Bryan Burbank asked:




Too much bad credit can make it very hard to get a loan on a car or even get a credit card. It is always good to improve your credit score and that way you can get a loan at a good interest rate. There is ways of getting a no credit or bad credit loan but the negative thing is you will have to pay a much higher interest rate and it will cost you a lot more money over the life of the loan.

There are some great ways to improve your credit score and we are going to give you some of the top tips so you can get on your way to having a great credit score.

First what you need to do is to obtain your credit report form the main three credit reporting agencies. All of these agencies Equifax, Tansunion and Experian allow you one free credit report a year so there will be no problem getting free one.

It is important that when you get your credit report that you go through it and check for any errors you may have. It is important that you dispute all things that you feel are not correct on your credit report. The reporting agency is responsible to determine whether the error is correct or not and if they can not within a 30 day period then they are required to remove the negative item from your report.

Remember that having a good score is very important to you with getting a job and getting a loan. It is up to you to dispute the errors and get them off of your report so that you can improve your credit score.

Audrey

Adam Tijerina asked:




Due to the recent credit crisis and housing collapse leading rules have changed dramatically. Despite historically low mortgage rates, most people cannot qualify for them without a really good credit score. This is why it is very important to get your free credit scores and know where you stand and know where you have to improve to get the lowest mortgage rate.

So where can you get free credit scores?

Several sites now offer free “credit scores” which are based off of scoring formulas similar to the national credit bureau formulas at TransUnion, Equifax, and Experian. The accuracy of these scores is debatable. Comments on a recent Wall Street Journal article stated these scores are not reliable when it comes to mortgages and refinancing.

These sites are credit.com, creditkarma.com and quizzle.com. They can provide you with an estimated score range instead of an exact score and you can expect loads of advertisements all over the site with many offers you are encouraged to sign up for.

Why doesn’t the government provide free credit scores in addition to free credit reports?

The easy answer is they were not part of the arrangements with the credit reporting agencies who are now required by law to provide them for free. They are only required to provide your free credit reports and that’s just what they do. They can still make money selling you the credit scores and that’s just what they do.

You can expect to pay around $8-$10 for each credit score so that’s around $24-$30 each time you want to check your scores. And then the experts tell you to check them every few months so you can easily spend over hundred dollars over the course of a year.

So where does that leave you?

You can go to sites that you see advertised on TV and sign up to get your free credit reports and scores from all three credit reporting agencies.

Doing this will allow you to monitor your credit score on an ongoing basis so you can check your credit worthiness in less than a minute instead of having to sift through 20 to 30 pages of your credit reports trying to decode all the abbreviations.

Getting your free credit scores this way does not lower your score because it is a soft inquiry instead of a hard inquiry which can lower your score. And you will be able to keep track of any suspicious activity in your credit report that could affect your score or result in identity theft.

Edith

Tom Jerico asked:


A free credit report these days can help you keep a watchful eye on your credit more than you know. Don’t pass up the chance to get your free report. It’s sometimes hard to face the music when it comes to credit. A lot of people like to in effect, stick their heads in the sand when it comes to credit issues.

You can be assured that this is just a recipe for disaster. One thing about credit and bills is that they do not go away until you pay then off. Accepting that you can control your credit today will save you many years of worry and hassle. It all starts with responsibility and saying to yourself that you can do it and you will keep a watchful eye on your credit. After that, it’s all downhill.

When you first get your credit report do not freak out. Take a deep breath and tell yourself that this is going to be a new beginning for you. Next, sort out all of your bills and then get to work. Once you have everything in order it will be that much easier to keep a blazing eye on your credit. Keeping things in order is the single most important thing anyone can do for their credit.

Next, get your free credit report. Everyone is allowed one free report from each of the three credit reporting agencies per a year. You can hop on over to freecreditreport.com which will help you in one place to do this.

If you haven’t obtained your free reports during any calendar year you should be able to get them online. If not, you will have to get them by mail. Remember the single most important thing you can do is to start something today. Stand up and tell yourself that you can and will keep on eye one your credit.

