A credit score is a three digit number which tells the lender whether you are a good or bad risk and whether there are greater chances of your defaulting on a loan. It is based on the facts presented in your credit report and depends on your payment history, the types of credit you have used and so on. Credit score monitoring is important in order to prevent any fraud activities and other crimes that can taint your credit score.
Advantages of Credit monitoring
With the help of credit score monitoring you can also improve your credit score if it is bad and you can also remain alert to any changes made to your report. Sometimes, there might be many negative aspects and items in your credit report, which you might not even be aware of. These are serious errors and result in pulling down your credit score. You must first review your credit score and then get them removed. This can improve your credit score to a great extent. You can do this yourself or get it done professionally. After making the necessary changes and improving your credit score, the professionals will help you with credit score monitoring by giving you a detailed analysis of your credit report, so that you can act towards removing other negative factors. They will let you know about any financial activity which might impact your credit score negatively.
With the help of credit score monitoring, you can also identify any cases of identity theft and your identity will remain safe. It is a way of tracking your credit record so that you are immediately alerted about any changes.
Free credit monitoring
Credit score monitoring can also be done for free as it is mandatory by the Fair Credit Reporting Act that everyone gets a copy of their free credit report once a year from the three bureaus. This is important as the government wants you to stay informed and protect yourself against theft. You can use the annualcreditreport.com in order to access your free credit score report. It is also possible to call the three bureaus directly and obtain your credit report in order to monitor it. But in this case, you may have to pay for the service.
You will have to fill in your name, address and other details, such as your social security number and your birth date. A security question is also usually asked and you can immediately see your credit report and you can review it. Look out for any mistakes in spellings and other variations in your personal information. While doing the credit score monitoring you can check out the Account history to know the details regarding your payments to ascertain that all the information given is correct.
Credit score monitoring is an important aspect to be considered. You must protect your credit score from fraud or any other mistakes in the account details. It is easy to obtain a free credit score and monitor it, and alternatively, you could also get the services of professionals for monitoring your credit score.