Credit Reports and Scores-Ohio

Home Ohio Credit & Debt Credit Reports & Scores

Ordering Them	Correcting Them/Rebuilding Credit
Understanding Them	Your Legal Rights

Credit Scores

Get Your Free Credit Score.
E-loan will give you your one time free credit score just for filling out a loan profile. There is no requirement to apply for a loan, and no fee for the service -- just log on and answer a few questions about the kinds of credit information that would be useful to you. Then, fill in your name, your Social Security number, your address, and the first six digits of any credit card account or installment loan you have. Within a few hours, you have the same number that lenders use to determine just how fast they'll say yes to your loan application.

Free Credit Score (If You Cancel in 7 days)
You may be automatically enrolled in a credit Monitoring program but can cancel within 7 days.
To Cancel Click Here.

Free Credit Score For Providian Card Holders
If you have a Providian credit card, establish a user name an login ID to see your free credit score.

Your FICO Credit Score (Fair, Isaac and Company)
Learn why it's important and how to raise it, right from the company that invented it.

Your Credit Score
What’s a good and bad score and the weight each factor has in deciding your score.

Interest Rates for a Car or House Based on Your Score

Percentage Of US Population With Particular Credit Scores

Some statistics about the score distribution (percentiles)

15% of the US population is below 600
35% of the US population is below 670
50% of the US population is below 710
70% of the US population is below 755
90% of the US population is below 790

Ordering Them

You Should Always Order All Three Credit Reports As One of Them Could Contain Wrong Information Not Found On The Others.

How Do I Check My Credit Report (Ohio)

Credit Scores (Consumer-SOS)
A good credit score is like having a good SAT score. If your score is high, creditors love you and will give you cheap rates. If your score is low, you'll have to work twice as hard just to get the loan.

One Spot To Order All 3 Credit Reports
Order a free credit credit report on line, by phone or by mail from each of the nationwide consumer credit reporting companies: Equifax, Experian and TransUnion.

Trans Union
Can order credit reports by phone or by mail. Reports are free if you've been denied credit in the last 60 days, live on welfare or suspect fraudulent items on your credit report. Colorado, Georgia, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey and Vermont residents are automatically entitled to a free report regardless of their circumstances.

Experian
Can order free copies of your credit report online if you've been denied credit in the last 60 days, live on welfare or suspect fraudulent items on your credit report. Colorado, Georgia, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey and Vermont residents are automatically entitled to a free report regardless of their circumstances.

Equifax (Scroll Down Page for Free Credit Report Info)
Can order free copies of your credit report by phone if you've been denied credit in the last 60 days, live on welfare or suspect fraudulent items on your credit report. Colorado, Georgia, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey and Vermont residents are automatically entitled to a free report regardless of their circumstances. For a fee you can also order your credit report online.

Request For Credit Report
Fill in the blank form for requesting your credit report.

Cost of Obtaining Your Credit Report (All 50 States & DC)

Free Credit Reports

Your Credit Report: What Lenders Look At -- And Where They Draw The Lines

How Time Affects Your Report (Consumer-SOS)

Negative Items-How Long They Stay On Your Report

The Negative Info That Hurts Most

http://mix6.com/credit/credit.html#TOC
A great site on the ins and outs of credit and credit reports. Learn how to challenge credit reporting errors, order your free credit report on line and what your credit report can and can't be used for. It also tells you how to rebuild and improve your credit, supplies sample form letters, tells you about the laws that control debt collectors and has lots of valuable help agencies.

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Correcting Them/Rebuilding Credit

Credit Repair (Consumer-SOS)

Credit Inquiries-What Are They & How To Erase Them (Consumer-SOS)

Correcting Mistakes (Consumer-SOS)

Notice To Correct Credit Report (Form Letter)
Fill in the blank form for correcting your credit report.

More Form Letters
Once on page scroll down for even more form letters.

Where To Go For Help (Consumer-SOS)
Getting help from the government, non-profits and the media.

Your Legal Rights (Credit Reports)

Credit Freeze Act (Ohio)
Requires credit reporting agencies to allow consumers to place a “freeze” on each of their credit reports to prevent opening new credit accounts in the consumers' names.
The security freeze is designed to prevent credit, loans, and services from being approved in consumers’ names without their consent.

Brochures From The Federal Trade Commission

Where To Go For Help (Consumer-SOS)
Getting help from the government, non-profits and the media.

Who Can View Your Credit Report?
Lists the legal and illegal reasons people can access your credit report under the Graham, Leach, Bliley Act. See also Google Search on Graham Leach, Bliley Act illegal background Check.

State & Federal Laws Governing Credit Matters (All 50 States)
Select Ohio and see what additional protections your state offers in addition to federal law. For federal laws, scroll down to their federal section and click on the link of your choice.

Credit Laws, Bankruptcy, ID Theft, etc (Consumer-SOS)

http://mix6.com/credit/credit.html#TOC
A great site on the ins and outs of credit and credit reports. Learn how to challenge credit reporting errors, order your free credit report on line and what your credit report can and can't be used for. It also tells you how to rebuild and improve your credit, supplies sample form letters, tells you about the laws that control debt collectors and has lots of valuable help agencies.

