Archive for August, 2010

Does it hurt your FICO® score if you go to credit counseling?

FICOTechTalk asked:


Going to credit counseling doesnt hurt your FICO® score — as long as the agency pays your bills on time! Find out more in this video, where Darcy Sullivan and Craig Watts answer one of your questions about FICO® scores.

Esther

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Bad Credit Debt Consolidation

hotftuna asked:


www.debtplan.org Bad Credit Debt Consolidation, Consumer Credit Counseling, Debt settlement, Debt Negotiation, and Bankruptcy are subjects which will be discussed in A LIFE OUT OF DEBT. Please do not become discouraged or negative in anyway if you or your family are currently experiencing any of these phases. You are not alone, millions of Americans are in the same boat. Folks, the major culprit or vehicle which takes us to this crossroads is, unsecured debt. The good news is through credit counseling, and debt consolidation you can make it through these times, and move on to a less stressful life.

Jay

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4 Comments

How do we get our free credit score or report?

asked:


Is there a way to get a free credit score or report? I heard everyones entitled to 1 free report,state by state?

Ramon

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2 Comments

The Secret To Good Credit Score Ratings

Jack Harmon asked:




Bad credit is a huge problem in the world today, as it lands some people in jail behind bars and other people in more debt paying off interest for the rest of their lives.

If you have a low credit score rating you will essentially pay about 4 percent more interest on everything you buy on credit. Having a good credit score and maintaining it is easier said than done, and not many people practice what they preach either.

The truth is that more and more everyday people around the world fall victim to the tempting sale adverts in shop windows and on TV and in turn these people fall victim to maxing out their credit cards. This is not always a good thing, unless someone else pays their bills for them on a monthly basis.

Maintaining a good credit score is a must, it is easier said than done but it is not impossible, the trick is to take a look at your credit score rating every few months, so you know if you are going wrong and how you will be able to fix it.

For a good credit score rating finance experts say that you must try at least to make a payment on every credit account you have every month. This will keep you in the good books and your credit score rating stable at all times, which his the way you want it and the way you need it.

Credit Score Ratings Kept High

If you want to keep up with your credit score rating and if you want to maintain a good credit score it will be a good idea to know how credit score ratings work. You will also need to know what credit score could land you on the bad credit list and the black list, and which credit score rating will see you paying less interest when you buy on credit.

According to finance experts every American needs to have a credit score rating between 600 and 800, where the total average range for credit score rating is 300 to 900.

Looking at statistics taken from a recent survey the average credit score rating for the United States of America is around 650.

It is said that you will pay almost 4 percent more interest for purchases made on credit if you have a lower credit score rating and you will pay much less if you rate around 900. It is also said that the very minimum if 550, which is still said to be pushing you luck a tiny bit.

So to perfectly manage your credit and debt you need to take a look at where you credit score rating stands every few months.

This way you will know what to do, whether it is a bit low or high enough, which enable you to spend a bit more, just remember to now over do it or you will end up on the bad credit list, or even worse, you will end up on the black list, which mean you will not be able to get credit for at least five years.

Marcus

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How can I check my credit score?

experianUS asked:


Maxine Sweet, Vice President of Public Education for Experian, discusses the difference between a credit report and a credit score and how to request a credit score. For more information, visit: www.experian.com

Christine

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How do i get free credit score or report?

Charle asked:


Is there a way to get a free credit report?I tried but they only offer a “Free Score”,then money to see

James

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3 Comments

Who Has An 850 Credit Score And How Do You Get One?

ExpertRealEstateTips asked:


Credit scores, on the scale assigned by FICO, range from 300 to 850. Who has an 850 credit score and what canyou do to get one? Less than 1 percent of the population has a credit score above 800, so it’s very unlikely you will have an 850 credit score. However, if your credit score is above 720, you will probably still receive the best rates. Watch more credit and identity theft videos from Expert Real Estate Tips to learn how to raise your credit score.

