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Credit Score: Free Experian

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Photograph Credit: Microsoft Images

Did you request your free credit report(s)? If you requested by phone, then you may still be waiting for those reports to be delivered. While you’re waiting, you can view your credit score for free.

According to My FICO, the three types of FICO (which stands for Fair Isaac Corporation – the company that creates the software for the credit bureaus) credit scores from the three credit bureaus are: the Experian/Fair Isaac Risk Model score from Experian, the EMPIRICA score from TransUnion, and the BEACON score from Equifax. I will share today how I get our Experian score for free.

What is a credit score? Your credit score is calculated based on the information in your credit report. Having an accurate credit report with Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion will give you accurate credit scores.

This score is determined from your past and current accounts to help lenders make a decision on extending credit to you.  If you needed to open a credit card, line of credit, car loan, etc., then the company with which you desire to borrow money will ask to pull your credit score. Usually companies have a predetermined number to which they will extend credit.

Your score will increase and decrease in point value based on a number of items:

1. How many times your credit is checked? You can check it as often as you like without affecting your score. But each time there is a hard pull from a possible lender, you can lose up to 3 points. If you are looking for a lender, then only allow businesses you are seriously considering to pull your credit. This same principle applies to credit cards. Be sure you will use that Sears card before allowing the employee to pull your credit during the credit card application.

2. How many times you were late with a payment? Having a delinquent account will hinder your score. If you find errors on your credit report, then address them immediately with the creditor.

3. How long your oldest account has been active? Creditors like to see that you have accounts in good standing for long periods of time. Over ten years is a great goal. If you find that your oldest account is just lying around and not being used, then put it away safely. DO NOT CLOSE THAT ACCOUNT. You want to keep your oldest account open, active, and in good standing.

4. The debt owed to available credit ratio. Your score will increase if you have more available credit through your credit limits than you have debt. If you are considering closing an account that has a $10,000 credit limit, you might want to consider how closing that account will influence your credit score.

Though I am not an expert in this field, I have researched to find how to keep my finances in check. I am just sharing what I have learned along the way. My goal is to make sure my credit reports are accurate and that my credit score is in good, very good, or excellent status. In the event I need to refinance my home, I am already in a good financial position to move forward.

OK, enough about what the credit score is and why it is important . . . let’s get your credit score for free!

If you are following the schedule I use, then you may have requested an Experian report. Since I choose to request via telephone, I have to wait 2-3 weeks before the report is delivered to my mailbox. If you live in a neighborhood with mail theft, dislike paperwork, or prefer the immediate on-line version, then you could download your Experian annual credit report and credit score at the same time from www.Quizzle.com.

NEW INFORMATION ADDED on April 22, 2012: This Update on Quizzle article gives the most current information regarding requesting your free Experian score through Quizzle.

TIP: If you have already requested your report from www.AnnualCreditReport.com, then don’t request your credit report from www.Quizzle.com. You will be charged a fee since you already have one free report for the year.

SIDE NOTE: I am extremely careful with our social security numbers. So, I do not make a practice of giving out our numbers on-line or over the phone. However, if I have to give it, then I prefer over the phone. At a later time, I will share how I put passwords on our accounts to circumvent using our social security numbers for identification. Currently Quizzle is advertising no social security number required. You can make your own decision how to proceed. I am just passing along the information I have gained along the way.

What is Quizzle? Besides a funny sounding name, it is a free service to help you manage your money. In addition to providing your free Experian credit report and Experian credit score, you can also view a snapshot of your financial situation. I find it useful to see how we are doing and where we can improve.

Unlike your credit report, your credit score can be checked as often as you like. After you register with Quizzle, you will only need to log-in to check your score and overview of your accounts. This service is useful if you have already pulled your credit report for the year, and you closed an account.

You can see that your account was closed by pulling your credit report from a different agency (i.e. Equifax or TransUnion). Then you can see how your credit score was affected by logging into your Quizzle account. I really like the checks and balances that Quizzle helps me keep with our finances.

