Monday, March 31, 2008

Do you need your Credit Scores with Credit Report?

Do you need your Credit Scores with Credit Report?
I was real excited after I went to annualcreditreport and
got my free credit report. But to my surprise there were no
credit scores. I started asking myself since everyone looks
at your credit score shouldn't I know what my scores are? I
would assume there is a reason for a credit score to begin
with, and some very important purpose behind this magical
number that everyone closely looks at these days. In this
article I will discuss why you need to know your credit
score and by not knowing it how it can affect your personal
life.

Reasons for knowing your credit score:
When you apply for a loan, all lenders look at your credit
score to determine what type of loan they will put you in.
Your score will also determine the rate and terms as well.
This magical number also will dictate how much money you
need to put down on the purchase too. The lower your score
the higher your risk, and the uglier your loan terms are.
This is just one example of why you need to know this 3
digit number.

When applying for that higher paying job, guess what most
companies are doing now. They pull your credit, and if your
score is low I am sure they may consider hiring the
applicant with the same credentials but higher score. You
might ask yourself why, and the answer would be risk. Your
score gives anyone that requests your report the type of
risk you are. This employer may think you are an
irresponsible person by having low scores. This could cause
them to pass you up on the position.

Maybe you are trying to get insurance for a car, house, or
a boat. All insurance agents pull your credit, and
determine your premium based on your credit score. The
software that spits out this number will even affect your
insurance cost. This is amazing if you think about it. Even
utility companies are pulling your credit report now, and
if you have bad credit they will require larger deposits,
just incase you skip out on the bill.

Since everyone is looking at your credit score to determine
your credit risk, maybe its time to learn all three of your
scores. With the current credit crunch that is taking
place, matters will only get tough to get loans. There has
never been a more important time to learn what is being
reported about you. So the answer is yes, you need to know
all three of your credit scores. It is recommended that you
pull your credit report every 4 months, since anything can
change within a 30 day window on your report. Below is a
example of what is considered good scores according to my
FICO.

* Excellent: Over 750
* Very Good: 720 or more
* Acceptable: 660 to 720
* Uncertain: 620 to 660
* Risky: less than 620


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About the Author: Mike Clover is the owner of
http://www.creditscorequick.com/ . CreditScoreQuick.com is
the one of the most unique on-line resources for free
credit score report, fico score, Internet identity theft
software, secure credit cards, and a BlOG with a wealth of
personal credit information. The information within this
website is written by professionals that know about credit,
and what determines ones credit worthiness.

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