Brian

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3 Comments

How to check a really free Credit Score?

asked:


I want to know if I have any type of credit score. I have a Credit Card and I’ve been paying it off, but I want to get an apartment soon and need to see what my credit is like. I just want an online fast instant check–for free. I’ve heard of it being done before, I just don’t know what website.

Glen

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3 Comments

How to Get a Free FICO Score Credit Report Online

Zach Ford asked:




Your credit score, commonly referred to as a FICO score, is a numerical representation of your current and past financial tendencies. Essentially this score is used to show potential lenders exactly how likely you are to make your payments on time. The higher your score, the more trustworthy you will appear to anyone who is considering whether or not to give you a loan.

How is My FICO Score Calculated?

Your numerical score is the direct result of your past and present financial activities being passed through a complexed mathematical formula. This process takes all of your previous credit cards, mortgages, utilities, car payments, and many other debts. into account. The more consistently you have made all of these payments on time, the higher your FICO score will be.

It is very important to frequently look over a copy of your credit report, as errors, fraud, and out of date information are very commonly overlooked and can have a drastically negative effect on your rating. It has never been easier, more affordable, and more important to check your report. The internet provides an excellent opportunity to obtain a free copy of your FICO score.

What is the Average US Credit Score?

FICO scores generally fall into a range between 300 to 850, with 300 being the lowest (bad credit), and 850 being the highest (excellent credit). The average score for borrowers in the USA is approximately 720. Lenders will usually tend to give clients with a score of 700 or above a more favorable interest rate and terms on their loans. While those with a 600 or less will generally receive a higher interest rate and tighter restrictions.

Marc

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Is there a way to receive a free credit score?

asked:


I know ypu can get a free credit report once a year, but it does not include a score. Is there a way to get a free credit score?

Floyd

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1 Comment

Credit Cards, Credit Score & Credit : How to Improve Your Credit Score

expertvillage asked:


Improve your credit score by making payments on time and keeping cards at a balance less than half the credit limit. Learn how to improve your credit score from acredit counselor in this free personal finance video. Expert: Maria Enomoto Contact: www.gotdebt.org Bio: Maria Enomoto works as a credit counselor for Consumer Credit Counseling services in San Jose, California. Filmmaker: Bing Hu

Tanya

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4 Comments

How do i look free credit score or report?

drusilla asked:


Is there a way to get a free credit score?I tried but they only offer a “Free Score”,then money to see

Jacob

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2 Comments

How Does Applying For a Credit Card Hurt Me?

Manshu Verma asked:




How does applying for a credit card hurt my credit score?

Every time you apply for a credit card, the credit card company makes an inquiry into your credit report. These are also known as hard pulls. Each of these credit inquiries or hard pulls, take away around 5 points from your credit score.

The rationale behind taking away points from your credit score when you apply for credit, is that, it is harder to control multiple lines of credit when compared to just a few. It also shows a tendency that leans towards getting excessive credit and then getting into a spending spiral, which may become difficult for you to get out of and as a result your chances of default become high.

These inquiries show on your credit report for a period of one to two years, but the dent in score itself will be rectified in about a couple of months, if you do not abuse your newly available credit.

If your credit application gets approved, then your score will rise fairly quickly because the additional line of credit will give you a boost. Along with this, your ‘debt is to available credit’ ratio will also improve and that will help boost your score too.

Be aware of the credit application spiral

The people who are worse hit are the people whose credit application gets rejected. When their application gets rejected, their score goes down. However, since their application has been rejected, they apply again thereby reducing their score further and chances are that they will get rejected once again. This is a vicious circle and if you get into this kind of thing four or five times, then your credit score takes a bigger hit.

So be careful, and next time you are tempted to apply for that store credit card that will give you $10 off on a new shirt, think twice!

Jamie

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No Comments

Tips on How to Repair Credit Score Legally

Al Falaq Arsendatama asked:




Understanding every detail of information on the credit report is an important step to repair your credit score. Your credit report carries free credit score that the lenders look at before finalizing their lending decisions. A good credit score means that you can easily qualify for loans and credit products at low interest rates and attractive terms. Conversely, bad credit rating means that the lenders will stay away from you and even if they offer credit, that would attract high interest rates.

