Slinkball asked:


I know that credit reports used to be scored by hand and delivered via the mail. When did it become common to pull credit on a computer and receive an instant report?

Tammy

Sophie Wilson asked:


Annual credit report offers the information about the credit history, payments made, credit worthiness and personal information. This report as the name suggests are an account for the above mentioned things for one complete financial year.

Credit is an important set of information to carry out financial transactions at every level in the market. Most of the capital invested in a business comes from credit. The credit lenders provide all the information of a borrower including the credit details to the credit bureaus which keep the track of all the transactions made. These agencies govern and formulate the reports for credit exchanges and fall under the federal law. These agencies are Equifax, Experian and TransUnion. Annual credit report is very important tool since it can be used as a reminder for your due credit payments. It is also source that can get you another credit, or loan or even job if it is a clear report.

On the basis of annual credit report the credit bureaus assign a credit score which helps getting further credits and even mark the market value of a person. A person should access this report because it can help in avoiding the inaccuracies in the account details and even can help reducing the threats like personal identification thefts. The annual credit reports are available online also and can be accessible easily from a number of sites that provide this facility free of cost.

Annual credit report can be a proficient tool for keeping a check on the credit payments. This tool can help us in getting further credit and loans. Annual credit report and credit score provide us a ground that marks our market credibility. By regularly checking this report one can avoid any legal action that can be taken against him. By checking this report you can protect your self to be highlighted under the defaulter category incase of non payments. It is an important tool which is available to you at just a mouse click. And it can help you in getting the upcoming opportunities.



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Noreen Ruth asked:


So you’ve followed the advice of the financial experts and requested copies of your credit reports. And low and behold you find an entry that raises questions and concern. The idea of having to head-to-head with a credit bureau probably ranks up there with root canals in things you want to do. But the process in either case isn’t as dire as imagined but does require immediate action to avoid further damage.

Here are the steps you’ll need to take to effectively dispute credit report errors.

Confirm Errors and Inaccuracies:

Immediately investigate any unauthorized accounts or activity you find on your report. Contact any institution that is involved; collect and document all communication that is relevant to your dispute. Include documentation from banks, credit issuers and financial institutions that are part of the disputed issue.

Contact the Credit Reporting Agencies:

It is the obligation of credit agencies to investigate any dispute. When you’ve gathered all the documentation you can, it’s now time to contact the credit reporting bureau(s) to dispute the information.

Mark up a copy of your credit report with a highlighter to reflect the disputed parts of the report. Explain in your credit report dispute letter why the information is inaccurate, in as much detail as possible. Include copies of all of the supporting documents and send them, via certified, return-receipt mail to the credit agency. Request that the credit agency remove or correct the error on your credit report. (Be sure to keep a copy of your letter, and keep all original documents stored safely.)

Be Aggressive and Proactive:

The credit agency to investigate your dispute within 30 days of your complaint. While you’re waiting for a response, contact the bank, credit card or other company that supplied the wrong information that is part of your dispute. Send copies of your dispute documents to each company via certified, return-receipt mail. Be sure to include your credit report dispute letter and ask them to investigate the disputed the data they gave the credit bureau, too.

Credit Agency Reports to You:

When the credit agency investigation has been completed, they are required to report back to you in writing with the results. If your dispute is proven correct, the credit agency must remove the incorrect information from your file. The bureau also has to give you a free copy of your report, along with the name, address, and phone number of the company that provided the erroneous information.

Follow Through after the Investigation:

Request that the credit agency send a notice to anyone who received a copy of your credit report in the past few months to notify them of the correction. If your dispute is denied, you should ask that a statement of the dispute be included in your file and in future reports. You also can ask the credit bureau to provide your statement to anyone who received a copy of your report in the recent past, although credit bureaus can charge you for this service.

Visit ftc.gov/credit for more information on how to dispute credit report errors.



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Joe Goertz asked:


In this country, there are three major credit bureaus: Experian, Equifax and Trans Union. They offer information to lenders about a person’s credit score. The lower your credit score, the less likely you are to get credit. Each credit report comes with “score reason codes” to explain why your credit score is where it is.

