A Good Credit Record Takes you Across the Threshold to Homeownership

If you’re planning to look for and buy a home any time soon, your real estate agent will recommend that you look carefully at your credit record to assist you through the financing process when buying your home.

Your credit record demonstrates how well you have handled credit in the past and how you use it right now. Your credit record is kept electronically by three private companies, also known as national credit repositories: Equifax, Experian and Trans Union.

A credit report is a listing of the information in your credit record at any one of these companies. It lists your debts and payment history with people and companies who have loaned you money under an arrangement to pay it back, such as banks, credit card companies and department stores. It shows when you pay your bills (whether you pay bills on time) and how much you pay (whether you pay the proper amounts due). Your credit report also shows any history of tax liens or bankruptcies, even if any of these happened several years ago.

It is important to understand how significant your credit record is to getting a mortgage loan to buy your home. One of the first things you should do when you begin to search for a home is to order a copy of each of your credit reports and review them carefully. A real estate agent who is a REALTOR is ready to work with you throughout the homebuying process – from helping you obtain and review your credit reports to providing helpful hints on qualifying for a mortgage – so you’ll be ready to buy the home you select.

When you’re finally ready to apply for a home loan, the lender you choose often gets a credit score as part of your credit report. A credit score is a computer-generated number that provides a snapshot of how likely you are to repay your debts.

A credit score is calculated by analyzing all the pieces of information in your credit record and summarizing them in a number. Your credit score is important! It will be used –along with your credit report and other information from your loan application –to determine whether you will get the financing to buy your home. Your credit score also may be used to determine the interest rate you get on your mortgage.

Pay attention to your credit and keep it on the right track. A good credit record will give you a strong credit score. And that’s good news when you go out with either an agent who is a REALTOR or a real estate agent to buy a home.

Equifax
Credit Information Services
P.O. Box 740256
Atlanta, GA 30374-0256
Phone: 1-800-685-1111
Web Site: www.equifax.com

Experian
National Consumer Assistance Center
P.O. Box 949
Allen, TX 75013-0949
Phone: 1-800-682-7654
Web Site: www.experian.com

Trans Union
National Disclosure Center
P.O. Box 390
Springfield, PA 19064
Phone: 1-800-888-4213
Web Site: www.tuc.com

If you believe that any one of your credit reports contains mistakes and you wish to dispute or change the mistake, contact the national credit repository that developed the report. Under the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA), the repository must complete an investigation of your disputed items within 30 days and provide you written notice of the results of the investigation within five days of its completion, including a copy of your credit report if it has changed based upon the dispute. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is responsible for enforcing FCRA. The FTC also publishes consumer-related credit brochures where you can obtain additional information on credit reports. To contact the FTC, call or write:

Federal Trade Commission
Public Reference Branch
6th & Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20850
Phone: (202) 326-2222
Web Sites: www.ftc.gov/ftc/consumer.htm and www.ftc.gov/ftc/moreinfo.htm

Source: National Association of Realtors^®