Tima.ashar asked:


A credit report is a basic financial statement that reports an individual’s financial history in terms of payment of credit bills, loans and mortgages, and other credit related information. It shows whether or not an individual is in debt, how much, and for how long.

Credit reports are used by major financial companies to sanction credit and determine the rates of interest over a period of time. A good credit report can fetch a lower interest rate and save money, whereas a bad credit history may mean paying more interest, or perhaps being denied credit.

Credit reports can be utilized by any financially interested party. It could be your real estate agent, credit card company, your prospective landlord, or even your employer. There are regulations that govern the use of credit reports by such parties, and the individual may need to be informed that his or her credit report has been used for evaluations.

Given the importance of this documents, it makes sense to keep a regular check on what gets reported. The biographical details must be correct, and incorrect or false records must be reported to the agencies concerned.

Also important is the issue of identity theft and fraud. Is someone making use of your identity and credit report to get loans, or gain employment? A regular check on your payment receipts - are they no longer coming to you? - can keep such threats away.

Credit reports are prepared by credit bureaus - especially the three major credit agencies that include Equifax. A lot of information can be obtained on their websites regarding credit reports, fair use, fraud, and error reporting.

Given the universal popularity of credit cards and credit transactions, almost every one of us may have a credit history that is being reported to the credit bureaus. Managing one’s credit is therefore important as it influences our future chances of obtaining credit at lower rates of interest.

For more information on credit reports visit credit reports



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Mansi Gupta asked:


Big and small loans have become quite a commonplace these days. Borrowing money has also become quite frequent with the advent of credit cards. As more and more people are banking on loans and other money borrowing techniques to accomplish their tasks, in order to save themselves from deceit banks and other money lending organizations have started enquiring about the individual’s history first.

The information so sought by banks and such organizations is in the form of a credit report. For any lender/s a credit report is the ideal way to determine a person’s creditworthiness. A credit report is a document that lists the concerned person’s credit history, employment and residence history. The personal details so mentioned in the report are the details filled by the person in his credit application. The report is created and updated using information from banks, traders and other creditors. Credit report also lists any judgments, tax liens, bankruptcies or similar matters of public record entered against the individual. In simple terms the report also records the number of times your credit report has been sought whether by a lender, service provider, landlord or employer which remains for up to two years.

Reflecting on a person’s past credit structure, a credit report thus enables a creditor to assess the ability of a person to repay the loan or make timely payments. This makes it easy for him to decide whether the loan is to be sanctioned in favor of the person or not.

But the fact is that a credit report can never be made available to any organization without the consent of the person being reported on. Moreover there are times when reporting agencies refuse to provide credit reports or investigate credit disputes, saying that they cannot identify the consumers. They ask the consumer to mail the copies of ID and utility bills or any other important documentation. Also for men and women in military it is even more difficult to get their own credit reports and many a times when you are overseas, it is just impossible to get that.

Lately it has been seen that access to credit information is proving to be a bone of contention for the businesses and consumers. Some big fish in this market such as Equifax, Experian and Trans Union are planning to introduce their own multi-agency credit score to outwit each other.

Every such company aims to make profits by providing accurate and instant credit information to the consumers. But unfortunately most often the results are disastrous in the form of inaccurate credit reports, identity theft and huge fees for credit monitoring after the consumer’s identity has been made available to thieves.

However a lot of nuances can be prevented if the consumer is cautious. After an individual gets his report, he should study it thoroughly. Anything negative on the report should be corrected right away, like the unpaid bills. Once you have paid the dues, let the concerned business notify the credit-reporting agency of it.

The accuracy of the report i.e. opening of any new account, charges you did not make or negligence or crime you are not responsible for etc. should also be carefully checked. If there is any fault, immediately report the concerned credit report agency about it.



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David Faulkner asked:


Check your annual credit report and receive a free instant credit report when you use the Annual Credit Report website. This reputable website has the recommendation from the government as the only place to get your information free and quickly. The online credit report allows you view online or print out the records. This helps when comparing all three credit-reporting agencies and the information they have about your credit history.

Before you consider buying a house or getting an insurance policy, you should check your credit report at least six months ahead of time to see if you need to clean up any areas of the report. The annual credit report allows you to check for mistakes, such as wrong name information, marital status, payment history and make sure items are removed from your history as required by law.

