Citigroup just announced a plan to help homeowners who have been laid off. It is called “Homeowner Assist”. They said they would provide an opportunity for a homeowner to pay just $500 per month for three months. Note* this is a temporary solution. The catch…….the home owner must be unemployed under 6 months, provide proof of unemployment and has to be at least 60 days behind in their payments on their first mortgage, (2nd mortgages and home equity loans do not qualify). While it is a step in the right direction, the damage to a homeowner’s credit has already taken a huge hit. There is no work out for the newly unemployed who was previously current on their mortgage. So there is no way to save good credit when faced with an unavoidable situation…unemployment. One would have to let payments go unpaid for two months in order to qualify. At this point, the homeowner already will have 1 60 day late and a 30 day late hit on their credit report not to mention the past due payments for 2 months. In addition, Citigroup doesn’t specify what happens with the past due months nor do they guarantee that the previous and ensuing months will be reported as “current”. Furthermore, with long term unemployment this may be a matter of postponing the inevitable, foreclosure. There may be few unemployed in this economy that will find employment within 3 months thereby improving their own negotiation with their current situation. Is this program an actual help to the homeowners in this situation? While Citibank says that if you can’t find work in three months they will work with you on a case by case basis I would contend that this is merely an empty offer that really does little to help the homeowner avoid losing their home, creating an opportunity to save their home and avoid ruining their credit. There is little that will make a bank work with you in these situations. Until I see the results I would venture an educated guess that again, Citibank is positioning itself in the eyes of the bailout government by outwardly offering something that has virtually little substance.
Citigroup, I challenge you to make me take this opinion back by proving to me you are true to your word.
Manage your credit before it manages you!
Order Free Credit Report(s) Online
To
receive your free credit reports online, visit the official website: www.annualcreditreport.com
Friday, March 27, 2009
Straight Scoop on Dating a Credit Score
You've seen reports from many media outlets on the most recent dating craze…using FICO (credit) scores as a criteria for a possible compatible match. From NBC News, ABC News and the Economist to Oprah Winfrey and Suze Orman you’ve heard the virtues of making sure you have a partner with a good FICO (credit) score. (Suze Orman among many other affiliates has a “deal” with Fair Isaac that promotes their version of a credit score called the FICO score.) It’s assumed people with high credit scores are much better financial matches. While a good credit score may be a plus to your potential love interest, the subjectivity of it makes a public credit score a possible vehicle for deception. So my advice is to beware. Credit scores are and should be as private as your social security number, driver’s license numbers, banking information and any personal information.
Upon hearing of a dating website based on everyone’s FICO score I started to wonder just how authentic the scores would be assuming that the site was set and sorted on a FICO score filter. Would a site like this ask to view your credit reports and scores to authenticate the scores or would they just rely on honesty when potential searchers sign up on their website? The site that has gotten all the hype is Creditscoredating.com and I thought I had better check it out from a consumer standpoint. Remember you can’t always believe everything you read or hear and being a proponent of that idea I thought it important to experience first hand whether or not this hyped site was true to its claims. More importantly is it authentic?
Signing onto the site you are first required to become a free member where you are prompted to enter a profile and all your preferences. Since this site’s name and claim to fame is the credit score of each candidate who signs up, I looked diligently for a place where they would either ask you for specific personal information to pull credit reports and scores for authenticity or a place you might enter your own credit scores. There was neither. I looked everywhere on the site including the profile, Preferences, FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions) and Contact Us pages. I found nothing! I couldn’t believe that missing this in the FAQ’s was good business. So I decided to e-mail the contact and ask where this information was and how I might search on this information. I got a prompt reply back.
“ We encourage completion of profile information which includes a member adding their average credit score. This information would be shown when another member views their profile. Unfortunately some do add this information immediately and others will do it later or not at all. Thank you for bringing the subject to our attention. We have noticed that a field was turned off (about me) where we ask a person signing up to input their credit score.”
