Free Credit Score

Under the law, you can get a free credit report once a year from all of the three major credit bureaus. This, however, does not come with a credit score. Normally you would have to pay an additional fee to get your credit score.

Your credit score is the most important number that will influence anything you do that is related to credit – applying for a loan or a credit card, buying insurance, or buying a house. If you are applying for a new job, sometimes even prospective employers will want to see your credit report and credit score.

There are ways by which you can get a free credit score . If you are a consumer applying for a mortgage loan, you can get a free credit score from the lender. Mortgage lenders ask for your credit score from the credit rating agency and use this to evaluate your loan application.

Another way to get your free credit score is to sign up for credit monitoring services offered by credit agencies, for a monthly fee. The company charges you for the service of monitoring your credit report but your credit score is free. This service is particularly useful for those who want to be on top of their credit scores, or need to monitor it because they anticipate that they will be needing credit in the near future.

Some credit card companies, such as Washington Mutual and American Express, give consumers their free credit score when they sign up to apply for a credit card. Once your application is approved and you are issued your new credit card, your free credit score is updated monthly on your account and you get to access it without any additional charge.

here you can find more information and articles about free credit score

Free Annual Credit Report

Under the Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act, or FACT Act, which was enacted by Congress in 2003, any one is entitled to a free credit report once every twelve months from each of the three major credit bureaus. This means that you can apply either online or in writing to get your free annual credit report from Equifax, Experian, and Transunion. You can choose to apply for your free annual credit report from these three agencies all at the same time. This means that you will not be able to get another free report for the next twelve months. Some people apply for one now, then three months later apply for another one with another agency, and then after several months request for their third report with the third and last agency.

The advantage of applying for all of your free annual credit reports at the same time is that you can compare your ratings between the three agencies, even though each one has a different way of computing your rate. If you apply for your free annual credit report at different times, your credit rating may have changed and your comparison may not be as accurate.

The free annual credit report you will get from Equifax, Experian and TransUnion will not include your credit scores. However, you can apply to have your credit score included in the report and pay an additional fee for this. The law allows these agencies to charge a “fair and reasonable” fee for this service. The additional cost to get your credit score may range from $6 to $16.

here you can find more information and articles about free annual credit report

What Is A Good Credit Score

Your credit score is like a snapshot of your credit – it shows what your credit looks like. That snapshot comes in the form of a 3-digit number. The credit score is what lenders use to determine whether to give you more credit. How high or low your credit score is affects the terms and interest rates you will be given when you apply for a loan, for instance, and even whether you qualify or not. Credit scores affect everything – mortgages, car loans, buying a house, and even getting a job.

The Fico score, developed by the Fair Isaac Corporation, is what most lenders typically use as their reference for your credit score. A good credit score is likely to get you better, longer terms and lower interest rates, while a bad credit score could mean shorter terms and higher interest rates.

Credit scores are measured in points. The higher the number of points you have, the better your credit score is. Your score is directly affected by your spending and payment habits. If you buy on credit and make your payments on time, your credit score goes higher. If you frequently max out your credit limit and pay after your due date your score will go down. Good credit scores are important to be able to get better rates and terms, especially when you are applying for credit.

The Fico score has a range of 300 to 850. Here is an approximation of the FICO ranks, showing the good credit scores and the bad ones:

Above 750 = excellent eredit
720-750 = very good credit
660-720 = good credit
600-660 = fair credit
500-600 = poor credit
Below 500 = very poor credit

here you can find more information and articles about what is a good credit score

Fico Score

There are many credit scoring systems depending on the credit agencies, but the Fico score is the number most lenders use to determine if you are credit worthy or a credit risk. The principle is that the lower your credit score is, the more likely you will default on your debt.

The computation of your Fico score is based on 5 factors. The first is your payment history, which makes up approximately 35% of your Fico score. A solid record of on-time payments pulls your credit score up, but late payments, bankruptcies, bouncing checks and other negative items in your credit report will pull your Fico score down.

The second is the amount of debt you currently have outstanding with all your creditors. This makes up approximately 30% of your Fico score. The higher the amount you owe compared against your credit limit, the lower your Fico score would be.

The third factor is the length of your credit history, which comprises approximately 15% of your fico score. The longer you have been a credit user, the higher your score will tend to be.

The fourth is your recent credit history, which makes up approximately 10% of your Fico score. If you have applied for a new credit card or gone shopping for a loan in the past few months, the credit card company will check your credit history, and that affects your credit score, bringing it down a little.

The fifth factor is the types or mix of credit you use. This comprises 10% of your Fico score. For example, if you have a longer credit history and use several cards, have some installment loans such as an auto loan and a house loan, this is normal for those with longer credit histories and can add slightly to your score.

here you can find more information and articles about fico score

Free Instant Credit Report

Under the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA), all consumers have the right to a free credit report from each of the three major credit bureaus (Experian, TransUnion, and Equifax) once a year. However, you can get a free instant credit report if you fulfill any of the following conditions.

