Credit Score Factors and How to Dispute Bad Credit

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How to Protect Your Credit
For anyone who has, has had and wants to avoid being had, this series of articles reflects years of continuing research. I'll discuss the worse that can ever happen to people thrown into credit situations - whether through their own doing or as victims and how they were able to come of them in one piece. These article are based on facts as I read and understood them.

A credit report is ... Read credit counseling article



Choices with Bad Credit
As a matter of fact, even personal loans for people with bad credit cannot be obtained easily. However, since they are the only solution for many, it is imperative to learn how to get approved. Bad credit is something that everyone wishes to get rid of and Personal loans for people with bad credit can aid you on this matter since the loan can be used to clean up your credit record. However, in ord... Read credit counseling article



Credit Score Factors and How to Dispute Bad Credit
Do you often have too much month left at the end of your money? While you strive to pay your monthly bills on time, computers are keeping a close watch on your performance.

Automated programs keep score on your payment punctuality, and other financial information, which have a direct impact on your ability to qualify for a loan, and the interest rate you will be offered. A score of 700 or better can provide the lowest rates, while a score of 620 or less can mean the highest rates, or possibly no loan at all.

3 Primary Factors That Influence Credit Scores:

Late Payments - Not considered late until 30 days past the due date. 60 or 90 day late payments are more negative than a 30 day late. The age of late payments can influence credit scores. Recent late payments are considered worse than older ones. More serious issues include: consumer credit counseling, collections, bankruptcy, and foreclosure.

Outstanding Debt - Having a large number of open accounts can reduce your credit scores. Another issue is the ratio of your credit limit compared to the current balance. Using 75% of your credit limit is a greater risk than using 25%.

Account History - Older credit accounts can have a positive effect on credit scores, as long they are not delinquent. Having recently opened accounts could reduce your scores. Also, multiple inquiries indicate a possible new account, which may cost a few points.

Incorrect information can sometimes appear on a credit report. If you believe there is a potential error on your credit report, you are entitled to dispute the accuracy of the information. The federal Fair Credit Reporting Act gives you the right to challenge inaccurate information by contacting the reporting agencies, and the company who reported the information. Under the FCRA, they are responsible to correct any errors on your credit report free of charge, and within a specific time limit.

The credit bureaus, Experian, Equifax, and Transunion, are required to investigate your dispute within 30 days of reporting the potential error. They will contact the source of the derogatory information and try to confirm the record. Providing documentation to support your claim, if you have any, can also expedite the process. If the credit bureaus are unable to confirm the derogatory information from the source, the item must be removed from your credit report, which can improve your score.

By Rick Smith, 20 years of lending industry experience.

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Secrets about Credit Bureaus

A Credit Bureau, also known as a Credit Reporting Agency or Consumer Reporting Agency, functions as a central repository of credit and collection records, payment history and certain legal information on consumers and businesses. These records are sold to credit grantors and lenders whenever a consumer or business applies for credit. The three major U.S. credit bureaus are Equifax, Experian and TransUnion. A fourth credit bureau, Dun and Bradstreet Corp., specializes in reporting business credit information exclusively.

Local credit bureaus first appeared in the United States around 1860 and were primarily designed to provide local merchants with a way to keep tabs on local citizens who traded in the merchant's immediate community. Credit bureaus began to spread across the country after the end of World War I when returning soldiers began looking for money to buy homes, automobiles and consumer goods.

As credit purchases began to replace cash as the primary currency for the purchase of big-ticket items, and the nation became more mobile, the need for national credit bureaus became apparent.

Today's credit bureaus store over 1 billion consumer and business records, and almost 2 billion individual credit transactions are entered into those records every month. With all of this activity there is always a chance that a credit record may contain errors. That's why the U.S. Government passed the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) and the Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act of 2003 (FACTA). Both of these acts set out requirements for credit bureaus to maintain fair and accurate records, provide a way for consumers to view those records, and respond to consumer complaints of inaccuracies should they exist.

The introduction of the Internet, and the World Wide Web in particular, gave lenders a new and profitable way to make credit-based lending decisions on-line and "instantly". This made it possible for charge card issuers and lenders to offer credit to consumers who were willing to fill out credit applications online. Key information from the application, including the applicant's full name, address, Social Security Number and date of birth is transmitted over the Internet to the lender's particular credit bureau. The credit bureau's computers look up the consumer's record and calculate a credit score based upon certain financial criteria. If the score is above the lender's minimum threshold, the application is instantly approved and both the lender and the borrower are notified.

Under Federal law, all U.S. residents are entitled to one free copy of their credit report annually, from each of the three major credit bureaus, without any cost or obligation. Visit AnnualCreditReport.com for details.

Provided by Creditor Web. Creditor Web empowers consumers to compare and apply for a credit card online.




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Credit Score Factors and How to Dispute Bad Credit
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