Well ok mistakes happen. However, now we know they do not pull anyone’s credit report for a score which means we now know that anyone can input any credit score they want based on their own honesty without any authentication. I’m more than sure people who have a 480 credit score are going to put that out into the dating universe! Probably not. And now that we heard from the site, can we assume those who don’t put their score out there are hiding something or maybe just believe that it’s none of anyone’s business in the beginning stages of the dating game? What intelligent consumer is actually going to put his/her score in their profile, especially a score that is considered questionable? How do we know that if this is such an important criteria for finding a match/mate we are getting truthful information? Sounds like just another area that can be left to the whim of the person who maintains his/her own profile. Let alone the validity of the argument that a lower score makes for a bad match choice, how many low scores are you going to actually see on this sort of a website? It would be relationship suicide to do so.
My two cents? This is just another way to make money by making prospective customers believe that matching by credit score is important in this economy. While credit scores and how one handles money IS very important to the survival of a relationship, let’s not put the cart before the horse here. There are so many reasons a credit score may be less than perfect and some is through no fault of their own. Take it from me, I’ve seen good people with low scores who have done most things right, some who have made little use of credit and are cash rich who have low scores because credit history was not on their side as far as calculating a score. I’ve met people who prefer to pay cash and make little or no use of credit cards (revolving credit) which again can lower your score since it is assumed revolving credit and its use is a good measure of a credit score. Membership and the need to pull one’s own FICO score may be profit enough for this site above but the real question…are you getting what you pay for? If you need to find a date online stick to the basics and approach the credit score issue when you both think there may be some compatibility.
Upon hearing of a dating website based on everyone’s FICO score I started to wonder just how authentic the scores would be assuming that the site was set and sorted on a FICO score filter. Would a site like this ask to view your credit reports and scores to authenticate the scores or would they just rely on honesty when potential searchers sign up on their website? The site that has gotten all the hype is Creditscoredating.com and I thought I had better check it out from a consumer standpoint. Remember you can’t always believe everything you read or hear and being a proponent of that idea I thought it important to experience first hand whether or not this hyped site was true to its claims. More importantly is it authentic?
Signing onto the site you are first required to become a free member where you are prompted to enter a profile and all your preferences. Since this site’s name and claim to fame is the credit score of each candidate who signs up, I looked diligently for a place where they would either ask you for specific personal information to pull credit reports and scores for authenticity or a place you might enter your own credit scores. There was neither. I looked everywhere on the site including the profile, Preferences, FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions) and Contact Us pages. I found nothing! I couldn’t believe that missing this in the FAQ’s was good business. So I decided to e-mail the contact and ask where this information was and how I might search on this information. I got a prompt reply back.
“ We encourage completion of profile information which includes a member adding their average credit score. This information would be shown when another member views their profile. Unfortunately some do add this information immediately and others will do it later or not at all. Thank you for bringing the subject to our attention. We have noticed that a field was turned off (about me) where we ask a person signing up to input their credit score.”
Well ok mistakes happen. However, now we know they do not pull anyone’s credit report for a score which means we now know that anyone can input any credit score they want based on their own honesty without any authentication. I’m more than sure people who have a 480 credit score are going to put that out into the dating universe! Probably not. And now that we heard from the site, can we assume those who don’t put their score out there are hiding something or maybe just believe that it’s none of anyone’s business in the beginning stages of the dating game? What intelligent consumer is actually going to put his/her score in their profile, especially a score that is considered questionable? How do we know that if this is such an important criteria for finding a match/mate we are getting truthful information? Sounds like just another area that can be left to the whim of the person who maintains his/her own profile. Let alone the validity of the argument that a lower score makes for a bad match choice, how many low scores are you going to actually see on this sort of a website? It would be relationship suicide to do so.