It is up to you to know what is on your credit report and keep the data up to date. You might have paid your bills on time, but your credit report may show that your credit is less than perfect. You may have had a credit dispute with a merchant that was corrected, but not shown on your report. You may have a bankruptcy that was not properly recorded. You may also have experienced credit fraud.

You can fix your credit profile. You can make sure that you aren’t carrying more debt than is reasonable for your income level. Avoid late and non payments. Make sure that there are no judgments or liens against you. You should also avoid co-signing loans because they are considered your financial liability. If the co-signer defaults, it will be your responsibility to replay the loan. You should avoid unnecessary checks of your credit. Each credit inquiry is recorded and remains on the books for two years. Lenders seeing too many inquiries may think that you are unable to support your current debt and are looking for more credit to support it. Having excessive unused credit is not good. A lender will check to see how much credit you actually have. If you have too much, the lender might worry that you will use up all your credit in a spending spree after you secure a new loan or mortgage.

It’s important to see your credit score and keep it up to date. Most lenders are concerned about your credit activities during the past year or two. You want to make sure the report is accurate for this period and contains no errors. Depending on how inaccurate your credit report is, you may not be given additional credit. This is especially crucial if you are applying for a mortgage. It is not impossible to get a mortgage with less than a perfect credit report, but the amount of the loan and the interest on it will be higher if the lender decides you are a risk.

How do you keep your credit report up to date? There are services, such as Equifax, that will provide a credit report to you and advise you on how to make changes. They will usually update you twice a year on your credit history. They may even advise you when you are approaching your credit limit. Under federal law, you are entitled to a free annual credit report from Experian, Equifax and Trans Union. You should go to http://www.annualcreditreport.com for more details.

Make sure that when you decide to fix your credit report that you do it the right way. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) warns consumers to beware of companies that guarantee that they can remove late payments, bankruptcies, or similar information from your credit report. Stay away from companies that charge a lot of money to repair credit, keep asking you to verify information that you have previously verified, refuse to give you their address or push you to make a decision immediately.



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Jason Kay asked:


Even a minor mistake on your credit report can keep you from getting a good interest rate on a line of credit. It is vital to keep your credit as good as possible. But did you know that up to 70% of credit reports contain mistakes? The three major credit bureaus are in charge of keeping track of your credit history. Since they have millions of reports to keep track of, they can’t be concerned with making sure every report is 100% accurate. That job is up to you. So what steps do you need to take to make sure your credit reports are as good as possible?

Check one report every 4 months to locate any errors. This is an important step. You are entitled by law to one free report from each of the three credit bureaus every year. Take advantage of this. Remember, one bureau can make a mistake while the other two don’t, so be on the lookout. If you do find a mistake on one, then you should order to the other two to make sure the same mistake isn’t on the others.

Write to the bureau when a mistake is found, don’t call first. Why shouldn’t you call first? Because when you call, you don’t have any evidence you contacted the bureau, which is important if you, in a worst case scenario, have to take the mistake to court. Address the letter to a company executive, not to the bureau in general. In the letter, attach a copy of your report and highlight the mistakes. Give them all your contact information including your full name, address, contact information, and social security number. Make it as easy as possible for them to help you out.

Remind the bureaus what they are required to do by law. The Fair Credit Reporting Act requires Equifax, Transunion, and Experian to investigate all discrepancies consumers report, including…

? Purchases made by someone else

? Prices on bills that don’t match your records

? Charges for products or services you never received

? Computational errors

The Fair Credit Reporting Act requires that any transaction that can’t be proven within 30 days be removed.

Keep calm and be professional when you do make a call. Correcting your credit history is likely to be a headache. The one letter probably won’t be the end of your credit trouble. Be prepared to make a series of phone calls to credit bureaus and other financial institutions. These phone calls can be frustrating, but a calm and tactful attitude will get you much farther than screaming and yelling will.

Take notes of everything that happens and get confirmation. Why? In case you have to go to court. This is unlikely, but it does happen. When you get verbal assurance that a bureau will take action, try to get them to send you a written confirmation they have, or will, do what they said.

Call a lawyer only as a last result. Nobody wants to get caught up in a legal battle, but if an uncorrected mistake will be a huge blemish on your report, this step must be taken. A lawyer will help you take the necessary action if the above steps haven’t fixed the mistake.

