Credit Resources
Pulling Your Credit Reports and Scores
Today, you have access to your credit information all day and every day. This is wonderful news. Consumers now have the opportunity to quickly correct and maintain credit reports.
Your options are as follows:
- Free credit reports. By law, each of the nationwide consumer reporting agencies, Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion, must provide a free copy of your credit report, at your request, once every 12 months. To read more about this, a good source is the Federal Trade Commission’s Consumer Alert that you can download here: http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/edu/pubs/consumer/alerts/alt156.pdf
You can access this program in one of three ways:
Contacting the Credit Bureaus
As a word of caution, the three major credit bureaus change their contact information frequently due to the number of consumer disputes they receive.
Equifax
P.O. Box 740241
Atlanta, GA 30374
Equifax Telephone Numbers:
Consumer Credit Laws
There are a ton of rules on the books that enable us to achieve fairness with regard to the credit bureaus, creditors and collection agencies. In many cases, citing the rules can help you to get the credit bureaus to make the necessary changes to your reports. It lets them know that you are well aware of your consumer rights and that you will not allow them to give you the runaround. Here are links to the 4 most important Consumer Credit Acts:
Tips on Adding Credit Card Accounts
In order to prove to the scoring system that you know how to manage revolving debt, experts say that you MUST have active credit card accounts.
There are many financial experts who say that not using credit cards is better for your budget, and they are right. Especially for those who do not have discipline when it comes to spending, however, Fair Isaac & Co., the creator of our credit scoring system says that without revolving accounts, consumers cannot maximize their credit scores. There is no getting around it.
So some good advice is to look at credit cards as tools, not luxuries. Unless you must have access to a credit card for business, you should try to use the card for gas and groceries only. In addition, the dollar amount of the limit does not influence the credit score one way or the other—it is the balance-to-limit ratio that matters. Point: When adding a new credit card account, apply for a low limit—one that doesn’t leave room for overspending.
If you do not have a credit card, here are some tips on how to get one:
