Aw, c’mon! If it is free why do I have to give a credit card number and get billed each month for something I don’t want?

Because it really isn’t free. There are a lot of offers on the internet and even TV for free credit reports. But they come with two catches and virtually none of them are free.

Catch number one is that these are companies in business to make a profit. After all isn’t that what companies do? If they are going to make a profit, they need to charge you for something. That something is mostly along the lines of a credit report monitoring service or something of the like. Catch number two is that the scoring model is not usually the same one the lenders use. So it is essentially worthless.

What these sites don’t do is help you understand how to effectively manage your scores at all times to get and keep scores in the 700 range. This is where they need to be considering the current credit market.

First of all there is only one web site that is sanctioned by the Federal Trade Commission.  Annual Credit Report dot com is the source to obtain your credit report none of the others are. This is a free site to obtain the body of your credit once a year from each of the three credit bureaus. They will however still try and sell you stuff including your credit score.

The first time you order your report DON’T BUY ANYTHING. Not even your score. You want to make certain that all of the information is yours and that it is correct. The credit score that they sell you is a different scoring model from the ones that the lenders use and is basically worthless. What you need is the body of your report and check it for accuracy.

If you have recently applied for credit, like a car loan or home loan, ask to get a copy of the report they pulled. This will have a score on it that the lenders do use.

Secondly seek out a professional in your community who understands the credit scoring system. They can analyze your report and give you tips on how to get and/or increase and keep a high score

In the following articles we’ll discuss how to read your report and what on it matters and what doesn’t affect your score.

Don Davis can be reached at 360-652-9994 or visit his web site at http://www.HTLNW.com for other contact information. Don specializes in residential and commercial lending mostly in and around Snohomish County, North King County, Skagit county and generally in the state of Washington. Don has spoken at numerous workshops and events regarding credit scoring and related topics and has helped many people substantially raise their individual credit rating. If you want to maintain a high credit score or wish to increase and maintain a high score, contact Don to schedule a meeting today.

Would you say you know all different aspects involved in a credit report? If yes, congratulations because with the difficult economic times we are living nowadays, it is and will be quiet important understand every single detail that could affect your credit score. After all, nobody could say certainly that he or she will never apply for a loan because of an emergency or something unexpected.

Borrowers trying to get a loan are checked against their credit report, where all your financial movements are registered and hopefully shows you as a low risk investment, if you have good credit score you can get better interest rate on loan applications for example, if you do not then, you face difficulties getting a loan and many other different things.

For that very reason, it is advisable to check your credit report even if you think you do not have any problem, because sometimes there is inaccurate information registered and it is your responsibility getting those removed. However, you do not have to pay in order to get a credit report, because there are options in order to get a free one.

Then, there is no reason to be uninformed about what your credit report is showing up, a credit monitoring service is recommended just if your credit score plays an important role in your personal finance, but these are not free nor expensive.

Are you a person that honour your credit commitments in the future? that is precisely what a credit rating aims to predict, and that is the reason why most of the credit providers, if not all of them, use credit reports to evaluate the risk in offering a credit to borrowers.

Summing up, it is advisable monitoring your credit report since it is required every time you apply for a loan or some kind of credit, while there are credit monitoring services you still have the option of a free credit report and check your credit rating by yourself.

Tips About Your Free Annual Credit Report

Did you know a review of your free annual credit report can save you thousands upon thousands of dollars? That is a staggering thought in itself; don’t you agree? But there is something worse; that can be happening to you. Your personal reputation and good credit could be ruined forever. You can lose your personal reputation and thousands of dollars if you don’t know someone stole your identity. The following tips will help to keep this from happening to you.

Identity theft has become an illegal enterprise which has profited the thieves to hundreds and hundreds of millions of dollars a year. One of the main reasons it has become so profitable is that people, just like you, have no idea their identity has been stolen. The first way you may find out about it is when the following scenario’s or something similar happen to you.

One evening you and your family are setting in the family room watching a little TV and relaxing. Suddenly you get a phone call from a mortgage company, which you know nothing about, wanting 90 days of back mortgage payments. As you’re standing there in confusion and disbelief this guy is telling you, if you don’t pay, legal action will be taken.

