How to Get My Credit Scores From All Three Companies at No Cost

Congress enacted a law so that individuals may access their credit reports from all three credit reporting agencies, Experian, Equifax and TransUnion, annually at no charge. This ability to monitor your credit affords individuals the opportunity to not only take charge of their financial life, but also to monitor their reports for potential identity theft or fraudulent activity. Consumers often confuse this law with the right to receive free credit scores annually. Currently, there is no law that provides credit scores from all three credit reporting agencies for free; however, you may receive your credit score for free, usually as an incentive to do business with a certain company.

Instructions

Obtaining your Credit Score from Experian

1

Go to Experian.com. As of October 2010, you can obtain your Experian credit report and score for $1. Click "Get Your Credit Report and Score."

2

Fill out personal information to verify your identity, so that Experian can retrieve your credit report and score. Then click "Submit and Continue."

3

Create a user name and password and enter your social security number, date of birth and mother's maiden name to serve as verification information.

4

Enter payment information. This discounted report and credit score includes a seven-day trial membership in the Triple Advantage program, which monitors your credit reports and scores. As of October 2010, this service costs $14.95 monthly and is charged each month after the trial period.

5

Cancel at the end of the free seven day trial period if you simply wanted to receive the one report and credit score.

Obtaining your Credit Score from Equifax

6

Go to Equifax.com.

7

Click on "Get Your Scores & Reports."

8

Pay $12.95 a month if you want to purchase Equifax's Score Watch, which continuously monitors changes in your FICO score and notifies you when a change occurs. As of October 2010, there were no free credit score promotions.

Obtaining your Credit Scores from TransUnion

9

Go to TransUnion.com. Click on the "Click here" button under "Get your FREE Credit Score."

10

Enter your personal information to verify your identity so TransUnion can obtain your credit report and score.

11

Review information about the free trial for True Credit. Click "I Accept" once you have read the terms and conditions of the free trial. As of October 2010, the free trial is a seven day free trial period that allows you to get your credit report and credit score for free. At the end of the seven day trial, you will be charged $14.95 a month for the credit monitoring service.

12

Cancel at the end of the free seven day trial period if you simply wanted to receive the free credit report and score.

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How to Earn 5 Points on Your Credit Score

Your credit score affects your ability to get credit and to get the best rates on your loans. Sometimes, you just need to earn five points on your credit score to put your score into the "excellent" category, or at least move out of the "poor" zone. Fortunately, you can improve your credit score fairly easily. The quickest way to fix your credit is to correct any mistakes that are showing on your credit history. If you don't have any errors, improving your financial management will do the trick.

Instructions

Fixing Credit Errors

1

Look over your credit report for errors. Order a free copy of your credit report from the official government site, www.annualcreditreport.com. This will not show your score, but you can view your credit history. It will detail all of your accounts, the amount of money you owe, the amount of the original loan and whether or not you pay on time. It will also show if a company has looked into your report, which happens when you apply for credit. Look for errors like open accounts that should be closed or unauthorized inquiries.

2

Send a certified letter to the credit agency or agencies that are reporting the error. Write a letter that details the mistake. Be sure to include your name and social security number so that the company matches it to the correct credit report.

3

Verify that the errors have been fixed and your score has improved. You should receive a letter from the credit bureau after 30 days explaining the resolution. You can then order a copy of your credit report and double check that things look good.

Improving Financial Responsibilty

4

Pay all your debts on time. An on-time record plays an important role in determining your credit score, so simply making sure that you are never late can result in a gradual credit score increase. Send payments as soon as you receive the bill to be sure that your creditors receive the bill on time. Challenge any late notices that are sent in error.

5

Decrease the debt that you have. Decreasing your debt increases your available credit, which also improves your credit score. Apply all extra money to your debts so that you can pay them off as quickly as possible.

6

Diversify the types of accounts you have. You should have a mixture of the two types of accounts--fixed term loans, like a student loan or mortgage, and revolving debt, like a credit card.

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How to File a Complaint About My Credit Report

A credit report is a documented record of a consumer's payment history regarding bills with creditors, banks, and other financial institutions. Child support and student loan payments may also appear on a credit report. Credit reports are administered by three major agencies: Experian, Transunion and Equifax. In addition to receiving credit reports from these agencies, you can also contact them with complaints.

Instructions

Procedures

1

Obtain copies of your credit report free of charge from each of the three major credit agencies by visiting Annualcreditreport.com or by calling 877-322-8228. Have the following information available: your name, address, Social Security number and date of birth. Prepare to answer questions for security purposes, such as the amount of your mortgage payment or your previous address.

2

Make notes of erroneous information on any of your credit reports once you obtain them. Write a letter listing all the facts and explain in detail why you dispute the information. Include any evidence, such as copies of receipts, canceled checks and bills, to support your point. Request that these items be removed from your credit report.

3

Make a copy of your letter and store it in a safe place. Send the original letter by certified mail to the appropriate credit agency, to ensure that the credit bureau receives it and to be sure of the date the company receives it.

4

Wait at least 30 days to hear from the credit bureau regarding your complaint. Check the credit report sent back to you to ensure that any misinformation has been deleted or corrected.