Because you receive the annual credit report free, you have no reason not to check your credit history yearly. The online credit report helps people protect themselves from identity theft and fraudulent credit applications. If you see something that appears suspicious, you can contact the credit agency reporting the inconsistency and inquire about the issue that you have a problem with as soon as you discover the item.

Your credit history allows lenders to see if you are a good candidate for a loan or credit card. They just your application by the amount of credit you currently have and the available amount of credit they may have to offer you at the time of the application process. By keeping your credit information, correct and up to date helps secure a better financial future. The annual credit report has made it easier for people to track their payment history and amount of credit applied for over the years. For more info see http://www.creditscorereportguide.org/Credit_Repair/ on bad credit repair

The free instance credit report has helped thousands of people find inconsistencies in their credit history, which they in turn need to have corrected in order to secure their financial freedom and buying power. With your free credit report, you may order online and receive it in a matter of minutes or by requesting it by mail. Either way you choose Annual Credit Report supplies you with the necessary information supplied from the three top credit agencies.

Many people feel that because they never had a credit card or a loan, that they do not need to view their credit history. That viewpoint of your credit history is what allows people to use your identity to acquire credit in your name. You need to check for correct information even if you have no credit that you know about, maybe someone else does. Get your annual credit report free and see how others view your credit history.



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Mike Clover asked:


Checking your free credit score report is probably one of the hottest topics these days. With the average American not being rich, and at times in need of a loan, they need to keep there credit score healthy. There will be situations where someone will need to pull your credit report. If you have bad credit, it may not be a good experience for you. There is lots of talk about annualcreditreport, but there is not much talk about not getting your credit score there. Annualcreditreport does provide you with a free credit report from all 3 credit bureaus, but you don’t get your scores. You can get this report once a year for free. A lot can happen to your credit report during a year’s time. Here are some examples.

Inaccurate credit report

Studies show that inaccuracies are common in credit reports and can harm your ability to get loans. Inaccurate information on your credit will cause harm to your credit rating. When your credit rating is jeopardized, so is the ability to get loans, good interest rates, or even that new “Dream Job.” Often there is human error involved in the reporting process. Creditors pay someone to report information about you. At times this information may have been keyed in incorrectly, and as a result your credit score drops.

Identity Theft Protection

Someone’s identity is stolen every 3 seconds. If you think about that, someone could be stealing your identity as you read this article. That is pretty scary. If an identity thief has got your information currently and is out using your credit, how would you ever find out without pulling your credit report? Maybe someone is out opening credit in your name, and charging up stuff. What ever the thief is doing, you are probably not going to find out about it until it’s too late. If you get credit report monitoring services set up, you would get e-mail alerts when critical changes take place to your credit report. Critical changes like someone opening credit in your name and out having a field day with your credit.

Conclusion:

Checking your credit report should not be a scary thing, it should be a positive thing. If you are managing your credit properly, then you will pull your credit in confidence. You will be able to go to creditors and get good interest rate loans with ease. Since a lot can happen to your credit in such a short time, you should get a copy of your free credit score report every 60 to 90 days. Checking your credit report once a year is asking for a disaster, and is total disregard for what is really going on out there Protect yourself by staying on top of your report. I would not wait for it to happen to you, check your free credit score report today.



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Jeremy Zongker asked:


Thanks to a new federal law put into place in September of 2005, everyone is entitled to one free credit report each year. This is so that you can verify that your report does not contain any false information, and so you can see how your credit rates. Getting your annual free report is as easy as going to the authorized source, www.annualcreditreport.com and requesting one.

Once you have your free report, what in the world do all those abbreviations, numbers and codes mean?! The most widely used system for scoring is the FICO score, developed by The Fair Isaac Corporation, and the number determines the risk to extend credit to an individual. Credit reports are usually divided into sections; identifying information, public records, credit history, and inquiries to your credit report from creditors looking to extend you credit based on your credit score.

The identifying information includes your name, address, and social security number. Make sure they are all correct. Usually this section will also include a list of your previous addresses, your date of birth, phone number, spouse’s name, employers information.

The public records section is the section you hope has no information. This is where a bankruptcy or judgment would show up on your report, and it will harm your rating more than anything else on the report, and take longer to repair.

