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Credit Cards Without Late Fees? What You Don't Know Can Hurt You
Americans know all too well how much it costs to use credit cards. The average household in the U.S. now has nearly $10,000 in credit card debt. Carrying such debt is fine, as long as you realize that there are costs associated with it. The interest...
The True cost of Credit
The current house price boom has perhaps passed its peak as I write this, but that doesn't stop the mortgage companies from offering yet more new and tempting products that look like good deals for a consumer. But be warned - The standard mortgage,...
Using A Credit Card To Fund Your Business
The spate of credit card offers and leaflets that most of us receive through the post or in our daily newspapers, which promise us unlimited spending power and in some cases blank cheques, has threw up a major surprise and that is the way that small...
What is Bad Credit UK?
Bad credit UK is a term that many people don't fully understand. After all, credit itself can sometimes be difficult to understand… adding the description of “bad” to it can make it that much more confusing. But bad credit UK doesn't have to cause...
Winning The Credit-Card & Bills Game
Some banks are eliminating the standard 25 or 30-day grace period within which you may pay your bill within being charged interest. This is the normal grace period before interest kicks in. But this is slowly changing. For example, some banks are...
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Understanding Credit Report Score
Understanding credit report scores is important when you see your credit report because you need to be able to make some sense of it. Your credit score is used by anyone loaning you money such as credit card companies, home loan lenders, auto loan lenders and finance companies. They all use your credit score to determine your credit risk. The interest the lender charges you is based on your credit risk. So you can see how understanding credit report scores is information that can save or cost you money. You need to find out what your credit score is before you talk to any lender in case there is something on your report that you may question. You don't want the lender to find a mistake that you aren't aware of. If you find a mistake, it takes at least 30-60 days before you see corrections in your credit reports and scores. You have probably heard that checking your credit will bring down your score. But checking your own credit report and score is counted as a "soft inquiry" and doesn't harm your credit score at all. Only "hard inquiries" from a lender or creditor, made when you apply for credit, will bring your credit score down a few points. Your credit report should have the three main credit services Experian, Trans Union and Equifax and each service will give you a different credit score. The credit scores will range between 300 and 870 with each credit service giving a different score. The higher your score is the better, because as your credit score increases, your credit risk decreases. The average high approval score where the best interest rates are offered is 680 or above. The credit score the lender uses comes from the middle score or an average of all three scores is sometimes used.
Don't be surprised if you find an error once you get your credit report. Statistics show that 70 percent of credit reports contain serious errors. Those errors are what you want to clear up because they will affect your credit score. If you find a mistake, you have the right to dispute the information free of charge. Contact the credit bureau that provided the information and dispute the inaccurate information. Below are the names, addresses, phone numbers and web sites of the three credit bureaus TransUnion, Experian and Equifax. Equifax Credit P.O. Box 740241 Atlanta, GA 30374 Equifax 800-685-1111 http://www.equifax.com TransUnion P.O. Box 1000 Chester, PA 19022 Trans Union 800-888-4213 http://www.transunion.com Experian P.O. Box 2002 Allen, TX 75013 Experian 800-682-7654 http://www.experian.com You can also contact the creditor direct and ask that the corrected information be provided to the credit bureaus. If you suspect any fraud, contact all three credit bureaus immediately and place a fraud alert on your report. Then, contact your credit card companies and bank to protect your accounts. Understanding credit report scores and checking your credit report at least once a year will keep fraud in check and keep your credit score safer. Copyright © 2005 Credit Repair Facts.com All Rights Reserved.
About the Author
This article is supplied by http://www.credit-repair-facts.com where you will find credit information, debt elimination programs and informative facts that give you the knowledge to correct your own credit and credit report. For more credit related articles go to: http://www.credit-repair-facts.com/articles_1.html
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Credit Reports - Credit Cards - Car Loans - Home Loans - Credit.com |
Credit.com offers a variety of credit related products and services including credit reports and credit scores, credit cards, car loans, home loan and ... |
www.credit.com |
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Equifax Personal Solutions: Credit Reports, Credit Scores ... |
National consumer credit reporting company that offers credit reports, FICO(R) credit scores and identity theft protection products to consumers and small ... |
www.equifax.com |
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The FTC's web site on Credit |
Credit is much more than a piece of plastic, and the resources on this site can help you become a more savvy consumer. You’ll also find compliance ... |
www.ftc.gov |
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Federal Trade Commission - Consumer Credit Center |
Features an assortment of helpful articles related to credit issues. |
www.ftc.gov |
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AnnualCreditReport |
Site set up by the big three credit reporting agencies in the United States, to furnish free annual credit reports, as required by federal law. |
www.annualcreditreport.com |
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Springboard - Non-Profit Consumer Credit Management |
Our mission is simple: To offer education on the wise use of credit. ... SPRINGBOARD has been approved to provide credit counseling services and issue ... |
www.credit.org |
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myFICO - FICO Credit Scores, Online Credit Reports and Identity ... |
myFICO.com: Get your Free credit report and Free credit score with a 30-day trial of Score Watch. All three FICO Scores and Credit Reports Available now ... |
www.myfico.com |
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Credit Suisse Global |
Credit Suisse Group is an international financial services group. - Shares part of SMI. |
www.credit-suisse.com |
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Experian: Free Credit Report and Credit Score, Credit Check ... |
Credit referencing and consumer targeting for the USA and other countries. |
www.experian.com |
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National Credit Union Administration - Home Page |
An independent federal agency that supervises and insures 7152 federal credit unions and insures 4240 state-chartered credit unions. |
www.ncua.gov |
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Credit - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia |
Debits and Credits, a type of bookkeeping entry; Credit (creative arts), acknowledging the ideas or ... Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Credit" ... |
en.wikipedia.org |
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Credit (finance) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia |
Any movement of financial capital is normally quite dependent on credit, ... Sometimes if a person has financial instability or difficulty, credit is not ... |
en.wikipedia.org |
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The National Foundation for Credit Counseling |
DebtAdvice.org is a service provided by the Members of the National Foundation for Credit Counseling (NFCC), most of them known as Consumer Credit ... |
www.nfcc.org |
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FreeCreditReport.com | Free Credit Report and Credit Score Online ... |
FreeCreditReport.com: Free credit reports and credit scores from Experian. Get your free credit report and credit score now. It's free, fast, and easy! |
www.freecreditreport.com |
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Compare credit cards | apply for a credit card | 0% balance ... |
Compare over 300 credit cards, including 0% offers and balance transfers, and make a credit card application online... |
www.moneysupermarket.com |
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Ford Credit - Auto financing for Ford, Lincoln and Mercury cars ... |
Ford Credit provides auto financing to finance a lease or purchase a car or truck through Ford, Lincoln or Mercury dealerships. |
www.fordcredit.com |
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The Credit Card Prank |
In my lifetime, I have made nearly 15000 credit card transactions. ... Credit card signatures are a useless mechanism designed to make you feel safe, ... |
www.zug.com |
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Credit magazine, corporate bonds, derivatives, structured credit ... |
Credit magazine provides information on the international credit markets for credit investors, issuers and market professionals. |
www.creditmag.com |
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CUNA: The Credit Union National Association |
News and resource directory about credit unions. |
www.cuna.org |
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Credit/Debt Management - Tools and Advice for Managing Credit and Debt |
Drowning in debt? Trying to improve your credit score? This is the place for you. Get real world information and tips, as well as the legal low down, ... |
credit.about.com |
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