Let’s face it, the economy is in a slump and this is affecting people being able to pay their bills amongst many other things. The good news is, that the economy is going to get better, which means lenders are going to start lending again AND credit will be extended to consumers again. However, if you do not have your credit in check, you will not be able to take advantage of this. The first thing to do, when trying to fix your credit, is understand what your credit score is AND what makes up that credit score. First, you need to understand who the credit reporting agencies are that are gathering this information. The three credit reporting agencies are Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion. Secondly, you need to understand what a good and bad FICO (also known as a credit score) is. A credit score can be between 300 and 850. The higher your credit score, the better. Finally, you need to read your credit report and understand what is on it. To understand it, you must know the main things that make up your credit score:

1. How you pay your bills- your payment history on your credit cards and loans is the biggest factor in making up your score. This means if you have not paid your bills on time, now is the time to start.

2. What do you owe on your credit cards and loans- if you have your balances maxed out on all your creditors, this will negatively affect your credit score. Stopping charging immediately if the balances are close to their limits.

3. How long have you had each of your creditors-the newer the credit, the more it will negatively affect you. If you are applying for new credit cards, stop now to help your credit score. Keep a few creditors for a long period of time and that will help your score.

4. Do you have all sorts of creditors like car loans, credit cards, installment loans etc-the credit bureaus likes to see a diverse selection of creditors. This is not a major factor in your credit score, but something to think about if you are thinking about getting a new creditor.

Leadpile is currently working on generating this sort of lead and will welcome publishers that will eventually be interested in connecting those consumers that want to know their credit score, with the company that will be able to provide this service. KNOWLEDGE IS POWER!

Have you ever been confused on how to pull your credit report or you thought it was going to be free and it turned out to have fees associated with it? Well if so, you were not alone.

A new law being put into place this week will require all web sites listing or advertising “free reports” direct consumers to the government approved site www.annualcreditreport.com – all TV and radio ads must comply with this as well beginning September 1, 2010.

Everyone is entitled to 1 free copy of their credit report each year from each of the credit reporting agencies ( Equifax, Experian and TransUnion )… So with no cost involved you can receive 3 copies per year! If you have been a victim of identity fraud you are eligible to receive additional copies.

Banks, debt collectors, landlords or those with “valid” interest are the only ones who may pull your credit report. Prospective employers wanting to pull credit must obtain written consent prior to pulling a report. Credit reports sent to employers do not include a date of birth or name of spouses on joint account – this is to restrict discrimination based on age or marital status.

Your credit is your own responsibility to maintain and watch! Take advantage of pulling your 3 reports a year and be aware of you credit background.

In recent news the Fair Isaac Corporation is rolling out an updated FICO score.  A FICO score was created back in 1989 to help consumers and businesses determine consumer’s credit worthiness.    All 3 credit reporting agencies (Transunion, Equifax, and Experian) will be implementing this new scoring.  

Some things that are changing with the newly updated FICO score:

1.  Ignoring of small collection accounts

2.  One credit problem forgiven

3.  Changes to authorized users and how it affects your credit score

Things you will want to now pay attention to with regards to your score:

1.  The more credit you use in regards to your balances versus credit limits will affect you more now.

2.  Don’t close $0 balance accounts now.  Keep them open and don’t use them.

3.  You will be penalized if the lenders close your accounts.  To prevent this, charge one time per month to keep activity going if you want to keep the account.

4.  Diversify what credit accounts you have active.  For instance, have some installment accounts (IE- CAR loans etc) AND revolving credit.  This shows you are able to maintain both types of credit.

Fair Isaac is hoping these changes will help with getting a better depiction of credit worthiness.  Lenders will like it more because there is going to be a more precise score of their credit.  Consumers will like it more because if that score is higher, that makes the cost to get more money (loans and new credit) cheaper.  The better your FICO score is, the more credit you have available and the lower your rates will potentially be to borrow money.  This seems to be a win win situation for consumers and businesses.

Leadpile Lead Exchange wants to help consumers and businesses to be connected with regards to any financial matter.  This new FICO score will most likely promote more consumers to want to take a deeper look at their scores and how they can maybe get them higher.  Credit repair companies are probably a really good option to look at to help do that.

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On a previous post I spoke about Lower My Bills (LMB) and some changes they were going through. However, I think I am seeing some changes going on again. Looking around on the net I saw some of those “dancing” people, yet the advertisement were about AUTO INSURANCE? Yeah, auto insurance! The ad was a LMB advertisement about lowering your auto insurance rates. So, is LMB RE-focusing on other industries besides JUST refinance? If you take a look at their website it talks about all sorts of lead types, however I guess we usually all know them for mortgage, NOT insurance. Maybe something new is in the works?

According to RUMORY.com, some companies could be experiencing some potential changes to adjust with the declining economy. Tough times right now for just about any industry. I will say Leadpile Lead Exchange is fortunately thriving while others are going through some tough times.
Will all the major online lead generation companies survive, and if they do what will their main focus for lead gen be in?

Anyone who has taken out a loan of some sort, applied for a new job, or rented an apartment knows how much your credit score matters.  Think about it, most employers are even pulling your credit.. insurance carriers are pulling your credit… and of course the lenders are too.  What is the big fuss about someone’s credit score?  Well, one thing I have learned over the years is, it is probably one of the most important things in our life! That sounds bad, but really it is.  How can a 3 digit number that no one has any idea how it is made up, have such a large impact?

In today’s economy a lot of consumers are finding out the answer to that question.  People trying to refinance their home are being faced with the fact that their bills have fallen past due and now they can not get a loan.  Consumers are trying to find new jobs because their employers are going out of business. However, they are not getting that job because according to their credit score they are a “high risk” employee who can’t take care of their personal finances.  So, why would they hire you if you can’t even take care of your own bills?  Insurance premiums are going up so consumers are looking for new insurance companies, but finding out that their rates might not have been so bad compared to their new rate estimates they have received.  Why?  The insurance company is pulling your credit for things such as auto policies, because they say that statistics show your credit score has a direct impact on your driving skills(better chances of NOT getting in an accident) and your ability to pay your bills.  They think that those with bad credit scores are going to get in more wrecks and not pay their bills? Unfortunately, there has been some controversial findings that have been known to show some truth to that statement.

What makes up a credit score?  First, you need to know that the range of your credit score can be anywhere between 350-850.  Secondly, you need to know that there are 3 different credit reporting agencies (Transunion, Experian, and Equifax) where your lenders can report your credit history to.  Thirdly, there are a combination of things that make up your credit score such as your payment history on credit cards and loans, your total outstanding debt versus available credit, how long you have had the loans/credit cards open, how many people have pulled your credit (inquiries) and a whole bunch of other “unknown” factors. So now you know who pulls your credit, why people pull your credit, and what makes up your credit score. How do you fix it?

The first step is getting in the right direction regarding your credit is to become educated on everything that is linked with your credit score and what is on your own credit.  Then get with a company that deals with credit repair and walk through the process with them on FULLY understanding that credit report(s), and how you both are going to work on getting it better.  When searching the internet, look for credit repair sites.  

Companies like Leadpile- The World’s Largest Online Exclusive Lead Exchange-  deal a lot with this lead type and understand that the companies buying these leads really are out there trying to get your credit score higher.  Then your credit score does not affect you getting that next job, next insurance policy or paying REALLY high interest rates.