I checked my credit score online yesterday and found it increased to 742 from 642 this time last year.
Last year was the first time I've ever checked my own credit score so I have no clue. I know the score itself is ok, I'm just wondering if a 100 point jump in a year is good.

Do you all know what your scores are?

yes 742 is a very good score...I check my score and whole report approx. 1-2 times per year...100 point jump in a year is pretty good...if you know how to manipulate it then you can change quite a few things to increase your score if you need to...assuming that you actually HAVE good credit...if you have bad credit then moving accounts around won't help much :) I pride myself on my good credit and make sure it stays that way religiously. Most of the credit reporting programs that you can get on the web include a list of things to do to increase your score (don't carry 75%+ on revolving credit lines, etc, etc, etc) and you can get quite a jump just from following their advice...other things you won't be able to change like how old is your oldest account...this can only change with time for obvious reasons.

Hi ...thought I'd throw in my 2 cents worth here since this is my line of work. A score of 742 is good and an increase of 100 pts in a year is good too. One thing I see occasionally are high scores with very little credit history, a score by itself says nothing at all to me as an analyst. I want to see the whole enchilada. I will say however, if you had an increase like that in a year ...it's because you did something positive to your credit, whether you realize it or not. I find it a shame that more people dont know about their credit and that it's not taught in our public schools. I teach people whenever I can but realize too that some just don't want to know.

I teach people whenever I can but realize too that some just don't want to know.
Good point! :) I think that people might possibly care more if they realized how much money it would save them in the short term as well as the long run....of course...as a nation (US) we aren't the best at math so maybe people don't think that a point or two higher on your intrest rate will matter much :rolleyes:

of course...as I have said in other posts earlier today...I plan on winning the jackpot to the powerball lottery this Wednesday and hope to not need any credit ever again...I plan on paying for everything from a large roll of 100s that I keep in my pocket :laugh .... 1:140,000,000 talk about being bad at math!

My current credit score is around 740 and that is before last week when I paid off my Sporty and my only two credit cards. What score should I expect to see now?

Also Schnuki's car will be paid off in March but it is in the German credit system so it does not show up on the American system. Hope to be debt free in less than two years!!!

Alright Bert! debt free must be great...of course my wife has med school loans so we will never be debt free :D
For anyone interested that does not know, we in the US can now get one free credit report per year from the following:

https://www.annualcreditreport.com/cra/index.jsp

beware getting your credit report online as some places like freecreditreport-dot-com actually require you to sign up for a credit monitoring service to get your report...while this can "technically" be free if you cancel within the time period I find that the site listed above is much better...I've also used Yahoo Credit Reports for about $10 and they have a pretty good product and ordering system.

I think that people might possibly care more if they realized how much money it would save them in the short term as well as the long run....

What I see most often is how frustrated people are by the lack of good "trustworthy" information. There are companies looking to make large profits with their so-called expertise and yet consumers complain they gained nothing but one more bill. This is "our" information and we need to be proactive with understanding it so we can grow our nest eggs.
Another thing I've noticed is that some people will pay their gas, electric and other ultility bills but be consisently late making a car payment! Making late installment payments on a car loan or mortgage is death to your credit! If your late paying the electric ....so what??? there isnt even a late for fee for that and it never goes on your credit unless you stop paying or get very far behind!

Another thing I've noticed is that some people will pay their gas, electric and other ultility bills but be consisently late making a car payment! Making late installment payments on a car loan or mortgage is death to your credit! If your late paying the electric ....so what??? there isnt even a late for fee for that and it never goes on your credit unless you stop paying or get very far behind!

Those are some very good points, thanks a bunch for your expertise on the subject.

Oh and btw, yes thanks for adding that link Raysheen. You can get your free credit report via the link, but you still have to pay to obtain your credit score. I think it was 6 or 7 dollars to find out the current score.

My credit card from Providian shows my credit score in my online statment. It also shows the one year trends of up and down as things change. I think this is a good program and it made encouraged my to do what I could to see how high I can get it. More credit card companies should do this.

Those are some very good points, thanks a bunch


your quite welcome! ;)

My credit card from Providian shows my credit score in my online statment. It also shows the one year trends of up and down as things change. I think this is a good program and it made encouraged my to do what I could to see how high I can get it. More credit card companies should do this.

I'm not familiar with anything like that here in the states, does anyone else know otherwise? I wouldn't mind having a yearly analysis chart with my statement, I think it's a great idea! Germans are so much more progressive in these areas, IMHO. :D

I paid to get ont experian.com. It didnt cost that much and I can check my score anytime I want. Every since someone try to put a phone in my name I always check my credit. Its a wise thing to do.

Opps make that equifax.com. Sorry.

I'm not familiar with anything like that here in the states, does anyone else know otherwise? I wouldn't mind having a yearly analysis chart with my statement, I think it's a great idea! Germans are so much more progressive in these areas, IMHO. :D

This is with my US Providian card. I do not have any German credit cards.

This is with my US Providian card. I do not have any German credit cards.

That's pretty cool... well I don't have a Providian card ...maybe it's time I looked into it though, none of my cards have that service.

I look at people's credit, not their statements (well, occasionly but not often) so I thought it was something you could only get where you live... I get an annual statement with my Amex card but it doesnt include a credit score.

I dont know my score.....I cut up my credit cards, Im debt free and staying that way............

Hi

I guess we don't have the same system here in Norway...have never heard about this around here anyway. I do have one credit card and I guess I must be trustworthy because when I bought the Sportster I had a 20.000 $ limit on my card. It was quite funny because I phoned my credit card company and I asked them about my limit and their answer was "we normally don't give that information....but how much do you need" So when I said I needed the 20.000 $ to buy the Sportster they adjusted the limit of the card for the next week :tour

Yeah, European and US credit systems are VERY different. I hate the German way of car loans. They try to show you a very low monthly payment on the window sticker in BIG numbers. Then it little numbers it shows to a down payment of 20,000 Euro AND and end payment of 20,000 Euro. I seriously don't understand how come there are so many 50,000 to 80,000 Euro vehicles (VW Phaeton, VW Toureg, Porsche Cayenne, Land Rovers, etc...) there are here on the road. Why the HELL would anyone pay 100,000 for a daily driver?

No idea about my credit - there is no such system in Asia that I'm aware of. All I know is that I had no problem getting finance for the sporty or my car and the bank is constantly trying to get me to increase my mortgage. It's just lucky they have no idea how little I earn.

Cheers,

Brett

I'm at 691. Not too bad considering the bike is the highest loan I've had - borrowed like $6,000, and I don't think my credit union reports like a regular bank so it doesn't count the same. That's where all of my loans have been through, excpet for store credit cards which I'm in the process of getting rid of.

Yeah, European and US credit systems are VERY different. I hate the German way of car loans. They try to show you a very low monthly payment on the window sticker in BIG numbers. Then it little numbers it shows to a down payment of 20,000 Euro AND and end payment of 20,000 Euro. I seriously don't understand how come there are so many 50,000 to 80,000 Euro vehicles (VW Phaeton, VW Toureg, Porsche Cayenne, Land Rovers, etc...) there are here on the road. Why the HELL would anyone pay 100,000 for a daily driver?

Bplinson, It's not just there. They do the same type of thing here just in a slightly different fashion. They tell you you can get this great car at 30k for as low as 249 a month with 0 down!!!! But what they don't tell you is you have to pay on the car for 7 years and have a retarded high interest rate. Who in the hell would pay on a car for over 7 years. By the time you pay the car off it won't be worth 1/16th of the original cost. I don't get it. I stick with the 3 year max w/ 20% down and stupid low interest rate when I have the chance.

