Posts Tagged ‘Credit Reporting Agencies’

Knowing Your Credit Report And Score Is Important

November 25th, 2009 by admin | No Comments | Filed in equifax
A good credit rating will influence your financial life. It can mean the difference between getting that mortgage or low interest credit card or not. Banks and other lenders will check your credit rating before making a decision on whether to trust you with their money or not.

A credit rating is not based entirely on the size of your income, although it would not hurt it either if it is on the higher side. It is more about your repayment history of credit. In the case of mortgage lending especially banks will not lend an amount where your monthly repayments will go over a third of your total monthly income.

This is one way the size of your income can limit your borrowing power. It does not mean that you cannot get yourself where you want to go with your finances. But credit rating is more about your repayment behaviour; do you pay your bills regularly and on time? In short do you respect your payment obligations? This is more important information for lenders.

It is therefore, advisable to get a credit report from any of the credit reporting agencies before considering applying for any major credit. If it is not in good standing one needs to take steps to make credit repair actions. Equifax and Trans-union are the two major credit reporting agencies in the United States and Canada.

They receive information from credit and utility companies and keep this information in your file. Most banks and lenders and more and more utility companies will get a report on you from them before offering you credit or services.

A credit report will include a credit score which is a point based measurement on a scale of 300 to 900.The higher the score the less risk lenders see in lending money to you. A good credit score can not only secure you the funds you need but also at a lower interest rate than usual.

There are several factors that are taken into account to arrive at your credit score. Some are whether you carry balances on your credit card from month to month, bankruptcy, the length of time you have had credit and the debt owing at the moment.

There are some simple things to do to keep a good credit score. Pay your bills on time and in full if you are unable pay at least the minimum, check your monthly statements to make sure it is accurate and make corrections if needed, and talk to creditors if you have problems paying and know the terms and rates of any credit cards you receive.

Some bad things to do for your credit score is to go over your credit limit and not fully understanding the terms of use of your credit card before using it. It is also advisable not to waste time before reporting any anomalies seen on your statement for any items not bought by you.



By: Jim Brown

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Your Fico Score and How You Make it Work for You

October 27th, 2009 by admin | 2 Comments | Filed in credit
Whether or not you receive a loan and what interest rate you get on your credit card may be determined by something called a FICO score. Named for Fair, Isaac & Co., a California-based company that developed the credit score, the FICO score is the most widely used scoring method to determine credit worthiness.

Scores range from approximately 300 to 800 and are provided to lenders by the three credit bureaus, Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion. You also have access to your FICO scores, but will be charged a fee by each credit agency providing your report.

According to Fair Isaac, the credit scores of the American public are divided as follows:

• 499 and below 1 percent

• 500-549 5 percent

• 550-599 7 percent

• 600-649 11 percent

• 650-699 16 percent

• 700-749 20 percent

• 749-799 29 percent

• 800 and above 11 percent

A score of 720 or higher will probably get you the best interest rates on a home mortgage. Your credit card company looks at your credit score to decide whether or not to raise your credit limit or charge you a higher interest rate. The higher your credit score, the better you look to lenders and the lower your interest rates.

Raising your FICO score can make a big difference to your wallet. Some basic actions you can take to improve your score include paying your bills on time, lowering your account balances, and not taking on new debt.

Around the time you intend to apply for a loan, several factors can decrease your FICO score and, therefore, your ability to qualify for credit and low interest rates. First, order copies of your credit report from all three bureaus and correct any errors you find. Be sure that balances you have paid down are reflected on the report, along with closed accounts and settlements.

It’s important to get your credit scores from all three credit reporting agencies. Each bureau may have different information about you as reported by retailers and creditors. Clerical errors at a particular agency may also result in a varying score. Lenders often look at all three FICO scores, and rather than using the average of the three scores, they may use the middle score to determine your credit worthiness. Finding out what this middle score is and doing what you can to raise it is to your advantage.

Second, pay what you can on your debt rather than moving it around. Consolidating your credit card debt may be tempting, but it could lower your FICO score. Here’s why: keeping your account balances between 25% and 50% of your available credit, signals a responsible borrower. For example, if you have a credit card with a $2000 limit, you should keep your debt below $1000. The ratio of your credit card balance to your credit card limit will increase if you pile all of your debt into a couple of accounts, rather than keeping it spread out over several.

If you have three credit cards with limits of $2000 each, and you owe a balance of $1500 on all three combined, you have a total credit limit of $6000 on which you owe a balance of $1500. That’s a debt to credit limit ratio of 25%. But if you consolidate your $1500 debt into one card with a $2000 limit, you increase your debt to credit limit ratio to 75%, an unfavorable factor in your overall credit score. For this reason, the best solution is to simply pay off your existing cards as quickly as possible.

Also important in making the most of your FICO score near loan time is keeping unused accounts open, for the same reason as listed above. Your debt to credit limit ratio will rise drastically if you close your unused accounts. Wait until you have secured your loan to trim inactive accounts from your credit report. Also refrain from applying for any new accounts during this time.

Paying off your debt in a timely manner, building a solid credit history over a lengthy period of time, and erasing errors from your credit reports can all help you make the most of your FICO score and, in the end, make the most of your money.



By: Cathy Taylor

About the Author:

Cathy Taylor is a marketing consultant and freelance writer and can be reached at creativecommunications@cox.net




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Credit Reports are Vital to Your Credit, so Choose the Right Reporting Agency

October 22nd, 2009 by admin | No Comments | Filed in lifelock
Credit reporting companies are all over the internet these days, and offer a wide variety of services, and prices, and customer service.  It is all up to you on how you want to tackle your search for the right company, and how you want to choose the right company.  Having an incentive, or something to draw you in such as the Lifelock coupon or Lifelock discount is going to make you want to choose a company and stick with it.  This company and its offered incentives is one of the leading credit reporting agencies out there, and can truly help you.

The Lifelock coupon will initially offer you about 16% off of your annual payment and then you will also get 30 extra days for service free.  This Lifelock discount is definitely a good deal, and the entire company is a great company to work with when it comes to watching your credit, and reading your credit reports.

Credit reports are a great thing to have because it lets you see how well you are actually maintaining your credit score.  It tells you how far behind you are on credit cards or car payments, and it helps you see what sort of credit inquiries have been made about your credit.  This can be credit checks for a new credit card, a new place to live, a new card, anything like that. 

The Lifelock Company and the Lifelock coupon code that you can find is going to help you keep track of who might be trying to steal your credit.  Once you pay for the services and you get everything all set up, you can then see which companies have been running your credit, and if you find something that might not be entirely accurate, you can easily spot it, and easily have it fixed!  These credit reports are a great thing to have in your life, and the Lifelock discount is going to help you cheaply get your credit reports!

Choosing the right credit reporting agency is important and can either make or break your credit.  You need to find an agency that is going to work for you, and take the time to give you the services that you need.  The Lifelock coupon is an excellent way to get you started with the credit reporting world, and will allow you to afford the services that you need to ensure you do not become another victim of identity theft.



By: Jhoana Cooper

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The right credit reporting agency is out there to give you the perfect credit report lifelock discount. Take a look at these services credit lifelock coupon and what they can do for you.




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FICO score free

October 19th, 2009 by admin | 1 Comment | Filed in credit
It is quite easy to obtain FICO score free nowadays. However, what you do with the FICO score free is a totally different subject. In the United States, the FICO score is one of the most important numbers in the life of consumers. The FICO score decides how much you would be paying for your credit and other monthly bills. When you approach a bank or a credit card company, the FICO score makes them decide on the interest rate that they would be charging you or the down payment that they would demand. Even employers and landlords had started looking at FICO score free of a person before offering a job or renting a house.

The FICO score is arrived at by the three major credit reporting agencies of the United States, Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion. They use the software developed by Fair Isaac Corporation to compute the credit score and hence the name, FICO. The fico score free is based on several factors, but a few of them are crucial, like the total credits availed by you, the types of credits, and your repayment history. The FICO score would vary between 300 and 850. The FICO score could vary for each credit reporting agency. If the scores differ, then the lender would take the average of the three scores.

Legally, you are allowed to obtain one free credit report every year from each one of these three credit reporting agencies. Hence, you would do well to request a FICO score free from one agency once and then approach the other one after four months. The third could be requested after another four months. By staggering the FICO score free like this, you would be able to obtain periodical reports and credit scores. If the FICO score is lower, you would be able to take remedial actions to improve the score in the next few months.