If not that scenario, then perhaps you get a credit card bill for a credit card you have never seen. You open the bill and there is $5000.00 worth of charges for electronics charged against your name. It also shows you are more than 60 days delinquent in payments. It is mind numbing and debasing to you and your family. Your first thoughts are how could this happen?

Chances are if this happens to you it is because your personal identity has been stolen. This thief has used your social security number, your driver’s license number, date of birth and other personal information to get approved for the credit card or loan. The many ways this can be done are beyond the scope of this article. However, there is a way you could have been alerted much sooner and perhaps shut it down before all the damage was done.

In July of 2005, the Federal Government of the United States, passed legislation that gave every citizen in the United States, including you, to be able to get a copy of their free annual credit report. All you have to do is go on-line, write or call and request a free copy from the following 3 major credit reporting agencies:

1. Equifax: http://www.equifax.com/home/  Phone:  1-800-525-6285
2. Experian: http://www.experian.com/   Phone: 1-888-397-3742
3. TransUnion: http://www.transunion.com/ Phone: 1-800-680-7289

Not only can you get your free copy of your credit report, each of these credit reporting agencies, have other programs which can help you. In case of Identity theft they have free information on how to repair your credit report. They offer 24 hour monitoring of your credit report. In addition they provide other programs which can help keep your credit rating safe.

For instance you can put a freeze on your credit report. This prevents anyone from checking your credit without your express approval. However, just for your information a freeze can also slow down the process when you apply for new credit.

As you can see, by learning about your free annual credit report, you have other services from the Big 3 which can help protect you. If you suspect fraud, identity theft and are suddenly getting approved for credit cards and other loans; it’s time to grab your free annual credit report.

How You Can Profit With Your Business Credit Report

As a small business person one of the most important assets you have is your Business Credit Report? Along with your own personal character and a good credit report you can just about name your own ticket in your local community. Furthermore it can help you expand you business to the far reaches of the world. This article will give you some ideas of how important your credit report is to your profit.

As an astute business person you know you have to have to contact new customers. In a lot of cases when you do the new customers want to know how reliable you are. Not only will they be looking for personal references but they want to know you are sound financially.

They may ask you to furnish credit references and other information about you and your company. Many times these new customers will use your business and personal credit report, to verify your financial stability and personal character. By chance, if you happen to have reports of outstanding debt, which has been unpaid or public judgments for failure to finish projects, your chances of landing this new customer or slim next to none.

Not only can the above circumstances affect your ability to grow your business, it may prevent you from obtaining proper business insurance. In many cases you may have to a large umbrella policy for liability, before you can bid on certain jobs or actually perform the job function. In today’s modern society you and your company can be sued for any and everything.

Without a proper credit rating, as reflected by your business or personal credit report, you may be refused insurance all together. If you are insured you may be considered a higher risk and end up having to pay an outrages premium. Whereas with a good business credit report the insurance companies may look very favorably upon giving you a large discount off the premium.

One of the most lucrative forms of business for a small business is government contracts. Once again your personal and business report will be verified. This becomes especially important if your company and you are required to have a security clearance in order just to bid on the project. A reflection of bad credit on your credit report can stop a security clearance or other government contracts dead in the water.

However, with your outstanding credit and personal character, because you are a small business owner you can have a leg up on the larger companies. The reason for this is the Federal government; of the United States has special preference programs for the small business owners. This means you may be able to add another stream of income to your bottom line. Once again you can see how your credit report can help make you profit.

Here is a little tip that can help you keep your business credit report looking good and help your cash flow at the same time. Most companies, when they extend credit, will give favorable repayment terms to your small business, provided your credit worthy. If the term is Invoice Net 10 days, most companies will not report you as long as you get the invoice paid before 30 days are up.

If you are in a cash flow crunch, have your bookkeeper set up to pay the invoice before the 30th of the month. Make sure the bookkeeper allows enough time for the mail. This tip should only be used discreetly and infrequently. Otherwise you will get a reputation of using your vendors to finance your business operations for 30 days.

There is a drawback to this kind of credit repayment. Many of your vendors now will start calculating a late fee and interest payments as soon as the 10 days is up. So instead of enhancing your cash flow it can further deplete it.

You as an ethical business person have the responsibility of keeping your debts paid and on time. When you do this you have seen how your business credit report can be a profit center for you.