Ive got awesome credit, I cant remember the exact number but it was over 740 I was always told never let your credit get a bad mark on it, you will need it later on in life. I have never had one late payment and have had about 20 different loans ranging from $3000 to $50000.

My score is 740 or something. I have an American Express Platinim card but can't get a stinking MasterCard from the bank where I have my accounts! What gives?

Yeah, European and US credit systems are VERY different. I hate the German way of car loans. They try to show you a very low monthly payment on the window sticker in BIG numbers. Then it little numbers it shows to a down payment of 20,000 Euro AND and end payment of 20,000 Euro.


What's even better is having to pay another 20k when its all used up??

There may be some finance laws here pertaining to end balloon payments- that's what got people in trouble during the depression. Thing is, some of the 'low / variable interest rate' home loans today are essentially balloon payment type loans. There are a lot of people that don't understand what they're signing with loan payments.... all they see is the low monthy payment.

I seriously don't understand how come there are so many 50,000 to 80,000 Euro vehicles (VW Phaeton, VW Toureg, Porsche Cayenne, Land Rovers, etc...) there are here on the road. Why the HELL would anyone pay 100,000 for a daily driver?

That's easy.... why would you want to drive a Smart on the Autobahn??? But then, I wouldn't really want to drive a Toureg in a German city. Unless I have the optional Front Battering Ram accessory.

I dont know my score.....I cut up my credit cards, Im debt free and staying that way............Hey Carl, that's great, but I'm not sure that'll give you a great credit score. Maybe Reign can weigh in on this, but I think for the highest scores you have to have some credit out there showing you pay things on time.

I must be in left field. I don't care what my credit score is. I don't want any credit period. I pay cash for every thing and that DOESN'T MEAN I AM RICH. It's all about money management.

Credit that's too good is a curse. I get offers for more daily that I have to keep shredding. I'd have to file bankruptcy if I maxed out two of my 3 cards. I only carry a balance on one, + wifes student loan, +car, +house(paid in 2 years:) ). The only reason I've got 3 is the shuffling game to get the lowest interest, that I play occasionally if the one I'm using goes up. Each company wants my balance on THEIR card. :censor I've been late on a payment once in 30+ years. My wife said "oh let it go this payday". I told her "OK, I'll show you what happens". The interest rate tripled, I threw the balance on a lower rate card, and cancelled the high rate one. Good credit, it's a love hate relationship.:redmad

PS - I have no idea what my credit score is. It's probably too high.:frownthre

I added a choice...
I have no clue what my rating is and I really don't care. No one has ever given me any grief about borrowing any money and I don't think we've ever paid a bill late (well except for my yearly welding tank rentals... but thats because they fax the bill to me at work and my wife never sees it because I stick it in the bottom of my back pack for a few months). If I wasn't married, then I'd probably be in the poorouse by now, because she makes sure that we pay for things on time.

Gazza

A few things that I read about concerning credit:

Not having credit is not good. Even if you have cash to pay for everything, someday, somewhere in the unforeseeable future you may need to make a large purchase that you cannot slap down cash for. Sure, most people will be able to get a loan, but the trick is to get the lowest interest rates possible and to do that you must have a good credit score - typically the higher the score the better the rate you will get.

So, even if you have cash to pay for things, it's a good idea to finance and then pay it off within 6 months so it has a chance to make it to your rating. Just make sure there is no early payoff penalty. HD btw, has no early payoff penalty so financing through them then paying off in under a year is a great way to build your credit score.

for you guys that don't care about your score what about buying a house? almost everyone buys a house on credit...a good score vs bad on that front can really hurt you in the long term...personally I don't want to lay down tens of thousands of dollars extra just because I don't care about my credit score...also if you aren't using credit then, in my opinion, you aren't making your money work for you as well as you could be...why pay cash for a $20,000 car for example if you can get a good interest rate...if you can get a good enough rate then your money will be doing far more for you in even a moderately returning investment...at the end of the day in a situation like that you are paying more if you pay cash then if you finance at a great rate because of great credit and let your money do the work and earn you even more of the green stuff...I've done this many times...and in at least a few cases of running the nubmers it has been cheaper to borrow money at a good rate then pay with cash which will actually earn me more money :D

I'm at 651 but I used to be 575. I was horrible with credit cards in college. I am waiting for all the late pays to start dropping off. The last late pays were in 2001 so I have a few more years until they are totally gone.

I did managed to finance the motorcycle through harley davidson though. I thought you needed a 700+ for that. I didn't get a very good interest rate though.

Same here KCSG, when I bought the bike 4/04 I was at 642 and there were two late payments already on record when I applied for the bike loan. I was able to finance the bike but dang my rate is through the roof. Been paying triple payments every month in order to pay it off quicker.

When we got our HELOC a few months ago, mine came in at 765. Joe's came in at 680-something or maybe it was a lower than that, can't remember now. He had credit troubles before I met him and was going through one of those credit counseling places for a couple years to pay off his bills. I got him back on the straight and narrow and helped him get that stuff paid off quicker so we could get rid of it before we got married! ;)

I don't know if no credit history (paying cash for everything) is looked at the same as a bad credit history but I do know that your credit score affects your insurance rates.

The Credit No. is called fico score, I believe. With such a large no. of 700+ member numbers, it speaks volumes about the fiscal member reliability. Maybe we ought to market that to vendors, eg .stealers etc. to get discounts or favorable rates. This is a responsible group. Cheers:clap

AAARGH!!!!! One of my pet peeves!!

IMHO credit scores are another way for the banks, lenders and insurance companies to rip you off. Period.

If you have poor credit, you pay more for home owners insurance, life insurance, car insurance, life insurance and motorcycle insurance.

If you have poor credit, you pay more for loans and mortgages too.

Therefore you are caught: those with poor credit need the lower payments, but end up paying more because of the low credit scores.

I have a parishioner who had fansastic credit and a fantastic score up until a year ago. Then he had a massive heart attack and have to have 2 open heart surgeries. He didn't have the money to pay because he had no insurance. Why? Because his company went bankrupt and they were allowed to drop health insurance for retirees. He ended up declaring bankruptcy due to the outrageous medical bills, and he was dropped from his auto insurance (driving and paying for over 43 years, not one claim) and homeowners insurance (same house for 36 years, not one claim). Why? He has bad credit.

AHA you say, he went bankrupt and that's why he has bad credit! Yet consider this: about 6 months after he declared bankruptcy, his company came out of bankruptcy, has all kinds of money now, is doing fine, multi-million dollar paychecks for top executives, and no problem. They still don't pay health insurance for retirees anymore, because the court said they don't have to.

My parishioner? Still suffering and looking for insurance.

My credit is so good that I could go down and buy any Harley I want with all accessories put on for me. If the wife would only let me...LOL

My credit was at 680 before I consolidated my credit cards and bought the harley. I got the harley as a sign to me that I would do my best to get the best credit score possible by the time I payed it off. Once it's paid off, i am going to go all out on it or get an Eglide like i originally was going to buy. I wonder what my score is now. I guess I have to wait till fall to look again. :(

I am confused .... If you go to the web site listed on page 1 of this thread: https://www.annualcreditreport.com/cra/index.jsp , they will [NOT] give you an actual "score number" ..... So, for all you folks that have your actual credit score number, how do you find it out without paying a fee to get it?

i am credit broke, 58 and too manny toys all my life to ever put away for retirment. it might back fire but i have had a great life.
2 drag boats
427 cobra kit
drag race car
1666 GT 350
9 bikes
2 dune buggys
2002 ford lightning
not all at once for sure
4 bikes in the last 2 years
down to only the sporty.
ya got to slow down some day:roflblack

AAARGH!!!!! One of my pet peeves!!