My two cents? This is just another way to make money by making prospective customers believe that matching by credit score is important in this economy. While credit scores and how one handles money IS very important to the survival of a relationship, let’s not put the cart before the horse here. There are so many reasons a credit score may be less than perfect and some is through no fault of their own. Take it from me, I’ve seen good people with low scores who have done most things right, some who have made little use of credit and are cash rich who have low scores because credit history was not on their side as far as calculating a score. I’ve met people who prefer to pay cash and make little or no use of credit cards (revolving credit) which again can lower your score since it is assumed revolving credit and its use is a good measure of a credit score. Membership and the need to pull one’s own FICO score may be profit enough for this site above but the real question…are you getting what you pay for? If you need to find a date online stick to the basics and approach the credit score issue when you both think there may be some compatibility.
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
Are you kidding me...Dating a FICO Score?
Incredible... and what will they think of next to get our private information?Creditscoredating.com just got some national press as a way to convince us that a credit score makes or breaks a relationship. Yes, while financial diffficulties is one of the hardest challenges in any relationship I'm not sure I would be advertising my credit score in this market on a public site.
I'll be looking into the site a little more and report later but seriously be very careful when giving your private financial and credit information to any public site. Most sites are run by some sort of revenue and whether they admit it or not your information will be shared with someone leaving you ripe for offers both personal and financial.
A credit score can be a personal thing because they are not always correct. There are a meriad of mistakes that I have seen on the credit reports of perfectly responsible people. As one aticle puts it, even an unemployed lawyer with lots of debt is finding the credit scores dropping faster than the New year's Eve ball in NY.
I'll be looking into the site a little more and report later but seriously be very careful when giving your private financial and credit information to any public site. Most sites are run by some sort of revenue and whether they admit it or not your information will be shared with someone leaving you ripe for offers both personal and financial.
A credit score can be a personal thing because they are not always correct. There are a meriad of mistakes that I have seen on the credit reports of perfectly responsible people. As one aticle puts it, even an unemployed lawyer with lots of debt is finding the credit scores dropping faster than the New year's Eve ball in NY.
Friday, December 12, 2008
Credit Card Insurance - Is it worth it?
Be careful when you apply for credit with a credit card company. Consider this.
A customer applied for credit at Best Buy on Black Friday (day after Thanksgiving) because there were some very interesting interest free purchases that interested her. The provider of the credit card was HSBC (Household-Beneficial Corporation) on behalf of Best Buy. A camera was purchased for 6 months free interest. The Best Buy clerk took the filled-out application from the applicant, Sue and completed it online for her. Sue, being familiar with financial consumer issues and consumer applications was very careful not to fall into the "extra" trap on the application that she filled out. When the clerk used that application to complete it on their register, he didn't tell Sue about the "extra" that was automatic when he submitted her application. That "extra" is particularly a product most credit card issuers are now calling "unemployment credit card insurance". For a monthly fee based on the amount of debt on the card, the card holder is supposedly covered for a period of time indicating that the insurance company will make your monthly payments due to a lay-off or perhaps a disability. This policy will NOT forgive your debt should you experience a lay-off or a disability but merely make the monthly minimum payment over a specified period of time.
What did Sue do or not do when she purchased her camera? She made sure that no box was checked that indicated a subscription to anything additional other than her direct purchase of her camera on her credit application at Best Buy. She made sure the Best Buy associate understood this and made him uncheck that option box. Extras such as "credit protection enrollment" or "credit insurance" are sometimes by default (automatic) check marked and billed to you. By the time you get your first statement and in some cases a few months down the road depending on how closely you check your finances, you find that you might have been unaware of the new monthly premium charges on your statements. It's credit insurance and you didn't look closely enough when you applied if this has happened to you. Calling and cancelling does not refund for the time you didn't catch this and were covered. Like most insurance policies your fees only stop the day you cancel.
