Obtaining and Understanding Your Credit Report
The first step to credit repair actually knows what is in your credit report. A borrower is entitled to one free credit report per year from each bureau. Borrowers can obtain a free credit report at each of the credit bureaus at the following addresses.
Credit Bureaus’ Contact Information
Equifax, Inc. EXPERIAN
P.O. Box 740241 P.O. Box 2002
Atlanta, GA 30374 Allen, TX 75013
---(800) 685-1111--- ---(888) 397-3742---
http://www.equifax.com http://www.experian.com
Trans Union Corporation
P.O. Box 1000
Chester, PA 19022
---(800) 888-4213---
http://www.transunion.com
If you can afford to get the report with your scores I suggest you do that. The credit report should be easy to understand but will show some basic components. Each credit line will show 4 basic components. The report will show when the account was opened month and year, who the creditor is, what type of account R for revolving like credit cards and M for mortgage and I for installment loans like car payments and last it will show delinquencies 30,60.90 and 120 late. Also there should be comment lines such as paid as agreed or settled. The report should give you phone numbers for each creditor and a list of recent inquiries.
Checking credit report for Inaccuracies
Now that you have your credit report you should check each line to make sure it is reporting correct. Often times a paid account will fail to report it as paid or may just stop reporting all together. In the case of bankruptcy the accounts often fail to report account as included in bankruptcy. Make sure you correct this with a dispute. The balances may be inaccurate or an account may fail to report closed and still be reporting as opened. An account may not be yours at all and of course that would need to be removed as quickly as possible. Anything that is inaccurate should be disputed. You can dispute these lines with each bureau and on line, but I suggest using a credit dispute letter. Taking longer is actually better when disputing a credit line.
What is a good credit score?
The credit scoring system ranges from 300 to 850. A credit score above 720 is considered excellent and a score below 550 is considered poor. The following is a chart of scores and ratings.
|
Credit Score |
Description |
|
740+ |
Excellent Credit - Qualify for top interest rates |
|
680 -739 |
Good Credit - Qualify for very good interest rates |
|
620 -679 |
Average Credit- Qualify for average interest rates |
|
560 - 619 |
Poor Credit- Difficult to qualify for loan or credit card |
|
below 559 |
Bad Credit- Unable to obtain loan or credit card
|
About the Author
Author of Mortgage Modification Made Easy and Credit Repair Made Easy Don Troiano furnishes this site to help consumers avoid scams and ripoffs by completing credit repair on their own. Mr. Troiano spent many years in the mortgage industry and has shared his wealth of experience with you in this web site. The site is furnished as a public service and is for informational purposes only. Users are subject to terms of service. For More information see:
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