Friday, May 21, 2010

Free credit score...numbers included

For awhile now we've heard friends, family, colleagues, coworkers, mentors, authors, singers, acto....okay you get the point.  Anyways, there's always a complaint that getting your credit report is not the same as getting your credit score. And when getting your actual score, companies hound you to sign up for their service to keep your credit score available. Well no more...

Earlier this week the Senate voted to pass the enormous financial reform and in it, an amendment that requires credit reports to include numerical credit scores.  Now you'll be able to see exactly what number that loan officer will see when you apply for a business loan.  Or the mortgage broker that chooses whether or not to refinance your house. Most importantly, you'll have an idea of how much to save before attempting to leverage equity with debt.

When applying for a loan you never really know what your actual credit score is, although you can usually "guesstimate" and get within the ball park.  Now individuals will be able to correctly assess how much cash, or liquid assets, you will need in order to match the criteria for large and small loans. Even with the advent of the credit crunch and the crackdown on passing out loans and credit cards like candy;  you can still get to the "sweet-spot" on a banks' "yes" list.

When, better stay politically correct...if the reform passes, the people serious about getting loans will simply have to look at their credit score, ask for a loan quote, and then focus on improving their personal financial statements.  When the credit score changes after 4-8 months, ask for another quote to see if you are now a more favorable "risk" to lending institutions.  We would imagine an individual could in fact shop around to other banks to see who will be the best at the age old game, "who can give me the lowest interest rate."

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