IMHO credit scores are another way for the banks, lenders and insurance companies to rip you off. Period.


:tour I tend to agree with you. My most recent score was somewhere in the 850 range (have borrowed and paid off lots of money over a lot of years). Doesn't matter . . . don't ever think banks are out to do anything but make money off you or your money. For example, last December I sold my sporty, then bought a FatBoy. At the time I did not have the available cash to pay the additional $7K, so I wanted to "borrow" it for a while until I could get at some investments w/o penalty. H-D Credit offered the suck-ass rate of 7.9%. A credit union I did (past tense is accurate) business with for over 25 years wanted 11.9% (keep in mind I'm borrowing $7k on a $17K bike). A credit union I called that I had never done business with before gave me 5.0%. Several years earlier I wanted to use home equity to pay for a portion of my daughter's wedding (my equity in the home was/is over 90%). Rates ranged from 3.9-7.9% and some with closing cost, some not. If you drop your wallet in a bank, don't bend over, you might get hammered. A high credit score is a good thing, don't get me wrong, but don't believe for a minute that other factors aren't involved such as greed, money availability, and an institution's astuteness in lending (meaning how many bad loans did they make last year). There is no substitute for shopping. Don't spend as much time determining your number as you do "shopping."

Lefty

I am confused .... If you go to the web site listed on page 1 of this thread: https://www.annualcreditreport.com/cra/index.jsp , they will [NOT] give you an actual "score number" ..... So, for all you folks that have your actual credit score number, how do you find it out without paying a fee to get it?

We covered that earlier in the thread.....you have to pay the 6 or 7 bucks to get your score. All you get for free is the credit report.
Bert said his providian online statement shows his current score...

Sorry I missed that in the thread ....

Ron the Dumbshit,

I got my credit score for $5 from Experian. And for those that don't know, you can get a free copy of your credit report anytime you are turned down for some kind of credit.

When I got the Sporty the salesman said, "Let me run your credit right quick."

Came back in just a few minutes, said, you're good to go with the lowest rate. It really helps to have a good score....the rate was based on the credit score.

Be aware the more your credit is checked in conjuntion with seeking credit the lower your score will drop!!!!
This is called a "Hard hit" on your credit report.

Conversely (Always wanted to use that word!!!!:smoke HAHAHAHA!), you can check your own credit repeatedly thru a paid service such as mycreditkeeper, with no negative effects on your score.
This is called a "Soft hit" on your credit report.

There are alot of online credit forums with solid information,
(Like Here is with Sporty info!:banana ). relating to how to clean up and improve your credit as D.I.Y.
Most folks have improper negative entries on their reports that can be challenged and removed, hence raising their scores.

It's a good subject to bone up on, knowledge is power!!!!!:wonderlan

S/F
T.G.:D :tour

Be aware the more your credit is checked in conjuntion with seeking credit the lower your score will drop!!!!
This is called a "Hard hit" on your credit report.



Except when you are looking for a mortgage or refi or home equity loan for your house. I think they count all hits from mortgage companies within a 30 day period as one hit while you are in that process.

I'm at 691.

A 691 isn't bad.

I don't think my credit union reports like a regular bank so it doesn't count the same.

oh yes it does count the same and they do report, but some only report quarterly.

That's where all of my loans have been through, excpet for store credit cards which I'm in the process of getting rid of.

Store credit cards are only helpful in obtaining bank credit cards ...if you have bank credit cards get rid of the store cards. (personally i do like Sears though, they have EVERYTHING)

Be aware the more your credit is checked in conjuntion with seeking credit the lower your score will drop!!!!
This is called a "Hard hit" on your credit report.

This is true ...however it's more fair, i think, to throw out some numbers here, if you have 30 hard hits it's going to affect your score more adversely then let's say 7 or 8 hard hits, which barely has an affect unless you are already credit challenged. Furthermore, if someone is looking at a credit bureau while in the process of trying to approve a loan your score is rather irrelevent because your tradelines tell the whole story. Personally I don't read much into a score, a score isn't a barometer to a person's credit worthiness. One example; deferred student loans! why they get scored is beyond me ...and deferred payments earn nothing except a higher score with nothing to back it up. I see this quite often. I say: DECLINED!

Deferred student loans are a great thing... they helped us buy our house... When my Wife was finishing school, the fall semester was her last semester, but something weird happened with the paper work when she applied for the loans for that semester and they gave her money for both fall and spring semesters. Since we didn't need the spring money we used it as the down payment for the house. Since it wasn't on our credit history yet... still in defferement it didn't show up on our credit history (I don't know why, it just wasn't there yet). So we had a spare 4 grand of free cash that we used for the downpayment on the mortgage :D

Gazza

Hey Carl, that's great, but I'm not sure that'll give you a great credit score. Maybe Reign can weigh in on this, but I think for the highest scores you have to have some credit out there showing you pay things on time.

You're absolutely right about this. It can actually be dangerous to your credit worthiness to cancel all your cards. if you should show zero activity for lets say 5 or 6 years ...suddenly your back at square one (or nearly) and practically a first time buyer again. What I suggested to my son was to use his credit cards for things he would have to buy regularly. Example; you always need gas ...i told him to use his card at the station he normally uses and pay it back monthly. It shows activity but it's the normal activity he'd have anyway.
By the way it doesn't have to be every tank of gas and you never want to max out your cards ....EVER!
overextended
overextended
overextended
overextended
what that means ....no loan for you! ...look face it you never know when you may NEED your credit, so coddle it. Next week your paid off car with no full coverage could be totaled while parked. Of course you could use the 2 or 3 thousand you have to buy a hoopty but if you're a professional and need to show up in something a little nicer, that (good) credit will get you the lowest rate loan and your downpayment will get you even lower monthly payments.

:tour I tend to agree with you. My most recent score was somewhere in the 850 range (have borrowed and paid off lots of money over a lot of years). Doesn't matter . . . don't ever think banks are out to do anything but make money off you or your money. For example, last December I sold my sporty, then bought a FatBoy. At the time I did not have the available cash to pay the additional $7K, so I wanted to "borrow" it for a while until I could get at some investments w/o penalty. H-D Credit offered the suck-ass rate of 7.9%. A credit union I did (past tense is accurate) business with for over 25 years wanted 11.9% (keep in mind I'm borrowing $7k on a $17K bike). A credit union I called that I had never done business with before gave me 5.0%. Several years earlier I wanted to use home equity to pay for a portion of my daughter's wedding (my equity in the home was/is over 90%). Rates ranged from 3.9-7.9% and some with closing cost, some not. If you drop your wallet in a bank, don't bend over, you might get hammered. A high credit score is a good thing, don't get me wrong, but don't believe for a minute that other factors aren't involved such as greed, money availability, and an institution's astuteness in lending (meaning how many bad loans did they make last year). There is no substitute for shopping. Don't spend as much time determining your number as you do "shopping."

Lefty


omg! this is GREAT advice. Having a great score simply means to the lender .... "Hmmm ...how can i make some money on this guy?"
Be smart ...always shop.

