Credit Reports Galore

Robert R asked:


how do i go about finding out if someone has stolen my under aged daughters idenity? the 3 credit reporting agencies wont let me check it online.

IRWIN

John Mcfadden asked:


A consumer credit report is the annual assessment of each person’s credit standing. By knowing what is on your you can get a lot of benefits when you go to get credit based services like loans, credit cards and even rent and phones.

Each year, by law, American citizens are entitled to obtain a free copy of their annual consumer credit report which basically details their credit risk profile. This allows companies who are considering extending some type of credit to the consumer to make an educated decision on the risk of that transaction. The better the credit of the consumer, then the better chance that company has of being paid back by the consumer.

By having a good credit report, a consumer can gain advantages such as cheaper loans and credit cards and avoid the embarrassment of being rejected for things like rental apartments and telephone contracts.

There are three companies which can offer a free consumer credit report (Experian, TransUnion, and Equifax) and are legally obliged to offer that annually.

By knowing what is in your credit report, you can negotiate for better credit condition (if you’re report is good) or you can strive to repair your credit by challenging inaccurate or false items on your report.

To do that, you simply need to obtain a copy, unfortunately you need to actually a report from all three credit bureaus. Why, because lenders don’t report to each bureaus, they just report to one with your past financial information - so if you only obtain a copy of one report then you will not have your complete financial position and history, it is recommended that you get all three reports - they way you know where you stand and you start improving nay negative information, it is common for your personal information to be old or incorrect.

Make sure you update them with your correct address. Be sure not to use companies that claim they can quickly improve your credit score, they are most likely to be scammers.

Assess the items on it that are negatively affecting your credit score and challenge those items to the relevant consumer reporting company. That company is then legally obliged to pursue the matter.

The thing is that challenging your credit report takes knowledge and time and so it may often be a better option to hire a credit reporting company to do the leg work on your behalf.

It’s essential you know how lenders will read and give weight to different parts of your Credit Report:

The American company FiCO has a tool that helps credit bureaus determine your credit score - below is the matrix that is used:

Payment History 35%

Amount Owed 30%

Length of Credit History 15%

New Credit 10%

Types of Credit Used 10%

Such companies know exactly what can be challenged as well as how to do it and who to contact about your credit.

By having a good credit report, you can make your own life a lot easier and cheaper in the long run.

Hopefully this article has been helpful for you and you will now know exactly what yours says.



DONNIE

Sophie Wilson asked:


Why is it important to know the credit score and for that the credit report? Well, the answer is that keeping a track of the financial details, will only helps you to know more about your financial credibility. You credit also plays a very determined role while acquiring new loans, credit cards and even while qualifying for jobs. So, when the opportunity comes to know about what and where your credit stands, then you can prefer to avail the annual credit report.

Annual credit report stands as a testimonial to all your major financial dealing, personal details, any outstanding debts, address, your contact number etc. in fact, it can be said that it is a complete dossier of your personal account. The greatest advantage of having credit report is that you get to maintain a steady and good credit score. Further, you can also check for any anomalies or any error mentioned in the report and rectifies the same. Besides, the report is updated continuously and you can best assure that there will be not any identity thefts.

In accordance with the federal law, these reports are issued by 3 credit bureaus namely Experian, Equifax and Transunion. The data is collected from the various lenders and merchants with whom you had made any previous transactions. The reports thus generated will be same but the procedure of assessing your credit is different. So, there are chances that the report issues may have some error or some data have been misinterpreted. So, it is a must to check the credit report on a regular basis.

With the changing times, you can derive the annual credit reports from online providers too. All you have to is to register online by offering the required details. Online application enables you to access the report from anywhere at any point of time. However, you should go through the various aspects of the provider before selecting any. Always prefer those who offer annual credit reports without asking for any fees.

Annual credit reports enables you to understand your financial; position in a better way and enables you to remain away from any credit problems.



