Your Credit Score

It is important that you understand your credit score. Your student loans will affect your credit score, along with credit cards, auto loans, mortage loans, and any other type of debt you incur. Your credit score will in turn affect the interest rate you pay for other debt, your ability to obtain credit, your ability to rent an apartment, your ability to turn on utilities (phone, electricity), your insurance premiums, and even your ability to gain employment.

What is a Credit Score? - A credit score is a numeric value assigned to you, as a consumer, by a credit reporting agency. The most common credit score used is called a FICO score and has a value from 300 to 850. The higher your credit score, the better.

What is a Credit Reporting Agency? - A credit reporting agency collects credit information. It is basically a repository of credit information reported by your creditors. There are 3 main credit reporting agencies:

www.transunion.com

www.equifax.com

www. transunion.com

You can obtain a free annual credit report from each credit reporting agency at www.annualcreditreport.com or by calling 1.877.322.8228. You should check your report carefully for any errors or information that may be incorrect. Verify that you opened each account, the balance of each account, and that each account is current and in good standing.

Who has Access to Your Credit Score - Credit card companies, auto dealers, mortgage companies, real estate management companies, banks, insurance companies, utility companies, and your employer have the ability to run credit checks in order to determine if you qualify for service or credit. The better your credit score the more likely you are to be approved for these valuable services or given credit. In addition, the better your credit score the less you will pay for the cost of that service or credit.

Protect Your Credit Score - By keeping your debt to a minimum, paying your bills on time, and being a smart consumer you can protect your credit score. Your high credit score will then allow you to obtain lower interest rates on loans, lower insurance rates, and in many cases lower deposits on utilities and services.

Protect Yourself from Identity Theft - Identity theft often results in things reported on your credit report that you did not purchase or delinquent accounts you did not open. To protect yourself and your credit score click here.