Whether North Jesey or New York
residents are looking for a home equity line of credit, a refi, or a new
mortgage, when it comes to getting a loan, everyone knows that it’s the credit
score that ultimately determines the outcome. Yet when it comes to a working
knowledge of what major factors affect your score, a new survey shows that many
of us are less certain than we should be.
The Consumer Federation of America is a nonprofit outfit that from time to
time releases reports designed to improve that situation. Their latest is a
sort of report card on how much average adults understand about credit scoring
— the key factor in getting a loan of
any kind.
On the plus side of the report card, CFA says that people who have obtained
one or more of their own credit scores within the past year are significantly
better-informed than those who have not. No surprise there. Those people tend
to know that there are three large credit bureaus (although how anyone who
watches TV doesn’t already know that is a mystery to me).
On the minus side, more men than women misunderstand how age and marital
status affect their credit scores (those factors have no effect). Men, on the
other hand, “are more skeptical than women
about the value of credit repair agencies.” CFA doesn’t go into why that
is, but I’d like to think that it’s because they understand that a more
straightforward way to repair your credit is to pay all bills on time.
Sandwiched in among the charts and graphs are various bits of good advice
for any tri-state area resident getting
a loan. A few bear repeating:
1.
Avoid
maxing out credit cards; try not to even get close
2.
Pay
down debt instead of just moving it from account to account
3.
Keep
track of your credit from time to time, even if you’re not planning on getting
a loan right away
If you are planning to become a buyer or seller in the near future,
I’m here to help you make the most it. Call me anytime.
Adrian Tridel
GoAdrian.com
917-796-2332
No comments:
Post a Comment