Free Instant Credit Reports – Score

Davion Wong asked:




There are various ways of getting your free 3 credit bureau report considering that the government has a mandate to give every citizen his own free copy of the credit report once a year. This will give you the chance to track down and monitor your financial information and verify the authenticity of the details recorded in your profile.

There are many credit-reporting bureaus around offering to give you your free yearly copy of this important document; however, the government designated the three main credit-reporting agencies as the official source of your personal financial record, and they are the Experian, the TransUnion and the Equifax. Therefore, if you want to get your financial profile, it is best to get your free-report from these agencies.

Every time you apply for a loan or credit card, your payment behavior with them will be recorded in this report; hence, they should ideally report them to each of the three main reporting agencies in order to make your profile consistent. However, this is not always the case in reality because sometimes there are some creditors who only report them to one agency.

For example, your payment record with a certain credit card company is submitted to the Experian only; without bothering to submit them to TransUnion and Equifax. Consequently, your score for Experian is different with your grade in Transunion and Equifax as a result of absence of your additional profile in the two reporting agencies. Hence, it is important to regularly check your free 3 credit bureau report every year in order to confirm the accuracy of the information contained in your report. This will greatly improve your rating if you have an excellent record.

Where to get your free credit bureau report? One way to get your copy is to request them individually from each of the main agencies mentioned herein. They are tasked by the government to supply you with your free financial record every year upon request.

Another method is to get them online through their web site where the three main official financial institutions have combined their services in one site at AnnualCreditReport.com where you can initiate your request. This method offers more convenient process in obtaining this important document because you don’t need to make three requests from each of the major reporting companies; you only make one request and you will get your free 3 credit bureau report.

Cathy

Justin Smith asked:




Raising your credit score can be a fairly simple and straightforward process unless you have derogatory marks that need to be disputed (which will be explained below).

The reasons for bad credit can be as follows, high balances, bankruptcies, late payments, and many others. The most significant thing you can do to raise your score is to change your financial habits. Chances are that if you have a bad credit score, you did something to make it that way. Here are some of the best ways to quickly raise your credit score:

1. The most obvious: pay off your debt! This doesn’t include a home mortgage, but revolving balances such as credit card debt, a car loan, etc.

2. Make every payment on time. This is the most important factor in your credit score rating. If you have had late payments in the past, it will take some time to see real results from your on-time payments, but keep it up, sooner or later the credit bureau will notice the change in your payment habits. Develop the mentality that no late payment is acceptable!

3. If possible, pay over your minimum amount. This is especially important with credit card balances, and will reflect a slight boost in your score.

4. If you have paid off all your debt, and your credit score seems to be at a stand still, you might want to make small purchases each month with your credit card and pay them off immediately. Often times the credit bureaus like to see at least some kind of activity. Otherwise, they have no way to gauge how you are doing financially.

5. Be patient! Sometimes repairing credit can be a long and arduous process. Especially if you have had a bankruptcy. It can often take the better part of a year or more to see any significant raises in your score.

Clearing a derogatory mark on your credit report:

This is probably the most difficult in regards to credit repair. If you have requested a copy of your credit report, and notice a problem (an example would be a late payment mark), that shouldn’t be there, you need to take action to get the derogatory mark cleared as soon as possible. It is extremely important to get your credit score cleared before you attempt to get prequalified for mortgage.

Here are the steps you should take:

First of all, if you are in contact with a loan officer, you may want to describe the problem you are having to them. They can be very helpful when it comes to credit repair, and should know exactly what to do if you have a bad mark on your credit that is a mistake. In some cases, they may even call the creditor for you to address the situation.

Second, you should call your creditor and each credit bureau to find out which course of action you should take. In most cases, writing a letter will do. Here is an example letter:

Date 00/00/00

Dear Big Credit Bureau,

This letter is a complaint that you are reporting inaccurate and/or incomplete credit information on my credit report.
I am displeased that you have included the below information in my credit profile that includes the following errors. Credit reporting laws ensure that bureaus report 100% accurate credit information.

The following information concerning my credit report needs to be re-investigated. I respectfully request to be provided proof of this alleged item on my credit report. If this cannot be provided, the item must be deleted from my report as soon as possible:

CREDITOR AGENCY, acct. 123-34567-ABC

The listed item is inaccurate and/or incomplete, and is a serious error in reporting. Please delete this information, and supply a corrected credit profile to all creditors who have received a copy within the last 6 months, or the last 2 years for employment purposes. Also, please provide the name, address, and telephone number of each credit grantor or other subscriber.

Under federal law, you have 30 days to complete your re- investigation. Be advised that the description of the procedure used to determine the accuracy and completeness of the information is hereby requested as well, to be provided within 15 days of the completion of your re-investigation.

