Guidelines Changing for Free Credit Reports in Texas
As part of the new CARD Act of 2009, companies advertising free credit reports in Texas are now required to clearly disclose that what’s being marketed isn’t the free credit report you’re entitled to receive by law.
The Federal Trade Commission provides consumers with one free credit report a year from each of the major reporting agencies, Equifax, Experian and Transunion. Consumers can access their free report by going to AnnualCreditReport.com. But other sites that claim to offer free credit reports often come with strings attached.
Companies like FreeScore.com, CreditReport.com and, of course, FreeCreditReport.com, famous for its jingles and pirate hat-wearing spokesmen, are not part of the government mandate and have been accused of deceptively charging consumers for unwanted services such as credit monitoring products once they sign up for their free credit report.
According to the FTC, Web sites are now required to include this message across the top of any page mentioning free credit reports: “THIS NOTICE IS REQUIRED BY LAW. Read more at FTC.GOV. You have the right to a free credit report from AnnualCreditReport.com or 877-322-8228, the ONLY authorized source under federal law.”
Of course it goes without saying that everyone should know what’s on their credit report. Credit is a very important part of the loan approval process. Generally speaking FHA loans require a FICO score of 640 and Conventional loans require a FICO score of 680. When mortgage insurnace comes into play on conventional loans having a FICO score above 680 will help. It will also help with the rate across the board.
We can work with customers who are credit challenged so please do call or email me today and let’s talk about how we can help. Having low credit scores or limited credit isn’t necessarily a deal killer. Sometimes we just need to take some time to work with your situation and help get you into a loan that will meet your needs.