You may ask, why is this something I should watch when I apply for any type of credit card? The answer is simple. This is an insurance product and in and of itself it does not do what you think it will do. The best way to illustrate this is to understand what this product is. When you apply for a credit card you are becoming a financial customer to a card issuing bank agreeing that you will pay certain fees (finance charges) for the extension of credit over a period of time. You are given a credit limit at the time they accept you as their customer and give you a credit limit they believe you can handle. You may charge up to this limit but if you don't pay it off in total within 25-30 days (read the contract and fine print) you will be charged an agreed upon interest rate (finance charge) as indicated by the issuing bank. That is the way credit card issuers make their money. Along with that interest they collect, the credit issuers also believe (especially in this economy) that they can sell you another product that will net them a commission for selling it to you. That product is an small insurance policy (agreement) that will cover your monthly payments with this credit card company if you should be unable to pay due to unemployment or diability. This policy is said to make your payments and maintain your account while you are unable. Some conservative consumers might find this a good move to protect themselves and their credit but it actually is a very bad decision in most cases. It doesn't work. Why?There are so many requirements and exceptions that you will virtually be throwing your money away on this so-called protection. The outcome, should you become unemployed or disabled and unable to pay your obligations will be the same with or without this protection. You will still have late payments on your credit record that can't be erased and the bill will still not be paid. So don't let yourself fall into this trap.
Take, for instance a client of mine who needed help with his credit. He was a recovering credit client trying to improve his credit after a period of employment. He brought two credit cards he was approved for and allowed them to talk him into "credit protection". He was being charged $4.95 each month on each account for this protection. While unemployed he called these two credit card companies to take advantage of his "credit protection" policy he knew he was paying for. He was sent paperwork to work directly with the company who held the policy. He had to provide documentation and after months of application and clarification he was denied due to a clause cleverly crafted that keep the insurance companies covered. Not only was he out the $4.95/month he had been paying for the last year and a half, 6 of those months spent working back and forth with the insurance company got him 30, 60 and 90 day late dings on his credit, a cancellation of his credit cards and the remaining obligation plus interest demanded to be paid in full under the terms of the credit card agreement.
Before you sign up you have to decide whether the fees would be better spent on a life and disability insurance policy that would encompass all aspects of your life.
Specific policies such as these are typically more expensive, restrictive and rarely pay out.
A customer applied for credit at Best Buy on Black Friday (day after Thanksgiving) because there were some very interesting interest free purchases that interested her. The provider of the credit card was HSBC (Household-Beneficial Corporation) on behalf of Best Buy. A camera was purchased for 6 months free interest. The Best Buy clerk took the filled-out application from the applicant, Sue and completed it online for her. Sue, being familiar with financial consumer issues and consumer applications was very careful not to fall into the "extra" trap on the application that she filled out. When the clerk used that application to complete it on their register, he didn't tell Sue about the "extra" that was automatic when he submitted her application. That "extra" is particularly a product most credit card issuers are now calling "unemployment credit card insurance". For a monthly fee based on the amount of debt on the card, the card holder is supposedly covered for a period of time indicating that the insurance company will make your monthly payments due to a lay-off or perhaps a disability. This policy will NOT forgive your debt should you experience a lay-off or a disability but merely make the monthly minimum payment over a specified period of time.
What did Sue do or not do when she purchased her camera? She made sure that no box was checked that indicated a subscription to anything additional other than her direct purchase of her camera on her credit application at Best Buy. She made sure the Best Buy associate understood this and made him uncheck that option box. Extras such as "credit protection enrollment" or "credit insurance" are sometimes by default (automatic) check marked and billed to you. By the time you get your first statement and in some cases a few months down the road depending on how closely you check your finances, you find that you might have been unaware of the new monthly premium charges on your statements. It's credit insurance and you didn't look closely enough when you applied if this has happened to you. Calling and cancelling does not refund for the time you didn't catch this and were covered. Like most insurance policies your fees only stop the day you cancel.
