credit report

[futureD]

I am going to dental school, and I need to buy my credit report.

Should I buy a report with info from all the 3 agencies (transunion, experian, equifax)?

Should I buy a report with info from just one of the agencies? Is that sufficient to obtain private and federal loans?

The issue here is money because it is much more costly to obtain the first type.

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[mpp]

Federal loans are not based on credit, so there is no need to have a credit report for those. As far as private loans, they'll usually get your credit report on their own, you don't have to give it to them.

However, it is a good thing to occasionally check your credit rating at all 3 agencies to ensure that there are no mistakes and there is no identity fraud going on. Some states allow you to get one free report per year. You can always get a free report if you've been denied credit for any reason.

 

[Mutterkuchen]

Mpp is right. Getting your credit report occasionally (every year or two) is very good advice. You don't know which agency is going to be used by your lender, so I would get all three. I know that med students and premend are poor, but this is a good investment. I would get the $40 option that tells you your credit score too. This score is used by private lenders to determine your interest rate and repayment terms.

I personally have a friend that had a $1,000,000 loan listed on their credit report that didn't belong to them. It is better to find this out now, rather than in August when you really need the money. Finding out things now means that you have time to correct the problems before you need the loan

Credit reports are FREQUENTLY wrong. Waiting until you are denied for credit that you qualify for based on erronious information is a huge pain!!

https://www.econsumer.equifax.com/consumer/landing.ehtml?^start=&orderSource=EH3&PP=P6

 

[organic]

they recommend checking your credit report every year, especially if you have debts and are very active financially.

The articles I read all recommended 3 agencies in 1 report. THey cost from 25 -39.99 dollars. My friend got one and felt it was totally worth the price. In the report, they tell you your score, things to watch out and ways to improve your credit score.

the other day, I heard on the radio that the financial program host himself liked credit reports from www.myfico.com

I personally have never used this website for credit reports. You may want to check it out and compare with others

 

[discolphie]

I forget the actual name of the service and if I can find out later, I'll repost. This company sends out 3-in-1 reports either on a quarterly or semi-year basis and also whenever credit is issued in your name. So if you open, say a credit card, or if someone else does in your name, you will receive a report that combines info from all three agencies detailing what they have.

I believe the service runs something more like 80 a year and your credit card company might offer this service.. You can try asking..

I think its a very good idea to check your credit report info because about 4-5 years ago, I had a case of identity theft myself back before it seemed to have gotten a lot of press. And believe me, it was a huge headache to fix... .took about 2 years..

 

[organic]

yes, discolphine, I can imagine how much headache that could be having your ID stolen. I hope you have solved all the troubles.

Well, what you mentioned sounds more like credit monitoring, which is offered by several agents for constanting looking over any abnormalities in your credit activities. Credit experts, however, don't especially encourage people to use this service, unless you had past experience of ID theft, or credit disputes.

Discolphine, after going through the trouble of ID theft, could you please share with us, in your opinion, why someone could steal your ID? did you see a sign of that coming?

thanks

 

[Aaronpsr]

Hey everyone,

I just downloaded a copy of my credit report/credit score from freecreditprofile.com and I am completely shocked.

I will be attending dental school in the fall, and for the last 4 years I have been taking out loans for my family and I to live on. The credit report shows all the loans, and has them reported as all "current" with the payments (even though these are deferred and I am making no payments). Also, I have not been working a job while I have been in school so my income reported on the credit report for last year was $0.

As a result of this, however, my debt to income ratio is 100%! My credit score is way low too...making it impossible for me to get a credit card or anything.

What I am wondering is....has anybody else had these problems with their credit report? Is there any way to bring my credit score up to a point where I could borrow money?

My wife and I would like to have this issue resolved before I graduate dental school and have to face "real life"!

ANY advice would help!

Thanks all

 

[organic]

Hi
Aaronpsr, I totally know what you are talking about.

you have to build up your credit score as fast as possible( technically, you can't instantly boost your credit score, but you can start ASAP), or lenders will bite you when you need to buy a car, a house, an office, even to get a credit card. Don't try to apply for any credit card anymore, as each inquiery will lower your score. don't trust any offer from mail that says you are " preapproved". Here are some tips I could offer you

go to
http://credit.about.com/

it is a very informative website. I learned A LOT about how credit functions in the US. You might want to check out articles for building up credit history for new comers to the US. There are many tips.

apply a secured credit card. The approval is almost garanteed ( washingtom mutual has approval garantee) It is very good for starting building up your credit scores

pay all of your bills on time. Those companies will definitely report you if you don't pay bills on time.

try to find someone with good credit to co-sign for you.

 

[organic]

Hi
Aaronpsr, I totally know what you are talking about.

you have to build up your credit score as fast as possible( technically, you can't instantly boost your credit score, but you can start ASAP), or lenders will bite you when you need to buy a car, a house, an office, even to get a credit card. Don't try to apply for any credit card anymore, as each inquiery will lower your score. don't trust any offer from mail that says you are " preapproved". Here are some tips I could offer you

go to
http://credit.about.com/

it is a very informative website. I learned A LOT about how credit functions in the US. You might want to check out articles for building up credit history for new comers to the US. There are many tips.

apply a secured credit card. The approval is almost garanteed ( washingtom mutual has approval garantee) It is very good for starting building up your credit scores

pay all of your bills on time. Those companies will definitely report you if you don't pay bills on time.

try to find someone with good credit to co-sign for you.

hope it helps

 

[supereagles]

Who credit score would you guys consider "good" enough to secure good private loans.

 

[organic]

I believe it all depends on the lenders, there is no set number.

The better the conditions are for a loan, the higher your score is required.

most important of all, you also need a clean record, no delay of payments, etc.

And almost all loans requires that you need to be at least a US permanent resident. Otherwise, you need a co-signer. some schools have special deal with lenders and would provide loans to international students, but it is rare

If you consider taking other types of loan as " student loan", such as home equity loan, cash secured loan, you don't need a cosigner even if you are not a permanent resident, nor US citizen.

Supereagles, I remember you are an international medical doctor. How did it go with UCSF?

 

[bpl77]

Hi all,
Hoping that somebody has a good credit score and a good co signer who is a us citizen which lender would give the best interest rate ??


sang

 

[supereagles]

Originally posted by organic
I believe it all depends on the lenders, there is no set number.

The better the conditions are for a loan, the higher your score is required.

most important of all, you also need a clean record, no delay of payments, etc.

And almost all loans requires that you need to be at least a US permanent resident. Otherwise, you need a co-signer. some schools have special deal with lenders and would provide loans to international students, but it is rare

If you consider taking other types of loan as " student loan", such as home equity loan, cash secured loan, you don't need a cosigner even if you are not a permanent resident, nor US citizen.

Supereagles, I remember you are an international medical doctor. How did it go with UCSF?

No word from UCSF yet. However, I got into UCLA and USC and it appears that the bruin tradition is going to continue. I am hoping that you are having as much luck as i am.

 

[taehong81]

has anyone used http://www.freecreditreport.com to get a free credit report?

 

[organic]

Generally,
free credit report doesn't tell you much, it doesn't even show your fico score. At least, this is how I felt

 

[futureD]

I don't trust sites offering free credit reports because I really pay for my credit report with MY Social Security Number. With the increasing rise in identity theft, I wouldn't risk it for saving a few bucks.

Anyway...
I bought a 3-in-1 credit report from TransUnion (the cheapest of all 3 companies).

I also got a free SINGLE credit report from Experian through a promotion of their new Manager product. It 's WAY better than the one I paid for from TransUnion. Much more detailed and descriptive.

So...Get your credit report from Experian.