The credit history section is the most confusing. It will list every creditor you’ve ever had business with, including accounts that have been closed and those that remain open with no balances, and accounts that you are currently making payments on. Depending on which credit reporting agency you get your report from, this section will actually be displayed differently on each report. Experian’s report displays it in “english”, and states everything in common sense terms, like “pays on time”, “pays 30 days late”, etc. Reports from other agencies might use numerical codes in a table that you have to refer to another page to find out what each code means. Either way, make sure you agree with each creditors reporting of you since this is how your score is determined. If you have accounts that you don’t have the credit cards for anymore, or a loan that has been paid off but remains on your report as a revolving credit (money available to you as you pay it down), call and write each company to ask them to close the account completely and report that to the credit agencies. Otherwise, it appears that you have all of that money available to you, and that goes against your debt to income ratio.

The section called “inquiries”, and it includes a list of everyone who has ever looked at your report. This will include credit companies you’ve contacted to request a credit card or loan, but it will also include what is considered “soft” inquiries. Soft inquiries are any promotional offers, such as a retail store checking into your credit history to determine whether or not to mail you an offer for their credit card. Soft inquiries do not harm your overall credit score.

You can also get a copy of a credit report any time you’ve been denied credit. This is because there is always the possibility that there are errors in your report, which prevented you from obtaining the credit you applied for. Regardless of how you get your report, take the time to look it over and find any discrepancies (immediately call the creditors in question and straighten it out) and close out any accounts that you no longer use but are showing open and available to you on your credit report. Having your report will show you where you stand if you’re considering going for a mortgage, new vehicle, or other loan.



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Sandra Stammberger asked:


Under the Fair Credit Reporting Act the reporting company and the information provider are responsible for correcting any credit report disputes. However, they must first be made aware that you have credit report disputes. A person can report and correct errors in their credit report by following two easy steps.

Step one is to report your error to the consumer reporting company in writing and make them aware that you have a credit report dispute. Make sure you include all your personal information like your name, address, and a list of each credit report dispute that have. Remember to send your letter by certified mail to prove that you have initiated a credit report dispute. The consumer reporting company will then investigate your credit report disputes and respond in 30 days. If they find there is an error and the credit report dispute can be resolved by correcting it then they will forward the information to the other credit bureaus and your credit report will be revised.

After reviewing your credit report dispute the consumer reporting company may decide that they disagree with the items raised in your credit report dispute and decline to pursue the matter any further. They will send you all of the evidence that they have and the reasons for not pursuing your credit report dispute, along with a copy of your credit report.

Another way to handle a credit report dispute is to contact the particular creditor directly. Again, send the creditor a list of your credit report disputes in writing. Be sure to call your creditor and ask for the specific address of where credit report dispute issues need to be sent to ensure that there is no unnecessary delay in the credit report dispute being investigated. Many companies have a separate address for handling credit report disputes and it can take time for it to be forwarded to the correct address if you do not send it there initially. If you are correct in your credit report dispute and there is an error they will report the error to the credit bureaus and send you notification of the change.

Below is a sample credit report dispute letter :

Date

Your Name

Your Address, City, State, Zip Code

Complaint Department

Name of Company

Address

City, State, Zip Code

Dear Sir or Madam:

I am writing to dispute the following information in my file. I have circled the items I dispute on the attached copy of the report I received.

This item (identify item(s) disputed by name of source, such as creditors or tax court, and identify type of item, such as credit account, judgment, etc.) is (inaccurate or incomplete) because (describe what is inaccurate or incomplete and why). I am requesting that the item be removed (or request another specific change) to correct the information.

Enclosed are copies of (use this sentence if applicable and describe any enclosed documentation, such as payment records, court documents) supporting my position. Please reinvestigate this (these) matter(s) and (delete or correct) the disputed item(s) as soon as possible.

Sincerely,

Your name

Enclosures: (List what you are enclosing.)



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Lisa Nichols asked:


Your credit report and your credit score are used by a variety of businesses to help them learn more about you. Anyone with a business need and your permission is allowed to see your credit report or credit score. In some cases, your permission isn’t even needed for someone to view your credit history.

When Your Permission Isn’t Needed to View Your Credit Report

Lenders and credit card companies partner with the credit bureaus to be able to send customers promotional offers. These companies don’t need your permission to view your credit report. You’ve already provided them with tacit permission to review your credit history by not submitting a request to be taken off their mailing lists. This request form is available from each of the three credit bureaus.

