Is the free annual credit score all that important and useful?
You are entitled to receive a free credit report every year, one from each of the three credit rating agencies, namely Equifax, Experian and Transunion.
"Debt is like any other trap, easy enough to get into,
but hard enough to get out of."
- Henry Wheeler Shaw |
This means that if you plan carefully, you can get a free copy of your credit report every four months. You can use the free copy to keep a regular check on your credit information, something which is necessary because it is quite common to find errors and inaccuracies on credit reports.
This happens because credit rating agencies gather information from different sources, which automatically increases the probability of errors and inaccuracies occurring in your credit report.
Apart from the three free copies, you are also entitled to receive a free annual credit score from any of the three credit rating agencies if you are denied credit based on information provided on your credit report.
This option has been provided to users because credit rating agencies charge a lot to issue a credit report in normal circumstances, something that users are often unable to afford, especially when they are already facing financial problems.
By getting a free annual credit score, you can easily verify whether it is correct or not, at no cost to the consumer.
If you find that there is a problem with the score, you can dispute the information in question with the respective credit rating agency and get it removed from your report as soon as possible if errors are found.
Rectifying errors in the shortest possible time is necessary because even a small negative entry can have serious repercussions on your ability to get credit at low interest rates.
Although it’s nice to be able to request a free annual credit score from each agencies, you really should ask yourself why you think it’s necessary to use credit at all.
If you want to live a debt free life, and enjoy the benefits that come with that, then we recommend that you immediately put a complete stop to your impulse for using credit. Whether it is the cash loans of smaller amounts or the mortgage loans running into thousands of dollars – credit is always an option that increases the cost of whatever it is that you want to buy.
The idea of living debt free and forgetting about the whole free annual credit score benefit, may seem crazy at first, but if you are wise enough, it will not take you long to realize that it is probably the most self empowering decision you could ever make.
No doubt, you will have to deal with a few initial hurdles, but if you are really motivated and committed to the process of becoming debt free and financially independent, then it’s well worth your time and attention.
Seriously, ask yourself why it is that America, by far more than any other county on the face of the earth, has a national deficit of over 8 trillion dollars. Could it be that we are taught by our culture that debt is good; debt is okay; debt is something everyone just does?
Our founding fathers would be saddened to learn just how dependent we’ve become on debt. Forget about the free annual credit score. Understand that debtors truly are slave to the lender. Isn’t it time to break free from those chains? As far as we are concerned, chains just hold you back and keep you down.
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"No man's credit is as good as his money."
- Edgar Watson Howe |
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Debt is NOT your friend. It's not a wonderful "tool" for building wealth. That's a myth.
