Give Me Back My Five Bucks

After one of my recent Moneyville posts – How a 1% rule can help you save – I suggested that now would be a good time to order a free credit report from both Equifax and Transunion. From that post, I received quite a few e-mails from readers who were confused as to how to actually obtain their free credit report. When you go onto these credit bureau websites, it isn’t clear how to obtain your free credit report. Instead, most links direct you to options where you can pay either a one-time or monthly recurring fee in order to … Continue reading →

I’ve been bad and haven’t personally checked my credit score since February 2008, where it was 724. Before that, I checked in March 2007 and it was 727. In April 2008, a mortgage broker checked my score and it was 776 – but that was an average of both TransUnion and Equifax. Your credit score is a judgment about your financial health. It indicates the risk you represent for lenders, compared with other consumers. Because of my credit score, I was able to get my LASIK eye surgery, and my current car loan financed at 0%. There are a lot … Continue reading →

It’s been almost a year since I last checked my credit score, so I thought I should probably check it again pretty soon. Back then, my score was 776. Which is pretty good. But I’d like to know what it is now. Since last year, I’ve gotten 1 new credit card and I’ve also taken out a $3,000 loan for my LASIK eye surgery. In Canada, scores range from 300-900, with most Canadians ranking in around the 700s. Back in the day, I used to not care about my credit score – why would I? But now, I’m taking every … Continue reading →

I just spoke with my mortgage broker, who informed me that my credit score is 776. :) Which is a lot better than the 724 I pulled back in January. That’s the good news – my awesome new credit score. The bad news? As a young, single-income, first-time home buyer who makes less than the median income in Vancouver, I’m basically priced out of anything. My mortgage broker’s words, not mine. Basically, she said that with my perfect credit and without any debt, I would get pre-approval in the blink of an eye. That being said, the maximum purchase price … Continue reading →

WTF! It’s been 10 months since I’ve checked my credit score. Last March, it was 727 … so how is it possible that it’s now 724!? RIDICULOUS! I have no new credit, no balances on any cards, no new credit inquiries (hard hits), and I’m now completely out of debt. There’s an error on my credit report though – it said that I had a 30-day late payment in May 2007 for a CitiFinancial credit card … even though I closed that account (and it’s listed as closed on the report) back in 2005. It’s odd. I haven’t even used … Continue reading →