REID

puppiesnmarshmellows asked:


I just did my credit report online, and my debt to credit ratio is 83%. I know what debt to income ratio is but when i googled it it told me that debt to credit is how much of your credit you have used up. Now i went back to my credit report and saw that my mortgage is 94%, my installment is 88% but my revolving is only 7%. On further look i saw that installment is just my car paymetn, and revolving is all my credit cards. I was under the impression that only credit cards were calculated in your debt to credit ratio. So when a lender looks at that am i being punished for my mortgage and my car payment? I mean 7% of my credit cards is pretty damn good. At least i thought it was. My debt to income ratio is only 36% and last i checked that was good too. I’m so confused when it comes to this stuff. I’m wanting a private student loan and now i’m worried i won’t get it. I have never missed a payment ever, everything paid on time and in good standing.

HUGO

Monique asked:


i havent used credit at all. i just turned 18 but my mom has used my social to get credit cards. put my name under phones bills and everything. i try to get it online but it says i need a major credit card. then i try to get a major credit card and i always get declined cause my credit is so bad i suppose . what should i do to get it mailed?

OSVALDO

Sweebie Sunshine asked:


I had a few credit cards and shopping cards that I ended up not being able to make the payments on for a few months and I guess it pretty much destroyed my credit. I ended up paying everything off about a month ago, except for 2 (which I paid down) and now I’m looking at my credit report online and my credit score is horrible. I don’t get why because I have had good things — I had an auto loan and a personal loan, both that got paid off and all the payments were made on time. So how long is it going to take for my credit to get better?

MAJOR

Lady_J asked:


applying tomorrow for a car loan. I just got my credit report online but not the score, I’ve only had credit for 3 years but do have 8 credit cards (4 are paid off, only one is maxed out, the rest are about half way to limit) There seemed to be no negative things on the report except a sprint bill from 2 years ago that i havent paid that is almost 400 bucks? Is that going to kill my score? I want a 5000 jeep Ive been looking at but I hear its harder to get a few grand than someting more expensive! what do u think?
well i was stupid and it wasnt mine it was cosigned for a friend…of course i was paid for a month and then just got the run around…i know, i know, its my own fault

KENNY

Ray Eddings asked:


The yearly summary of your annual personal credit report, the report which tells how the consumer is basically paying the companies to which he or she owes money, is a major factor to judge your credit worth. The annual credit report for every person is maintained by the financial institutions and the loan providing companies. The various companies include their outputs in the credit reports. These reports are a collective effort of the creditors or the landlords etc. who are a major part as loan providers. The annual personal credit score and report is the indicator of your borrowing habits throughout the year. The annual credit report for any person influences the creditors and the lenders to extend or cancel your loan.

There are lots of uses for which a personal credit report is maintained. The major uses of these reports are:

-By looking at the report, various companies decide the status of your coming loans. The companies decide whether to continue your loan or not. The report suggests the financial institutions about the risks that are involved if the finance group gives you a loan.

-If your existing lenders move away and do not provide you with the loans then finding other lenders can be a tough job if your annual credit report is not good.

-Credit cards also will turn more expensive for you if you are not able to maintain a good annual report. Sometimes a bad report or score would not allow you to access your credit card and even getting a new card would not be possible.

-Sometimes, renting a house would become even more difficult because some house owners check the credit report of the paying guests.

There are a few factors that you need to know so as to maintain your annual credit report and give it a good shape. Keep in mind that FICO system is considered by many financial banks and institutions. You need to maintain a good FICO score. To maintain a good credit score, these scores are required to maintain a good annual report. Keeping a regular check of your annual report can help you maintain a good report and scores.

Many financial institutions provide free credit check for your credit reports. These are provided to any person by these institutions so they can easily maintain their credit scores to a good level.

The importance of annual reports and scores are clear and these are required to you in stages when you need money the most, so also keep your payments on time. Never delay your payments to the lenders. Even your monthly installments and your loan repayments, be it monthly, yearly or quarterly must be paid well in time just to maintain goodwill and also a good annual credit report by a person.

So try and consult financial institutions and maintain a good credit report for your benefit.