I first heard of Quizzle from Moolanomy’s post here. He gives a good explanation of the free service. I have registered with Quizzle, and I do get e-mail reminders and advertisements.  (Remember, it is free).

How do I use Quizzle? I wait to use Quizzle until I have Paul’s Experian credit report in hand, and I review it for errors. When I am sure all the information is correct, then I log-in to Quizzle and choose “get my credit score.” The score will be generated immediately, and then I view, scan, and print it. I also review our big picture to see how we are doing.

ANOTHER SIDE NOTE: Experian uses a 360-840 scale rather than the usual 300-850 scale. Most individuals will rank between 650 to 750, where 700 is good, 750 is very good, and everything above 800 is excellent.

Once I print the credit score and the overview, I staple them together, and place it behind Paul’s current Experian credit report. I then place both the credit report and the score paperwork into File Box #1, the front pocket labeled Credit Reports/Card documents. I then put the file away until the next credit report arrives.

Next week, I will share how I get our TransUnion credit scores for free as well!

Credit Report: Schedule

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Photograph Credit: Microsoft Images

Last Sunday’s post covered the “how” I receive our free credit reports. Today, I will share “when” I request the reports.

I use the telephone option to request our reports. During that call, I am given the option to order one, two, or all three of my credit reports. I choose to only request one report for my husband and a different report for myself. (If you are requesting for yourself, then just follow the schedule for Paul.)

Every four months, I repeat the requests with different reports. At the end of the year, I will have requested a report from each of the 3 credit bureaus for Paul and myself for a total of 6 reports: 2 Experian, 2 Equifax, and 2 TransUnion. My schedule is as follows:

FEBRUARY

  • Paul – Experian
  • Tracy – TransUnion

JUNE

  • Paul – Equifax
  • Tracy – Experian

OCTOBER

  • Paul – TransUnion
  • Tracy – Equifax

On my calendar I have noted the date that I need to request our credit reports. Since you can request one report per year, I make sure that the date I choose to request is PAST the date the current report was prepared.

If you were to follow my schedule, then you would have a March, July, and November schedule. Before you request the first one, I would check to see if you have any credit reports. If you don’t find any, then I would just start with this schedule. If you find one or more, then look at the date prepared. If it is more than a year old, then I would start over with this schedule. But if you find that you did request your reports last year, then start after the date those reports were prepared. You don’t want to be charged for your reports when you can get them for free!

Next week, I will share how I get our credit scores for free!

Credit Report: Reporting Agencies

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Photograph Credit: Microsoft Images

Before I proceed any further, I need to clarify that this series on how I file my important paperwork is not meant to suggest that I am a financial adviser or authority.

I will share what I have learned along the way from researching these different topics, but I am not suggesting that your file should be a duplicate of my file. This organizational system is just a suggestion for filing away your important papers to save time when needing to locate a document.

With that said, I will begin with the documents in Box 1. The first pocket houses our credit reports. These reports are obtained from the three credit reporting agencies: Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion.

You DO NOT have to pay for your credit reports. I choose to request my reports by phone (1-877-322-8228). I like to have the paper version sent to me. This is my preference. If you prefer to request your reports online, the website is www.AnnualCreditReport.com. Here is an excerpt from their website:

You may request your free credit report online, request your report by phone or request your report through the mail. Free credit reports requested online are viewable immediately upon authentication of identity. Free credit reports requested by phone or mail will be processed within 15 days of receiving your request.

This central site allows you to request a free credit file disclosure, commonly called a credit report, once every 12 months from each of the nationwide consumer credit reporting companies: Equifax, Experian and TransUnion.

AnnualCreditReport.com is the official site to help consumers to obtain their free credit report.

We guard your privacy. Please be aware of how you arrived at this site. To ensure that you are visiting the legitimate site, type https://www.annualcreditreport.com directly into the address bar on your browser. You will never receive an email directly from the Annual Credit Report Request Service. For further information please read the Security Policy.