First, you are entitled to a free instant credit report if any person has taken unfavorable action against you – denied your application for credit, insurance, or employment, or housing – because of the information contained in your credit report. However, you must request for the credit report within 60 days of receiving the adverse notice of action.

The second condition is if you have been the victim of identity fraud and you put a fraud alert on your file. An example of this is if someone you do not know used your identity and credit card information to go shopping on the internet and maxed out your credit card.

The third condition by which you can get a free instant credit report is if your credit report now contains inaccurate information because of fraud. Let us say your credit card information was used fraudulently for online shopping and you filed a dispute with the credit card company. You refused to pay the charges on the card because it wasn’t you who went shopping, the failure to pay the charges will appear on your credit report.

The fourth condition is if you are on public welfare assistance.

The fifth condition to qualify for a free instant credit report is if you are currently unemployed, but expect to apply for employment within 60 days.

Certain states, such as Colorado, Georgia, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey and Vermont, allow consumers to have free access to their credit reports at any time.

here you can find more information and articles about free instant credit report

Free Fico Score

Is it possible to get a free Fico score? Yes, getting a free Fico score is possible. However, you have to be careful when going for the free Fico score offers. Fico, the company, and the major credit bureaus charge you for your Fico score.

Many companies will offer to give you a free credit report and free Fico score. Many of these, however, are actually giving you a Fako score (meaning fake), not your Fico score. A Fako score is based on a credit scoring model other than Fico’s. Oftentimes, the credit company has taken the Fico model and tweaked it to add certain variables of its own.

Both Fico and Fako use information from your credit report to come up with your score. The difference is that Fico used inquiries made in the last year, while Fako uses inquiries from the last 2 years.

Some companies offer a free credit report and free fico score as part of a trial program for a service they are offering, usually a credit monitoring report. After the trial period has lapsed, your Fico score will not be free anymore.

That said, there are ways to get a free Fico score. One is when you are applying to a mortgage lender for a mortgage or home equity loan. The score comes free because you are a prospective borrower and the lender would have to check your Fico score and let you know whether you will qualify for the loan, and have to explain why or why not.

Another way is through certain credit card companies - such as Washington Mutual (Wamu) or American Express (Amex) – that allow you to get your free credit report and credit score as part of the perks when you apply for their credit card.

The next time you get an offer for a free Fico score, read the fine print to make sure you are getting the real deal.

here you can find more information and articles about free fico score

Low Credit Score Loans

Even if you have a bad credit history and thus a low Fico score, it is still possible to get credit, although with certain restrictions. There are now companies specializing in loans to people with low credit scores.

If you have a credit score of at least 660, you can easily qualify for a low credit score loan. If your score is lower, this does not mean you are disqualified. You could qualify, but with higher interest rates.

Low credit score loans, such as the FHA loan, were created to enable people with poor credit to get financing that is not readily available to them. An FHA loan does not mean that the Federal Housing Authority is the one lending you the money to buy your house; it only means that the agency is guaranteeing the loan made by the private lender to you. Because the FHA is a government-insured agency, lenders offering low credit score loans through it would assume less risk and thus be able to offer you reasonable interest rates.

The process for applying for low credit score loans is different from conventional loans. While your credit score is the most important determining factor when you apply for a conventional loan, lenders offering low credit score loans will look at your overall credit history and not at your credit score alone.

There is a rule of thumb for low credit score loans. The lower your credit score is, the higher the interest rate you are going to get for your loan. What is important is that you are able to get the loan, which you will not qualify for if you apply to a conventional lender.

Even if you do qualify and are able to get a low credit score loan, that does not mean you should let your credit standing stay there. If you pay that new loan on time, you will improve your credit standing, and by judiciously managing your finances you can get back on track to improving your credit score.

here you can find more information and articles about how to get low credit score loans

Good Credit Score

It pays to have a higher credit score, because a good credit score can open up better lines of credit and better terms for you. A good credit score can help to get you lower interest rates and reduced deposits on your loans. If you apply for new credit, your application will be approved faster. You will also find it easier to be approved for housing loans, and get better credit card, auto loan and mortgage offers from lenders if you have a good credit score on your credit report.

Building a good credit score can be easy, if you stick to the following guidelines:

- Make sure you pay your bills on time, every time. If you are always delinquent in your payments and collectors have to run after you, your credit score will get hurt.

- Keep your credit card balances low. Higher debt levels send a warning signal to lenders that you may not be managing your credit wisely.

- If you have debts, pay them off as soon as you can instead of moving them between credit cards.

- Only apply for and open new credit accounts when you need them. If you do not need a new credit card and can manage on your existing ones, then don’t get a new one.

- Periodically check your credit report to make sure it is accurate. If you notice any errors on your credit report, contact your creditor or credit agency and have them corrected.

- If you have missed payments on your credit card or loan, get current and stay that way. The longer your history of prompt payment, the easier it will be for you to get a good credit score.

here you can find more information and articles about good credit score

Recommended Websites