Your Credit Score Is Not a Secret!
October 4, 2018
I’m sure you’ve seen the TV ads. Social media posts. Direct mail.
Virtually everyone (mostly credit card companies) is offering you the ability to sign up, view your credit score and get notified if your credit score changes.
Now, you can also sign up to be notified if a company performs a credit check on you too.
But did you know that in addition to getting your credit score, you are entitled to receive an explanation of the range of the score and a graph on how your score compares to other consumer scores.
This applies to everyone — mortgage companies, auto dealerships, credit card companies, landlords, insurance agents, utilities — basically anyone who uses a credit score.
While you can view your credit scores, what if you are not happy about what has been reported? Here are some tips if you wish to challenge the score:
- Contact the creditor who sent you your score and ask how many points are needed to get the best rates. If they tell you 15 or 20, it’s fairly easy to get it increased. If it’s 100, you’ve got your work cut out for you.
- If you’re planning on requesting credit in the future, order a credit report ahead of time and see what’s on it. The law allows you one free credit report every year AnnualCreditReport.com. However, a credit score is NOT included so consider buying your credit score ahead of time www.MyFico.com.
- Learn what goes into a credit score. MyFico has educational credit score videos with great explanations on what influences credit scores.
If you decide to buy your credit score, be careful NOT to accidently sign up for a credit monitoring service which would be billed to you on a monthly basis.
Over 2/3 of consumers haven’t viewed their free credit report in the last 12 months. Even if you aren’t applying for credit—you need to know what’s on your report. Plus, this will give you time to improve your credit before applying to be pre-qualified for any loan!
Jennifer Cheatham, TVFCU Mortgage Advisor
Jennifer Cheatham is a TVFCU Mortgage Advisor covering the South Cleveland Branch, North Cleveland Branch, and Athens Branch. Jennifer is based in the North Cleveland TVFCU Branch and is available Monday thru Thursday 9am to 5pm EST and Friday 9am to 6pm EST.
Jennifer enjoys being a loan officer at TVFCU for over twelve and a half years. She loves to read, hike and just be outdoors. Her life is full with her wonderful husband, three children and a granddaughter.
Schedule an appointment with Jennifer so she can make the process as easy and stress free as possible for you!
Jennifer Cheatham
Mortgage Advisor
NMLS # 593676
Tennessee Valley Federal Credit Union
South Cleveland, North Cleveland and Athens Branches
2440 Treasury Drive
Cleveland, TN 37323
Office: 423-634-3662
Fax: 423-634-8214
Email: [email protected]
Apply Now: https://jcheatham-tvfcu.mortgagewebcenter.com/