Understanding Credit Reports

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Thomas Morva asked:




Credit reports are nothing but an account of a persons credit history. This means that a person’s creditworthiness can be judged by looking at his credit report. A credit report gives the history of debts of a person and banks, financial institutions, and property owners use these credit reports to determine the creditworthiness of a person.

A credit report contains social security numbers, nicknames, spouse’s name, year of birth, current and previous employers, current and previous addresses, proof of loans, credit cards, bank accounts, and retail store accounts. Other information includes public information on insolvency or bankruptcy, tax liens, or legal judgments against a person and names of people who have obtained copies of your credit report within the last six months.

All the information that is mentioned above is compiled by consumer reporting agencies or credit bureaus from many sources such as banks and retail stores. These reports are public but can only be shown to businesses thinking of extending credit, insurance companies, government agencies that grant certain licenses or benefits, and anyone with a legitimate business reason initiated by the consumer.

The decision of lending or not lending or forwarding a loan depends on the moneylender and not the credit bureau itself. If any moneylender denies the request for a loan then he is legally bound to give the name, address, and telephone number of the company that made the report.

The credit score on a credit report is determined based on factors such as payment history, amounts owed, length of credit history, and the types of credit in use. Factors such as previous bankruptcies are also recorded in this report. The amount owed by the debtors is also an important factor in determining the credit score of a person. There are some myths associated with credit scores and the most infamous is that the credit score will improve if all debts are paid but this is not true. Any negative remark stays on the report for at least seven years.

Ron
Martin Lukac asked:




The way you deal with your checking account can affect your credit report. If you bounce checks your credit rating will go down making loans and credit harder to get.

If you have always tried hard to keep your credit in good shape then I am sure you know all the dos and don’ts of managing your credit cards and other loans. But did you know that your checking account can affect your credit history as well? You need to be just as careful with your checking account as you do with your credit cards or your credit score is going to crash. Always keep an eye on your account balance because if you write any checks that end up getting reported as insufficient funds, that is not good, not good at all.

These bounced checks can stay on your credit report for years, seven years actually. That is a long time! And if you have written some of these bad checks you might not be able to write checks in stores or even open another bank account. Ouch!

Learning how to deal with your checking account responsibly is just like learning to deal with credit. Here are some guidelines that will help you to manage your checking account flawlessly:

One of the main keys to successful check management is always knowing how much money you have in your account. This means you actually have to balance your checkbook. It is amazing how many people do not do this simple and important step. You might think that you can keep track of all your spending in your head but if you are off so much as one cent, you have damaged your credit report. Just like that.

Another important step you should take every month is to carefully go over your bank account statement each month to make sure that there are no errors and that you have not missed any checks that you wrote.

If you are going to open a new checking account you should always do so before closing your old one. It much easier to open a second tan it is to open a first. And you should never open your new account until all of the checks you wrote on the first have been paid in full. If you do not take the time to make sure that all your checks have cleared and you transfer your money out or close the account, you will have bounced a check, gotten hit with fees and damaged your credit report all in one fell swoop.

These tips may have made a simple checking account sound pretty scary but really they are not. As long as you balance your checkbook and you keep an eye on what is going on with your account you will not have any problems whatsoever.

Bruce

Credit Delinquencies for Beginners

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Frank Bruno asked:




Depending on how long your past dues remain unpaid, your delinquencies can be considered as simple delinquent payments or become charge-offs or collection accounts. To help you understand these type of delinquencies better, here are some helpful facts.

Simple Credit Delinquencies

If you managed to pay your dues after their due dates, these are considered as late payments. However, if they remain unpaid for more than 30 days, then they would be considered as delinquencies. Unfortunately, even after you pay these, they would already show up on your credit history and would cost you some points. Still, you should try to settle them these unpaid debts at once before they reach 180 days.

Charge-offs

Typically, creditors who failed to collect debts after 180 days will decide to consider them as charge-offs. This means that these uncollected debts will become part of their losses in order to be free from paying its taxes. Charge-offs on your credit reports does not mean you no longer have to pay them. they would still be there until such time you contact you creditor and arrange payment terms, after successfully paying off this type of delinquencies, then it would be noted on your credit report as paid or paid in full. You can also try to negotiate with the creditor to remove the charge-off entry. These entries usually stay on your history for seven years from the date of the original delinquency.

Collection Accounts

Those that have remained uncollected and were already written off are, most of the time, sold to collection agencies as collection accounts. These agencies purchase them for a fraction of their original amount. When you have collection account entries in your credit report, this could really be inconvenient. Aside from the harassment associated with collection agencies, this type of delinquency will make you a high-risk borrower and would have to be content with low credit limits and higher interest rates.

Darryl
Merry Niebieskooka asked:




Access to credit reports is difficult to obtain; the government offers each person one free look per year at their credit report. Since recordings change frequently, one view per year is not enough for those who are truly concerned about their credit. Ordering a credit score report from other trusted companies on the web is advised for continual monitoring. Here is a quick review of important facts about why monitoring credit reports regularly is so crucial:

1. Access To Unknown Reports
Recordings may be reported that the consumer is not even aware of. Everyone has forgotten various bills for things they have signed up for, such as monthly subscriptions and various types of membership clubs. Some companies with high membership or subscription fees may report items which are severely past due and have accumulated a large amount.

2. Improving Chances Of Success For Those Seeking Employment
Many times different items may be added to a credit report which will cause serious problems. Those seeking a job will find that undesirable recordings on a credit report may result in disqualification for a position applied for. In today’s tough economy, knowing what is on one’s credit score is crucial to avoid being disregarded for good jobs.

3. Discovery Of Mistakes
With the rising popularity of identity theft, monitoring a credit report may save the consumer from costly hassles. While it is possible to stop, catch and prosecute criminals responsible for this, the process is lengthy and usually requires large amounts of out-of-pocket money from the victim. Catching mysterious isolated reports before they materialize into a long list is highly advised to protect one’s identity.

4. Working On Credit Improvement
Due to the current economic crisis, excellent credit is needed for approval of credit cards and loans for vehicles. By working to contact creditors and resolving issues recorded on a credit score report, the consumer will enjoy an increased score and removal of undesirable records.

Cory

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