You're absolutely right about this. It can actually be dangerous to your credit worthiness to cancel all your cards. if you should show zero activity for lets say 5 or 6 years ...suddenly your back at square one (or nearly) and practically a first time buyer again. What I suggested to my son was to use his credit cards for things he would have to buy regularly. Example; you always need gas ...i told him to use his card at the station he normally uses and pay it back monthly. It shows activity but it's the normal activity he'd have anyway.
By the way it doesn't have to be every tank of gas and you never want to max out your cards ....EVER!
overextended
overextended
overextended
overextended
what that means ....no loan for you! ...look face it you never know when you may NEED your credit, so coddle it. Next week your paid off car with no full coverage could be totaled while parked. Of course you could use the 2 or 3 thousand you have to buy a hoopty but if you're a professional and need to show up in something a little nicer, that (good) credit will get you the lowest rate loan and your downpayment will get you even lower monthly payments.

Good point on the subject,Im glad we have a credit expert on the forum....thanks

Ditto that Carl! What amazes me here is over 1200 views on the thread and only 72 people voted on the poll? LOL. I guess many people have never checked their credit, either that or they are deathly afraid to talk about it.

Do you want to get your score for free. Go in to look at cars. Tell the salesperson that you want to lease. They will pull your score immediately and tell you if asked so as not to waste time. I do this everytime. Just don't do it too often at the same dealership.

I don't want to pay the 6 bucks to get the actual credit number.

So, do you think that some company that your going to do business with actually has to pay $6.00 to get that number?

Looks like a big rip-off if you ask me!
__________________________________________________ _______

Oh ya ... if you pay each of the 3 credit agencies the money for your actual score .... will they each send you the score [they] come up with, or will the score be exactly the same from all 3 of them?

I other words .... is there any standardization between the 3 of them?

Do you want to get your score for free. Go in to look at cars. Tell the salesperson that you want to lease. They will pull your score immediately and tell you if asked so as not to waste time. I do this everytime. Just don't do it too often at the same dealership.

I don't advocate doing this for one very good reason, ...credit fraud! I am very secretive and I sparingly share my information so for me I'd rather pay the couple of dollars and secure my anominity.

So, do you think that some company that your going to do business with actually has to pay $6.00 to get that number?

Looks like a big rip-off if you ask me!
__________________________________________________ _______

Oh ya ... if you pay each of the 3 credit agencies the money for your actual score .... will they each send you the score [they] come up with, or will the score be exactly the same from all 3 of them?

I other words .... is there any standardization between the 3 of them?

actually ...yes they do have to pay it, it is a business and for businesses that rely on using credit for them its the cost of having to do business btw it's $7 per report.

Furthermore each reporting agency will come up with it's own score ...usually a similiar score but some reporting companies don't report to all bureaus which can sometimes mean a difference of as much as 100 points between bureas and though this is not common I have seen it on occassion.

Oh ya ... if you pay each of the 3 credit agencies the money for your actual score .... will they each send you the score [they] come up with, or will the score be exactly the same from all 3 of them?

I other words .... is there any standardization between the 3 of them?

Ron, I think two of those companies just provide you with a credit report which includes different data such as loans you've had and paid off, how often if at all you were late on payments, and credit card companies that you had in the past and currently.
Those two you can get for free once a year I think it is.
The other one you have to pay the 6.99 to get your credit score. You can get your free report here. (https://www.annualcreditreport.com/cra/index.jsp)
Don't forget to print them because it's a once a year free thing.
Reign will correct me if I'm wrong with any of this.

Ron, I think two of those companies just provide you with a credit report which includes different data such as loans you've had and paid off, how often if at all you were late on payments, and credit card companies that you had in the past and currently.
Those two you can get for free once a year I think it is.
The other one you have to pay the 6.99 to get your credit score. You can get your free report

All of the bureaus (Transunion, Equifax and Experian) are tools that lenders use extend or deny credit. The information is often very similiar depending on the reporting company.
Example: XYZ Motor Credit vs. ABC Motor Credit ... XYZ may only report to Transunion and Equifax but not Experian, while ABC reports to all three. Jane Smith has her loan with XYZ, Transunion and Equifax range her score from 650 to 665 but her Experian is only 605 ...why? Well she pays her auto loan on time and has established a good car loan thus increasing her score, because it's not on Experian her score leveled off and a lower number. Now John Smith has his loan with ABC and has scores of 725, 722 and 733 all similiar because ABC is reporting to all agencies. The variances are usually due to some companies reporting and others not reporting.
If your not being reported and you know you've been paying on time you can call the lender and ask them to update your information on your credit report.
All three reporting companies report info that is current and can go back as far as 10 years or more... yes or more! Typically anything past ten years will "fall off" your report but some do get thru the cracks in the system. You can contact the bureaus and ask them to remove any "old" bad debt (past 10 years) if it's good ...stay quiet and be thankful!

I checked my credit a few months ago and just did it again last week. It went up 10 points in that time alone. I'm pretty sure I know why, but I'm not sure why one agency says I have a P.O. Box address in Nevada. I've never even been to Nevada.

Reign & Xena ....

Thank's for the info .... I don't think I really need to know my credit number anyway. Never late on a home or car loan ... Never really late on any loans to include Mastercard bills ... I don't buy much on credit anymore to include motorcycles or cars ... so I guess the credit rating is not that important to me.

I checked my credit a few months ago and just did it again last week. It went up 10 points in that time alone. I'm pretty sure I know why, but I'm not sure why one agency says I have a P.O. Box address in Nevada. I've never even been to Nevada.


Do you have a common name? If you do your info maybe be crossing over with someone elses information. If you don't have a common name that could be an indicator that someone else tapped into your credit! If that's the case I would write to the agencies and put a fraud alert on your credit reports... yes i said reports, as in plural ....that will alert the companies checking your credit to ask for proof of identity and then STAY ON TOP OF IT REGULARLY! It will pay off to subscribe to a service that allows you to randomly look at your reports at will.

Reign & Xena ....

Thank's for the info .... I don't think I really need to know my credit number anyway. Never late on a home or car loan ... Never really late on any loans to include Mastercard bills ... I don't buy much on credit anymore to include motorcycles or cars ... so I guess the credit rating is not that important to me.

You may "know" that you are doing the right thing concerning paying your bills on time and that's great, not everyone has had your fortunate experience. I do know some that have always paid their bills and said the same thing and later learned that they purchased a car some 1500 miles from where they live! ...and they were making the payments on time! ...but then all of a sudden the payments stopped and ...well you can guess what happened to their credit. This sort of thing can take what seems like eons to straighten out. Is it fair? ...hell no but it is reality and it happens far more than most realize.

Thanks, Reign. Nothing else was suspicious and I checked all 3, but of course I'm going to look into it. It seems to only be on 1 report; and my name's not common at all so I doubt it's a mixup.

About 15 years ago I opened my mail to find an envelope with a liquor store's address in NY state as the return address (which I'd never been to nor heard of) and inside the evelope was nothing but a driver's license with all my information on it- and a photo of someone I'd never seen before.

The local DMV had a bunch of idiots working there who sold people's info, including mine. This girl had a license made with my info and her mug shot on it and used it to buy alcohol- then left the license behind in the liquor store, and the liquor store simply dropped it in an envelope and sent it to the address on the license thinking they were just returning it to its' rightful owner. I had my driving record checked and there were no violations on it so she didn't cause me any other grief (that I knew of) than the confusion of finding my license in an envelope with her head on it. I never found out who she was.