Making wise financial decisions and paying off all your bills are steps you can take to keep your credit reports spot free. But a bureau can easily make a mistake. Do your part to catch these mistakes as soon as possible. The sooner you catch them, the more likely the mistakes can be co



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Mike Clover asked:


it report is not something to be taken lightly these days. It is almost as important as your social security card. There will come a time where your credit report will be required for credit purposes. We see credit reports on a daily basis, and there typically are issues with that individual’s credit report that was not known. This is all too common due to a lack of staying on top of your personal credit report. Here are some common issues we see that cause loans to get denied.

Credit Report Issues:

- Credit Cards charged beyond credit limit

- Credit Cards charged above 30% of allowed credit limit

- Late payments

- Co-signed for loans

- No Credit

- Credit Score too low

- Your dads credit shows up on your report because you are a junior

- Medical Collections

- Stolen Identity

- Credit card fraud

The majority of the time most people have no idea that the previous information discussed affects your credit report. All it takes is one of these mistakes to have issues getting credit extended to you.

If you are getting ready to make a purchase you can definitely save on interest rates and terms by pulling a copy of your credit report with credit scores. This is a preventive measure so you don’t get blind sided with a credit problem. There is a 1 n 4 chances your credit report has incorrect information on it.

Suggestions to avoid common credit report mistakes

- Pull your credit report every 3 months

- Don’t be late on obligations

- Don’t co-sign for anyone

- Don’t charge more on a credit card than you can pay off that month

- Establish credit if you don’t have any with Secured Credit Cards

- Pay your medical bills

- Shred all document that come in the mail to avoid id theft

It only makes since these days to watch out for the problems that have been mentioned.You have nothing to loose by checking your credit report with credit scores regularly. You would be suprised about how many people have identity theft going on with them and not even know about it, until its too late. Identity theft is the fastest growing crime in America. Most identity theft could have been prevented with a little better credit management. If you have not checked your credit in a while, now is a good time to get that piece of mind. This is part of proper credit managment.



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James Peter asked:


If you are applying for a loan, what a lender always does is to seek information on your credentials with the aid of credit reports. As such, credit report is something, which is the first step towards obtaining any loan.

There are three credit rating bureaus in the US. Thus, it is necessary to know the credit rating based on all three credit bureaus. As such,

3 in 1 credit reports give a probable borrower the power to know what his or her credit worthiness is. Each of these credit bureaus has different parameters to evaluate an individual’s credit worthiness. While some lenders go for a particular rating from a credit bureau, another lender may opt for another credit bureau.

Difference in the evaluation of the credit standing by the different lenders thus requires a would-be borrower to have good credit rating with all these credit bureaus. If someone is to apply for a loan and he or she does not have good credit score with a particular credit bureau, it may be hard for the borrower to avail loan.

The evaluation of an individual’s credit standing is done according to the need of the lender. While some lenders may go for the income aspect of the applicant, other borrowers may give more importance to the past record of accomplishment of the borrower. 3-in-1 credit report thus gives a borrower a chance to know what his or her credit rating is before applying for any loan.

A 3-in-1 credit report gives a borrower the knowledge on his or her credit standing with the three national credit bureaus at a go. There are a number of online facilities, which give this information. While some online facilities charge a minimal amount to seek the report, some provide the report free of cost. 3-in-1 credit report is the way to move forward if you are to avail a loan. But be sure that you seek the report from an online agency, as the report generation is fast.



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Ian Webber asked:


Credit Repair - It Takes Three to Tango

Get all three of your credit reports. There are a variety of ways to do this. In fact, as any one who has started a credit repair project knows, there are about a thousand ways to get your credit reports on the Internet. Everyone has his or her own favorite, so this is somewhat subjective, but you may want to try it my way.

It’s Free, but it’s Hard

Stay away from annualcreditreport.com. Annualcreditreport.com is the site set up by the three credit bureaus under the mandate of the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) for the purpose of providing free credit reports, one from each bureau, one time per 12-month period. Okay it’s free. But darn, it’s a pain in the ****. The site itself is a hub that directs you to each bureau in turn, so you will be making your effort in triplicate. Did I say effort?