You may ask, why is this something I should watch when I apply for any type of credit card? The answer is simple. This is an insurance product and in and of itself it does not do what you think it will do. The best way to illustrate this is to understand what this product is. When you apply for a credit card you are becoming a financial customer to a card issuing bank agreeing that you will pay certain fees (finance charges) for the extension of credit over a period of time. You are given a credit limit at the time they accept you as their customer and give you a credit limit they believe you can handle. You may charge up to this limit but if you don't pay it off in total within 25-30 days (read the contract and fine print) you will be charged an agreed upon interest rate (finance charge) as indicated by the issuing bank. That is the way credit card issuers make their money. Along with that interest they collect, the credit issuers also believe (especially in this economy) that they can sell you another product that will net them a commission for selling it to you. That product is an small insurance policy (agreement) that will cover your monthly payments with this credit card company if you should be unable to pay due to unemployment or diability. This policy is said to make your payments and maintain your account while you are unable. Some conservative consumers might find this a good move to protect themselves and their credit but it actually is a very bad decision in most cases. It doesn't work. Why?There are so many requirements and exceptions that you will virtually be throwing your money away on this so-called protection. The outcome, should you become unemployed or disabled and unable to pay your obligations will be the same with or without this protection. You will still have late payments on your credit record that can't be erased and the bill will still not be paid. So don't let yourself fall into this trap.
Take, for instance a client of mine who needed help with his credit. He was a recovering credit client trying to improve his credit after a period of employment. He brought two credit cards he was approved for and allowed them to talk him into "credit protection". He was being charged $4.95 each month on each account for this protection. While unemployed he called these two credit card companies to take advantage of his "credit protection" policy he knew he was paying for. He was sent paperwork to work directly with the company who held the policy. He had to provide documentation and after months of application and clarification he was denied due to a clause cleverly crafted that keep the insurance companies covered. Not only was he out the $4.95/month he had been paying for the last year and a half, 6 of those months spent working back and forth with the insurance company got him 30, 60 and 90 day late dings on his credit, a cancellation of his credit cards and the remaining obligation plus interest demanded to be paid in full under the terms of the credit card agreement.
Before you sign up you have to decide whether the fees would be better spent on a life and disability insurance policy that would encompass all aspects of your life.
Specific policies such as these are typically more expensive, restrictive and rarely pay out.
Monday, November 17, 2008
Christmas Is A Coming - What to Do?
First, whatever you do, think twice about buying a "store specific cash card" to give as gifts. Whether it be to Gap, American Eagle, A & E, etc etc there is a better option. It seems this Christmas season the great doubt about the economy, the tremendous layoffs and the shrinking consumer dollar has all fueled fear of many store closings. What to do for those who like to shop and for those who like to spend their own cash, you can get Visa Gift Cards at almost any bank. You won't pay a fee if you already bank where you buy them. You simply give the cash to the bank and they activate a VISA card with that amount on it to be used wherever VISA is accepted. They usually have gift envelopes as well. The person you give the VISA card to will have a full year to use the funds on the card. Always ask about any extra charges should your gift receivers forget their balances and have to call a special number to receive their balance of funds left to spend. For most though, there are no extra charges. As with everything in life, never assume, always ask.
Wednesday, November 5, 2008
Are "Free Credit Reports" REALLY Free?
You've seen the ads on TV and heard it on the radio. You've seen it countless times everywhere you travel on the internet.
Get your FREE credit report! NOW!
In fact, sometimes it sounds a little like you can always get a free credit report anytime you want it. Great! But are those ads entirely correct in the way that you maybe understand them? Yes you CAN get a free credit report and yes you should know your scores BUT you can only get a free credit report in one of four ways.
1. According to the FTC The Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) requires each of the nationwide consumer reporting companies — Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion — to provide you with a free copy of your credit report, at your request, once every 12 months. During the year you must pay for any additional reports you request from these agencies. Remember, credit reporting agencies are "for-profit" companies, most publicly traded and trying to make income in various ways which include selling you your own report. You can order your free annual credit report online at annualcreditreport.com, by calling 1-877-322-8228, or by completing the Annual Credit Report Request Form and mailing it to: Annual Credit Report Request Service, P.O. Box 105281, Atlanta, GA 30348-5281. The website is managed by Central Source LLC on behalf of Experian, Transunion and Equifax. Remember, you are entitled to one report per agency per year without any other products being offered to you.
