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	<title>Financially Tough &#187; FICO score</title>
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	<description>Getting Tough With Your Money</description>
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		<title>Missed Payments And Your FICO Score</title>
		<link>http://www.financiallytough.com/missed-payments-and-your-fico-score</link>
		<comments>http://www.financiallytough.com/missed-payments-and-your-fico-score#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 24 Jun 2009 05:40:51 +0000</pubDate>
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				<category><![CDATA[FICO score]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.financiallytough.com/?p=170</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[If you know the FICO score calculation you will find the single worst thing you can do to your FICO score is to pay late. Your payment history accounts for 35% of your FICO score and 7 years of payments are taken into account. Missed payment are judged based on three factors. The first is [...]


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<li><a href='http://www.financiallytough.com/credit-score-under-650' rel='bookmark' title='Permanent Link: Credit Score under 650'>Credit Score under 650</a> <small>Chances are if you have a credit score under 650...</small></li>
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			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>If you know the <a href="http://www.financiallytough.com/fico-score-calculation">FICO score calculation</a> you will find the single worst thing you can do to your FICO score is to pay late.  Your payment history accounts for 35% of your FICO score and 7 years of payments are taken into account.</p>
<p>Missed payment are judged based on three factors.  The first is the severity.  Basically, it comes down to how late were you when you finally paid the account.  The longer it took you to get current the greater the negative effect on your credit score.  The second factor is how often do you pay late.  The more you pay late the larger risk you represent and the more it will hurt your credit score.  The last factor is how recent was your last late payment.  Since the FICO score formula gives more weight to recent events over the past, the more recent it is the larger the negative effect.  </p>
<p>The question is if you have an <a href="http://www.financiallytough.com/excellent-credit-score-range">excellent credit score</a> will one payment really hurt your credit score?  The answer is yes.  The reason is the FICO score formula looks for any sign of distress.  Since a person with excellent credit has one or none late payments a single late payment is a red flag.  For a person that always pay late, they are already expected to pay late again.  Well, not really but it carries less of an effect.  </p>


<p>Related posts:<ol><li><a href='http://www.financiallytough.com/a-couple-fico-score-myths-debunked' rel='bookmark' title='Permanent Link: A Couple FICO Score Myths Debunked'>A Couple FICO Score Myths Debunked</a> <small>They is a ton of advice out there on how...</small></li>
<li><a href='http://www.financiallytough.com/credit-score-under-650' rel='bookmark' title='Permanent Link: Credit Score under 650'>Credit Score under 650</a> <small>Chances are if you have a credit score under 650...</small></li>
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		<title>Credit Score Models</title>
		<link>http://www.financiallytough.com/credit-score-models</link>
		<comments>http://www.financiallytough.com/credit-score-models#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 09 Jun 2009 06:12:59 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator></dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Credit Score]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[FICO score]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[credit score range]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[credit score scale]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[FICO score range]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.financiallytough.com/?p=150</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[If you were aware you have more than one credit score.  If you really look there are over 1000 different credit score models.  A bit strange and confusing, but here is a quick guide to explain which credit score model you should care about. You might think the phrase credit score means a specific number [...]


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			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>If you were aware you have more than one credit score.  If you really look there are over 1000 different credit score models.  A bit strange and confusing, but here is a quick guide to explain which credit score model you should care about.</p>
<p>You might think the phrase credit score means a specific number that everyone uses, but really it is a very general term.  It actually is very generic, just think of what was stated above that there is 1000 different credit score models.  So in a lending situation you should ask what scoring model the creditor is using.</p>
<p>But the question is which ones or one should you really care about?  If there is an answer it would be your FICO score, which is the most widely used and trusted score today.  Chances are if you are going to a large purchase such as a home, your FICO score will be what your lender uses.  Now, this is a rule of thumb and there are exceptions.  And if you are not sure what they are using it is ok to ask.</p>
<p>So beyond the fact the FICO score is the most popular credit score model, it also makes up the general basis for the reasoning behind credit scores.  Meaning the same general areas of the <a href="http://www.financiallytough.com/fico-score-calculation">FICO score calculation</a> are found in other score.  So your payment history will carry the largest weight followed by your <a href="http://www.financiallytough.com/good-debt-to-credit-ratio">debt to credit ratio</a>.  Etc..</p>
<p>Also, since a FICO score is just a brand of credit score, it is open to re branding.  This is the case with other scores you might of heard of such as the Beacon Score.</p>
<p>That leads to the fact if know where you are at on the FICO score scale you should have a pretty good idea where you fall with the other scores.  But it always does hurt to ask what your lender is using for a credit score model.</p>


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		<title>How to dispute a credit report error</title>
		<link>http://www.financiallytough.com/how-to-dispute-a-credit-report-error</link>
		<comments>http://www.financiallytough.com/how-to-dispute-a-credit-report-error#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 05 Jun 2009 02:40:51 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator></dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Credit Score]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[FICO score]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[credit score range]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[credit score scale]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.financiallytough.com/?p=120</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[One of the best ways to improve your credit score or get on a path to an excellent credit score is to clean up your credit report. Your credit score is completely based on the information found on it and having incorrect info could be hurting your score. The first step on how to dispute [...]


Related posts:<ol><li><a href='http://www.financiallytough.com/credit-score-dos-and-donts' rel='bookmark' title='Permanent Link: Credit Score Do&#8217;s and Dont&#8217;s'>Credit Score Do&#8217;s and Dont&#8217;s</a> <small>There are so much advice out these about how to...</small></li>
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			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>One of the best ways to improve your credit score or get on a path to an <a href="http://www.creditscoreinsight.com/the-best-way-to-get-an-excellent-credit-score">excellent credit score</a> is to clean up your credit report.  Your credit score is completely based on the information found on it and having incorrect info could be hurting your score.</p>
<p>The first step on how to dispute a credit report error is to get a copy of each of your credit reports.  You have three and each can have different information on it.  Since the info can be different this it can create a different result for your credit score.</p>
<p>The second step on how to dispute a credit report error is to go through each report and record anything you believe to be incorrect.  This is important because you will need some type of reference so can research each item and follow up on it.</p>
<p>You also need to know what you are looking for.  The first section of your credit report will be your personal information.  This information will not be included in the actual calculation but is still worth a look.  Common errors could be a misspelling of your name or a scarier sign of identity theft such as an address you have never lived at.</p>
<p>The next section is your accounts and it will include your credit limit, balance, account information, and payment history to that account.  The most common negative entries here are going to be <a href="http://www.financiallytough.com/late-payment-effects-on-your-credit-score">late payments</a> and anything over seven years you can dispute to be removed.  Also, again look for any accounts that you don’t know about which is another sign of identity theft.</p>
<p>This will be followed by your credit inquiries.  These are anytime your credit report has been checked.  You mainly care about those checks by creditors which you applied for a loan with.  These are known as hard inquiries and will factored into the credit score calculation.  Any of these over two years old can be disputes and removed from your credit report.</p>
<p>Another section you need to check is to look at any public records you might have such as potential tax liens, collections, bankruptcies, and judgments.  Bankruptcies over 10 years old can be disputed to be removed.  Also, you want to check for double collections.  These can be possible if you have defaulted on an account and they resell the debt to a new company which you don’t pay either.  And new company and the old company have both have sent you to collections for non payment.  These can also be disputed to be removed.</p>
<p>I hope these help answer the question: How to dispute a credit report error?  But these are only a few methods and there are a few more.  Furthermore, these do not guarantee a credit score boost or even if they will be removed.  The process of the actual error dispute is a completely new post</p>


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