What you need to know about your credit!

Credit Score Rating

Excellent	750- 850	Fair	620- 659
Good	660- 749	Poor	350- 619

Credit report vs. credit score

Your credit report and your credit score are two different things. Your credit report is a list of things like your credit card and bank accounts, outstanding loans, and your payment history. Your credit score is a rating of how good your credit is, based on your report. The main things on your credit report that hurt your credit score are: - Bankruptcy - Unpaid debts - Late payments - Credit card balances near the credit limit - Liens (both outstanding and paid) You increase your credit score by fixing these problems. Try to fix your credit issues before you apply for a loan.

Should you wait for an item to expire off before you apply for a loan?

Late payments are removed from your credit report after seven years. Bankruptcies are removed after ten. If it's only going to take a few months for a negative item to expire off your report, wait for the bad item to expire before applying for a loan, so you can have a higher credit score.

 

Do you need to find out your credit scores?

You want your credit score to be high so you can get a loan at a good interest rate. Unfortunately, you probably can't find out your credit score without paying for it ($16-$48).   - You can get your FICO score based on your Equifax report for $16, or you can all three FICO credit scores from MyFico.com for $48. - Verify that your credit reports are clean. By law, each CRA has to give you a free copy of your credit report once a year if you ask for it. If there are no items marked "Derogatory" or "Negative", then your score is probably pretty good and you can proceed to apply for a loan. - If you have already applied for a loan and are curious to know your scores, your can ask your lender they may tell you.

 

What you should do if your information was stolen.

1. Start a log. When you make telephone calls or send written messages, write comments about your calls. Make sure you get their contact information, who you talked to and some details about your conversation. 2. Note how much time you spent dealing with this situation,  you can deduct expenses that are cause by the theft on your income tax return, if you had to pay.    3. Contact all 3 major credit bureaus and make a request that they issue an alert for frauds and attach a record to your credit rating.  - You can ask for a primary warning in case you are a victim identity theft, this warning will be placed on your credit up to 90 days. The warning notes that you don"t approve a new credit card on an existing account, an increase of credit account or additional credit. - After the 90 days are over you and request for extension warning on your credit. A report for identity theft is an official report you have filed with a national, state, or local agency that is in charge of the law enforcement. The extended warning is left standing in your credit history for the period of 7 years. Every bureau is obligated to exclude you from alleged pre-screened credit solicitations files. 4. File an official report at your local police station. Request the police officer to write down every one of the fraudulently used financial records that you revealed in your credit reports on the police report and make sure you get copies.

Here are some tips to better your credit score rating.

* Settle your invoices before the due date. Few financial institutions might report delayed payments to the credit performance reporting organizations. * Don`t go over the credit limit on your credit card.

Ron Werner ABR CRS e-PRO
Licensed Real Estate Broker-Realtor^®
DRE Lic# 00822412 & 00705989
310.614.4027 direct
werner@gr8homes.com