Sincerely,

your signature

Your Name

SSN# 123-45-6789

Unfortunately, you will need to write 3 separate letters to each of the 3 major credit bureaus. Here are the contact addresses for each:

Trans Union

P.O. Box 1000

Chester, PA 19022

1-800-888-4213

Equifax

P.O. Box 740241

Atlanta, GA 30374-0241

1-800-997-2493

Experian

P.O. Box 2104

Allen, TX 75013-2104

1-888-397-3742

Bill

Tim Gorman asked:




A credit report provides information in regards to your credit worthiness by giving the nitty gritty details of your credit transactions. These reports are sold by the credit bureaus to lenders like banks, insurance companies, credit card companies and many other financially related institutions who use your report to evaluate you and decide whether to transact with you. Under the Fair Credit Reporting Act, you are entitled to your very own free credit report from each of the three top credit bureaus Equifax, Experian ad TransUnion, every 12 months, on request. This is to ensure that you know what picture is projected about you to the various potential lenders and businesses in the market and to protect yourself from any form of identity theft that seems to be prevelant in today’s society.

In order to cater to the free annual credit report program, the three credit reporting companies have set up a website, a toll free telephone and a mailing address as avenues through which anyone can order their free credit information. The website is http://www.annualcreditreport.com , the toll free number is 1-877-322-8228 and mailing address is Annual Credit Report Request Service, P.O. Box 105281, Atlanta, GA 30348-5281, to which you need to send in the Annual credit report request form. Additionally, you have the option to order free report and score (the score is optional and comes at a small cost) from all three companies at the same time or each at a different time, depending on your purposes.

Consumers that choose to search the Internet and go online in order to obtain a copy of their free credit report and score need to be wary on one point – There are companies that have their web site names very close in spelling to the one mentioned above. So, if a consumer makes a typo error while typing the website address, they will be redirected to different unintended pages, which may collect some information and offer some services, at a cost.

When you order your information online, you will get it instantly. Whereas if you order using the toll free number or through the mail, it is likely to take a minimum of 15 days or more, depending on the volumes being processed by the credit bureaus. You are also eligible for a free credit report, when a company has refused to transact with you; if you do not have a job currently and plan to take up one in the next sixty days; if you are on welfare or if your report has any errors that you have reported with evidence.

If you wonder what you will do with a credit report, think again. Before applying for a loan or insurance or credit card or a job, it is a good idea to verify your financial information and ensure that all the details provided there are accurate and current. Else, the report might throw an unpleasant surprise at you. Verifying your credit report periodically is a way to avoid identity theft, where a person lifts your identity details and uses it for credit purposes like getting a loan or a credit card and defaults on it. By checking your credit report, you can catch such thefts and report them on time, before it gives you ‘bad credit’.

Now that you know the advantages of tracking your credit report and score, you could choose the best way to get it free and enjoy the benefits.

Lonnie

Zach Ford asked:




Thanks to the Federal Trade Commission, Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion, the three big credit reporting bureaus, must provide you the consumer with a free copy of your credit report at least once a year. This means that a free credit report is yours once a year, all you have to do is request it. With today’s technologies, it has never been easier to view a free copy of your credit report from all three of the major credit bureaus. What better way to stay on top of your financial goals?

Know what’s in your credit report! There is no charge!

Yes, it’s free to check your credit report. Do you know what’s in yours? If you know what’s located in your free credit report, it will save you time when shopping for a loan or a lease, and money too. Even if you have never dealt with having bad credit, you still need to know what is in your report and check it annually for errors. Errors can damage your financial health and cause a bad relationship between you and your financial lenders.

You can obtain a copy from all three credit reporting bureaus by visiting http://www.AnnualCreditReport.com. Of course, you can go to their websites individually if you wish, Experian is http://www.experian.com Equifax is http://www.equifax.com and TransUnion is http://www.transunion.com. Be warned that they will ask you to sign up for account with them and offer other services to you. All three can also be contacted through regular USPS mail. The best way to contact all three of them at the same time without being slammed with offers of services they offer is to obtain your free credit report through [http://www.AnualCreditReport.com].

Betty

George Burk asked:




2005 marks the year that consumers will be able to get a free credit report each year. The roll out of the Fair and Accurate Credit Transaction Act signed into law by President Bush actually began last December 1. If you didn’t know about it, don’t worry. You haven’t missed the boat. Not everyone is eligible to get their credit report. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is allowing the credit bureau’s to implement the program piecemeal so as not to overload the new credit report system. Millions of consumers are expected to take advantage of the free reports.

Last December, consumers from Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, New Mexico, Nevada, Oregon, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming were able to take advantage of the free credit report. Next March, the Midwest will have access to free credit reports. The South has to wait till June, and the East must wait until September 2005.

After your eligible, you can request you free credit report from a web site, by calling a toll free number, or by requesting it in writing. The web site address is AnnualCreditReport.com. This website was created by the credit bureaus. The toll free number is (877)-322-8228, which is also (877)-FTC-HELP if that’s easier to remember. The address to write to is Annual Report Request Service, P.O. Box 105281, Atlanta, GA., 30348-5281. You will not be asked to sign up for a trial subscription for a credit monitoring service after requesting your credit report.

Your not limited to one free credit report a year. You can request three – one from each of the credit bureaus: Exper