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The Value & Importance of Knowing Your Credit Report

When lenders reject your requests for credit and you pay more for services than other consumers and do not know why, you probably have a poor credit score. You should run your own credit report even if you never plan to use credit, because non-creditors can still use a credit report to legally weed out customers. Just pulling your report can make you a better borrower.

Identification

From a purely mathematical perspective, knowing your credit history is likely to save you money on loans, because you will know to rebuild your score before applying for an account. The actual cost of bad credit depends in part on how much debt you use and which services you buy, but Liz Weston of MSN Money Central suggests that the average person with bad credit pays over $200,000 more just for loans than someone with a high score; good credit is usually anything above 680.

Other Considerations

In the U.S., the trend in 2011 is for more companies to run credit checks, because how you handle debt says a lot about your character. Rental car companies, for example, won't rent a car without a credit card unless the customer has good credit, because people with bad credit tend to make risky decisions and may not be able to pay off damages to the vehicle. Utility companies and cell phone providers use credit checks to determine if they need a deposit from you or if you qualify for certain services.

Cost

The federal government requires the national credit bureaus to furnish one credit report each year for every citizen. Also, you can check your report for errors. If the bureaus report false data, you should file a dispute, because your credit report may be the only thing that creditors know about you. Thus you might have a tarnished reputation with some companies, which could hurt you if you ever need emergency funds.

Tip

Go to the Annual Credit Report website if you have not already. It is the only place to get a completely free credit history. You might also want to purchase your FICO score, because most lenders use the FICO model when setting rates. If you just want to know your credit report tier, you can use a free FICO score estimation tool. Also, work to clean up negatives on your report. The credit bureau report will identify bad items or threats to your score, such as a high level of debt.

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Who Can Report to a Credit Agency?

You have to meet certain qualifications to report to a credit reporting agency. Once you are approved to report, you can submit a test trial to make sure your data is received appropriately. If you decide to provide information, you can choose which credit reporting agencies you report to. Once the information is submitted, the agency will download it into its system.

Requirements

In order to transmit information to a credit reporting agency, you have to be a business and have a business license. You also need to have designated office space for business purposes.

Application/Agreement

To submit information, you have to get a membership application from the credit reporting agencies you want to report to. Return the application along with a signed data furnisher's agreement.

Site Inspection

Sometimes the credit reporting agency will perform a site inspection to make sure you have designated office space.

Metro 2 Format

The data you submit must be sent using a Metro 2 format. If you need help converting you data, you can contact a credit reporting servicing company to perform this task (see Resources).

Transmission

Your data will be sent using a secure HTTP connection. After submitting the information, contact the credit reporting agency to make sure it received your data. There are three credit reporting agencies that you can report to (see Resources).

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Does Your Credit Score Drop When You Buy a Home

Buying a new home can impact your credit score, but only if you take out a mortgage to help pay for it. If you pay cash for a home, your credit score will not be affected because you have not requested any new credit such as a mortgage, nor has your debt level changed.

Inquiries

When you apply for a mortgage, your potential lenders will pull your credit score as part of the loan application process, resulting in an inquiry on your credit report. This will lower your score. However, the FICO scoring model counts all mortgage inquiries within a 45-day period as one inquiry.

Debt Levels

When you take out a mortgage, you significantly increase the amount of money you owe. However, since you took out a mortgage, the impact will be smaller than increasing your unsecured debt levels, such as with credit cards.

Payment History

Over time, your credit score can rebound if you make timely payments for your mortgage. In addition, having a mortgage increases the types of credit you've used, which will help your credit score.

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How to Build Credit in the USA

You can easily establish credit in the United States. Credit cards are among the easiest ways to get started, and they are available from a number of banks and other lending institutions. Depending on your credit background, employment and income, the initial credit line could range from a few hundred dollars to more than $10,000. Opening a credit card account and establishing a positive payment history can lead to other forms of credit, such as signature loans, auto loans and mortgages.

Instructions

1

Fill out an application for a credit card. You can find numerous credit card offers online or compare offers at creditcards.com.

2

Consider a secured credit card if your request is denied because you lack a credit history or for some other reason. Check sites like creditcards.com for secured cards or type the phrase into an Internet search. With a secured card, you'll be required to place cash in a bank account, and generally your credit line will be 50-100 percent of that amount. The deposit will be held as collateral while you use the card, so the acceptance rate on these types of cards is extremely high.

3

Establish a positive payment history with your new credit card. After a few months, open a second credit card account, and establish a good payment history with it as well.

4

Branch out several months later by opening other types of credit card accounts, such as gas cards and department store cards, and be sure to maintain an outstanding payment history.

5

Stay well below the credit line on the cards. This will indicate responsible financial management and potentially boost your credit scores.

6

Monitor your credit scores by pulling your credit reports annually. The federal Fair Credit Reporting Act requires that U.S. consumers be entitled to a free credit report each year from all three major credit bureaus: Equifax, Trans Union and Experian. Don't apply excessively for credit because this could cause your score to drop. Use the credit cards you've received to grow your scores, and add new credit lines as warranted.

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