2. Under federal law, you’re entitled to a free report if a company takes adverse action against you such as denying your application for credit, insurance, or employment and you ask for your report within 60 days of receiving notice of the action. The notice will give you the name, address, and phone number of the consumer reporting company that reported the harmful information on you. You have the opportunity to ask them why your were turned down for credit by asking for a free copy of the report your creditor received when you applied for credit.
3. If you have filed an investigation of items on your existing credit report, the credit reporting agency has 30 days through federal law to investigate your challenges and respond with the results with a revised report. Again according to the FTC "when the investigation is complete, the consumer reporting company must give you the written results and a free copy of your report if the dispute results in a change. (This free report does not count as your annual free report under the FACT Act.) If an item is changed or deleted, the consumer reporting company cannot put the disputed information back in your file unless the information provider verifies that it is accurate and complete. The consumer reporting company also must send you written notice that includes the name, address, and phone number of the information provider."
4. Finally and most importantly you can obtain a free credit report as a condition for signing up for other private services with free trial offers. Be aware that the free trial offers and your report remain free IF you remember to cancel BEFORE the trial offer is over, otherwise you will start being charged for the membership service. You may also be limited to only one of the reporting agencies when you might want all three. Look closely at the offer you receive.
Not all offers are bad but some offers are better than others for your situation. These can be good information for you, the consumer. We are not advocating that any offer is without merit or a good investment of what is charged for the advertised service but we are wanting to make you aware that the old axiom is ever present, there are no entirely free rides or products and a free credit report is one of those in some cases. You are, in effect through purchasing an attached membership or product, paying for a credit report.
Credit Reports are a product to sell just like furniture, cars, office supplies, etc. It's one of the many revenue streams to keep the reporting agencies in business. YOU and information about you are someone's revenue stream. Most everything you do financially is being sold at one time or another. Your personal financial information is sold sometimes with your permission as in the case of financial applications you fill out and sometimes without your knowledge and permission, as in the case of marketing companies buying your information for the purposes of selling you products or services in which you may be interested. This is merely the American way of sales and marketing, also known as free enterprise. The key to coping in this free enterprise world is to be a discriminating and informed consumer making all your decisions good for YOU.
You need to be aware of the merit of the product you are buying. Don't buy the product just because you get a free credit report. Buy it because it is something you feel is worth the investment with an added value. For instance, if you sign up for a "trial" credit monitoring annual subscription such as the Triple AdvantageSM Credit Monitoring program from Experian® shown below, you are receiving a free Experian Credit report and score and a trial credit monitoring membership for 30 days, but at the end of 30 days, IF you do not cancel the membership you will begin to be charged $12.95/month for this Experian based service. What you do get is unlimited free access to your Experian ONLY credit reports and scores as long as you keep paying the $12.95/month. In addition you also will be sent alerts which tell you when someone has accessed your report, updated or changed.
For those who are looking for the best monthly monitoring program ,the best buy seems to be the Free 3 in 1 Credit Report and Score with a free trial to the Equifax Credit Watch™ Gold with 3-in-1 Monitoring and Score Power®. While only giving you one score based on your Equifax report it will monitor all three reports on a monthly basis.
Get Your FICO® credit score (one score based on Equifax), a FREE 3-in-1 Credit Report, plus unlimited access to your Equifax Credit Report™
30 day free trial of three credit bureau monitoring
Alerts you within 24 hours of key changes to your 3 nationwide credit reports
Interactive Score Simulator to show you how your actions may change your score.
For those who want one time credit scores based on each of the three credit agencies we suggest My FICO Deluxe. you can also save an additional 20% if you type in the letters "CPPSAVINGS" in the promo code when checking out. Click the "Shop" link and fins the MY FICO Deluxe package.
For those who want to start off with three scores and continue with monthly monitoring of activity of all three reports we suggest you get the initial reports through My Fico and then supplement the monthly reporting of all three reports through the Equifax report.Currently there is no ONE source for both these needs.
So the answer to whether credit reports are REALLY free is yes AND no. Once a year you can get a report at each reporting agency entirely free without any strings attached, you can get a free report if you are turned down for credit and you can get a free report after you have requested an investigation. After that, we haven't found an offer yet that didn't have another "paid" required purchase attached to it. The value of the purchase for you personally will determine whether the added investment is truly worth the cost.
