Identity Theft: They Caught Him

His hard earned money? Gone. Creditors on his back everyday. The cops knocking on his door. His family strained to the breaking point. He didn’t do anything wrong but my business partner’s life got turned upside down afew years back. He became a victim of what is now the fastest growing crime in the world. Identity theft.

According to the Federal Trade Commission, since 1999 over 27 million people in the US alone became victims of this epidemic 10 million more last year. Harris InterActive,a marketing research company, reports that between 2002 and 2003 more roughly 19,178 people per day fell victim.

Your identity can be stolen in many ways. For my partner, the thief gained access to his social security number and address then applied for a series of loans in his name. When the bills came due, guess who the creditors and law enforcement held accountable?

He and his family felt the full impact. Identity theft can cripple and even destroy a person’s life. The time loss trying to recover your identity as well as the out of pocket expense U.S.Treasury Secretary John Snow calls identity theft “the greatest threat to consumers and far more insidious and harmful to our national welfare than many people realize.”
The internet doesn’t make it any better with its almost limitless access to information but a great deal of identity theft still comes from the offline world. Wherever it comes from the goal stays the same. To get your personnal information and steal what belongs to you for as long as possible.

In many cases, this can lead to the victim filing for bankruptcy or worse. As reported by the Orlando Sentinel, one man whose identity got stolen recently spent 54 days in jail before authorities realized their mistake.

Yet even when the thief finally gets caught, victims find out all too often the worse part still lies ahead. The recovery of their identity. For my partner, that meant never ending battles with the same credit bureaus that previously gave him good ratings.

They destroyed his credit almost overnight eventhough he did everything they told him to get it restored. The agencies refused to clear his record and instead, started sharing his information with each other. His mortgage rates went thru the roof. He paid more for everything but still got declined. With all of this came the burden and fear of him not knowing if he would ever recover his identity.

Six years later he finally did. He started working with a company that within 90 days restored his credit. His mortgage rate dropped and he went back to paying full price for everything like the rest of us.

And like my partner, all of us risk becoming victims. In San Antonio Texas, television station KENS 5 spoke with a man convicted of identity theft who warned “Don’t take for granted what you have because anybody could take it away – I mean at the snap of a finger.”

He would know. The ways of stealing an identity have turned this crime from nuisance to worldwide crisis.

How to Boost Your Credit Scores Fast

You Can Control Your Credit Scores

In a moment I will share some easy and practical ways to boost your credit scores. But before getting into these powerful credit repair techniques let’s review a few facts. You might be sur prised.

Phony Credit Score Alert

There are many reasons to check your credit scores; occasional monitoring, credit repair preparation, or in advance of making loan application. Most people that decide to check their credit scores on the web end up at one of the three credit bureau websites. The three major credit bureaus are Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion, and they all offer credit scores. Oddly enough, these credit bureau scores are not the same scores lenders use.

Think about this for a second. Say that you will be applying for a loan in the near future and want to see where you stand. You go online and buy your scores from Experian and they look great. So, off you go to get your loan, happy and confident. And the lender runs your credit and tells you that your scores are too low. In fact he shows you your scores and they are completely different from the scores you purchased from Experian. Get the picture. Crazy, huh? What’s up with this?

FICO is the Score that Counts

Lenders use a credit scoring formula developed by Fair Isaac Corp called the FICO score. The three major credit bureaus provide these FICO scores to lenders, either directly, or through credit resellers. But if you or I purchase our scores from the credit bureaus we get something altogether different; we get the credit bureau’s proprietary scores, which can be radically different from the FICO scores lenders see.
The reason is money. The credit bureaus make millions by selling these numbers which consumers erroneously believe are the real deal. This is a sadly deceptive business, and completely indefensible. There is only one place where you can get genuine FICO scores, MyFICO.com, the Fair Isaac website. No one else sells the genuine scores to consumers. Enough said. Let’s do a little credit repair.

The Power of Balance Reduction

Recent FICO score modifications have put an increased emphasis on credit card balances. The importance of this cannot be overstated. Way too many people have been blindsided by precipitous drops in their scores due to high card balances. As crazy as it seems you can now have an immaculate payment history and have a crappy credit score. That’s right, even a full decade of perfect credit will not offset the terrible effect of a maxed out balance. Here’s the deal.

FICO measures the relationship between your balance and your limit. Specifically there are five trigger points to be aware of: 20, 40, 60, 80, and 100 percent usage. The lower the better, and if you go over the 100 percent mark you can expect a drop of 100 points in your score. Ouch. Anyway, the good news is that when you pay your balances down, your score will go up. If you want real score improvement, get your balances under the 20 percent mark and watch the credit repair magic happen. You’ll love it.

Authorized User Accounts

Have your mom call one of her credit card companies and ask them to add you to her account as an authorized user. She should tell them that she wants you to have a card in case of emergencies. About 60 days later the account will show up on your credit report and the entire credit history of the card will be included in the calculation of your credit score. You do not have to use the card; in fact you can give it back to your mom when you get it.

