Credit score is key for lenders - Columnists

This story is mildly misleading. The annual free credit report DOES NOT include FICO credit scores. The three dirtbag bureaus have stopped providing this and require you to pony up $7 to see your own FICO.

The FTC has allowed the dirtbag agencies to withold the FICO in contradiction with the spirit of the free report law.

So the greedy infowhores make money twice. First they sell your private details to any Tom, Dick or Harry with a check and then they charge you to see what's yours.

Hates them all wrote:

This story is mildly misleading. The annual free credit report DOES NOT include FICO credit scores. The three dirtbag bureaus have stopped providing this and require you to pony up $7 to see your own FICO.
The FTC has allowed the dirtbag agencies to withold the FICO in contradiction with the spirit of the free report law.
So the greedy infowhores make money twice. First they sell your private details to any Tom, Dick or Harry with a check and then they charge you to see what's yours.

You are exactly right and I'm as angry as you are! The same thing happened to me so I still don't know my FICO score. Shame!!!!!

Do SB reporters actually report? Do the editors ever verify?

Agreed. The reporter needs to fix the story -- teens and 20-somethings may be harmed by her incorrect definitions.

It's also worth noting that credit "scores" don't always include all your information. In my case, I saw my credit score two months after pulling my credit reports through the free annual report system. Guess what? About a third of my actual history (as documented in the reports) made it to my score. What was missing? Some of my longest-lived credit history. This did not end up harming me, but for someone with less credit history, this could cause problems.

The other thing is that unless you come to some harm by an error in a credit report (not score), it is very difficult to get the Big 3 reporting agencies to fix their errors. Wrong age? Incomplete info? They could care less. Just try googling their customer-service tollfree numbers and you will see that these change every 6 months. They are much more interested in making money than in responding to valid concerns by the subjects of these reports.

Misleading advertising!!
The FICO is only available to lawyers and businesses. It's a totally different report from what you and I get. Ask me how I know.

Report them buggas to the FTC, BBB, Office of Consumer Affairs, etc. Don't let these scumbags off the hook!!

Warning: check your credit history often. I found enough old and outdated information and challenged it. After a few heated letters it was enough to adjust my score upwards by almost 80 points. Don't sit back and let these dodos screw you up!

"The only authorized source for your free annual credit report under federal law comes from AnnualCreditReport.com . The Fair Credit Reporting Act guarantees you access to a free credit report from each of the three nationwide reporting agencies — Experian, Equifax and TransUnion — every 12 months. But you get them through AnnualCreditReport.com ."

The FICO score apparently caused some confusion by readers. You are not entitled to view your FICO score for free. You are entitled to a free credit report from one of the three nationwide reporting agencies every 12 months. Experian, Equifax and TransUnion each have different credit reports and some may find one company's report easier to understand than the other two's.

Since you are entitled to one report every 12 months, try requesting a report from each reporting agency 4 months apart so you will receive regular reports from all three of the agencies. If one agency messes up and forgets or fails to report something negative on your credit report, you may be able to catch errors through one of the other two credit reporting agencies.

You are absolutely correct! The whole point of the law called FACTA was to provide free access to ones credit report from each of the three credit repositories, every 12 months. FACTA did not contain language or a directive stating that Fair Issac Corporation (FICO) who's scoring model is used by Experian, Equifax and Transunion provide a free score. Since December of 2005 when the program was rolled out, the only website authorized for the purpose of pulling ones credit report stated that there is a cost for FICO scores. If there is anyone these disgruntled posters show be upset with, it should be themselves. They didn't take the time to read ....

realmerv wrote:

"The only authorized source for your free annual credit report under federal law comes from AnnualCreditReport.com . The Fair Credit Reporting Act guarantees you access to a free credit report from each of the three nationwide reporting agencies — Experian, Equifax and TransUnion — every 12 months. But you get them through AnnualCreditReport.com ."
The FICO score apparently caused some confusion by readers. You are not entitled to view your FICO score for free. You are entitled to a free credit report from one of the three nationwide reporting agencies every 12 months. Experian, Equifax and TransUnion each have different credit reports and some may find one company's report easier to understand than the other two's.
Since you are entitled to one report every 12 months, try requesting a report from each reporting agency 4 months apart so you will receive regular reports from all three of the agencies. If one agency messes up and forgets or fails to report something negative on your credit report, you may be able to catch errors through one of the other two credit reporting agencies.

Credit reports that businesses get include deliquent credit card payments as well as credit depth.

I've always felt that the whole credit scoring system needs to be shut down. This bad economy has left many of us with less than "Well-qualified" status. Yeah the banks are lending but only to those who really don't need to refinance.

This stimulus bailout won't help those it was intended for.

I sold cars. I would get a customer right up to a price both of us were good with. But then the credit score shot them down. Why? Because they were one month late on their Bank of America credit card and their interest rate shot up to 30% and suddenly they were considered too high of a risk by BoH and FHB.

Good people in hard times.

"It measures your ability to pay, not how much you make. The score ranges from 300 to 850, with higher being better. Most scores fall in the 600s and 700s."

And that FICO range won't get you refinanced in most cases. 700 means you're probably tilting out of the tier 2 range. Nowdays the major banks won't touch you with a 700 score. Too risky.

Even buying a car has it's limitations. There was a time when qualifying for a car loan was for "Qualified" buyers only, now it's "Well Qualified" buyers, mostly in the tier 1 range. In other words only those who are laughing at this recession.

Actually the whole process is a sham. The only way the process works is for you to be constantly in debt. "No debt, no payment history, no credit score" (or at least not a good one according to them).
The trick is to live within your means, not to accrue debt, and put your hard earned money towards "positive" interest building (a.k.a. wealth building).
Thank you Dave Ramsey! I'm debt free, except the mortgage and that's my next target.

don't let the "facts" in this article confuse you.

all the bureaus use FICO they don't come up with their own score. what creates the differences om the numbers is whether a creditor reports to all bureaus.

the score does not measure your ability to pay. that's called capacity and since the FICO looks in the past and does not include income there is no way ability is measured. it measures character not capacity.

and to all who think this information is yours will you please pony up your share of the it costs to store and retrieve the credit information and the cost to pay the math guys you came up with the equation to calculate the scores. even free stuff costs someone somewhere.