Get your FREE credit report! NOW!
In fact, sometimes it sounds a little like you can always get a free credit report anytime you want it. Great! But are those ads entirely correct in the way that you maybe understand them? Yes you CAN get a free credit report and yes you should know your scores BUT you can only get a free credit report in one of four ways.
1. According to the FTC The Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) requires each of the nationwide consumer reporting companies — Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion — to provide you with a free copy of your credit report, at your request, once every 12 months. During the year you must pay for any additional reports you request from these agencies. Remember, credit reporting agencies are "for-profit" companies, most publicly traded and trying to make income in various ways which include selling you your own report. You can order your free annual credit report online at annualcreditreport.com, by calling 1-877-322-8228, or by completing the Annual Credit Report Request Form and mailing it to: Annual Credit Report Request Service, P.O. Box 105281, Atlanta, GA 30348-5281. The website is managed by Central Source LLC on behalf of Experian, Transunion and Equifax. Remember, you are entitled to one report per agency per year without any other products being offered to you.
2. Under federal law, you’re entitled to a free report if a company takes adverse action against you such as denying your application for credit, insurance, or employment and you ask for your report within 60 days of receiving notice of the action. The notice will give you the name, address, and phone number of the consumer reporting company that reported the harmful information on you. You have the opportunity to ask them why your were turned down for credit by asking for a free copy of the report your creditor received when you applied for credit.
3. If you have filed an investigation of items on your existing credit report, the credit reporting agency has 30 days through federal law to investigate your challenges and respond with the results with a revised report. Again according to the FTC "when the investigation is complete, the consumer reporting company must give you the written results and a free copy of your report if the dispute results in a change. (This free report does not count as your annual free report under the FACT Act.) If an item is changed or deleted, the consumer reporting company cannot put the disputed information back in your file unless the information provider verifies that it is accurate and complete. The consumer reporting company also must send you written notice that includes the name, address, and phone number of the information provider."
4. Finally and most importantly you can obtain a free credit report as a condition for signing up for other private services with free trial offers. Be aware that the free trial offers and your report remain free IF you remember to cancel BEFORE the trial offer is over, otherwise you will start being charged for the membership service. You may also be limited to only one of the reporting agencies when you might want all three. Look closely at the offer you receive.
Not all offers are bad but some offers are better than others for your situation. These can be good information for you, the consumer. We are not advocating that any offer is without merit or a good investment of what is charged for the advertised service but we are wanting to make you aware that the old axiom is ever present, there are no entirely free rides or products and a free credit report is one of those in some cases. You are, in effect through purchasing an attached membership or product, paying for a credit report.
Credit Reports are a product to sell just like furniture, cars, office supplies, etc. It's one of the many revenue streams to keep the reporting agencies in business. YOU and information about you are someone's revenue stream. Most everything you do financially is being sold at one time or another. Your personal financial information is sold sometimes with your permission as in the case of financial applications you fill out and sometimes without your knowledge and permission, as in the case of marketing companies buying your information for the purposes of selling you products or services in which you may be interested. This is merely the American way of sales and marketing, also known as free enterprise. The key to coping in this free enterprise world is to be a discriminating and informed consumer making all your decisions good for YOU.
You need to be aware of the merit of the product you are buying. Don't buy the product just because you get a free credit report. Buy it because it is something you feel is worth the investment with an added value. For instance, if you sign up for a "trial" credit monitoring annual subscription such as the Triple AdvantageSM Credit Monitoring program from Experian® shown below, you are receiving a free Experian Credit report and score and a trial credit monitoring membership for 30 days, but at the end of 30 days, IF you do not cancel the membership you will begin to be charged $12.95/month for this Experian based service. What you do get is unlimited free access to your Experian ONLY credit reports and scores as long as you keep paying the $12.95/month. In addition you also will be sent alerts which tell you when someone has accessed your report, updated or changed.