Who knows if that has anything to do with it.

Thanks for the help.

Thanks, Reign. Nothing else was suspicious and I checked all 3, but of course I'm going to look into it. It seems to only be on 1 report; and my name's not common at all so I doubt it's a mixup.

About 15 years ago I opened my mail to find an envelope with a liquor store's address in NY state as the return address (which I'd never been to nor heard of) and inside the evelope was nothing but a driver's license with all my information on it- and a photo of someone I'd never seen before.

The local DMV had a bunch of idiots working there who sold people's info, including mine. This girl had a license made with my info and her mug shot on it and used it to buy alcohol- then left the license behind in the liquor store, and the liquor store simply dropped it in an envelope and sent it to the address on the license thinking they were just returning it to its' rightful owner. I had my driving record checked and there were no violations on it so she didn't cause me any other grief (that I knew of) than the confusion of finding my license in an envelope with her head on it. I never found out who she was.

Who knows if that has anything to do with it.

Thanks for the help.

You're right ...who knows ...be safe though a few dollars invested today could save you months of ag later on. Look into it and see what you can uncover ...it could be nothing more than a clerical error, that does happen and I have done it myself ...once! I called the person who's credit I ran and told them I entered the wrong last name ...this way if she ever looked at her report in the future she would know that it was just a typo. Typos by the way can be removed pretty easily but even though I was the one that did it I couldn't remove it, that has to be done by the person who's name is on the report.

754!!! Better then I thought!!!:D

Ahhh, Credit Reports, Credit Reporting Agencies and Collection Agencies. That's a nightmare from Hell!

The following is true, maybe hard to believe, but true;

When I started this job under a new contract 6 yrs ago, a local bank offered specials to employees of this company, so I took them up on it. I tried to increase the credit line on the charge card I got to use only for business travel. They said I didn't qualify for more, I had too many credit cards.

I applied for (and received) a report from each of the BIG three (TRW TransUnion and Experian) One of them has changed names I believe.
The reports showed I had 22 credit cards! I had three.

Turned out that my Dad, Mom and my wife had all been merged into my report.
I was amazed to learn (according to them) that SS#'s aren't used, but portions of your first and last name.

It all started when my wallet had been stolen (years earlier), the theft was reported to "everyone". In trying to clear their records up, a large retailer accidentially merged me with my Dad (same names), and then ended-up merging my Mom with me (she tried to use my Dad's credit card at that same store and they tried to arrest her, thinking she stole my wallet. I had to go identify her lol). From that point on, everyone in my family ended-up in my reports. How my (now ex) wife ended-up in it, is still is a good question, but I know one thing for sure, I have never HAD A CREDIT CARD for (a big name Lady's Store). Anyway, that retail store admitted the mistake and apologized (a lot).

The reporting agencies were all very kind and understanding, but it took almost 9 monthd to get everything straightened out. CBC has a local office here and one gentleman there taught me a lot about how to deal with and handle these situations.

Two years after that, a Direct to Home Satelllite service and I went our separate ways. They decided I hadn't paid my final bill (even though I had a copy of the credit card charge) and when I refused to pay their "final bill", they turned me over to a collection agency.
This was my first time dealing with a collection agency and I (foolishly) assumed they had to be fair and honest, what a bunch of goofs.

I took that agency to arbitration and kicked the SH*T out of them. After that, I filed a letter with all the reporting agencies, stating my case and complaint against the DTH service. In the mean time the stinking DTH service turned me over to another collection agency. I assumed that would start the process over again. According to the gentleman at CBC, because I had filed that letter, and the "collection amount" was so small ($29.95), I didn't have anything to worry about.
I couldn't deal with anything hanging over my head, so I went ahead and fought with the "new collection" agency. I did what they do, I bugged them, called them constantly, sent endless letters, copies of receipts etc. After a few months, I received a letter stating the account was cleared and cancelled. :laugh

To finish this story, I moved in January, 05 and took my digital cable converter with me since the same cable company had both cities. In May I received a collection notice for two months of unpaid charges and $500.00 for the converter. I filed a dispute with the collection agency (which they of course completely ignored).

I received another collection notice last Saturday.

I called the cable company, they claimed they informed the collection agency of their error back in February, 05.

Of course the phone number on the collection notice is all pre-recorded, all they want you to do is give them a credit card number so they can bill you and get their cut. I did a web search on these jokers and was able to find another phone number.
I called and they were outraged that I wanted to talk to someone live, they kept trying to get me to call the pre-recorded number and hung-up.

I called again (Yeah, OK, I'm pretty proud of myself);

"How may I direct your call?"
"Is this XXXXXX XXXX Collection Agency?"
"Yes it is"
"And your mailing adress is xxxxxx xxxxxxx Dallas, Tx?"
"Yes it is."
"This Dave XXXXX, account # XXXXX. I am informing you that this phone call is being recorded for possible further legal action."
"Ahh.. mmm - sir? we don't accept recorded phone calls."

"Well, on your other phone number, XXX-XXX-XXXX it states that all calls are recorded to insure quality customer service. And since I doubt you can provide that, I feel it's in my best interest to record this call so my attorney can hear it."

CLICK

I called back 8 times trying a different approach each time and got a line of BS everytime.
I then decided to use the "If you know your parties extension, dial it now" choice. I kept hitting keys until I got through.

That gal was pretty p/o'ed, but it worked, she admitted that the last letter should not have been sent, and that the cable company cancelled the account action in February.

That makes me wonder, how many folks just pay a bill to avoid all the hassle?Especially if the bill is only 20 - 30 bucks?

Ride Safe,

Hey I am off the poll!
Credit score is: 906

That is because my wife pays the bills and she is never late to anything.

I use credit cards to buy everything I can, and pay off each month. This way I use other people’s money (a float of 30-45 days) and get the benefits that credit cards provide (including documentation of expenditures). The current credit card rebates I get are for Fidelity’s 529 deposits to support the kid’s education. You can get miles, hotels, Harley parts; this is much better than an ATM card if you have discipline and pay it off each month! You can even calculate by credit card who pays back the best percentage!

motorrunning thats awesome! I added another choice to the poll. You have more discipline than many of us I suspect. :)

Can I pay for my credit report with my credit card, of just make monthly payments?

You know just 5000 more payments, and it's all mine!

906? Woa, how high's it go? 1000?

First I think we need to give Reign a big "thank you" for all of her input.
Now for my 2 cents...
I've had my credit checked about seven months ago by my mortgage broker.
The scores ranged from around 670 to 730 or so. But my problem is that I don't have much of a history. I never had a credit card in college (probably a good thing) and didn't get one until about 6 years ago. I paid off my car in four years. Now I still have only one card and not many bills. I wish I had been told about credit in school. My dad would just tell me not to get a credit card because he figured I would max it out (probably right on that one) and he would end up paying it off.
Credit is such a huge thing that not many people know about and understand. It's sad that people (in general) are not educated about credit.
One question I did have was... If I just had my credit checked for a business loan how long should I wait to get a loan for my sporty?
OH.. and another... does anyone know which firm HD uses to check for loans?

906? Woa, how high's it go? 1000?

I think I saw 925.

