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There are so many reasons to pore over your credit report, that many people become obsessed with their credit scores. Paranoia over identity theft is very common in this cyber-age, and rightfully so. In addition, the rocky employment statistics and volatile economy have people scrutinizing their credit reports on sometimes a monthly basis.

This begs the question, “How often should I check my credit report?” The real answer is, “As often as you want to.”

Since it’s your credit report, you can check it as often as you want to. There won’t be any repercussions on your credit score due to frequent requests on your part. This is not true, however, with requests from third parties.

Whenever you apply for a loan, the crediting agency, whether it’s a bank, savings and loan, or credit union, has to get your permission to access your credit report. They cannot legally get your credit report without your permission. This should be no problem, but, if you are shopping for good terms on a loan or a credit card, there are some things you should do to protect yourself.

For example, say you want to buy a car. You don’t want to mess with car salesmen, you’re just going to use your credit union to finance the car, period. In that case, let the credit union check your credit report.

However, if you plan to compare loans, you need to use a different strategy. Money is so tight these days, that car dealerships, among other high-dollar retailers, are offering very competitive rates for seller-financed loans. But, keep in mind that every credit check performed by a third party is recorded on your credit report. One or two, here and there, are no big deal. But, if you let every dealer run a credit check on you, you suddenly have an influx of several potential creditors on your credit report. This looks bad, even if you were being smart and playing the field. Most of the time, it damages your actual credit score, because it looks like something has happened to make you desperate for quick money.

The best way to handle this scenario is to get your credit report, yourself. Your requests don’t show up on the report. Take this report with you when you shop for a car loan, and they can base their quote on that. This way, you can get your range of quotes without multiple inquiries showing up on your report. Once you make your final decision, your lender can get their own official copy of your credit report for their records.

Everyone should check their credit report at least once a year. You may be to the point where you can begin repairing your credit, or maybe you wonder if your identity was stolen. You may have been denied credit, and wonder why. If you think things are amiss with your credit report, you can hire a credit repair agency for very low fees. They are experts at fixing credit reports.

In most states in the U.S., marriage makes everything community property. There are, however, some things that remain exclusively yours.

Those things that remain yours, and only yours, are the things with only your name on them. For instance, if you own a home, and your name is on the deed, then it’s yours until you sell it. When you get married, the house is still yours until you sell it. However, the house you purchase to replace the one you sold will be community property, even if yours is the only name on the loan.

This is pretty much the same thing with credit scores. A debt with only your name on it will show up only on your credit report. The inverse is true. If your spouse has a debt in just his/her name, it will show up on only his/her credit report – even if it is on community property. So, if your spouse goes out and gets a loan exclusive of your signature, it will only show up on his/her credit report. This can be a good way to build up a spouse’s credit rating. It is also a good protection for you, if your spouse tends to make poor credit decisions. For instance, say your spouse decides to buy a car without your input. He/she finally gets it paid off, but has a terrible credit rating as a result of poor payment patterns. When it is time to sell the car, the proceeds will be considered community property, to be split with you.

However, joint accounts are reported on both persons’ credit reports. This applies to accounts that have both names listed on the bill as it comes in the mail, regardless of who usually pays the bill. If your spouse has cosigned on an account, then information regarding the account will show up on both credit reports. So, yes, if you cosigned a loan for anybody, including your spouse, and that person defaults, it show up on your credit report.

If you have a credit card, and your spouse is an authorized user, the history of the account will be reported on both persons’ credit histories. If the card is in your spouse’s name, but you are an authorized user, then it will show up on your credit report, even if you’ve never used the card.  The solution is to not be an authorized uses on your spouse’s credit cards or other accounts. You may be able to call the creditors yourself and request that your name be removed, but, chances are, your spouse will have to do it because of privacy restrictions. Most of the time, you have to sign permission to be added as an authorized uses. But this is not always the case.

The main gist of it is – if your name is anywhere on the paperwork, your spouse’s information will appear on your credit report. If your name is nowhere to be found on your spouse’s account, his/her information will not show up on your credit report.

