it less expensive.

How much money you put into these accounts is up to you, but do yourself a favor and make it easy by using direct deposit so that a specified amount of money is automatically deposited into each account each month.

How medical debt and other collection items are tallied in a credit score is changing, potentially increasing the credit scores of millions of people.

Called the FICO 9, the new credit score changes how medical collections are treated from non-medical changes, such as credit cards. A medical debt will now damage a credit score less than paying a credit card bill on time, for example.

FICO 9 came out in 2014, but the improved credit scores could just now be coming to fruition for many consumers because it can take a few years for banks and other lenders to implement the new system.

The new FICO 9 score should give responsible borrowers better access to credit and lower rates on existing credit once the changes are accepted by the industry.

Part of the thinking behind the changes is that for many people facing medical debt collections, it isn’t something they have a lot of control over. People get sick or are in an accident and can’t control how high their medical bills are, and may not even know that their medical debt is in collections.

More than 64 million Americans have some kind of medical collection record on their credit reports, according to Experian, a credit bureau. Almost all medical debts are reported to credit bureaus by collection agencies.

The FICO score is the most widely used credit score in the country, and is used by companies selling mortgages, credit cards, personal loans and more.

Another change with FICO 9 is that older collection items will have less impact on a credit score. Other types of debt that are sold to a collection agency—such as an unpaid utility bill or phone bill, school loan or rent—can still be reported to a credit bureau, but older collections will have less impact on a credit score. If the collection item is paid back, the score will improve.

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You can buy almost anything through a subscription service today and have it delivered to your home. While the premise behind subscription services is enticing, they can cost you more in the long run if you’re not careful.

Here are some things to consider before setting up a subscription service:

Why do you want it? If you’re saving time, and not much money, through a subscription service, it can still be worthwhile. Avoiding a trip to the grocery store can be enough savings in time to make up for the extra cost of having dinner packages arrive at your doorstep that you cook, for example. If the subscription also saves you money, all the better.

But what if you’re buying something you don’t really need, or just want to try something out that everyone else you know is trying?

That’s okay if you can afford it and are sure you’re only going to give it a shot for a month before deciding if you’re going to cancel. But don’t give in to peer pressure or the joy of buying yourself a regular gift each month if it’s something you don’t need or can’t afford, as this could lead to more debt and unwanted items cluttering your home.

Research the service. Read the fine print on the service’s website before signing up. Are you required to buy something every month? How much notice do you need to give to cancel? How easy is it to change an order? Is customer service easy to contact? Will you pay shipping costs? Tax?

In addition, read customer reviews on Yelp or other review sites you trust. At the very least, Google the name of the subscription service you’re considering and see what people are saying about it.

Evaluate each delivery. Your credit or debit card will automatically be charged for each delivery, so you may not notice the cost until your credit card or bank statement arrives in the mail, making the box of fun stuff you receive seem like a free gift.

It’s not. Remember that you’re still ultimately paying for it, which means that you should evaluate the benefit of the subscription every time one arrives. Are the contents still worth the cost to you? If there’s an inkling in your mind that it’s not worthwhile, then it’s time to move on.

Don’t forget to cancel. If a subscription box isn’t of value to you anymore, take the final step and cancel your membership.

Unsubscribing should be easy enough. Log in to your account and unsubscribe. Remove your credit card number and move on. Most companies should only require a few days before your next shipment goes out to cancel, though some require 30 days.

Do whatever you need to do to cancel, then enjoy the savings.

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No matter the reason, neglecting to pay your federal student loans can result in a slew of negative consequences, from bill collectors knocking at your door to a big drop in your credit score. It can also make it difficult to be approved for other loans further down the road.

But it doesn’t end there. In fact, one of the biggest problems associated with defaulting on federal student loan debt is one that will hit hard every time you get a paycheck: wage garnishment.

To that end, it’s important to understand that the federal government can take up to 15 percent of each paycheck as a way to satisfy your debt. So, if you take home $2,000 per month, the Education Department can take $300 out of your paychecks each month.

And that’s not all they can take. They can also withhold federal benefits such as tax refunds and Social Security payments.

While there are ways to avoid wage garnishment, many of the options aren’t available until your loan is in good standing. That’s why it’s important to avoid having your loan go into default, which, for most federal loans, is nearly nine months past due.

Here are some options to consider if your student loan is about to go into default:

Change Your Repayment Plan
If you’re having trouble making the minimum monthly payment, then it’s a good time to ask your loan servicer for other repayment options.

The federal government has many types of payment plans. Options include loan forgiveness for government and nonprofit employees, income-driven plans to make payment affordable and an extended repayment plan that allows 25 years to repay a loan.

Refinance or Consolidate
If you’ve made loan payments on time, you may be able to refinance your student loans at a lower interest rate. Ask your loan provider if this is an option.

If you have multiple student loans, you may be able to save some money by consolidating the federal loans into a single loan with its own interest rate.

Use the 30-Day Window
If your loan is about to go into default, a collection agency that’s working for the federal government will notify you by mail 30 days ahead of time that it’s going to garnish your wages. You can use that time to negotiate payment arrangements with the agency, provided your first payment is made within that 30-day window.

To avoid any of your pay being garnished, you must request a hearing within that window to appeal the garnishment. You’ll fill out a form detailing your income, debt and expenses.

Rehabilitate Your Loan
Borrowers are offered a one-time chance to get out of default through loan rehabilitation. While your wages will still be garnished, they’ll be taken into consideration—along with other bills—when deciding how much your monthly payment should be.

Make nine of those payments within 10 months and your loans move out of default. Wage garnishment will then stop, and you can choose a repayment plan that works best for you.

This article is intended for informational purposes only and should not be construed as professional or legal advice.