I recently tried to buy something on credit for the first time in my life but was refused. They couldn’t explain why but I can only see that its because I have no credit history.

I have no debts and never had a credit card.

How can I get accepted for credit requests?

Did you are entitled to your own Federal Credit Report? maybe not? Over 75% of Americans don’t even know what their Credit Score is! and a further 20% have never even seen their Score! If you want to be smart when applying for a loan then it’s essential to get your Report and get answers to your questions.

I’ve heard o the Fail Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) what does it do and what are my rights?

It applies to any personal or family household debts. This might include any money owed for the purchase of a house, car, or medical care. This also includes Credit Cards or other Charge Accounts. FDCPA makes it illegal for debt collectors from engaging in any unfair or deceptive practices during collection of these kind of debts. Any abusive practices is also illegal.

Some of your rights that falls under the (FDCPA) include:

Debt Collectors cannot be untruthful when collecting any debt records. For example: falsely implying that you may have committed an actual crime.

Debt Collectors need to stop contacting you. Provided you have asked them to in writing.

Debt Collectors must not make contact with you at work if they know your employer disapproves.

Debt Collectors must not harass, or stop you saying something or try to abuse you in any way.

Debt Collectors must not contact you at only a time period of between 8 a.m. and 9 p.m.

Debt Collectors cannot identify themselves to you at all, while on the phone.

Who Has The Right To View My Federal Credit Report?

If someone has a legitimate business need then they can get access to your Report, including your Credit Score.

The criteria for doing so must include the following:

Any Insurance companies.

They are considering granting you credit.

Employers and potential employers (but only with your consent).

Companies with which you have a credit account for account monitoring purposes.

People considering your application for a Government license or a benefit.

A state or even a local Child Support Enforcement Agency (CSEA).

A Government Agency but information that is limited usually to your name, address, former addresses and any current or former employers.

Any Debt Collectors.

Your Landlords.

Because a recent change tot eh Federal Credit Reporting Act you are now legally
entitled to get a copy of your Report. There are only 3 nationwide consumer reporting companies .

Your Report – Free Nation Wide Reporting
A recent amendment to the federal Fair Credit Reporting Act requires that each of the nationwide consumer reporting companies:

1. Equifax

2. Experian

3. TransUnion

Under US law they have to provide you with a free copy of your credit report You can request for one only once every 12 months.

Hopefully this article has answered some of your questions regarding Federal Credit Report, feel free to respond with any comments of questions, tips or advice.



By: John Mcfadden

Your credit history is an important component of the your ability to successfully apply for new lending. Each aspect of your previous experience with lenders will contribute in some way to the decision about whether you will be successful in any future applications. The credit reference agencies use these previous interactions with lenders to build up a picture of your financial behaviour, stability and reliability. This information is most often encapsulated into the credit score.

The credit score is used by lenders to determine whether you are a good financial risk for them, meaning whether they can reliably lend you money, whether you will pay them back on time, whether you will communicate sensibly with them if you get into difficulties and whether they can find you if they need to. These factors, whilst largely qualitative can be broadly categorised as; do you have a job and have you been employed for at least two years, do you live in a permanent residence be it an apartment or a house and do you have a bank account? Your credit score will encapsulate all this information into its total.

But perhaps more importantly your previous history of how you paid down debt, whether you were late with any payments, whether you paid anything off early counts more. In essence you will find it more difficult to get new borrowing if you have not had borrowings in the past. This is because you will have less evidence with which to prove to the lender that you are a good financial risk.

It is therefore a good idea to find out the information in respect of your credit history soon.



By: Jamie England

When it comes to the wonderful world of credit, it can get quite confusing and the main question that many new comers love to ask is, “How the heck do I start building credit?” This answer is actually easier to answer than you thought. While most people think that they need to start building credit with a regular credit card, there are so many other ways, it’s silly and today, I’m going to show you exactly how you can start building your credit and getting a great FICO score.

Credit cards is the name of the game

I know I mentioned credit cards in the introduction and while I believe this is the best way to get credit, you may want to look into other alternatives if you don’t think a card will be best for your habits. Many people find that they spend too much when they have a piece of plastic. If you think that this is you, you may want to go to the next option.

Many kids graduate from high school and are eager to start building credit. What most kids don’t realize is that there are cards out there that are designed just for them. These types of cards are called student cards or student credit cards. These cards are geared toward any student currently enrolled in any college. All the credit companies ask for is proof that you’re attending the school and little bit of personal information.