Prospective Landlords Can See Your Credit Report

Landlords are allowed to run credit reports and background checks on prospective tenants. Landlords use this information to decide if they want to rent to applicants. If a credit report has issues or problems, a landlord may still choose to rent to the applicant, but he or she is legally allowed to charge an additional fee or increased security deposit.

Hiring Companies and Insurance Companies Can See Credit Reports and Scores

Hiring companies and insurance companies can see your credit score or credit report. Hiring companies use the information contained in a credit report to get a big picture view of prospective employees. Insurance companies use information they see on a credit score or credit report to help determine rates and eligibility for insurance. Both types of businesses must request permission in writing before reviewing a credit report; this is usually part of a job application or an application for insurance.

Lenders and Creditors Can Review Credit Scores

Lenders and credit card companies can review credit scores and credit reports to determine credit worthiness when you’ve applied for a loan or a credit card. In addition, if you have open loans or credit card accounts, those lenders and creditors can also review your credit to monitor changes.

Experian Triple Advantage Allows You to Review Credit Report

See what others are seeing when they review your credit report with Experian Triple Advantage. Order a copy of your credit report and credit score online. Then, use customized tips provided by Experian Triple Advantage to improve your credit score.



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Isabel asked:


Is it necessary to do credit report repair?

Credit report repair will surely help you to improve your credit report and thereby increase your credit score. It is process that eliminates the negative remarks and gives you a good credit report. There are many people who are unaware of repairing their credit report and thereby create obstacle to get credit extension. You can even repair your credit report timely or by checking it periodically.

With the help of good credit report you can have credit flexibility through which you can get credit at low interest rate. One should not get tired of bad credit report but seek suitable measures to improve it. Self-credit repair can be a difficult task but with the help of many online services one can easily repair it by one self. Below are a few tips, which can help you to repair your credit report.

• Order Credit Report

This is your first step in which you must order the credit report from all the credit bureaus. Don’t be surprised to see different credit report ratings as different credit bureau have different ways to maintain a credit report.

• Check Credit Report

In this step you must check your report carefully and slowly. It is quite general to find at least one error in one of the three reports.

• Document and Dispute Strategy

Any mistake in your credit report must be informed to the credit bureau. Finding the reason behind any error is equally important, as you understand your credit report. Maintain up to date copy of each and every document that can be used as future reference.

• Dissolve the Debts

Clear your debts payment if you are liable for it. This step is of vital importance, which can help you to improve your credit report rating.

Other Information

If you have unnecessary accounts then close it instantly. Remember Zero balance account is also taken into consideration. Verify each and every account that exists.



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Jon Arnold asked:


Other than eating, sleeping, and breathing, one of the most important things you should be doing on a regular basis is ensuring that the data in your credit report is accurate. That is such a simple statement, yet it is ignored by the vast majority of consumers, probably due to several factors, such as:

* Consumers seem to accept the fact that errors will “self correct” in a reasonable period of time, where in reality nothing could be further from the truth.

* Consumers don’t know how to find out if there is wrong information on their credit report, which impacts their total credit score negatively.

* Consumers don’t realize that having a low credit score (lower than what they deserve, if the information maintained by the credit bureaus was accurate) can impact a huge number of factors in their everyday lives.

* Consumers don’t realize that studies have shown that the MAJORITY of credit reports on consumers and businesses have errors and inaccuracies.

Your credit score is used by anyone loaning you money such as credit card companies, home loan lenders, auto loan lenders and finance companies. You need to find out what your credit score is before you talk to any lender in case there is something on your report that they may question. Your credit score is the actual number ranging from 300 to 850 that lenders use to judge your creditworthiness and the interest rate they’ll charge you. Having a credit score lower than what you actually deserve could mean the difference between getting approved for a loan or credit card, or being denied. If you are approved, a lower credit score can mean the difference of the lender assessing a 14% interest rate or a 6% interest rate, which can cost you hundreds and even thousands of dollars more at the end of the loan period.

The “big three” credit bureaus are required to give you a free copy of your credit report annually, or any time that you have been denied credit based on information that they provided to a potential lender. It may take some time to get through to the credit bureaus to request a copy of your credit report, but this is well worth your time to do so. Be sure to get a copy of it from all three of them, since some lenders only report to one or two of them. This means that the information on your credit report from one credit bureau is almost certainly not going to be identical to the data from another credit bureau.