I’m pretty sure that you’ve had some very tempting discount offers in many of your shopping trips. The alluring question, “Would you like to save 15% off your purchases?” can be quite irresistible; particularly when you do a split-second mental calculation of how much those savings would amount to. Of course, you also know the catch to that…you have to get the store’s credit card. Before you affix your signature on the dotted line, you should realize that opening a store credit card account calls for careful consideration; specifically, how it could impact on your credit score – and that’s on top of opening another gateway to further debt.

The Good Side of Store Credit Card

Store credit card is not always the bane that many may purport it to be; there are times when it can actually be a boon to your credit score. As long as you maintain a responsible, savvy shopper attitude and pay your bills on time – and in full, I might add – you could reap some beneficial impacts to your credit score; especially if you’re attempting to build (or rebuild) your credit.

When you’re trying to start anew from bankruptcy, recuperating from bad credit, or striving to build up a very thin credit file; your alternatives aren’t really that great. In a shaky economy, credit card issuers may be more reluctant to extend credit to risky borrowers and a shabby financial profile won’t help any. This may be one good reason to give store credit cards a second-look as one of your few options left at the moment.

For one, store credit cards are much easier to obtain than traditional/regular cards, and the long-term upshot of handling this type of card well can definitely add much needed points to your credit score. The most important aspect where store credit cards may be of some significance is in establishing a positive payment history. Using the card in moderation and maintaining low balances can also reflect reduced debt-to-credit limit ratio; which, as you very well know comprises about 30% of your credit score. In effect, the long-term benefit that you can gain from handling a store card smartly and prudently is it can add some points to your credit score.

The Flipside: Is It Worth the Lure?

You might think that an assortment of store credit cards, which make your wallet resemble a mall directory, is cool. However, you could be in for a rude awakening when you realize that the negative effect on your credit score can far outweigh all those discount enticements that you so willingly fall for – hook, line…and yes, sinker. Here are some negative impacts that should make you wary of those beguiling offers.

Hard Inquiry Trigger
It’s been established that one of the key factors that influences your credit score is the number of hard inquiries that shows on your credit history/report. Every new inquiry can cause your credit score to drop by a few points; but if done only occasionally, it would hardly make a dent on your overall credit rating, especially if you have an excellent score. It’s a totally different scenario, though, if you open card after card – say, during the rush of holiday shopping when you probably think of serious dollar amounts you could save. It’s when you get carried away signing up for multiple store credit cards that you’ll see bigger drops. If you open seven store credit cards, you may save 10% – 20% off each store purchase and have smaller bills reflected on your statements; but you pay a bigger price with the harm it can inflict on your credit score which could be typically a significant drop of 10 to 30 points. In some serious cases, the ding might even be more than 30 points.

Not Just the Number; the Rate of Recurrence, too
The issue is not just how many new lines of credit you open; what counts even more, is how often you do this. If you’re trying to grab discounts and applying for store credit cards at every turn in a short span of time; you’re asking for big trouble. Potential lenders tend to perceive numerous applications for store credit cards in a brief span of time as an act of desperation. It is often deemed that you may be scrambling for other sources because you’ve been turned down by other creditors; thus, you’d be viewed as a high risk borrower.

Age Does Matter
Each time you apply for a new store credit card, it brings down the average age of your accounts a notch lower and can significantly affect the length of your credit history, which is another huge factor in maintaining a good credit standing as it covers 15% of your credit score.

Before You Yield to the Enticement…

Sure, the offers sound irresistible, but remember that store credit cards aren’t really much help to your credit score despite the promised perks. Unfortunately, in the overall scheme of your credit history, they are hardly beneficial. Store credit cards may tarnish your credit score, either in an inconsequential or substantial way, depending on its current status and the way you manage your credit. If your credit score is not exactly in tip-top shape, however, you may be better off avoiding the snare of store credit card. The reduction in your credit score can come back to haunt you, especially if you’re planning to apply for a loan the following year. Even if you have borderline excellent credit score, you can get bumped down to the lower range; those store card applications can cost you vital points you really can’t afford to lose!

