Credit Scores and Getting a Job Getting a job in today’s economy is hard enough as it is. There’s very few openings, hundreds of applicants applying for the same position, and the job may not even what you dreamt of doing high school or college graduation....
Credit Scores and Getting a Loan Lenders are in the business of loaning money, but they are picky about who gets it. They will pull your credit history and look at your credit score before offering you a loan. It’s only fair—they want as little risk...
CROA, The Credit Repair Organizations Act If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. Especially in the case of credit repair companies. Scammers promise to make everything all better, instantly. We can’t promise you instant good credit. It takes a while to dispute...
Obtaining Your Credit Report You can get your credit report for free. No, there’s no gimmick. There’s a law requiring the three major credit bureaus (Equifax, Experian, and Transunion) to give you a free copy each year. However, as you learn more about credit scores you’ll...
Credit Scores and Marriage The “ties that bind” don’t combine your credit histories when you marry. Every person’s credit score is tied to his/her Social Security Number, so it doesn’t make a difference if you change your name. Your credit score also doesn’t change when you...
Credit Score Basics A credit score is a three-digit snapshot of your creditworthiness. Several different versions exist, from the ever-popular FICO to VantageScore and RiskView. Some are customized for mortgage lenders while others are customized for auto lenders. The usual range of these credit scores is...
Credit Score Myths Credit scores and credit scoring systems are complex and at times hard to understand. As a result there’s a lot of misinformation that floats around the public sphere and as with anything this can sometimes lead to widespread rumors that just simply aren’t...
Insurance Rates and Credit Scores It seems like almost everything is affected by credit scores. Most people probably don’t think about insurance as being something that is affected by their credit scores - what does one have to do with the other? Unfortunately, insurance rates in...
FCRA, The Fair Credit Reporting Act October 26, 1970 was the day the Fair Credit Reporting Act started protecting you against mishandling of your credit information and gave you access to review it yourself. But why is the FRCA a big deal? In the wild days before...
What is a FICO Score? FICO is a software company that invented the credit score. Before it existed, lenders had to review your credit history and determine if you met their criteria for a loan. This could take a while, and was subject to individual opinions...