Free Credit Report

Most young people are riddled with free Visa and Mastercard accounts when they graduate from high school and move out from under Mom and Dad’s roof to face the world on their own. When each of my sons graduated from high school and went to college they were peppered with credit card offers, some granting credit lines of up to $1,200.

Thinking that having their own credit card was some sign of success or free license to buy the electronic wonders and clothes of their dreams, they maxed out their credit limits in no time. All without dear old Dad’s knowledge. Thus, began their download spiral in the quicksand pit known as credit card hell.

Being someone from the old school, having grown up poor in the 1950’s and 60’s, I was taught that good credit was a prized possession you earned and never let go of, even if you went without eating. I witnessed the plight of living a bad credit life first hand, seeing my father have not one, but two new automobiles repossessed when his job played out and he couldn’t afford the car payments any longer. Being forced to earn a living and take care of the daily grind and routine of running errands, going to school, etc. without a car was not only difficult, it was embarrassing for me as a kid and very humiliating for my Mom and Dad. I made up my mind then and there that when I grew up I would keep my credit rating impeccable and first rate at all cost.

I’ve been lucky in life, not having to live long periods of time without a job as my father experienced. I’ve had a great career and have always been able to meet my credit responsibilities. When my boys were little I oftened worried that when they saw me paying for a nice meal or buying clothes with a credit card, it might not occur to them that despite how simple buying with plastic might appear, it was really being paid for with my hard earned money.

I grew up being taught that it was important for my sister and I to have more than my Mom and Dad. Thus, I raised my sons the same way, frequently buying the latest video games or seeing that they were always dressed in accordance to the latest fashion trends. And despite my efforts to teach them the value of saving money and keeping good credit, both continue to function without a bank account and neither one has the first clue about how to balance a checkbook. I’m told I’m an old fogie and don’t understand that young people don’t use checkbooks anymore.

In reality the problem is really one of their own. They’re too lazy and careless to listen or practice the life one must live to be successful financially. It hurts to see them live the way they do, but unfortunately its a life too many young people are experiencing these days.

And guess what, the big banks that gave them the free credit cards don’t even care. They quit hounding them for the money a long time ago. Being concerned about how they were somehow tarnishing my family name by not honoring their debts, I foolishly paid off their balances 3 times — only to see them request another card and run their debt up again. After 3 times I said “no mas” and quit taking care of their credit responsiblities.

But the big banks and credit card companies that gave them credit without running credit checks, without regard for the fact they had no money or no jobs at the time they gave them credit cards, simply makes up for their losses by charging the good paying clients like you and I higher interest rates. This is why interest rates on credit card debt is so high in America, its built into their marketing system. It’s just a numbers game. Give out a 1,000 cards to a 1,000 different young people, knowing that only 10% to 15% will honor their debt but they’ll have them on the hook for many years, and make up for their losses on the ones that do hang on by charging high rates.

My advise to young people is that if you’re not going to listen to Mom and Dad, at least go to a good credit information site like All-Credit-Info.com and educate yourself about credit and the importance of good credit before you get yourself in debt. And, if you’re already in debt and needing to clean up your bad credit, visit these information sites to learn how to clean your credit up without it costing you an arm and a leg.

It never seems to amaze me how we parents never become brilliant in the eyes of our children until they have gone out, tested and failed at everything we’ve warned them about for years. As a young man once said, “it’s amazing how smart my Dad became after I turned 21.”

Craig Whitley (see http://www.craigwhitley.com) is a freelance writer that frequently writes about the Internet, consumer trends and online business practices. He specializes in finding and writing about small niche websites like http://www.all-credit-info.com that provide consumers useful free information about important topics and issues.