Psyched! I wanted to bring this to the surface again
since it's almost a year later and I got my free yearly
credit report again. Granted, you have to pay 5 or 6
dollars if you want your credit score as well, but it's
worth it.
I hope all of you who had such not great scores last year, have
been able to rebuild your credit back up. Mine wasn't
bad, but it was lower than it should have been and I
wanted to try really hard to build it up higher.

That said, I'm very happy to say that my
score has increased to 865 from last years score of 740. :banadanc

I've been paying everything on time and also using
my credit card for occasional purchases, but paying the balance
right away when the bill comes in.

For those of you who weren't aware, or didn't know how to get your free
annual report. AnnualCreditReport.com is the place.

Once again, thanks to Reign for all of her excellent input in this thread!

760 ish, and almost debt free. Few diff loans, car, credit card (less than $200 on it) and a small personal loan to get some items for the new house, that's about it.

906? Woa, how high's it go? 1000?

The scale I saw on TransUnion web site said
it goes from 501 to 990.

Went through shuffling credit cards and payments for years to raise two girls...been sued a few times for non-payment on some cards but got them all paid off at a reduced rate :-) ...no more for me...cash only now!...I don't owe anyone anything except for insurance, utilities, groceries and such...yes, I am old and it has taken many years but it is a nice feeling!:clap

My credit is great. My fiscal sanity comes from not using it.
You can't go bankrupt if you don't owe anyone any money.

my credit is so bad they wont take my CASH... jus kidding last time i checked 720 and some change.

In March I applied for a mortgage on a house (second home I've owned). I was pleasantly surprised to find out I had a credit score of 823, although my lender said they couldn't give any better deal on an interest rate after a score of 750! I thought that sucked! Got 5.75%, no points.

You can't go bankrupt if you don't owe anyone any money.

While this is true, you also can't build credit if you
haven't at one point or another had loans or a credit cards.
No credit can work much in the same way as bad credit.

While this is true, you also can't build credit if you
haven't at one point or another had loans or a credit cards.
No credit can work much in the same way as bad credit.
I just had a friend denied for a mortgage because he had NO credit. She told him he would be better off with bad credit.

No credit is worse than bad credit.

My older brother declared bankruptcy at 25.:eek:
So I learned at a good age to watch my credit.
I use my credit card(s) for 95% of my purchases BUT every day I use one, I place CASH in an envelope at home in the same amount. When the bill comes I go to my bank, hand 'em my statement and a wad of cash. Paid in full.
I put my sporty down payment on the card and then wrote a check to pay off the card.

My credit score (just checked last week) is 925.
All of it is from making house payments ON TIME, and using and paying my cards off monthly.

Do whatever it takes, get your balance of everything (except for car and home) down to zero and pay in full monthly.

I am glad to see this thread back I must say it really hit home for me the advice may sound simple for most but thing like always pay your house payment on time before the cable bill really helped me. Reign’s input was great I hope she reads the new posts.

I am happy to report that after taking care of some loose ends and not being late at all on my bills I was able to buy my first brand new truck last week a Chevy Colorado Z71 !!!! and at a good interest rate 6%. This may not seam like a big deal to most of you but I used to buy junk used cars at interest rates that should be illegal. Its amazing Thank You All

Too Good...

No idea what my score is, but I'm doing fine. Heck, at 18 I filled in a cc application just to get a t-shirt at a football game. I had no ID on me since I didn't drive that day, but I had no intention of activating the card either, so I openly guessed at info I didn't remember (just little things. You know, things like my driver's license and SIN number - SSN number for you Yanks). Whudathunkit, I was approved! It turns out that the last three numbers I put in for my SIN ended up being the end numbers from my health card. :roflblack

Since then, I've only had one issue, when I forgot to pay $2 on a cc bill about five or six years ago. However, I've gotten my bike loan since then (and the loan officer, who knows me, even changed my app behind my back to give me better rates and shorter loan life), so I'm obviously not that much of a risk.

I am happy to report that after taking care of some loose ends and not being late at all on my bills I was able to buy my first brand new truck last week a Chevy Colorado Z71 !!!! and at a good interest rate 6%. This may not seam like a big deal to most of you but I used to buy junk used cars at interest rates that should be illegal. Its amazing Thank You All

That is awesome!!!! Huge congrats man!

I think there should be more restriction on how companies submit information to the credit bureau. If all the information was proved to be correct then we would never have to check it. However, if you have a dispute with a firm they just report the money they say you owe to the bureau and they may not be entitled to the money in the first place. I have a great score but I like cash better. I also like OPM to buy and them pay the damn thing off in 90 days..... We have had folks want to drop the interest rate to keep the loan open. Sure, keeping it open makes them money. Just be sure there is pre-payment penalty......

The final measure of your credit is based on the following:

* Payment history (35% of the rating)
* Length of credit history (15%)
* New credit (10%)
* Types of credit used (10%)
* Debt (30%)

I see scores in the poll above 850. Is there a new measuring system out there? The highest I have ever seen was 850.....

I'm sure Reign will be able to answer
all the questions, and misconceptions.

TransUnion showed me a scale from
501 to 990 as I said in a previous post.

Kentucky, didn't you mean to say "Just be sure there is NO pre-payment penalty"?

working on year #8 post bankruptcy... did the free Tri-bureau check after being denied a credit card, 777... figured that was respectable all things considered.

I just made the 10 years post bankruptcy in July. Got my free reports a couple of weeks ago. It was soooooooooooooooooooo good to not see the word bankrupcy anywhere on them. We went out and really celebrated that night.

PS. I also learned my lesson. My ex and I lived too close to the edge, then she split. My now-wife and I could make the few payments we have on only one of our incomes if we had to. No where near overextended.

Kentucky, didn't you mean to say "Just be sure there is NO pre-payment penalty"?

Yup, I sure did, sorry.......

While this is true, you also can't build credit if you
haven't at one point or another had loans or a credit cards.
No credit can work much in the same way as bad credit.Credit is not always a good thing. It depends on where you are at in life. Young folks with good credit usually live too high on the hog, and spend decades digging out of the hole. I got my divorce ten years ago, and am finally completely out of debt. It's an unbelievable feeling of freedom to not owe anyone anything. You don't have to kiss anyone's ass. Your boss can eat shit. You only have to depend on yourself.
I paid cash for an 883 this year, and will pay cash for a 1200 conversion this winter. :banana I'm never gonna borrow another dime, so my good credit is useles to me.:clap

Harvey Mushman is correct. Do yourselfs a favor and get out of debt completely. Imagine what you can do with your income if you don't pay banks and credit cards the rest of your life. One medical problem or job loss and hello bankrupt. I know a guy who has absulutely no debt for the last 10 years. His score is 0. He can't get a loan for a house, but he can write a check for one.

I think mushman confuses good credit with
poor financial management skills.
You don't have to owe a lot of money to
build your credit. For example, you can
use a cc for purchases, but pay off the
full balance immediately, avoiding any
charges.
I am close friends with a fellow who
paid 325k cash for his house too.
Problem is, not everyone makes enough
money to have that kind of cash, even
in 10 years - so in the real world that
theory is unrealistic for most middle class folks.
I could save 1k a month for 10 years and still not be
able to buy a decent house here in my area.