This little credit repair trick can really boost your credit scores quickly. Just make sure that the history on the card is excellent. There would be no point in adding yourself to a bad card. And, as a little caveat, don’t even think about purchasing an authorized card status online. The latest release of the FICO formula includes a block on purchased card memberships, so it would be a waste of money.

Consult a Credit Repair Expert

If you want more powerful credit repair tips that can really pump up your scores pick up the phone and call a professional. A credit repair professional will evaluate your three credit reports and customize a plan just for you. Credit score optimization can pay amazing dividends and is worth every bit of effort you put into getting it done right. Make the call today.

Copyright 2008 Ian Webber. All Content. All Rights Reserved.

How To Find A Debt Consolidation Firm That Offers Low Interest

Are you searching for a low interest loan for debt consolidation? If you have bad credit, you might feel the journey is hopeless. Debt consolidation loans are loans that help a person reduce his debt payments by combining all debts into one installment. The downside is sometimes the debt consolidation programs will cause your debts to go up $500 or more per month; and it will take longer to repay your debts since the programs will deduct fees and rates of interest.

Most low interest loans for debt consolidation require collateral to approve the loan. In this event, you want to be careful as to what collateral is expected of you, since some loans may require home collateral. If you cannot repay the debt, then the lender will repossess your home and put you in the streets. However, if you have quality collateral, it might be in your best interest to take the gamble if it presents a sound way out of debt.

Most loans are attached to rates of interest. This means that you will pay the interest rates and the monthly installment toward the amount owed. The advantage of loans is that they present a way to get out of debt; therefore, you want to look for the loans that offer low interest rates and monthly repayments.

How should you go about looking for a loan?

To get started, you want to avoid advertising tricks for loans, since most of the tricks are presented to lure in candidates who are less knowledgeable of loan procedures; thus, after the loan is approved, the rates of interest will be higher than average. Therefore, instead of going online searching for a loan, you might want to check with the local banks. If the banks cannot offer you a low interest rate loan for debt consolidation, then ask for referrals.

Talbert Williams !DebtFreedom.com All rights reserved.

What Is The Average Credit Score?

Your credit score can say a lot about you. Creditors and lenders use that number to judge how likely you are to pay money that you owe. There are many different aspects that contribute to credit scores, but the exact method of calculating them is unknown to the public.

What we do know, however, is that a credit score can range anywhere from 300 to 850, with 850 being the best. A perfect 850 score is almost never seen, and the average score is much lower.

Once you check you score, compare your results to the rest of the country.

Average National Credit Score

The average credit score across the United States is 680.

The following are the average scores in each of the 50 states:

Alabama: 676

Alaska: 674

Arizona: 659

Arkansas: 668

California: 672

Colorado: 674

Connecticut: 694

Delaware: 684

Florida: 673

Georgia: 668

Hawaii: 688

Idaho: 688

Illinois: 684

Indiana: 676

Iowa: 700

Kansas: 682

Kentucky: 677

Louisiana: 663

Maine: 699

Maryland: 688

Massachusetts: 703

Michigan: 679

Minnesota: 707

Mississippi: 668

Missouri: 683

Montana: 701

Nebraska: 695

Nevada: 655

New Hampshire: 703

New Jersey: 693

New Mexico: 663

New York: 686

North Carolina: 667

North Dakota: 706

Ohio: 685

Oklahoma: 666

Oregon: 686

Pennsylvania: 696

Rhode Island: 692

South Carolina: 665

South Dakota: 710

Tennessee: 679

Texas: 651

Utah: 683

Vermont: 706

Washington: 691

Washington DC: 677

West Virginia: 679

Wisconsin: 699

Wyoming: 690

You may be wondering what is a good credit score. If so, you could benefit from credit repair. Because unfortunately, having a good credit score is key to living a better financial life, having more financial opportunities, and getting lower interest rates.

The powers that be make the rules. All we can do is try to make the most of the system in which we are a part of.

When Refinancing, Closing Credit Card Accounts Can Cost You
When in the midst of a home refinancing and considering an account closure, experts say the price of credit score damage is likely to outweigh the cost of any potential annual fees.
Read more on FOX Business

Mortgage woes hurt credit scores in different ways
Homeowners who are falling behind on a mortgage often worry just how much they might be damaging their credit score.
Read more on The Myrtle Beach Sun News

To receive their “free” credit report, you must sign up to pay $14.95 a month.

Consumers already have a legal right to a free credit report.

The Federal Trade Commission warns about scams like this:
“A recent amendment to the federal Fair Credit Reporting Act requires each of the nationwide consumer reporting companies — Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion — to provide you with a free copy of your credit report, at your request, once every 12 months. But there’s only one online source authorized to do so. That’s annualcreditreport.com. Beware of other sites that may look and sound similar.”

Source: http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/conline/edcams/freereports/index.html

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