For those who are looking for the best monthly monitoring program ,the best buy seems to be the Free 3 in 1 Credit Report and Score with a free trial to the Equifax Credit Watch™ Gold with 3-in-1 Monitoring and Score Power®. While only giving you one score based on your Equifax report it will monitor all three reports on a monthly basis.
Get Your FICO® credit score (one score based on Equifax), a FREE 3-in-1 Credit Report, plus unlimited access to your Equifax Credit Report™
30 day free trial of three credit bureau monitoring
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For those who want to start off with three scores and continue with monthly monitoring of activity of all three reports we suggest you get the initial reports through My Fico and then supplement the monthly reporting of all three reports through the Equifax report.Currently there is no ONE source for both these needs.
So the answer to whether credit reports are REALLY free is yes AND no. Once a year you can get a report at each reporting agency entirely free without any strings attached, you can get a free report if you are turned down for credit and you can get a free report after you have requested an investigation. After that, we haven't found an offer yet that didn't have another "paid" required purchase attached to it. The value of the purchase for you personally will determine whether the added investment is truly worth the cost.
Saturday, November 1, 2008
Getting a Loan in this Economy
What a major mess. Regardless of how we got here in the first place as a country each of us wonders, what's in it for me and how does this affect me? That answer depends on a large part defining who "me" is and how you are sitting financially at this minute.
We hear about the Federal Government giving the big banks a stimulous infusion of cash so that they can lend more to each of us. That doesn't mean that tomorrow you will be able to head out to Wachovia, Bank of American, Wells Fargo, US Bank or Chase just to mention a few and expect a loan officer to welcome you with open arms just waiting to dole out his cash to you for any one of your needs. In fact, unless Congress becomes more vigilant in specifying that goverment money is specifically for lending, we are not entirely sure banks will do just that. Moreover, the credit requirements to get a loan in any of these major banks are tightening in an atmosphere where the average consumer's credit scores are suffering for any meriad of reasons such as unemployment, mortgage issues, bankruptcies and the list goes on.
So where do you go? Right now the best bet is the Credit Union. I have always extolled the virtues of the Credit Union because they carry better loaning interest rates, have cash rich reserves, are run by all of its customers who are its members, like banks are insured in deposit accounts to $250,000, don't have absorbitant compensation for its officers and tend to have that smaller home town releationship with its customers. There is a credit union available to just about everyone, either on-line or in a physical location close to you. Some have membership requirements such as living, working or going to school in a specific community, membership in specific organizations such as the armed forces or job specific industries, and referrals from existing members through a family relationship. However, more and more Credit Unions are open membership oriented where anyone can join.
Consider going to a Credit Union for your next loan.
We hear about the Federal Government giving the big banks a stimulous infusion of cash so that they can lend more to each of us. That doesn't mean that tomorrow you will be able to head out to Wachovia, Bank of American, Wells Fargo, US Bank or Chase just to mention a few and expect a loan officer to welcome you with open arms just waiting to dole out his cash to you for any one of your needs. In fact, unless Congress becomes more vigilant in specifying that goverment money is specifically for lending, we are not entirely sure banks will do just that. Moreover, the credit requirements to get a loan in any of these major banks are tightening in an atmosphere where the average consumer's credit scores are suffering for any meriad of reasons such as unemployment, mortgage issues, bankruptcies and the list goes on.
So where do you go? Right now the best bet is the Credit Union. I have always extolled the virtues of the Credit Union because they carry better loaning interest rates, have cash rich reserves, are run by all of its customers who are its members, like banks are insured in deposit accounts to $250,000, don't have absorbitant compensation for its officers and tend to have that smaller home town releationship with its customers. There is a credit union available to just about everyone, either on-line or in a physical location close to you. Some have membership requirements such as living, working or going to school in a specific community, membership in specific organizations such as the armed forces or job specific industries, and referrals from existing members through a family relationship. However, more and more Credit Unions are open membership oriented where anyone can join.
Consider going to a Credit Union for your next loan.
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