By: Devin Dozier

About the Author:

Devin Dozier offers exclusive information on
FICO score free on his blog
Instant Credit Scores




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Is the Ftc Wrong About Credit Repair?

October 3rd, 2009 by admin | No Comments | Filed in credit
Credit repair has its share of detractors, and perhaps for good reason. The FTC campaign against credit repair scams makes perfect sense. But for every consumer that has been disappointed by a questionable credit repair scheme, there are so many more that have benefited from the service of a genuine credit repair professional. Is it time for the FTC to acknowledge the good guys in the credit repair industry?

The credit reporting system is not perfect. There is no debate about this. The Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) provides the legal process for consumers to correct errors on their credit reports and initiate a credit repair effort if necessary. How common are these errors? How difficult are they to identify and correct?

You may be aware of the often quoted Public Interest Research Group (PIRG) studies which conclude that three-quarters of all credit reports have errors. The Government Accounting Office (GAO) conducted a study of studies on the subject and also identified the severity of the issue. The real need for credit repair arises from the potential economic impact of these errors which translate into higher interest rates and less favorable terms for those affected.

To appreciate the need for credit repair you need only look at the numbers. Each of the three major Credit Reporting Agencies maintains data on approximately two hundred million Americans. Per the Public Interest Research Group studies, about one hundred fifty million Americans have errors on their credit reports. The PIRG studies conclude that although some of the errors will have little or no bearing on the credit classification of the consumer, a full twenty five percent of the errors are likely to result in outright denial of credit.

Twenty five percent represents fifty million people. As large a number as this is, it is only reasonable to extrapolate that there is an even larger group who suffer needless economic hardship from errors without experiencing outright credit denial. Between the two statistics are one hundred million Americans who may be paying premium interest rates as the result of errors; one hundred million Americans who may be paying higher mortgage payments, auto loan payments, and credit card payments. How far does the Fair Credit Reporting Act go to resolve this problem and aid or encourage the credit repair process?

The truth is that the Fair Credit Reporting Act does very little to mitigate the impact of credit reporting issues or support the credit repair process. The average person has difficulty reading a credit report, and beyond the face value of the information on the report lays the vast array of virtually inaccessible legal information that would facilitate their ability to manage the chore of credit repair. This includes the basic guidelines of the Fair Credit Reporting Act itself, reporting period limits, dispute rights, etc., as well as other legislation that may come to bear such as the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act and individual state statutes of limitation.

The complexity of credit repair in and of itself should not be a problem. The tax code is no less difficult and we all manage to get our tax returns done. For that matter, most of us drive automobiles and have no clue about how an internal combustion engine works, much less how to fix one. The real problem is the public perception of the credit repair industry. Imagine if we were regularly persuaded that accountants were unnecessary; how would we get our taxes done? Or if we were told to stay away from auto mechanics; how many of us would be able to repair or maintain our automobiles adequately?

The accuracy of your credit report is important. Your credit score will determine the cost of every dollar you borrow, and its affect will determine the quality of your life. I understand the FTC campaign against bad credit repair operations. And I understand the importance of the media warnings against illegal credit repair schemes. But for all of the good intentions of the FTC, the result of their myopic anti credit repair attitude has been an enormous cost for millions of people that should have been encouraged to seek professional credit repair help.

For all of the bad publicity surrounding credit repair schemes, there are many excellent professional credit repair businesses. The services provided by these credit repair professionals are no less important than services offered by any financial expert and should be sought out by anyone in need of guidance. As important as the FTC warnings against abusive practices may be, it is time for them to acknowledge the good guys that operate in the credit repair field.

Copyright © 2008 Ian Webber. All Content. All Rights Reserved.



By: Ian Webber

About the Author:

Ian Webber is an expert in consumer law and credit repair. Ian is a graduate of the London School of Economics and The University of Chicago where he earned his LLM. Ian consults with one of the leading online credit repair services and contributes regularly to a prominent credit repair blog. Ian is currently based in Florida.




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Credit Reports From Experian and TransUnion, Are They So Good?

May 22nd, 2009 by admin | No Comments | Filed in experian

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