A friend of mine once told me an easy way to check your fico score. Next time you get your car serviced or visit the HD dealer, kill the time by saying that you are interested in making a new vehicle purchase and financing it. They will check your fico score before talking to you. Ask to see the score. They will usually oblige. Just don't do it too often. I check it this way every few years and even buy/lease a car occasionally. They get my business and I keep up on my score. :banana

I think mushman confuses good credit with
poor financial management skills.
You don't have to owe a lot of money to
build your credit. For example, you can
use a cc for purchases, but pay off the
full balance immediately, avoiding any
charges.
I am close friends with a fellow who
paid 325k cash for his house too.
Problem is, not everyone makes enough
money to have that kind of cash, even
in 10 years - so in the real world that
theory is unrealistic for most middle class folks.
I could save 1k a month for 10 years and still not be
able to buy a decent house here in my area.

I'm with Xena on this one again! Having good credit and having to use your credit are two very different things. Heck I'm going to be debt free in a few years here and I still plan on having very good credit....again...sometimes financing something just makes more sense...if you are good at making a budget and you have an investment strategy that yields even a modest return then some financing offers (special 0% interest car loans for example) are very much worth it...why take your money out of the bank and stop earning money on it...you can have $25,000 invested somewhere making you money for 3 years instead of buying with cash...it just makes more sense...and if you are disciplined enough to be able to budget then there usually aren't many reasons NOT take a deal like that....that's just one example but there are many others that fit in that category as well...simply put, sometimes you are in a better position (financially) if you finance than if you pay in cash...not always by ANY mean but you will only find these offers if you have good credit. As an example, I was paying 1.3% interest on a vehicle loan with NO collateral and title in hand....now that was worth not paying cash for...my money is simply better used elsewhere...how did I get this deal?...simple I have good credit.

A friend of mine once told me an easy way to check your fico score. Next time you get your car serviced or visit the HD dealer, kill the time by saying that you are interested in making a new vehicle purchase and financing it. They will check your fico score before talking to you. Ask to see the score. They will usually oblige. Just don't do it too often. I check it this way every few years and even buy/lease a car occasionally. They get my business and I keep up on my score. :banana

just a note: you can check it yourself for only $5 when you get your credit report and you can do it as many times as you want and not hurt your score since it's a "soft hit" when you check it yourself. :)

I think mine is in negative numbers,
Discharged a Chapter 13 back in January.
So if I borrow a Quarter I have to pay back $17.00 !!!

But for whatever reason since the chapter 13. I can get approved for anything ????????
Credit cards in the mail everyday mostly junk, But a few with great interest rates, In fact my Card is 0 % for a year.... I do not understand the credit system, Thats why I ended up with a Chapter 13. And really it was the best thing for me to do. Mostly medical bills and unsecured cards.And I kept my mortgage house is 5yrs old.
The real problem has always been that i am basically Irresponsable and don't care what the system thinks about me. Never really cared about a whole lot of nothing, Or so I thought !!!!!

I think mine is in negative numbers,
Discharged a Chapter 13 back in January.
So if I borrow a Quarter I have to pay back $17.00 !!!

But for whatever reason since the chapter 13. I can get approved for anything ????????
Credit cards in the mail everyday mostly junk, But a few with great interest rates, In fact my capitol one is 0 % for a year....

TMIF

somethings people don't need to know IMHO :shhhh

I think mushman confuses good credit with
poor financial management skills.
You don't have to owe a lot of money to
build your credit. For example, you can
use a cc for purchases, but pay off the
full balance immediately, avoiding any
charges.
I am close friends with a fellow who
paid 325k cash for his house too.
Problem is, not everyone makes enough
money to have that kind of cash, even
in 10 years - so in the real world that
theory is unrealistic for most middle class folks.
I could save 1k a month for 10 years and still not be
able to buy a decent house here in my area.


You could save and pay cash but what have you really gained? Your just putting the stress on the front end. I want to enjoy now, I might not even be here then !!!

Whats funny is this.

People will spend time to save Money !!

And

The same people will spend Money to save time !!!!!

example:

Run in the Expensive convienent store "It's just a gallon of milk "

Drive accross town twice to get the best price on something !




Crazy!!!

I dont have credit :)

I dont have any credit cards and never have.No car payments or loans.The only thing I have is my mortgage payment.I owe the phone company and hospitals money from like10 years ago.I am guessing my credit sucks and I have no retirement plan.Dammit.

I must be in left field. I don't care what my credit score is. I don't want any credit period. I pay cash for every thing and that DOESN'T MEAN I AM RICH. It's all about money management.


Do you own a house? Paid cash for it? Great, but most of us can't write a check for $200K.

Credit that's too good is a curse. I get offers for more daily that I have to keep shredding. I'd have to file bankruptcy if I maxed out two of my 3 cards. I only carry a balance on one, + wifes student loan, +car, +house(paid in 2 years:) ). The only reason I've got 3 is the shuffling game to get the lowest interest, that I play occasionally if the one I'm using goes up. Each company wants my balance on THEIR card. :censor I've been late on a payment once in 30+ years. My wife said "oh let it go this payday". I told her "OK, I'll show you what happens". The interest rate tripled, I threw the balance on a lower rate card, and cancelled the high rate one. Good credit, it's a love hate relationship.:redmad

PS - I have no idea what my credit score is. It's probably too high.:frownthre

You can call a 1-800 number and opt out of receiving those offers. Do a web serach for opt out. We did and it cut out 90 percent of them. I understand it takes a few months for you to removed from all the mailing lists.

Mayne I shouldn't say this......Maybe I should.

I haven't used any credit since 1989.

Cash or Checks ONLY.

I guess my credit ratting would be = 0

Although this thread was started before I joined the forum, I'm glad to see it. Reign's advice was worth charging admission for! Having been a previously irresponsible kid, it's been rough getting the credit score up. I never realized how many ways it affects your cost of living on a daily basis. The past three years, I've managed to get my score out of the negative numbers and gradually up to the mid 600's. I know this isn't great, but a credit card at 18 years old was a BAD idea, at least for me.Fortunantly, I've a banker that knows and likes me personally, and buying my house has really helped my score. Thank God, the bad marks on my report go away within the next year, so I should have a nice jump in the ratings this time next year. Also, using the one credit card we now have for a couple of tanks of gas and paying it off every month seems to be helping. Thanks to everyone for the advice in this thread. BTW, Washington Mutual offers credit scores on some of their credit card programs as well.

Jimbo, you're one of the smart ones here. When our grandparents and great-grandparents wanted or needed something, they saved for it. As stated before, you can't go bankrupt if you don't owe anybody. As far as the stress on the front end as mentioned earlier, you are buying in to what the banks, finance companies, credit unions, are selling. "You can't get anywhere without credit." There is no stress when you don't have monthly payments. Make your money work for you, not some financial institution. Just my $.02.

I have never checked my credit rating, but I know it's good. I use credit cards regularly, but never carry a balance, I pay them off monthly, on time. So I use their money for a month, and then pay it. Matter of fact, I bought my sporty with a credit card - when the bill came, I paid it. I always have the cash in an interest paying account to back up any credit I use. When I do get a loan at the credit union, I borrow against my own money in a CD for a low interest rate. It has taken a lot of years to get where I am at, and I have always been very careful with my finances. I am retired and at best "middle class". I always had to work for the money I made, and I want my money to work for me.

Would you like to pay my good credit (cards) off?

Mayne I shouldn't say this......Maybe I should.

I haven't used any credit since 1989.

Cash or Checks ONLY.

I guess my credit ratting would be = 0


uhh yeahhhh.

