Free Credit Report

Most people are familiar with the term credit report but not everyone has a clear picture of exactly what a credit report it is. Your credit report can be viewed as a report card of your financial and credit activities. You are “graded” on your payment timeliness and credit activity. The fewer late payments you have made and the fewer delinquent accounts you have, the better your grade will be. Your credit score is basically a cumulative grade of your credit report. It is important to know what is on your credit report to ensure that your credit activity is being reported correctly.

But unlike a regular report card, you will not receive a copy of your credit report unless you request one. There is more than one way to go about when requesting a copy of your credit report. For a fee, you can receive a copy directly from one of the major credit bureaus. Or you can obtain a free copy from one of the many companies available on the Internet. There are many reputable companies that will provide you with a copy of your credit report completely free of charge. Visit www.credit-report-credit-score.com to learn more about credit reports and how to get a free copy of your credit report.

Some people may be a little skeptical about requesting a copy of their free credit report and may wonder if it is as good as a copy that you would pay for. But rest assured that a free credit report contains the exact same information that you would receive if you had paid for a copy directly from the credit bureaus.

You may be wondering why would companies provide you with a free copy of your credit report and is there a catch? Most companies that will grant you a free copy of your credit report require that you sign up for a credit monitoring service of some sort. But as long as you cancel the service before the free trial period ends, then you never pay a penny and still get to keep your free credit report. However, there are some really good credit services out there if you choose to keep the service. Many people have greatly improved their credit situation with these types of services. So make sure that you know all of the benefits before canceling a credit service that may accompany your free credit report.

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Note: This article may be freely reproduced as long as the authors bio paragraph at the bottom of this article is included, the article is published “as is” (unedited) and all URL’s are made active hyperlinks with no syntax changes.

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About The Author

This article was written by Beth Pardue who has over 10 years of experience in the financial industry assisting clients with assorted financial needs. To learn more about credit reports or to get a free credit report online please visit: http://www.credit-report-credit-score.com

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The Problem

I was driving home from the store the other night when I noticed a license plate that made me laugh to myself and then I proceeded to feel sorry for the poor sap driving. The plate read “0 DOWN”. It was a white, shiny, new Ford Explorer (probably an 06′). Here’s what really got me about the caption: Not only did this consumer purchase a brand new vehicle with no money down, but he was proud of it. DUMB! Commercial advertisements and society as a whole embeds the “Buy Now, Pay Later” method into our heads and it works so well that around 90% of all consumers who purchase new cars do not put $5 down on the vehicle before signing the papers. The sad fact is, is that the average new automobile loses $3,000 as soon as it leaves the lot. Technically, you have gone into debt for something that loses value before you even use it. As if this wasn’t depressing enough, the less money you put down on a car and the worse off your credit is, the more you pay for the car. If this isn’t one big sand trap I don’t know what is!

The Role of Your Credit Report

Your online credit report is affected 2 ways when you buy a new car with no money down. First let’s look at the role it plays after you decide you NEED that shiny new sports car. The mass majority of consumers are thinking of one thing when they sit in the ’sales chair’ to go through the paperwork: driving the car home (man this is bringing back some bad, bad memories). In order to do this you will need to finance the vehicle which requires pulling up your credit history and your credit report. This can easily be done online right in the sales office while you look around to make sure no one else tries to sneak off with your new toy. The worse off your credit report is, the higher interest rate you will pay. (This is fine though as long as you can still afford to buy food every other week and pay a few bills here and there.)
The other role that your credit report plays in this game is the after-effect. The average new car buyer’s car payment is 25-30% of their total income. This creates a nice, big road block on your credit report in itself for when you are ready to make another large purchase. Not to mention when you fall behind on even one payment and your credit file takes a hard blow. Try to keep these factors in mind next time the kid in you tries to make a financial decision.

The Solution

Well you’re not going to like the best solution but here it is anyway: PAY FOR THE CAR IN FULL! If you saved the car payment every month in a good money market account; not only would you save time and money, but when you walked into the sales office with piles of hundred dollar bills you would get quite a deal! Okay, so you’re more likely to win the super lotto than do that right?
Well here are a few ideas. As long as you practice a few you might get ahead of this nasty game a little bit or at least protect your online credit report. First, consider getting a 2 or 3 year old car. You can still get a shiny one and the previous owner will have taken the major depreciation of the vehicle passing the savings directly to you. Second, if you can, try waiting and searching to find the best deal possible. Trust me, there is more than 1 of those cars in the market. Third, put something down. Anything! For starters you could put down 10 to 15%. This will lower your monthly payment, lower your interest rate and maybe even cut your payoff time down. Lastly, get a bargain. Don’t settle for the asking price by any means. Be patient and keep control of your focus. One definition of maturity is learning to delay pleasure.

To read more about how you can get your online credit report free with no obligations, see what is on your file and find out how to fix your credit report go to http://www.cleancreditonline.com

Tom Justice is the webmaster for Clean Credit Online and does all the designing, marketing, SEO and maintenance the site. He has a passion for personal finance and how the economy and consumers are affected by money. To see how you can use Clean Credit Online to help you with your personal finances please visit http://www.cleancreditonline.com
“Cars and Credit Reports” - © (2005) Reprinting is allowed assuming all content is left the same.

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Debt is a Product in America

The #1 sickness in America concerning finances right now is debt. Debt is a product in our culture and it is vigorously aimed at you and me everyday, everywhere. As a society, we borrow more money than the last two generations times two and your online credit report reflects these habits! Some companies like Sears make more profit from their credit department than from all the physical products they sell.

But It’s the Norm Isn’t It?

We are programmed from childhood to make automatic decisions regarding our personal spending habits thus negatively affecting our online credit report. A few ‘real world’ examples are listed below:

Tags: Bad Credit, Credit Report, debt, debt help, debt relief, free credit report, online credit reportBad Credit, Credit Report, debt, debt help, debt relief, free credit report, online credit report

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