See Credit Laws

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Credit Reports/Correcting Mistakes

Correcting Mistakes: An Overview (Consumer-SOS)

7 Steps To Fixing Your Credit Report

Fair Credit Billing Act
Establishes procedures for the prompt correction of errors on open-end credit accounts. It also protects a consumer's credit rating while the consumer is settling a dispute.

Using The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act Debt Collection Letter
Use this letter to ask collection agencies to provide you with information concerning their basis for claiming that you owe a debt ("verification of the debt") and also ask them to stop contacting you. This only applies to collection agencies, not to creditors who directly sold you goods or gave you credit or loaned you money.

Fair Credit Reporting Act
Establishes procedures for correcting mistakes on an individual's credit record. A credit record may be retained seven years for judgments, liens, suits and other adverse information except for bankruptcies, which may be retained ten years. If a consumer has been denied credit, a free credit report may be requested within 30 days of denial.

Fair Credit Reporting Act Amendment(1996)
Strengthens privacy provisions and defines more clearly the responsibilities and liabilities of businesses that provide information to-and access data from-credit reporting agencies.

Where To Go For Help (Consumer-SOS)
Getting help from the government, non-profits and the media.

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Credit Inquiries-How They Affect Your Credit Report
There are two types of inquiries: Internal and External.

Internal Inquiries are completely harmless and occur when your existing creditors check up on you and also when you request a copy of your own credit report. Internal inquiries are never seen by potential creditors.

But "External inquiries" are another matter entirely. An "external inquiry" is triggered when a consumer applies for a credit card, line of credit, loan or mortgage or gives permission to a potential employer to make a credit check. Frequent external inquiries may be viewed as a sign of iffy credit.

See How To Erase Credit Inquiries

The reason is that lenders won't know the exact details of this inquiry for the next 90 days. All they see is that something else is going on, something that may perhaps make you a greater risk

Their thoughts may go something like this: "I don't know what this is on John's credit report but I bet he's applied for more credit. If He's got a new credit card, I bet he's also got into more debt! And If he's in more debt then he's likely not to pay us back if we give him a loan. Let's reject his application and play it safe." Of course, the creditor could wait the 90 days to see what John had applied for, but usually, they won't. In this case, John had merely applied for a credit card and been rejected.

But paranoia got the better of them and now John's out of luck.

To avoid this trap, make sure there are no external credit checks within 90 days of when you're ready to apply for a mortgage or loan. To ensure no inquiries are made without your permission, you'll want to put a stop to unsolicited "pre-approved" credit-card offers and the like. Shred the ones you receive before throwing them away. For More Details see How To Erase Credit Inquiries

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How Time Affects Your Credit Report

Summary: Learn how credit reports work, how long debt remains on them and how to correct errors.

There are no quick or easy cures for a poor credit history. If a credit repair company promises you it can clean up your credit report, remember the following:

your credit history is maintained by private companies called credit bureaus that collect information reported to them by banks, mortgage companies, department stores, and other creditors; these credit bureaus can legally report accurate negative credit information for seven years and bankruptcy information for ten years;

accurate items that are within the seven (or ten) year reporting period cannot be erased from your credit record by companies advertising "credit repair" services;
if you have a poor credit history - even if your past problems were due to illness or unemployment - time is the only thing that will heal your credit report;
the only information in your credit report that can be changed are items that are actually wrong or beyond the seven (or ten) year reporting period;
if there are genuine mistakes or outdated items in your report, you can fix them yourself.

IN FACT, YOU CAN DO ANYTHING A CREDIT REPAIR COMPANY CAN DO - FOR FREE OR FOR ONLY A FEW DOLLARS.

WHAT'S IN YOUR CREDIT REPORT?

If you're having trouble getting credit, try checking your credit report yourself. The credit report tells how you've managed your credit in the past. Companies examine your credit report before deciding whether to give you credit. When a company denies your request for credit because of your credit report, it must tell you so and identify the bureau that supplied the report.

Credit bureaus are required by law to share with you any information they have on file about you. You can find out what's in your credit report by taking the following steps:

Contact local credit bureaus. You can find them listed in the telephone Yellow Pages under "Credit Bureaus" or "Credit Reporting Agencies." Your local bank or retailer may also be able to identify them.
Ask for a copy of your credit report. There may be a fee of $5 to $20, but if you've been denied credit within the past 30 days, your credit report is free.
Most credit bureaus will mail you a copy of your report. Under the law, you also have the right to visit their offices to review your credit report in person.

HOW TO CORRECT MISTAKES IN YOUR REPORT

Review your credit report for any mistakes or information more than seven years old (ten years for bankruptcy). If you don't understand something, ask. The credit bureau is required by law to explain your report to you. If there are mistakes, you can take the following actions:

1. Notify the credit bureau of the problem and provide as much information as you can about what is wrong with the report. The bureau must-at no charge to you-reinvestigate the disputed information. It then must correct any mistake or delete any information it cannot verify. At your request, the bureau must send a corrected copy of your report to anyone who received the incorrect version within the past six months.
2. Sometimes, it is also helpful to contact the creditor directly to ensure that the creditor's records are correct.
3. If these steps don't resolve things, you can file a written statement of up to 100 words with the credit bureau explaining your side of the story. This explanation will be included in your credit report.

For More Help:

CONTACT:

Federal Trade Commission
Credit Practices Division
Washington, D.C. 20580