Jimbo, you're one of the smart ones here. When our grandparents and great-grandparents wanted or needed something, they saved for it. As stated before, you can't go bankrupt if you don't owe anybody. As far as the stress on the front end as mentioned earlier, you are buying in to what the banks, finance companies, credit unions, are selling. "You can't get anywhere without credit." There is no stress when you don't have monthly payments. Make your money work for you, not some financial institution. Just my $.02.

when ur parents and grandparents wanted a home they could probably save and pay cash too. Most ppl today cant do that with homes starting at over 250k. Growing and having credit doesn't need to be a bad thing ....credit in and of itself isn't bad. What is bad about credit is that some people have no clue how to manage it. I believe a class should be taught on it in high school and should be a mandatory class ...probably for seniors in their final semester. Personally i think having no credit isnt smart at all. Having good credit and managing it wisely to ur benefit is.
Dumb ...using credit cards to buy frivolous items and having a balance on ur card and then making minimum payments.
Smart ...buying a refrigerator on a credit card when its an emergency and paying it off quickly.
Mind you credit cards are a very small portion of ur overall credit health but they do count ...especially if ur over extended.
FYI... the best way to build credit ...installment loans paid ON TIME for at least 2 to 3 years steadily, and NO student loans do NOT count, they will build ur credit score but are rarely considered when making a major purchase such as a new car.
Those of you who think it's smart not to have any credit ...a question (I dont care to hear from someone who's bragging about paying cash or was given a home thru the death of a family member either) if you have no credit do you plan on never owning ur own home. It's ok if that's what u want, I just know that most ppl want to have their own homes ... most do at least once in their lifetime.... the better ur credit the less u pay too.

I have never checked my credit rating, but I know it's good. I use credit cards regularly, but never carry a balance, I pay them off monthly, on time. So I use their money for a month, and then pay it. Matter of fact, I bought my sporty with a credit card - when the bill came, I paid it. I always have the cash in an interest paying account to back up any credit I use. When I do get a loan at the credit union, I borrow against my own money in a CD for a low interest rate. It has taken a lot of years to get where I am at, and I have always been very careful with my finances. I am retired and at best "middle class". I always had to work for the money I made, and I want my money to work for me.


ur a good example of how to make credit work in ur favor ...im sure ur credit is quite healthy for it too. wtg!

Although this thread was started before I joined the forum, I'm glad to see it. Reign's advice was worth charging admission for! Having been a previously irresponsible kid, it's been rough getting the credit score up. I never realized how many ways it affects your cost of living on a daily basis. The past three years, I've managed to get my score out of the negative numbers and gradually up to the mid 600's. I know this isn't great, but a credit card at 18 years old was a BAD idea, at least for me.Fortunantly, I've a banker that knows and likes me personally, and buying my house has really helped my score. Thank God, the bad marks on my report go away within the next year, so I should have a nice jump in the ratings this time next year. Also, using the one credit card we now have for a couple of tanks of gas and paying it off every month seems to be helping. Thanks to everyone for the advice in this thread. BTW, Washington Mutual offers credit scores on some of their credit card programs as well.


lesson learned the hard way ...but im sure u'll hold the info u now have near and dear. u my friend are well on ur way to a healthy credit future ...good job!

While this is true, you also can't build credit if you
haven't at one point or another had loans or a credit cards.
No credit can work much in the same way as bad credit.


while this is true what has happened over the years is that financial lenders have figured out a way to make people PAY to establish their credit now. If you have no credit at all it's worse than having bad credit because it's a guaranteed high interest rate (without a co-signer) if you can even get a loan.
Example... u have zero credit... u want to buy a car that is $20k ...u don't have all of the cash. let's say it's not even a new car. If you don't at least have 20 to 25% down you are not getting that car and if you do in the state where i live u'll pay the top interest rate allowed by law which is 21.9% ...but if u have tarnished credit with a score of lets say 650 u'll 0nly pay 10.9% ...now if you go ahead and get the loan (and make all payments on time) in as little as approximately 2 years that zero credit will soar up to the 650 score range, give it a few more months ( about 6 mos)and it'll be in the 700's. Now with a score like that u can get a zero % interest rate or something like 2 or 3.9% ...savings? ...hell yeah!

My older brother declared bankruptcy at 25.:eek:
So I learned at a good age to watch my credit.
I use my credit card(s) for 95% of my purchases BUT every day I use one, I place CASH in an envelope at home in the same amount. When the bill comes I go to my bank, hand 'em my statement and a wad of cash. Paid in full.
I put my sporty down payment on the card and then wrote a check to pay off the card.

My credit score (just checked last week) is 925.
All of it is from making house payments ON TIME, and using and paying my cards off monthly.

Do whatever it takes, get your balance of everything (except for car and home) down to zero and pay in full monthly.

yes, yes and YES!

Harvey Mushman is correct. Do yourselfs a favor and get out of debt completely. Imagine what you can do with your income if you don't pay banks and credit cards the rest of your life. One medical problem or job loss and hello bankrupt. I know a guy who has absulutely no debt for the last 10 years. His score is 0. He can't get a loan for a house, but he can write a check for one.


i disagree. but i do agree that being over extended and paying on frivilous debt is stupid. few people can afford to pay cash for a new car or house and quite frankly there are better things u can do with ur saved cash like invest for ur retirement.

I'm sure Reign will be able to answer
all the questions, and misconceptions.

TransUnion showed me a scale from
501 to 990 as I said in a previous post.

Kentucky, didn't you mean to say "Just be sure there is NO pre-payment penalty"?


yup ...that is correct!

I dont have any credit cards and never have.No car payments or loans.The only thing I have is my mortgage payment.I owe the phone company and hospitals money from like10 years ago.I am guessing my credit sucks and I have no retirement plan.Dammit.


if you have a mortgage u have credit and if u pay it on time u probably have good credit in spite of the fact that u owe some medicals ...i'd be most concerned with paying the old phone company debt if any thing but i'd check my credit report first. why? ...they may have written it off by now which for u means ...u dont owe them anymore. they cant (at least in my state) collect on debt that has been written off.

It should be noted that the better your credit score the cheaper your insurance car and motorcycle.
Just got my progressive bill for full coverage for the year on the sport $145:banana

It should be noted that the better your credit score the cheaper your insurance car and motorcycle.
Just got my progressive bill for full coverage for the year on the sport $145:banana


yes thats true ..insurance companies are ALLOWED to charge you more if ur any kind of credit risk... why? because studies showed them that those with bad credit had more accidents! ha! whether thats true or not, what is true, is that u WILL pay more if u have no credit or bad credit.

In March I applied for a mortgage on a house (second home I've owned). I was pleasantly surprised to find out I had a credit score of 823, although my lender said they couldn't give any better deal on an interest rate after a score of 750! I thought that sucked! Got 5.75%, no points.


please tell me ur not whining about this :smoke

I am glad to see this thread back I must say it really hit home for me the advice may sound simple for most but thing like always pay your house payment on time before the cable bill really helped me. Reign’s input was great I hope she reads the new posts.

I am happy to report that after taking care of some loose ends and not being late at all on my bills I was able to buy my first brand new truck last week a Chevy Colorado Z71 !!!! and at a good interest rate 6%. This may not seam like a big deal to most of you but I used to buy junk used cars at interest rates that should be illegal. Its amazing Thank You All

im glad it helped you, and yes ur mortgage and car payments are your foremost important bills to pay before any others ALWAYS! if u need help sorting ur bills out into an order of importance u can ask here or email me privately ...and if anyone ever has a question ...if im able to give you good solid advice i will ...i'll also let u know if im not certain but usually there's someone i can ask if i don't know.