BTW, the scoring range is different for each of the credit bureaus, so I believe (from memory here) that the 850 max was correct. Transunion scores can get into the 900’s, but the other two max out at 850 and 820 IIRC, making 850 the max since it would be the middle score.

Unless you’re going to be buying a house within a year or so, checking your FICO score regularly is like checking your mutual funds on a daily basis. It’s kind of fun, but it doesn’t do you any good in the long run. FICO scores are mostly garbage. After selling my first house and apply for a mortgage on a second, my FICO actually dropped and I had no new credit accounts, increased credit limits on my existing accounts, and no bad debt whatsoever.

Also (and I may be wrong) I think if you have ANY Washington Mutual account (savings account, checking, etc) they offer free credit montering as long as you manage the account online.

I will check with one of the other two credit reporting agencies. I’m interested in the score (cause I’m kind of geeky that way), but more importantly, I got to take care of closing a bunch of orphan accounts that were inactive for over 5 (in some cases, almost 10) years, but were still open. Yikes.

Thanks for the note–I was really unsure about what all this meant. Trent (and his great readership!) are helping us improve our financial situation, and I am delighted!

I work for a sub-prime mortgage lender, and I can tell you that my company scores married couples using the primary borrower’s credit scores (primary borr being the one making the most money). The co-borrower’s scores are reviewed, but only because we have a minimum co-borrower score of 500 to even qualify for the loan.

If your wife is in school and has no source of income, putting her on the loan would probably hurt your loan amount potential. For joint ownership purposes, you can still have her on the title for the house, which is separate from the actual loan. The big negative effect of her not being on the actual mortgage is that her credit scores wouldn’t go up as you pay off the loan, but you could always refinance once she’s out of school and has had a job for at least two years.

I’m not saying that this is advice that rings true at every lending institution–just how your situation would play out at my particular company.

I’m pretty sure the highest possible FICO score is 850, and that’s almost impossible to obtain. If something is showing your FICO score as 860, it probably isn’t a true FICO score.

That’s sort of like saying there is no need for GAP insurance on a car. You never think you need it until it’s too late.

The main reason the anniversary date bothers me is that each year I review my finances sometime between my birthday (mid-November) and the end of the calendar year, to make sure that everything is still okay and so that I can re-balance effective January 1. A couple years ago I must have put it off, because now annualcreditreport.com won’t give me new reports until mid-December. My birthday triggers the “time to review your finances” switch, and sometimes I want to get started on that right away. I may go back to pulling reports from each agency individually just so that I can do that.

Re: credit score, annualcreditreport.com usually has a “2-weeks’ free credit monitoring” deal that will give you your credit score immediately. You can cancel any time in that 2-week window and not be charged. Unfortunately you need to provide a credit card number to sign up, and you need to call to cancel, but you can do it all at once (and should, so that you don’t forget to cancel).

While some may call that “cheating” or “sneaky,” I don’t see any reason why you should have to pay to find out personal information about yourself. It would be like your doctor telling you that he had the results of your cholesterol test but wouldn’t tell you unless you gave him an additional $12.95!

Sometimes lenders will also let you know your score. They may not offer it, but all you have to do is ask, and some will tell you.

BTW, does anyone have any advice for getting rid of marks on your credit that don’t belong there? I have a hard time getting financing because of an emergency room visit a month before I turned 19. My birthday was the cutoff for my parents insurance, but they didn’t pay the bill even though the service was covered. My parents were supposed to take care of it, and three years later I got a call from a collection agency wanting me to settle my $1000 medical bill for $300! I called the hospital and the insurance company and left several messages, but no one ever called me back. I finally just paid the $300, but the mark is still on my credit and it shouldn’t be there and I really have no idea what to do about it. Also my husband has quite a bit of identity theft on his credit report from his ex-girlfriend using his social security number to buy everything from jewelry to cell phones to cars. He even has evictions on his credit from places he never even lived! Most of these credit companies and stuff are only open during business hours, though, and we’re both at work and don’t have time to sit on the phone for hours arguing with these people!!

It’s not just in California that someone gets a free copy of their credit report when they’re turned down for credit. It’s everywhere in the U.S.

Finally, your credit score is what it is. I have never thought getting a credit score was a good value. Focus on ensuring your credit report is accurate and on conducting your household with fiscal integrity and the credit score will take care of itself.

I was surprised as well at the number of credit card accounts that had been opened (probably to get some 10% promotional discount) and used once, and never closed. So, I spent an hour yesterday on the phone with credit card reps closing the accounts that I didn’t want anymore. I also managed to do a quick balance transfer over to a 0% (the card companies are DESPERATE to keep your business) for 12 months.

I wouldn’t have done this without this posting, so thanks again! You’re helping keep us financially healthy!

When you get your free report from Equifax there is an option to buy the credit score for $6 or $8. I’ve seen a similar option with the other bureaus. But be aware that the other bureaus have come up with a variety of scores that are NOT FICO scores, and can NOT be compared with FICO. Be sure you get your FICO score, that is still the most common one used.

Many companies will tell you your score when you apply for a loan through them. That’s free. You may want to ask your bank or insurance agent for the info even if you aren’t applying for a loan. They may do it as a service.

Remember as well that the scores of spouses will be different. I don’t know if the scores get closer as the marriage lasts. I’d suggest that you research that. You can often apply for loans using the credit info of just the spouse with the best profile.

https://www.annualcreditreport.com/cra/index.jsp

I paid $7.95 for my credit score, but FYI they are using a new score, and not FICO. While my FICO score was in the 740 range, my new score is much lower (Well, its around 760, but it’s a much larger range and so it says I have poor to average credit). Two of the notes they provided was that I didn’t use enough of the credit I had (I only use an Amazon rewards card and pay it off every time I use it), and I didn’t have high enough real estate balances (Even though I now have mortgages on two properties that are very close to the 28.2% limit).

I was always glad to see my FICO score gradually going up after some (many) poor choices I made when I was younger, but whatever this new score is seems like it measures some wonky stuff, and it’s sending my credit in the opposite direction.