Millions are stopped at the Security Blockade

Yes, folks, you will probably be sweating by the time you are done. And there is a pretty good chance you will not get all three reports. What? Right-o. You will have to face a series of security questions that may block you from your credit reports and delay your credit repair project until the obstructing bureau mails you a pass code. Credit repair is tough enough without the frustration that this site can impose. There is a better way.

Credit Repair Bucks Well Spent

Your credit repair effort is really important. Keep everything in perspective. If you have the fortitude, are comfortable on the computer, and feel up to the task, go ahead and get your reports from Annualcreditreport.com. Otherwise, if you are like me, and want to get the show on the road, just go to Truecredit.com and part with $14.95 for a one time tri-merged report.

Minimize the Credit Repair Pain

The process is quick the security is appropriate but manageable, and the report is easy to look at. And that may make a big difference as you get your credit repair job underway. But there is a trick. On the Truecredit.com site you need to find the light grey text that says, “You can also get your three bureau report, without the free scores”.

The Case of the Hidden Link

Just click on the underlined phrase, “without the free scores”. This line does not conform to web standards for a link and is almost hidden. You need to look hard. Oh, and once at the order page please deactivate the two pre-checked boxes that attempt to sell you nonsensical “Debt Analysis” and “Home and Auto Insurance Scores”.

My Credit Repair Money

I’ll let you draw your own conclusions about the accessibility of the link, but as far as I know this is the cheapest way to get a great tri-merged report without signing up for a monthly monitoring service, identity theft protection, and other costly extras that the credit bureaus want to sell. There is nothing particularly wrong with any of these extra features, so it’s up to you, but for my credit repair money, I like the simple path.

A Few Good Tips

Once you decide to take this path here are three pointers. You should jot these down. Your credit repair project will benefit. Here you go. One, make a note of your user name and password; you may want to log back in later. Two, look for the “printable copy” link. If you are going to print your reports this option is much better than a screen print. And lastly, notice the extra-info links offered in each account section. This info may be handy, so don’t overlook it.

The Credit Repair Lifeline

If all of this is daunting just call a credit repair professional. He will guide you through the process of getting your reports. And of course, once your reports are in hand a credit repair expert will provide all of the guidance you need to make sense out of the entire task. This is an important business! So if you find yourself intimidated, just call a pro. One way or the other, take action and you will succeed!

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



Margaret

Mutley asked:


They aren’t free and require sign-up or enrollment. What do people do without a computer and do these companies have a monopoly on credit reports?

Charlie

Dennis Cary asked:


When it comes to credit reporting, it is essential for us to insure that what is being said about us is the right thing. The bottom line is that you need to know if in fact the information in your credit reports is correct. Otherwise, you are not getting the deserving benefits that you should be getting. Your credit report means a lot to those that are interested in lending you money. If you want to apply for a loan for a home or a car, or if you are looking for new employment, your credit report is essential as it tells others if you are a risk. Are you a risk? Find out what the credit reporting agencies think about that.

Here are some steps to finding more out about your own credit report.

1. Pull your free credit report. The credit report provides a good deal of information and is something you need to read. You are entitled to one credit report per year without charge. Of course, you can purchase additional reports if you would like to. For your first time around, though, getting all three is something you should do.

2. Determine if your name, address, your other personal information is correct on your credit report. If you notice that there are mistakes there, make sure that they are taken care of as soon as possible. Identity theft is a huge crime, and it’s often something you don’t spot until it is too late.

3. Now, make sure that your credit card companies and other loans are accurate. They may be up to a month behind in being reported, yet the information in your credit report should be fairly accurate. If you find that it is not, you should then take action.

4. Any problems or mistakes that you find on your credit report should be reported to the credit reporting agency. When you do this, you will be able to get anything that is not accurate removed from your credit report. What’s nice is that most of the credit reporting agencies will allow you to report these problems right here on the web.

5. Your credit report is likely to open your eyes to your financial status as well. You may not realize how tapped out you actually are until you see your credit report. Yet, you can use it as a tool for improvement and for getting back on track with a good credit score.

Your credit score, which is a number developed by the credit reporting agencies, is something that is not provided without cost to you, yet you can and probably should pull that information for a small fee. It too will help you to gauge what type of loans you qualify for as well as where you stand financially speaking.



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