Your Credit Rating
By law, you are entitled to receive a free report from each of the three main credit reporting firms in the United States. They monitor you. You had better monitor them.
There are two ways of requesting your report. First, you can do this by mail. There is an on-line form that you can download, fill out, and mail in. (Odd; what you actually do is fill IN the form and mail it OUT.) You can get it here:
You will be sent a written response, supposedly within three weeks. You will find out how they rate your credit.
Second, you can go on-line and request the report.
Why is getting access to this information important? First, if there has been a mistake, you had better get it corrected now. Some creditor may have filed a false report on you. Worse, you could be the victim of identity theft. Second, if you intend to borrow money to buy a home or other major purchase, you had better know in advance if you are going to have a problem because of a low credit raring.
If your number is over 720 (out of 850), you are in good shape. To find out the details of how this score is established and what it means for you, click here:
When you apply for a mortgage, the lending agency will probably use the middle score of the three rating services.
If you have been the victim of ID theft, fill out an ID theft form and mail it to the credit rating firms. The form and details are available here: