Oh, don't get me wrong. I am not saying that creditboards is a bad means of getting credit repair advice. Not at all. Matter of fact, it was the first board I surfed for credit repair advice.

I found Art of Credit by accident, matter of fact after surfing a collection industry board and the one board the collection agents always mentioned as their worst enemy was AoC. So I checked them out and it appealed to me moreso because as a man, I tend to take the more aggresive routes. When someone crosses me, I like to put a foot in a nucca's tail, if you will.

But you're right, that's just me. Indeed, to each their own.

Kudos to CB for them helping get you get your credit back on track. :)

You are not penalized when you pull your credit report/score. If you have too many other people pulling your score for you or making inquiries then your score can go down a couple of points. However, after 2 years, multiple inquires drop off of your report.

i.e. I was buying my first home and with all of the loan officers and mortgage companies pulling my credit, it reduced 10 points. So at one point, I had to write a letter stating that I was trying to purchase a home and why my score dropped in such a short period of time.

Also, you are allowed to pull your credit from all three credit agencies at least once a year for free. I don't have the website, but I think it was posted by someone else. However, if you want the FICO score associated with it, you might have to pay an additional $5.95, but it is worth it and you have access to your score and report for 30 days.

What may work for you is if you call the original lender and ask if you can pay for a deletion. I've heard that this is difficult and some companies will not budge, but it has worked for many others. Don't contact any third party collection agencies, contact the OL directly and offer them a lump sum of 50% if they will delete the negative item from your credit report. If they agree, be sure to get it in writing.

I concur! This site has helped me TREMENDOUSLY. There is a wealth of information there that I would have never known. :)

I pulled my report at the beginning of the year. So now how can I get the FICO score? I thought the score would have been on the report but it wasn't.

Thank you for replying to my initial question.

Another site I found helpful (and found on GC in another thread on credit) www.creditinfocenter.com

Diovanka8, you can go back and pull your credit report again, unfortunately this time you will probably have to pay. Make sure you pull all three reports and at some point you will be given the option to obtain your FICO score. Choose that options and then you will have the three respective scores from the three agencies.

It is important to pull all three scores because they can vary between the three.:( However, that is supposed to be changing soon.

Good Luck and kudos to you for trying to take control of your situation. Many people become so overwhelmed that they take the "outta sight, outta mind" approach.

You can sign up at Myfico.com or join a site sponsered by one of the bureaus. I am a member of truecredit.com. It is only $14.95 per month. I can access all three reports whenever I want plus all 3 scores. They also alert you of any changes to your credit report.

Does anyone know how to reduce the effect of student loans on the fico score? I am told by mortgage lenders that lots of student loans do not adversely affect the credit, however, when I pull my credit, I have fairly good scores but one negative rating provided at myfico.com for my scores is "balances too high on installment accounts." I only have student loans and do not have any other installment accounts that are not paid off so these student loan balances are clearly affecting my credit score, which will affect my mortgage interest rate even if my debt to income ratio is fine.

Does anyone know what might be done? There are about three different loans from the same lender b/c each year I got a loan, they listed it separately on the credit report. Would it help if I asked the lender to put all three loans together? The balance would still be just as high obviously.

I'm annoyed b/c a sister can't even take loans to get an education! I have lots of student loans and due to the low interest rate, it doesn't make sense for me to pile a ton of money into paying them off over the next ten years or so when I could invest the money or pay off my credit card bill, use the extra money to purchase a home, etc.

Anyone got any tips?

SC

Also, I know that lenders typically look at the *middle* score so you want to know all three scores.

SC

How odd I was pulling my credit to see about buying a new car. The website is www.annualcreditreport.com and to find out a fico score you can go to www.myfico.com. Hope this helps some!

Thank you! Thank you all!

ok... I am in the process, many months from now mind you, to move to a new apt. I just got a new position this month but I haven't been with the company a year yet. I know what is on my credit report(car note,and student loans) except my credit card. The company I was with I had other services with them. They said I could not use any other services until I paid my credit card balance. But they said that the card was charged off early this year. I wonder will it still be on my report in the later months... when I go to try to move. I haven't used it in a year, had been paying on it, and then when I lost my job, I stopped paying on it. I didn't know they charged it off until I had called them about something else.

1. will it be on the report?
2. how bad is it for me when it comes time to move? I am not going to have them pull my credit until I am in the process of making that place my home. But I was going to pull my report and show the copies.

1. It sounds like more than likely, it will be on the report. Yet, if you pull the report, you can definitely be sure. Also, try to track the charge down and see if you can explain it and maybe get it settled and removed.

2. If you deal with it now, it might not be too bad. Even though you pull it and provide copies, I believe that management companies like to pull your credit themselves to make sure that people don't try to alter it or hide info.

I would just try to track down who has the account now or even the original credit card company and see if you can work it out.

Thank you all for your input on this subject. It would be great to pay these debts off and at the same time save. What are some other good ways to save money? I opened an ING account and I enjoy it. What other ways would be beneficial. Thanks in advance.