Are you trying to get rid of negative information in your credit report/history? There could be a gazillion reasons for your predicament – bad economy, health issues, lack of knowledge or awareness, or plain negligence. The fact is, regardless of the circumstances that brought you there; the equation still looks this way: bad credit report/history = poor credit score. And you should know by now that this is a major setback in getting business/personal loans; a huge hindrance to finally acquiring your dream house; a deterrent in obtaining favorable terms and interest rates for your next car. You apparently need to increase your credit score, pronto! For this to happen, you have to rebuild your bad credit, which is by no means as simple as it sounds. Hurting your credit score is a lot easier than fixing it, but take heart…it is absolutely attainable.

For Starters: Get New Credit

A lot of people with bad credit swear they’d never use credit cards ever again after some unpleasant experiences. Ironically, though, credit card is almost always the primary tool to get the process of rebuilding your credit score to a good start. Using a credit card is one excellent way of reversing the negative information on your credit report; thereby, establishing sound payment history that could be favorably interpreted as proof that you’re still able to handle credit responsibly. However, there’s a dilemma here: with your bad credit, you may not be qualified for a regular credit card, as most companies look at credit scores (standard qualification is “Good” to “Excellent”) before approval. Talk about Catch 22! So how do you hurdle this?

Secured Credit Card: The Best Option for Re-establishing Your Creditability

A secured credit card is your best bet at rebuilding your credit score; it is by far the most effectual and quickest route to re-establish yourself as a viable credit risk to creditors’ eyes. Simply put, secured credit card behave much like the traditional/regular credit card and offers access to a credit line even with a damaged credit history and low credit score. The willingness of lenders to grant such access stems from the fact that you are required to put up cash collateral or security deposit that becomes the credit line/limit for the credit card account (e.g., if you deposit $500; you are allowed to charge up to $500). This guarantees that the bank gets paid even if you run into trouble. The amount is deposited in a savings account, which will only be applied to any payment default on the credit card.

Secured cards are relatively easy and fast to obtain as they don’t typically require credit check. It’s most definite advantage is that you are almost always guaranteed swift approval despite negative marks or poor credit score; more importantly, the bank issues regularly reports of your monthly payment history to all three major credit bureaus.

As you can very well glean, a secured credit card offers two-fold key benefits:

•     the convenience that a regular/traditional credit offers (to provide credit); and
•     the chance to rebuild a positive credit history and increase credit score through careful use of the plastic.

Remember: The Credit Card Itself Does Not Rebuild Your Credit Score

Just because you get approved for a secured credit card; it doesn’t mean your credit history and score can be “resuscitated” overnight. No matter what type of credit card you have; it cannot rebuild or improve your credit score on its own. It will take considerable time, effort, patience and discipline from your part by painstakingly sticking to good credit practices that include making regular, on-time payments; avoiding going over your credit limit; and reducing your debt-to-income ratio.

Despite some downside to secured credit cards, such as small credit line/restricted credit limits, higher interest rates, assessment fees; these credit products do offer a great leeway for you to break the vicious cycle of bad credit and poor credit score. After a reasonable span of time when you can prove that you’re not such a bad credit risk, the issuing bank may reward you for consistent on-time payment and raise your credit line without requiring you to make additional deposits. Conversely, the bank may choose to convert the secured credit card to unsecure account with a higher credit limit sooner than later (it normally takes 12 to 18 months of non-default, timely payment history for such shift to happen).

Conclusion

You realize, of course, that rebuilding your credit score hinges on many factors that necessitates substantial amount of time. While getting new credit and obtaining credit card can definitely help in re-establishing your credit footing, don’t expect miracles in a jiffy. It’ll take time to rebuild bad credit. Meanwhile, make sure you scout for the best secured credit card offer – there are several out there on the market. Pick one that you’re certain will report to the major credit bureaus and only charge reasonable – if not downright low annual fees. Most importantly, get a secured credit card from a bank that converts into an unsecured account after a specified period of on-time payments.