For companies that advertise a free credit report with their service like freecreditreport.com, you are paying for the monitoring service. I do not use a monitoring service since I check our credit reports every four months. I will share next week the schedule I follow when requesting our reports. I do not request them all at the same time because I want to keep an eye on our reports all year. Feel free to ask questions. I will do my best to share my experience or point you in the direction where I would research an answer to your question.

An Organized Filing System

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Photograph Credit: Microsoft Images

After my husband and I were married, we found ourselves without an organizational system for our finances. We had his accounts and her accounts.

As we tried to determine the best way to merge our lives, we sought financial advice. Since my uncle is in the financial field, I picked his brain.

He graciously answered our questions and guided us on our way. For Christmas that year, he gave us Suze Orman’s The Road to Wealth.

I read the book cover to cover and implemented a lot of her ideas. I do not agree with everything she promotes.

Without taking her stance on prenuptial agreements and her legal advice, I can agree with her stance on money. Her advice has helped my husband and I make knowledgeable decisions on insurance and ROTH IRAs.

A few years after mapping out our financial plan, I purchased a kit designed by Suze Orman to house all our financial paperwork. The kit was purchased through the local PBS at a special price during a Suze Orman presentation. Some of the proceeds of each purchase went to support our local Public Broadcasting Station.

The kit ended up being too small for all our important documents, so I purchased three legal-sized accordion files. Here is a breakdown of the documentation housed in each box:

Box 1 of 3

  • Credit reports and credit cards
  • Personal records
  • Home ownership
  • Vehicles

Box 2 of 3

  • Personal insurance
  • Life insurance
  • Major medical insurance
  • Health savings account/medical spending account
  • Prescription coverage
  • Dental insurance
  • Critical illness/cancer/stem cell paperwork
  • Short term disability
  • Long term disability

Box 3 of 3

  • Social Security
  • Retirement accounts
  • Investment accounts
  • Estate planning
  • Tax records

In upcoming posts, I will outline what I have included in each of these sections. These items are based on Suze Orman’s advice, but I will share what system has worked for me. You might find that another system works best for you.

For me, having all our important documents in one place makes finding birth certificates, passports, insurance polices, etc. quick to locate since I know in which file to look. I also save money since I don’t have to pay for additional copies of birth certificates, passports, or credit reports.

All the documents are in these files. This organizational system has saved and continues to save me time and money.

Question: Do you have all your important documents organized in one spot? How have you organized your files to save you time in looking for paperwork? I would love to hear about your organizational system.

Tackling Piles of Important Documents

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Photograph Credit: Microsoft Images

Having a special place for all your personal documents, records, and policies will make accessing these items easy. When my husband and I were married over twelve years ago, I remember finding his box of paperwork. Yes, a Xerox copy paper box held a large stack of credit card statements, hospital birth record, payment records, and policies. When I found this box, I knew I had lots of work ahead of me.

After sorting all the items into piles of similar items, I then labeled file folders and placed each stack into its own folder. I then added his documents to the filing cabinet of documents I brought into our marriage. In surveying our documents, I discovered that there were lots of items missing from my husband’s personal records, but I did not know what was missing or where to begin finding an organized system.

About six years later, I found a system that worked for me: The Protection Portfolio by Suze Orman. This portfolio consisted of a dark green binder box with pockets for each category. She also included a book and CD. I love the checklists she included for each section to be sure all your important documents are safe and easily accessible.

I would highly recommend Miss Orman’s Protection Portfolio; however, I found the one box to be too small for all our documents. I also felt there were additional documents I needed to include. Therefore, my system consists of five accordion-style files.

Each Sunday, I will walk you through my files which I organized based on Suze Orman’s Protection Portfolio. Next Sunday, I will start with my first file and the first pocket: Credit Report and Credit Card Documents.