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Your credit report contains personal
information about you, including your Social
Security number, your past and current addresses,
employers, your past and current mortgages, loans,
credit cards, installment accounts, and public
records such as bankruptcies, tax liens, and
foreclosures.
Your credit report will also list your payment
history on all of your accounts to see if they are
current or 30,60,90, or 120 days past due. It will
also indicate if you have moved without notifying an
original creditor.
The items listed can be negative, positive, and
neutral items that are overdue can remain on your
credit report for seven years. Bankruptcies can
remain on your credit report for up to ten years
depending on which bankruptcy you filed under and
depending on laws in your state.
The credit report also shows what creditors have
requested information about you from that credit
bureau or agency.
READING AND UNDERSTANDING YOUR
REPORT
The three credit reporting agencies present
credit information in many different ways on their
own reports. If you request a credit report from
Trans Union, Equifax, or Experian, you will probably
find that none of them report the same exact
information.
Often certain debts are included in one company’s
report but not on another credit report. In order
for you to review your complete history of credit,
it is highly recommended that you obtain or purchase
each credit report from the main three listed above.
If there is something you do not understand in your
credit report, the three bureaus have customer
service reps that can assist you.
YOUR CREDIT SCORE
Your
credit score or rating is the number that is between
300 and 850 that summarizes your credit value and
worthiness, this is known as your FICO score. The
current average score in the U.S. is 713 as of this
writing.
The
score is based on all the information in your credit
report and is a fast rating to sum up your credit
history and credit health, so to speak. The
calculated by looking at your payment history,
amounts currently paying on, length of credit
history, type of credit accounts, how many open and
closed accounts you have, how many inquiries, and
how many new accounts you have. A good credit score
starts around 675, but the higher, the better.
Your
credit score or FICO score will have an impact on
your loans and credit you apply for meaning if you
have a lower score, you will pay higher interest
rates, and also annual fees for credit cards. The
higher the score, the lower in interest rates and
annual fees you will pay.
You
may have to pay an extra fee to receive you credit
score as it is a separate purchase from your credit
report or your free annual credit report. You can
order just your FICO score from their web site. Many
companies offer packages that allow you to track
your score throughout the year for a reasonable fee
and can cancel at anytime.
READING YOUR REPORTS
Confirmation number is always on report and will be
used when disputing information
When
reading your report, you will see that it contains
the following information depending on what credit
report you have obtained or purchased.
1)
Personal Information; Basic Information, Previous
Addresses, and Employment History
2)
Credit Summary: Mortgage Accounts, Installment
Accounts, Revolving Accounts, Other Accounts, Open
Accounts, Closed Accounts, Accounts in Good
Standing, Accounts Currently Past Due, Negative
Account History, Inquiries Within The Past 12
Months, Account Information Summary, Inquiries,
Collections, Public Records, and Dispute File
Information.
WHAT MAKES A GOOD CREDIT REPORT
The
following makes for a good credit report:
1) No
more than ten accounts, opened or closed, on the
report
2) No
more than one change of address
3)
Steady employment
4)
Regular payments on time
5) No
over or past due payments or no defaults
6) No
foreclosures or late fees
7) Low
balance; and,
8) A
credit score of at least 675
Please stay away from special offers to open new
accounts. Only apply for credit that you need. Do
not consolidate student loans as this increases the
number of accounts on your report. Do not over apply
for credit cards, as this will put inquiries on your
report. The more accounts you have, the lower your
score will be.
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