There is a lot of misleading information available today, especially online, regarding getting access to your credit report. Some of this misleading information is the product of the credit reporting agencies themselves, which are for-profit entities. There are also many independent companies that will obtain your credits reports for you, for a hefty fee.
If you are an American citizen (or resident) then you can get a copy of your credit report for free. Living in the United States entitles you to a free copy of your credit report under certain circumstances as provided for in two laws that were passed by the federal government.
The first of these laws is the Federal Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions (FACTA) Act of 2003. This law mandates that the every U.S. person is allowed one free copy of their credit report from each of the three leading credit reporting agencies once every twelve months. This law also mandated the creation of the AnnualCreditReport.com website that serves as the only official website where your free credit reports can be obtained. You may also receive these free credit reports via phone or mail request.
The second law was originally passed in 1970. The Federal Fair Credit Reporting Act or FCRA has seen many amendments and changes before becoming what it is today: a clear list of reasons for people to obtain a free credit report. These reasons include being denied credit or a government benefit, being denied housing because of a credit score, and if you think there is fraudulent information on your report. You can also request a free copy if you are unemployed or on public assistance.
These two federal laws can keep you from ever needing to pay for a credit report. Unfortunately, while these free copies may include a credit score, it will probably be based on a scoring method other than the FICO formula. In order to get your FICO score you may, indeed, have to pay a fee.
Too many people are unaware of how to obtain a free credit report that many businesses have sprung up offering to do that, but are scamming their customers. In spite of this there are valid and useful credit monitoring agencies that will review your credit file monthly or quarterly and advise you of any problems and also ways to improve your score.
If your credit is perfect and you dont plan to apply for credit, you may have no need for such a service. However, if you would like to optimize your score in advance of applying for a major loan or are working on credit repair, these services may be useful.
Wendy Polisi is the founder of CreditRepairCollege and Finance the Dream. Finance the Dream is the nations leading provider of lease options,offering homes in all 50 states. For more information on fast credit repair please visit her at CreditRepairCollege.