If you are having a negative credit rating, you need not worry because you can repair your credit legally on your own or with the help of legal credit repair companies. Moreover, you still have a chance of getting a loan with credit score that is not good because all creditors have their own guidelines of granting credit. Some lenders have special loan and credit products for people with bad credit. Still you should try to improve your credit rating and take steps to improve your credit legally because a good credit rating can help the lenders to offer you loans and credit at better terms.

The Myth and Reality of Fixing Credit Rating

Some credit repair companies lure you and convince you that they can help in credit repair by fixing credit ratings. You should remember there is nothing such as fixing credit rating. No matter what a credit repair company may offer you, the fact is that nobody can remove any up-to-date legal and accurate information from your credit report.

The credit repair companies can at best help you removing the errors and mistakes from your credit reports. A legal credit repair company can help you with debt consolidation and other legal means for debt reduction and credit repair.

If you find there is any incomplete or inaccurate information in your credit report, you can request for an investigation and take remedial measures on your own. You, as a consumer, have the full right to ask for an investigation of your credit report and fix the errors legally and that too without any monetary cost. If you do not have time for the same, you can take help of legal credit repair companies who can help you with necessary steps for how to repair your credit legally.

Self-credit Repair

For self-credit repair through legal means, you need to get the copies of your free annual credit reports from the legal credit reporting companies. Read and go through the credit reports thoroughly and check if there is any erroneous information on the credit reports. Any inaccurate or incomplete information in your credit report can inadvertently affect your chances of obtaining loans, insurance, job, house on rent etc. Therefore, it is well worth to inform the credit reporting companies about the errors with documentary proofs and get them corrected. You can legally challenge the wrong entries in writing.

The Federal Trade Commission is always there with you (the consumers) in providing assistance for your legal credit repair. The FTC maintains an online database of all civil and criminal law enforcement agencies in US. It can steer you for the help you may need for your credit repair. In this way, you will notice that you are slowly repairing credit rating.

Keep patience and make smart budgeting decisions. This way you will eventually be able to pay your creditors on time and prove yourself suitable for credit. This is a slow but effective way to repair your credit legally. This approach of credit repair on your own is far successful in the longer run as compared to engaging a credit repair company that indulges in illegal means for fixing credit rating.

Jose

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No Comments

How do we look free credit score or report?

asked:


Is there a way to get a free credit report?I tried but they only offer a “Free Score”,then money to see

Wanda

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3 Comments

Do Credit Inquires Hurt Your Credit Score?

Mike Clover asked:




A credit inquiry is an item on your credit report that shows with permission a creditor requested your free credit score report.

Not all credit inquiries affect your credit score:

You may notice when you pull your credit report there are inquiries on there from a business you are not familiar with. The only inquiry that affects your credit score is the one where you are applying for credit. This is considered a hard pull on your report.

Inquiries that affect your credit score:

There is only one type of inquiry that affects your score. This type of inquiry is applications for a mortgage, auto loan and other credit, by you authorizing these creditors to access your credit report. This type of inquiry prompted by your own actions ends up on your personal credit report and affects your score.

An inquiry that does not affect your credit score: Checking your own personal credit report or any business that offers goods and services that requests your report. A business that you already have a account with that requests a check. A potential employer that does credit checks. Some of these types of inquiries might show up on your report but do not affect your credit score.

Checking your credit report does not affect your score:

Checking your credit report on a regular basis to ensure it is accurate and error free is recommended by Fair Isaac the inventor of the FICO Score. Maintaining a error free report is part of credit management which will improve your credit rating over time. Ordering your credit report at CreditScoreQuick.com does not hurt your credit score.

How credit inquiries are factored in your Credit Score:

There are five types of information used to calculate your credit score. Each category accounts towards a percentage of your score.