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You can obtain a FREE Credit Report from Equifax, Experian, and Trans Union by completing and mailing the Annual Credit Report Request Form to: Annual Credit Report Request Service, P.O. Box 105281, Atlanta, GA 30348-5281. This form can be printed from www.ftc.gov/credit There is also a toll free telephone number to call to request a copy of your free credit report: 1-877-322-8228. You will need to provide the following information to get your free credit reports: Your Social Security number, your name and address including your previous address if you have moved in the past two years, your date of birth, as well as some other information that only you would know such as the amount of your monthly mortgage payment.

If you request a copy of your free credit report online, you will be able to obtain it right away. If you call in or mail your request with the Annual Credit Report Request Form, your request will be processed and mailed to you within 15 business days after its receipt. This time period may take longer if the nationwide consumer reporting company needs more information to confirm your identity. If there happens to be an abnormally high volume of requests for free credit reports at the time you request yours, you will be notified that your report will be mailed to you sometime after 15 days of receipt.

To purchase a copy of your credit report, you may call the consumer reporting companies direct with the following telephone numbers:

Equifax: 1-800-685-1111 Experian: 1-888-EXPERIAN (1-888-397-3742) Trans Union: 1-800-916-8800

The cost to buy a copy of your credit report is generally $9.50 or less for each agency.

Each nationwide consumer reporting company gets information from different sources so the information contained in any one report may not be the same. The information may not reflect all of your credit info so requesting a free copy of your credit report from all three major agencies is the best way to get the full story of your credit.

This article was written by Kriss Standke who is an accomplished Webmaster and publisher of Free Credit Report Spot, Credit Score Resource, and Check Credit Report Online where he provides detailed and informative articles, tips, and advice on free credit reports, how to get yours, and what to do with the information once you receive it.

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Maintaining your Credit Profile

Every consumer should be maintaining their credit profiles to ensure the highest scores possible. To do so, you must first order your credit reports from the three major credit bureaus: Equifax, Trans Union, and Experian. The federal Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) entitles you to a copy of your credit
Report for free, provided you meet the following criteria:

You have been denied credit because of information in your credit report within the last 60 days.

You are currently unemployed and are seeking employment.

You receive public assistance.

You believe that your credit file contains errors due to fraud or identity theft.

Additionally, you also may be able to get your credit report and credit score from other business or companies. For example, if you live in California and are shopping for a home loan, the lender must provide you with your credit score by law. Several other states require that credit scores be disclosed to consumers.

It’s possible to receive a free copy of your credit reports annually if you live in Colorado, Georgia, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Vermont and Maryland. Recently Congress passed a law which affords each of us the right to a free credit report annually. Below is a listing of the start dates for this particular program:

Consumers in the Western states Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming can order their free reports beginning December 1, 2004.

Consumers in the Midwestern states Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota, and Wisconsin can order their free reports beginning March 1, 2005.

Consumers in the Southern states Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Texas can order their free reports beginning June 1, 2005.

Consumers in the Eastern states Connecticut, Delaware, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virginia, and West Virginia the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and all U.S. territories can order their free reports beginning September 1, 2005.

To take advantage of the free annual credit report, please visit: www.annualcreditreport.com.

Why is it important to “maintain our credit profile”? You have to have good credit, or at least decent credit, for a lender to consider you as a worthy credit risk. With our credit score being used in everything from insurance to interest rates on loans, we need to ensure that we manage our credit properly.

There is also the an epedimic going on called Identity Theft. The FBI released a study in May 2005 which stated that Identity Theft has caused over $52.6 billion dollars in total losses for 2004. With over 4.6% of the population being effected by Identity Theft, you can never be too careful. Identity Theft is simply an individual assuming another identity, and often times leads to other financial crimes such as credit card fraud, mortgage fraud, and check fraud.

By monitoring our credit reports frequently and utilizing our credit responsibily, we can take control of our financial futures to ensure that our profiles are accurate.

For more information regarding your credit scores, credit reports or debt options currently available to you, please contact Gateway Credit Connection or visit us online at http://www.creditmonkey.com

Michael Goff is the Co-Founder of Gateway Credit Connection, helping empower consumers to take control of their personal and business finances.

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