Now you’re probably thinking that these cards probably stink and the rewards are probably awful. Well, you couldn’t be further from the truth. Most student cards are actually quite reasonable when it comes to rates and rewards. You can choose any type of card from cash back cards to getting gas rewards. The key to finding the right card is by research and asking around.

The other option – loans

If you skipped the credit card portion or you just want to see what option two is, it’s a bank loan. I’m going to share a little secret and tell you exactly how you can start building credit for the first time and it involves little to no risk.

When you go into a bank, ask for a small personal loan around one hundred to two hundred dollars. Most banks will bite on this regardless of your credit score. From here, just hold onto the money and don’t spend it. Now, you can either pay the loan off in full when your first payment is due or you can pay it off in increments, it’s up to you. Remember, that you’ll have interest charged to you if you pay increments. If you do this enough times, you can build up a nice credit score.

These are two major options if you’re looking to build your credit. If you don’t like either option or you want a credit card and you’re not a student, you can always try a department store card. These cards are generally easy to get but you’ll probably get a low credit limit. Regardless, these are all ways you can build your credit. Remember to use your head when you use your credit!



By: Tom Tessin

If I end up getting evicted from my apartment, does anyone know how long that stays on your credit history? Also, if I end up breaking my lease before eviction, does breaking a lease reflect poorly on your credit? Just curious. Thank you!

You may be one of the fortunate or unfortunate, depending on how you look at it, that does not have any credit. In some cases, having no credit is just as bad if not worse as having bad credit. Usually these are young people, students or divorced or widowed women that had joint credit with their husbands. So what do you do when you want or need a credit card?

Ok, I know, no one needs a credit card. It is always good to have one credit card for emergency purposes. And the good news is that even if you have no credit there are options available to you to get credit cards. One option is a secured credit card. Yes, they do not sound fun, secured means that you have given the company money, and they are basically holding it for you until you use it. Your limit is usually set by the size of your deposit. You still need to make sure that you are making your payments, on time each month or the credit card company can take the money you have in savings. Make monthly payments on time and you may be able to switch to an unsecured credit card.

Apply for a gas card with your gas station. Those are usually easier to get then a credit card. Make sure that you make your payments each month to build you credit. Lenders not only want to see that you have credit, but they want to make sure that you are going to pay your bills as well.

Go to your bank and make sure that you have a checking and savings account. Talk to your bank and apply for their credit card. Usually having a good relationship with you bank can help you get credit when you need it, even if you don’t currently have it. The smaller the bank the better, little credit unions and local banks are more helpful then big national companies where you are just a number.
Your favorite store can also help you get a credit card. Make sure that the department store reports to the credit bureau, if it doesn’t then the credit card is really not going to help you establish a credit history.

Keep in mind that paying your bills are not the only thing credit card companies look at. They want to see how often you move and how steady your income is. These play a major role is whether or not you get a credit card.

There is hope for people that have no credit and want credit cards. You just have to know what the credit card company is looking for and apply only to those that you think will accept you, because getting rejected for credit can hurt just as bad as bad credit.



By: Kerry Hedden

I am new in the country and just obtained a social security number a couple of weeks back. I have applied for 3 credit cards in the last 3 – 4 weeks and all applications have been denied because of limited credit history or not enough information on file. My wife is a U.S. citizen and has several U.S. credit cards.
How can I build credit if they won’t give a credit card to start with?

I just turned 18 a few weeks ago and would now like to get a credit card, however, I keep getting turned down because I have no credit history. What can I do, or what credit card can I get that I would be eligible for, to get my credit history and rating up?

I have about 5500-6000 dollars in debt to pay off and it is effecting my credit score BIG TIME!! I am planning a way to pay it off myself by the end of this year. How long will it be until my credit score improves? How high can it improve and will old credit history/scores show up on a report in say, February?
In addition, my car was repossessed in Nov. 2005. The rest of the lease payments were payed off. Can this be taken off of my credit?

I have paid down some balances already for some time but the changes are not appearing on my credit report. I’m not pulling up my credit however, I have alerts when my scores go up or down or if there’s inquiries etc. Do I have to ask them to report the change in balance? Why is it that when you rack up a ton of charges they report them really fast but when they’re paid off, they take forever? Is there a way to speed up the process?