Payment History – 35%

Amounts Owed – 30%

Length of Credit History – 15%

Types of Credit in use – 10%

New Credit – 10%

Don’t let inquires scare you. There is nothing wrong with shopping for a better rate, or better terms on a loan. As you can see in the about chart, payment history is the biggest factor in calculation process of your credit score. The second biggest factor is how much of your approved credit limits are charged up. But of course you don’t want to go out and start applying for every credit offer out there either. Be responsible and have a good mix of credit, but stay away from too much credit as well You really on need 3 lines of credit reporting on your report.

Example:

1. credit card

2. car note

3. installment loan

This type of credit mix accounts for 10% of your score.

Keith

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Free Credit Report – No Credit Card Required – Where To Get One?

Mike Clover asked:




Free Credit Report with no credit card required is available at annualcreditreport once a year. Here is what they don’t tell you. When you get your Free Credit Report at annualcreditreport there is no Credit Scores. So what good is a Credit Report without your Credit Scores? A Credit Report with no Credit Scores is like a destination with no address, it is useless. The following look at your scores very closely when determining your credit risk, interest rates, and terms.

1. Insurance Companies

2. Utility Companies

3. Credit Card Companies

4. Mortgage Companies

5. Car Finance Banks

6. Employers

7. Even Hospitals are now determining your Credit Risk.

Folks this is serious business, just imagine if you are applying for that new job that pays more, and they determine whether they are going to hire you based on your Credit Score. The main point is, yes you can get a Free Report with Annual but it’s once a year and no Scores are included. A Report with no Scores is useless, especially when that is what creditors look at. Let’s just assume you are getting ready to buy a car, and you are a customer that does not know there scores. Dealerships love customers like you because an uneducated consumer is a consumer they can rip off and make more money on. An educated consumer that knows there scores will show up ready to get the interest rate on the loan. This is what most lenders don’t want to deal with, because they make less money on consumers like this. Maybe you are wondering what is considered a good score.

Here is a break down:

o 780-850 – Low Risk

o 740-780 – Medium -Low Risk

o 690-740- Medium Risk

o 620-690- Medium High Risk

o 620 and Below – High Risk

There are all of these offers out there selling Free Credit Score Reports with all these up sales. For example:

1. Credit Monitoring

2. Savings Club memberships etc

When it comes down to being an educated consumer and that is all that is available out there to get your scores, there is not much choice. I would not hesitate to get these services, because everyday thousands of people get there identity stolen. I would recommend being an educated consumer so you are aware of what is being reported about you. Start saving today and protect yourself and your family.

Eddie

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How to Obtain a Free FICO Score Credit Report Online

Zach Ford asked:




Your FICO score, calculated by information in your credit report, is one of the most valuable tools in your financial arsenal. FICO (named after Fair Issac Corp, the company that pioneered credit scoring) mathematically calculates your late or timely payments and other factors in your credit history into a number that indicates how good a credit risk you would be.

Hundreds of bits of financial information are used in calculating your score and it’s important to be certain that some of those factors aren’t errors or even credit fraud. Therefore, you should check your credit report and FICO score at least once a year and even more frequently if you relocate, change jobs or open new accounts. Quickly correcting any errors that may be in your report is vital to your financial health.

Another, very important, reason to check your credit report is your present and future employers. Checking a job applicant’s report has become standard practice in trying to determine if they’d be a good fit with the company. You can see how an error or fraudulent entry in your credit report can make a significant impact on your life!

You can obtain a copy of your credit report and FICO score by either going online or using the postal service. Experian, TransUnion and Equifax, the three agencies, offer free copies of your report and FICO score once per year. You will find forms online that you can use to request these reports. Take care, however, that you don’t inadvertently get taken in by the many look-alike websites that often imitate these legitimate reporting agencies. The imitators will offer the free reports but in authorizing it, you’re actually signing up for a monthly credit reporting service that will charge you a fee. Unless you want this type of service, be very careful to read all the agreements and fine print, even on the three legitimate websites.

Checking your credit report and FICO score at least once per year will help insure that you stay financially healthy and maintain your good credit reputation.

Randall

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