When you access your credit report, you should review all items very carefully. It is possible that you can find an incorrect loan amount or an inaccurate payment history. You can also be the victim of identity theft and come across fraudulent...
It's a good idea to monitor your credit report so you can catch identity theft or errors that will hamper your ability to gain credit. There are three nationwide credit report agencies--TransUnion, Experian and Equifax. You can get an annual...
When applying for a home mortgage, or even a basic credit card, it's important to look at your credit report first. By reviewing your credit report you will know what the potential lender sees when determining the level or risk for approving your...
Examining your credit reports periodically is a good idea to guard you against identity theft, advises the Federal Trade Commission. When someone gains access to your personal information, such as your name and social security number, to open a...
Negative credit information can lower your credit score and affect your ability to be approved for new lines of credit and loans. Negative items may include defaulted loans, late payments made on accounts or credit cards that have reached the...
Many financial institutions recommend that you check your credit report at least once a year, if not more. This is due to problems that commonly occur on your credit report because of clerical error or identity theft. In 2005, 1.6 million...
The wake of identity theft has caused many to fear that a person can falsely secure a loan or open a credit card and ruin a person's credit rating. A credit freeze essentially means that no one (not even you) can open a credit card, activate a...
If you want to get a loan or apply for a credit credit, the terms and conditions of the loan are determined by your credit score. A credit score is a number that represents your payment history with other creditors, and it's used as a way to...
It is important to view your credit report in order to check for any mistakes and discrepancies, and prevent identity theft. Through the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA), you are entitled to one free credit report from each credit bureau every...
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is the agency of the U.S. government that enforces the 1971 Fair Credit Reporting Act and the 1996 and 2003 laws that strengthened consumers' rights to be treated fairly by credit card companies and credit...
According to the Federal Trade Commission, it is important to periodically check your credit report for errors. The Fair Credit Reporting Act states that the three major credit reporting companies, Experian, Equifax and TransUnion, must give you a...
Every person who has a credit history has the right to request a free annual credit report once per year. The purpose of requesting an annual credit report from all three credit reporting agencies is to make sure your credit information is...
Identity theft can destroy your credit rating. Criminals who get your personal information can use it to open accounts in your name and run up thousands of dollars in fraudulent charges. You may not realize there is a problem until you start...
A credit report contains private information collected and maintained by credit reporting agencies. According to fair credit reporting laws, only people or organizations you authorize can legally access your credit report. Despite this law, in...
A host of credit repair services and clinics assure you they can clear a bad debt collection from your credit report. However, if you're in the know about how negative, accurate information affects your credit reports, you probably also know that...
After millions of Americans began to experience problems of identity theft, particularly when thieves would max out credit cards in another person's name, a law was passed that allowed Americans to freeze their credit. Placing a credit freeze...
Negative credit reports can affect your credit score and ability to receive credit from lenders. Potential employers can check credit reports as well. Although collection accounts automatically disappear from your credit report after seven years,...
If your Social Security Card is lost or stolen, you can receive a replacement by going through the correct channels. The Social Security Administration allows you a maximum of three replacement cards each year for free. During your lifetime, you...
If you moved out of your last place of residence without paying your last month's electricity, gas or water charges, an old utility bill can come back to haunt you in a place you least suspect likely: your credit report. Your credit reports are...
You cannot control the collection of information for your credit reports. Expeian, Equifax and TransUnion are the three main credit reporting agencies and they collect their information from various sources. Most of it comes from lenders and they...
A divorce can have a long-lasting impact on your personal life, and also on your financial well being. When you and your spouse got married, you likely opened credit accounts and entered into consumer credit transactions as a couple. All these...
Although many types of inaccurate information on a credit report can severely damage your credit score and your ability to get credit, an incorrect address on a credit report usually will not do any damage, says Liz Pulliam Weston of MSN...
Consumers may have good reason to worry about errors in their credit reports. According to a 2004 U.S. Public Interest Research Group survey, 25 percent of reports contained errors that were serious enough to cause consumers to be denied credit,...
Up to 9 million people have their identities stolen each year, according to the Federal Trade Commission, or FTC. Most are adults, but criminals target anyone, regardless of age, if they can get a Social Security number or other useful...
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) warns that it can take six months or more for a victim of fraudulent credit activity to discover the problem. A criminal may be getting credit cards and loans in the victim's name and using another address so...
Your credit report is used by banks and other lenders, as well as insurers and employers to make decisions about whether to give you credit or to hire you. The credit report information needs to be accurate because discrepancies can cause delays...
Lenders use your credit report to evaluate your credit worthiness. The report also represents your integrity to other organizations. It can determine whether you can get a loan, a house or even a job. For this reason, it's important that your...
Once your child receives a Social Security number he can become a victim of identity theft. Identity theft is a crime you may not become aware of for years. Although you may think that credit issuers will not approve credit for a minor, credit...
A credit score grades your credit history, telling creditors and lenders whether you are a good candidate for credit. Paying bills on time and paying off debt will raise your credit score while defaulting on debt, paying bills late and running...
