If you're like most people, you see offers for free credit reports every day.
Unfortunately, many of these offers are either not "real" or not useful to you.
The problem is compounded by the fact that most people are vaguely aware that there is a relatively new law that does, indeed, entitle them to a free credit report once per year.
(This new law is detailed in the Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act (FACT Act) and the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA).
The Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act and the Fair Credit Reporting Act are long, detailed legal documents which the average person will never read--let alone, decipher.
The main objective of these laws (for the purpose of this discussion) is to entitle individuals to a free credit report once per year.
1.
First and foremost -- there is ONE and ONLY ONE place to get the free credit report that is the result of this law.
The site is annualcreditreport.
com.
You may verify this site by visiting the FTC's website at ftc.
gov/bcp/conline/pubs/credit/freereports.
htm The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is the government bureau which oversees the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA).
2.
The next important fact to realize is that a "credit report" is not a "credit score.
" This is a crucial fact! To obtain a mortgage or other type of loan, a lender looks at your credit score.
The credit report does NOT give you your credit score.
3.
There is currently no way to obtain your credit score (also called a FICO score) for free.
If you are in the process of searching for a mortgage, your mortgage broker can obtain your FICO scores for you.
Be sure you use a licensed, reputable professional.
For instance, if you need a mortgage broker in Florida visit Tanglewood Mortgage.
You will need all three scores from Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion since they may vary significantly.
Most mortgage lenders will use the middle score of the three as the basis for your credit worthiness.
If you are not "shopping" for a mortgage, the best way to obtain your scores is from the Fair Isaac Corporation at www.
myfico.
com.
The Fair Isaac Corporation invented the FICO score, and this is the only place you can obtain your score without adversely affecting it since the act of looking up a credit score implies that you are looking to obtain credit, so your score is affected (i.
e.
lowered slightly) through the scoring model each time you request this information.
Obtaining your own credit score from myfico does not affect your score.
Since using myfico.
com can be a bit expensive, try a Google search for "myfico promotional code" before you pay, and you should be able to find a code to save 20%.
Now..
the next time you get an offer for a "free credit repor" in the mail, you'll understand what you are ( and are not ) getting! If you need to contact a licensed Florida mortgage broker to obtain a Florida mortgage please visit us.
Unfortunately, many of these offers are either not "real" or not useful to you.
The problem is compounded by the fact that most people are vaguely aware that there is a relatively new law that does, indeed, entitle them to a free credit report once per year.
(This new law is detailed in the Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act (FACT Act) and the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA).
The Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act and the Fair Credit Reporting Act are long, detailed legal documents which the average person will never read--let alone, decipher.
The main objective of these laws (for the purpose of this discussion) is to entitle individuals to a free credit report once per year.
1.
First and foremost -- there is ONE and ONLY ONE place to get the free credit report that is the result of this law.
The site is annualcreditreport.
com.
You may verify this site by visiting the FTC's website at ftc.
gov/bcp/conline/pubs/credit/freereports.
htm The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is the government bureau which oversees the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA).
2.
The next important fact to realize is that a "credit report" is not a "credit score.
" This is a crucial fact! To obtain a mortgage or other type of loan, a lender looks at your credit score.
The credit report does NOT give you your credit score.
3.
There is currently no way to obtain your credit score (also called a FICO score) for free.
If you are in the process of searching for a mortgage, your mortgage broker can obtain your FICO scores for you.
Be sure you use a licensed, reputable professional.
For instance, if you need a mortgage broker in Florida visit Tanglewood Mortgage.
You will need all three scores from Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion since they may vary significantly.
Most mortgage lenders will use the middle score of the three as the basis for your credit worthiness.
If you are not "shopping" for a mortgage, the best way to obtain your scores is from the Fair Isaac Corporation at www.
myfico.
com.
The Fair Isaac Corporation invented the FICO score, and this is the only place you can obtain your score without adversely affecting it since the act of looking up a credit score implies that you are looking to obtain credit, so your score is affected (i.
e.
lowered slightly) through the scoring model each time you request this information.
Obtaining your own credit score from myfico does not affect your score.
Since using myfico.
com can be a bit expensive, try a Google search for "myfico promotional code" before you pay, and you should be able to find a code to save 20%.
Now..
the next time you get an offer for a "free credit repor" in the mail, you'll understand what you are ( and are not ) getting! If you need to contact a licensed Florida mortgage broker to obtain a Florida mortgage please visit us.