So, you lost your job in the 2008 recession. Times were tough, and you had to juggle some bills. Sometimes, unfortunately, even the best jugglers drop the ball. Equally as unfortunate is the damage that dropped debt can do to your credit rating. A credit card or loan payment that is 30 days or more late, is a negative mark on your credit rating. So, how long do you have to wait for bad marks to come off of your credit score?

The Bottom Line

The bottom line is – bad marks stay on your credit score for 7 years. There are some things you can do, however, to pile good marks on top of the bad score to redeem yourself.

DOLA
Your first step is to get a copy of your credit report. Once it is in hand, look for the DOLD or DOLA. That is the Date of Last Deliquency or Date of Last Activity. Count forward 7 years past the DOLD or DOLA, and that’s when the marks will drop off you your credit report. This applies to both good and bad marks.

If you count backwards 24 months from today’s date, the items listed on your credit report will represent 70% of your score. Yes, there are items before and after that time on your report, but it’s a weighted average. If you have bad credit right now, as in a delinquency notice or collection notice, it will hurt you the most over the next 24 months.

Current Ratings

Current ratings play into your credit score, too. Current rating is any debt you’ve been paying on for at least 12 months.  This will include house payments, credit cards, car loans, and personal loans.  This is where you can help yourself. You need at least 3 lines of credit that qualify as current ratings. A new credit card, for instance, won’t qualify as a positive unless you have made at least 12 payments with no problem.

To repair your credit score on your own, you need to maintain between 3 and 6 current ratings. These basically “cover up” the bad scores you built up.

For example, if you missed several credit card payments when you lost your job in 2008, and haven’t done anything on credit since, then that credit card is still the newest thing on your credit report. It’s a big black mark. But, if that was the only sacrifice you made during the time, and you maintained your house payment, student loan, another credit card, and your car payment, you’ve got 4 cases of “current ratings” in your favor. They’ve been there for several years. This covers a multitude of problems.

Keep in mind that getting rid of bad credit isn’t enough. You have to build good credit. It also helps to hire professionals to negotiate with credit reporting agencies. They will look at your report and dispute any discrepancies. They will get the agencies to either validate low ratings or remove them (please see my top 3 credit repair services).

Your credit score is subject to study by just about everyone. It’s not just banks and car dealerships that are interested in your credit rating. Sure, they’re about to lend you money, so you expect them to make inquiries. But others, from potential landlords to potential employers, also scrutinize your credit report. They want to know if you’re dependable and will pay your bills on time. Since everybody and his dog seems to have their chance at your credit score, it might help to know the difference between a credit report and a credit score.

Your credit report is the summary of a lot of information. It’s the history of credit applications, credit paid off, late payments, and total debt. It will report any actions companies have taken to collect debts from you. Credit card companies, banks, and any other lenders contribute to the report. Even employers can contribute. Also listed in your credit report are the number of credit cards you have, the number of loans you have, and the amounts of each. Your payment history is also reported, with early as well as late payments. The amount of time you have had each account is also part of your credit report. In addition, every time someone makes an inquiry about your credit history, it’s recorded on your credit report. For this reason, you should limit the number of people you allow to view your credit report. If you, for instance, are shopping for a car or a mortgage, just tell the potential lender your credit score and let them do their calculations from that point. Once you make your decision about your choice of lenders, you can let that one agency run a credit check. Otherwise, when the report is scored, it looks like you’ve been shopping for multiple loans, and your score goes down.

The credit score is a number of points – your score – that is supposed to predict whether or not you are worthy of credit. It is intended to relay the likelihood of your repayment of loans, and whether you will make your payments on time. Your score will change over time. It is calculated by a mathematical algorithm that figures in your payment history (as in whether or not you pay on time), types of credit you have, applications for new credit, the length of your credit history, and how much you owe, among other things. As you pay debts off, or go further into debt, your score will change.

Your salary is not figured in on your credit score – only whether or not you appear to be shopping for credit and make timely payments. Credit scores also are not influenced by your race, sex, age, or religion. The score is, basically, a grade you get based on the information in your credit report. That’s why it’s so important to make sure your credit report is accurate. You can even hire companies to contest negative points in your reports.