No one else is going to do it for you. If you are still having trouble with your credit, you may want to enlist the help of a credit repair agency. You have to be careful here because some of these organizations are funded by the major credit card companies themselves.

Try and pick one that is a non profit agency close to your home to work with. There are many organizations all over the United States. One place you can start is with the internet. Go to a major search engine such as Google and type in credit help or credit repair agency and then your zip code. You may have to try a few different keywords until you find one that is close to you.

Remember to go past the first few pages in the search engine. You can find many great websites that are not listed high on the first page. Just save your search if you need to stop and come back. As you can see this is a start to a great plan to get you back on track with your credit if you have not taken the action that you needed to in the past.

Start slow and you will be on a new path to greater and new financial rewards.



Miguel

Ludwig E. Parker asked:


The Federal Fair Credit Reporting Act has been amended, requiring each of the national consumer reporting companies, to provide you  with a free copy of your credit report, at your request, once a year. TransUnion, Experian, and Equifax are the three companies required to do so. Don’t pay for your credit report, or get lured into joining a paid program, when you can get it free. Freeannualcreditreport.com is the only website used by the three credit reporting agencies. Beware of so called free reports.  This is the only FTC recognised source. Take advantage of the website in order to submit the proper forms, or, if you prefer, the process can be expedited over the telephone, or by the U.S. postal service.

  The FTC has received many complaints about companies offering free credit reports. Thousands of people were lured by deceptive marketing into paying for services related to obtaining a free credit report. These people were offered a free report, only to be enroled in paid programs which were difficult to remove oneself from. These manipulative practices put people with bad credit at even greater risk for financial trouble. If you ordered a credit report between November 1, 2000 and September 15, 2003 you may be entitled to participate in the FTC settlement. More information can be found at MyCreditBusiness

Do not contact the three nationwide consumer reporting companies individually, they are only providing free annual credit reports through one outlet. Contacting them directly will only get you redirected to the combined contact resource. There is a required form to fill out in order to request your free credit report. Do not use forms found on websites other than freeannualcreditreport.com. These forms will most likely result in you being enrolled in a “free trial” program, which will cost you money in the long run. Be sure to steer clear of these dubious offers.

You will need your name, address, SS#, and birth date, plus you will be asked to answer a question only you would know the answer to  (for security purposes). In the past, people were not entitled to view their credit information,  they had to pay, or qualify based on certain activity within the credit report. Today the nationwide free annual credit report is mandated by the FTC.  Don’t miss out on the chance to see what is in your credit report, and head off any trouble before it can effect your financial future. 

 



Zachary

Joe Maruca asked:


The offers are everywhere! Commercials with catchy jingles, free offers, scare tactics about identity theft and poor credit, it’s hard to miss them. So what’s the real deal? Is everyone allowed to give away free copies of your credit report?

There are many websites that offer a free copy of your credit report but most of them will only do it if you sign up for other services like “credit monitoring.”  The only place recommended by the Federal Trade Commission is “annualcreditreport” dot “com” which is set up by the three credit reporting agencies.  You can also call them at 1-877-322-8228.

If you’ve already gotten your free credit report for the year, you can get an additional copy of your credit report if you have been denied credit (by a credit card company, loan, etc.) within 60 days.  You can also purchase a copy if you need to for about $10. For More information and FAQ, visit the Federal Trade Commission’s website at “ftc” dot “gov”

Why is it a good idea to check my credit? It’s a good idea to review your credit report and score on a regular bases for several very important reasons including: Identity theft, inaccuracies, unauthorized activity and to see who has been checking your credit aside from you. The information in your credit report can affect your ability to secure a loan (car loan, home loan, student loan and more) and can also determine what type of interest rate you receive from your credit card company.

So remember, you can receive a free copy of your credit report without signing up for any additional services and it’s a good idea to review the information in your credit report on a regular bases. 

To learn more about good personal finance practices visit www.creditcardinfohub.com where you’ll find this and other articles including 5 Easy Steps to Financial, Credit and Debt Relief.

 



Sharon