Real Estate Agents like me have always been quick to complain about the banks not lending, that banks are holding on to their money tightly, thus aggravating the lack of “growth” in our economies. Imagine how my attitude changed when I spoke with Imrul Hassan, who is a Senior Credit Consultant at Credit Servicez. http://www.creditservicez.com
We spoke on my radio show, “Skinner’s Manhattan Real Estate and More” on www.blogtalkradio.com about many topics, including the importance of your FICO score, and misconceptions of using an online credit report company to get your score when applying for credit.
listen below;
http://www.blogtalkradio.com/manhattan-real-estate-and-more-/2013/09/28/talking-fico-scores-with-imrul-hassan-credit-servicez-nyc
Here are just a few things I learned while speaking with Mr. Hassan;
* FICO scores are used by 90% of all lenders and basically measure your chances of defaulting on a loan.
* Companies that offer free credit reports or other report services use “Vantage and Credit Plus Scores”, which use different formulas and do not include paid collections, whereas FICO Scores are calculated using paid collections, presenting mixed signals of what potential creditors use when analyzing your spending habits.
There are three types of credit cards;
1. Amex/Discover types (most common)
2. Store Credit Cards – Higher chance of default – higher interest rates
3. Consumer Credit Cards, (such as those used for furniture purchases), known as “last resort funding” – highest interest rates charged and highest chance of default
Here are a few ways to help raise your FICO score;
- Use one credit card only for your purchases – spreading your debt with many cards will lower your FICO score.
- Do not apply for multiple credit cards, revolving or less needed types of credit within a short period of time as they will lower your score as showing multiple inquiries.
- Payoff your collection accounts and make sure each creditor sends you a 0 (zero) balance letter upon satisfaction of the account balance.
- Consolidate your loans – payoff credit cards, but keep the accounts open – as they will show as being in good standing.
- Go to http://www.myfico.com to get your true FICO score.
We will be hearing more from Mr. Hassan in the near future about more in depth credit issues and topics – stay tuned. To reach Mr. Hassan about your credit inquiries, feel free to reach him at 212-671-1600 or at http://www.creditservicez.com
– Robert Skinner