The world seems to revolve around credit, and so does advertising. The ads for free credit reports are evident at every turn, urging us to keep track of our credit score and do something about it. But, did you know that frequent inquiries on your credit score can actually damage it?

Who Checks Your Credit Score?

No one should be able to check your credit score without your permission. However, there may be several entities in your life that want to do so. Any creditor or potential employer will want to check your credit rating, but did you know your prospective landlord may want to?
In addition, every time someone checks your credit rating, the inquiry is noted in your report. The record goes back 2 years.

When you get ready to take out a car loan or a mortgage, your prospective lender will want to check your credit score. Now, if he sees that 18 months ago there were 4 or 5 inquiries into your credit rating, he’ll begin to wonder what was going on with you. It will look like you were desperate for credit. This is called “shopping” for credit, and is often the resort of someone in financial trouble. It also implies that you may be prone to getting into more debt than you can support.

Who Should Check Your Credit Score?

What do you do about this? If you are shopping for a car or wanting to compare mortgage rates, you can damage your own score by allowing multiple lenders to check your rating.
Instead of giving them permission to check your rating, tell them your score. Let them make their estimates based on that. They may quote a slightly higer rate than you want, but it gives you a ballpark guess. This will get you close enough to make a final decision on your choice of lenders. Now, you can give that lender permission to check your credit score, and you may actually end up with a lower interest rate.

On the other hand, if you let every lender make an inquiry, they’ll see the frequent inquiries and charge you a higher interest rate – a vicious circle.

Can You Check Your Credit Score?

You can, in fact, check your own credit score as often as you want. It is, after all, your score. There is no record kept of the number of your inquiries.

There are other safeguards you can implement to protect your credit rating, such as eliminating unused credit and hiring a credit repair company.

I know the feeling of being a first time renter and you now narrowed down the apartment search to a couple of places that are of interest to you.  It is an exciting but scary process.  There is one lingering question that has got to be driving you up the wall, “what is my credit score“, and “will it affect my chances of getting accepted for this apartment?”  There is a good chance that just because you don’t have much history (credit history) or bad credit that you will be denied and be forced to look elsewhere.  This article will show you what tenets actually look for in order to put your mind at ease.

It is not just a black and white answer and will take a bit of explaining to answer this question, “what credit score is needed for an apartment?”  One of the factors is actually where you live.  For instance, if you are applying for a place in New York or California your score will need to be hirer than if you applied in the midwest where the cost of living is much lower than the east and west coast (as a general rule of thumb).  Also, is it in the hotspot of the city or way out in the boonies?  Some places like Atlanta the market is just horrible and they will pretty much except most anyone as long as they haven’t been evicted or filed for bankruptcy.

For instance, from a landlords perspective they need to make sure you are not a huge risk and if you are on your way to bankruptcy in some states they are not obligated to evict you.  However, check with your state laws for this.

They will be checking your income and seeing that you can actually afford the apartment.  It is a range from 30%-50% varying from place to place.   This means that if you are applying for a place they want to make sure you are making double the amount per month of what the rent would be.  So if you rent was $1,000 a month they would want you to be making $2,000 dollars per month.  In some luxury apartments they even want to make sure you can afford it; they will make sure that you are making 2 1/2 times as much as rent per month.

However, to ease your mind you might want to go ahead and check your credit score.  Also, consider that if you are applying for an apartment that is $1,600 a month the rules and regulations would be much hirer than a place that cost $400 a month.  Each and every state varies and you will have to check your state laws, take this into consideration.

So what credit score do you need to get accepted for an apartment?  There is again no black and white answer put here are some general guidelines to follow:

780+ – Shouldn’t have much of a problem getting accepted for an apartment and generally will not have to pay a big deposit.  In their eyes you are a low risk and have proved yourself with an excellent credit score.

720-779 – Generally, you are a low risk to them and might have to pay a little security deposit.  Clearly, a good credit score, but it might be worth your while to see if you can do something to help improve your credit score just a little bit.  It will end of saving your money in the long run.

659-719 – You are average and some places will charge you a medium sized security deposit.  This is where most people stand with their credit score.  Some apartments might turn you down if you score falls into this range.

