Keep An Eye On Your Credit Score

By Joseph Ducat

A few years ago, I wanted to buy a car and so I approached a loan company to come up with the money. This big, well-known, respectable institution turned me down flat. In my disappointment, I learned that their background check on me had turned up a couple of missed payments on my credit card, and that was enough for them to deny me the loan. You can imagine how concerned I became that I had a bad credit history. That concern drove me to find out what my actual credit score was. It took a little online investigation for me to get my score, and to my surprise and relief, it was a much better score than I had expected.

Even if no one has turned you down for a loan, you may want to know what your credit score is. You'll be glad to know it's something you can find out in a matter of mouse clicks. Simply typing "credit score" in a web search will bring up a wealth of links to credit score report providers.

But first, one must understand exactly what a "credit score" is. There are actually several different versions of a person's score, the best-known probably being the FICO score, in use since 1989. Additionally, three different scores are available from the three major credit reporting agencies competing with FICO. These are the Experian, TransUnion, and EquiFax scores. These scores are not considered as credible as the FICO score, but they are available at a lower cost.

I do suggest that, if you are looking for your credit score, you seek out the FICO statistic, as it remains the most respectable and widely-used. If you try a simple Internet search for "fico," you will find the sites myfico.com and fico.com among the top search results. These sites will provide you with a FICO score report for around $15 or even lower.

To get the report, you must sign up for an account at one of the sites. You provide your personal information, including full name, address, and Social Security number. You will also need to provide a valid email address. Once you sign up, you will enjoy a free 30-day trial period, during which you can avail of your score.

Your account will also allow you to monitor your score and get alerts should it experience any changes. With such information in your hands, I expect you will soon start seeing it change for the better. Before you know it, you'll will be able to get better interest rates on loans and better deals on credit cards.

If you want to learn more about your Credit Rating and get more information on how your FICO Score can affect your finances, please visit http://www.getbettercredit.info/