FELIX

Marcus Peter asked:


art to enter the world of financing your personal needs, credit reports will inevitably arise. First of all, a credit report gives detailed information on all the financial transactions you have made. Usually, it involves a track of the expenses you have on your credit cards including the amounts you left unpaid and those which you have already managed to cover. But aside from your credit card billing statement, credit reports will also show your loan history. If you have entered into one before and whether or not you were able to pay it up already, it will be included on your credit report.

What Credit Reports are All About

So who benefits from credit reports? Financial institutions such as banks and other investment companies are the primary personalities who benefit from a 3 in 1 credit report. They use this to evaluate a person’s eligibility to do business with them. Some people actually have issues against a credit report being made to be public property, but in spite of these they are still being given easily to institutions who wish to obtain them. Anything that is related to your current financial state may be shown on the credit report. This is also why people find it a difficult task to succumb to filing their bankruptcies. They often get worried that it would forever leave a bad mark on their credit report despite being able to get back on track.

Under the regulations of the law, people are all given the right to obtain their own credit report. In this way, you can easily track your financial performance and steer clear of things and issues that might taint your financial reputation. There are many ways in which you can actually obtain your own credit report. You can either file it on your local agency or try to retrieve it online. Most people opt for the latter because it is more convenient and not to mention cost-friendly. Credit reports are usually being offered for free, although some may charge for any other details you may want to obtain.

Taking Care of Your Credit Report

Most financial experts advise that a credit report be retrieved every month. But if you are heavily connected within the financial business, it is better to have your credit report analyzed on a quarterly basis. In this way, you can track your progress much better and make sure that you are not going to face any pending disadvantages in the long run. There are also many ways in which you can help protect your credit report. Here are some of the most useful ways you can do so:

1. Check all of the information on your credit report – Since it gets regularly updated, you should not simply assume that everything you see on the report is right. Do some proofreading from your own end. Make sure that you have all the details right especially when it comes to financial declarations and the figures involved. Should there be problems with the information, you should immediately report it to the source of your credit report so they can easily change their database.

2. Keep track of your payment dues – Bad credit reports usually start from fees left unpaid beyond their due date. As those debts increase in number, what makes the amount a lot heavier to bear is the interest rate which also shoots up depending on how long it was left unpaid. Even if you cannot pay in full, try your best to pay even a part of your dues. Some financial institutions accept these installment payments anyway. Make sure you do not totally disregard payment obligations especially if there are deadlines to be followed.



WALTER

Abhishek Agarwal asked:


When a company is deciding whether or not to give you a loan, a mortgage or a credit card it checks your credit report. Your credit report contains information about every credit transaction you have made. If you failed to make a payment or defaulted on a loan then it will be on your credit report.

Until the US government brought in legislation to make this information freely available to you only finance companies, banks and mortgage lenders could see it. Now you are entitled to see it too.

The FACT Act made it possible to see your credit record for free every year for the first time. You need no longer be in the dark about what the finance companies know about you.

This is information about you and it is your right to see it. You should make use of that right because it affects your ability to get loans, credit cards and mortgages. If you are refused credit is probably because of something in your credit report.

There may be mistakes in your credit report that are stopping you from getting a loan. Someone may have fraudulently used your identity to take out a credit card or loan which they have not paid. You will then be left with a bad credit report that is not your fault.

There are three companies that compile credit reports. You can only get to see one of those reports for free. But if there are mistakes in that one then it will be worth your while to pay for the other two.

Not all the credit reporting companies have exactly the same information. They compile their data in slightly different ways.

Once you have seen the report and checked it against your own records you can correct inaccuracies any inaccuracies it may contain. There is a facility on the websites of the credit reporting companies for you to inform them of mistakes in your report. You will have to produce written evidence such as bank statements or credit card statements. But the process is quite simple.

By correcting inaccuracies in your credit report you are protecting your credit score. Even one mistake can make the difference between getting a loan and being refused credit.

All Americans can now get a free credit report every year. It is a responsible financial practice to take advantage of this opportunity. By doing so you are taking control of your own finances.

You can guard against identity theft, you can correct errors, and you can see if your credit score is falling because you have a pattern of late payments. It is in your interests to maintain a good credit score. If you check your credit record every year you can address problems as they arise.



MORTON