619-658 – Your of high risk and expect to pay the max security deposit.  Some apartment complexes might just turn you down with a credit score in this range.

Below 618 – Your a very high risk and you will certainly be paying a huge security deposit.  Not to mention, some apartments will just turn you down based on your credit score.  You should really consider working with a credit repair service because you need it badly.

Again, these figures are kind of broad and from apartment managers I have talked to over the years sometimes they don’t even really look at your credit score.  They will look at your credit report to see if you have missed a lot of payments over the last 6-12 months.

Do you know that you can fix your own credit? There are several ways on how to attack these credit score and credit history problems. One method can be by no longer allowing any more negative factors to impact your credit report. If you chose to use this approach you must be responsible enough to catch up on your late accounts payment in addition to your current credit bills and have these bad credits deleted from your report. Taking matters into your own hands so to speak is your lowest cost option. Repairing your credit may give you a migraine if you don’t know where to start but it can be done.

In accordance with the laws, do you know that old accounts should be removed from your credit history when they reached their maturity? This will help lower your credit scores. It is also better to close a few of your credit cards in case you have many of these. Don’t apply though for new credit cards or loans since this will defeat your purpose. Make sure also to ask for your credit limits to be lowered in case you are tempted to splurge. Creating a budget is the best way to figure how you can track of your income and expenses. From this you can gauge how much money you can save each month to pay your debts.

Taking a portion of your saved money can help you pay your bills on time. Paying on time takes about around six payments in a row to help lower your interest rates. A good suggestion would be to make a twice a month minimum payment in order for your bills to get smaller this may be a big sacrifice to make since you will really try to go for ways on saving with your other monthly expenses but it will be worth seeing that it produces a good result.

If after doing all of these and you still feel that this is something that you cannot handle on your own then you can work with a credit repair company but before doing so be sure to check out the company’s reputation before getting their services or signing any contract with them. Some of them may offer money back guarantee if they cannot deliver the service that they said they can. The best way to check for a good credit repair service company would be through the Better Business Bureau, consumer/ financial forums and financial reviews. If you are thinking of a support for dealing with your bad credit you can turn to consumer credit counseling which can assist you on how to manage your debts wisely.

Do you know that too many inquiries can hurt your credit score? If you are shopping around for the best possible rates and deal for credit cards chances are because of the numerous offers that each card gives you are having a hard time deciding on which one to choose. You may like something about a certain card but dislike its other terms. Do keep in mind that there is no such thing as perfect even when making a choice among what credit card to choose.

As you go along with your credit card shopping it is prudent not to apply for each one of them. Do you know that too many inquiries can hurt your credit score? As a consequence it can cost you damage even without you knowing. The fact is that every time you inquire about any type of loan this “inquiry” goes into your credit report. This is called as hard inquiry. A hard inquiry can actually cost you to drop your score by a few notches. Each creditor has their own set of guidelines; some creditors consider four or more inquiries as excessive if it is done in a span of six to nine months.

When you place a request for a copy of your credit report this will not count against you this is what you call “soft inquiry”. To give some examples of both soft inquiry and hard inquiry here are few examples.

Soft inquiry:

• Personal request for credit report and credit score
• Primary credit checks by credit card/mortgage companies that want to offer you a pre-approved credit card/loans
• Background check by a prospective employer
• Periodic credit checks by your credit card company

Hard Inquiry:

• New credit card application
• Your personal request for pre-approved credit card activation. The lender will take an in depth look into your credit history
• New mobile phone contract activation
• New bank checking or savings account application

For the best credit card rate you should do your “shopping” around within a 30 day period so that it will not be counted against you. A good approach would be to make multiple inquiries within 14 days so that it can be treated as just one inquiry like in the case of making mortgage inquiries. Choose what you apply for carefully and think if having a new credit card or loan is worth dropping your credit score by a few points.

The major credit bureaus have their own set of determining of rules when categorizing soft and hard inquiries. One thing is common though among the three, soft inquiry is recorded on your credit history but it does not affect your credit score. It is just noted there as reference. It is different with hard inquiry since they can hurt your credit score.