If you notice any errors on your report, you should complete a dispute form with the credit bureau. When they send you a copy of your credit report, they will usually include instructions on how to file a dispute for erroneous or inaccurate information. Some experts say that if you are disputing say 5 different items, you should file 5 separate dispute forms so each one can be addressed specifically. There is some merit to that discussion, since the credit bureaus may view a dispute consisting of many items as “frivolous” and not take appropriate action to correct the information.

Under the Fair Credit Reporting Act, you can dispute information in your credit files with the three credit bureaus, and the creditor is required by law to verify the disputed information. You have the right (and indeed, the obligation) to dispute the completeness and accuracy of information in your credit files. When a credit bureau receives a dispute, they must investigate and record the current status of the disputed items within a “reasonable period of time”, usually defined as 30 days. If the information reported on your credit report cannot be verified by the creditor, the credit bureau is required by law to remove the information.

Check your credit report regularly, at least once per quarter. Even if the creditor misses that 30 day window, they can report the information again later, at which point when you see it appear again, you can (and should) dispute it again. Sometimes, for blatantly wrong information, you may want to contact the creditor directly and find out why they insist on putting inaccurate information on your credit report.



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Jon Arnold asked:


Considering how valuable your credit report and your resulting credit score are to you, it never ceases to amaze me how many people believe in and rely on misconceptions, myths, and downright bunk about how credit reporting really works. To adequately function in today’s society, one’s credit score needs to be at least at the “ok” level, and people with bad credit or poor credit are only accelerating their downward spiral by not doing something about it.

The sad part is that there ARE things you can do to improve your credit score. While those things take effort, they do not necessarily require money and these are all things you can do at home.

Most people do not realize that they have three entirely separate and distinct credit reports, one from each of the three credit reporting bureaus. Since these bureaus do not share information, they each report what they think they know, which in reality means that not one of them has a true and complete picture of your credit. To add insult to injury, chances are extremely high that your credit report with at least one (if not all) of the credit bureaus contains errors, and the only way the errors will get fixed and removed is if YOU dispute them. I have heard of people whose credit score jumped more than 100 points in less than a month after they got various inaccurate pieces of information removed from their credit profile.

But let’s spend some time here talking about some very common myths about credit, credit scores, and credit reporting, and find out what the real deal is on this misconceptions.

Myth #1: Paying off a negative account on your credit report will get it removed from your report.

This is not true at all. That account will remain on your credit report for years, plainly showing for all to see that it went past due, it went delinquent, and then you paid it off. But since it is part and parcel of your credit history, it stays on your credit history for years. Remember, your credit history is exactly that – a HISTORY of your dealings with credit, and just because an account is closed or paid off does not dismiss the fact that it is still part of your credit history.

Myth #2: Paying off an account will cause your credit score to increase significantly.

Again not true. There are a huge number of factors that come into play when the credit bureaus calculate your credit score. Chief amongst those factors are have you been paying your financial obligations on time with at least the minimum payment due. Paying off an account entirely can actually do more damage than good. Having credit in good standing, but keeping your balance less than about 32% of your credit limit is a great place to be, and you gain no additional points by paying off that account.

Myth #3: Checking your credit reports will lower your credit score.

Yet again not true. The financially savvy consumer will check his credit report at least once a year, sometimes more often. Every time someone requests a copy of your credit report, that fact is flagged, but it is also flagged as to WHO requested your credit report. If it was you, then it does nothing to your credit score, as opposed to having your credit report requested by 12 different loan companies, which is almost sure to raise a red flag and lower your score.

Myth #4: Cosigning for a loan does not mean you are responsible for the account.

Not at all true. The reason you were requested to co-sign on a loan or an account for someone is because they themselves have insufficient credit history or have bad credit history. The act of you co-signing on it is you telling the financial institution “hey, if they default on this, I’ll take care of it”, so you DO have responsibility for the loan. But it gets worse – if the person who took out the loan starts to default on it, then it is also YOUR credit score that suffers, since again, you co-signed on it, giving you some responsibility for making sure they repay it on time.

Understand how the credit game is played. You cannot win any game if you don’t know the rules, and since credit affects a lot of different aspects of your life, it is well worth your time to understand the factors and the myths about how your credit score is derived.



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