Just to remind everyone who might not know about this, you're eligible for one free credit report per year as per the new FTC guidelines. If you're not sure where to go to get your free report, try the <a href="http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/conline/edcams/credit/ycr_free_reports.htm">official FTC website</a> - that way you'll be sure that you're not signing up for some weird rip off site.

After Sept. 1st, all states should be available for this year.

Cool! Got mine. Perfect score. *gloat*

Stormi must be putting "Free Stuff Today" in her Google bar.

Keep up the good work.

/smile

WTF is a perfect score? 950?
I don't think I've even heard of someone with a 950 =|

Not sure exactly what my total score was because I didn't pay extra for it. But there aren't any lates on my record.

Thank you for the reminder.

Not sure exactly what my total score was because I didn't pay extra for it. But there aren't any lates on my record.
Ooooh, ok, your record is spotless. I thought we were talking credit scores (NY isn't available yet, so I don't know what the output looks like). Damn Pana, I was about to be impressed if you had a perfect credit score ;)

I suppose to have a perfect score I'd have to be debt free. Unfortunately I have a mortgage and car loan.

You know, one thing that irritates me is that I have these credit card accounts that still show as open even though I closed them years ago.

And another thing that irritates me, I'd like to be able to direct these credit checking companies not to give out my info to all these people sending me credit cards and bloody refinance stuff!

Its a funny thing about that. Debt free is also bad. I've been turned down in the past because I didn't have enough debt.

Scrog'em. I like not owing money to anyone.

I suppose what they like to see are loans never late, rotating credit accounts open but without a balance and never late.

Yeah, I pay of my credit cards every month. If only that would keep the credit card people away and make them leave me alone!

I have a pretty average-high credit score (somewhere in the 700's), and from what I've been told you need a few things to get a <i>really</i> good score:

A: Revolving debt (I think that's what they called it... started with an "R") - In other words, if you're constantly at a zero balance, that's bad. What credit companies like to see is that you've had a debt and are consistently paying it off with no late fees and no minimum-only payments.

B: Credit availability versus Credit debt - While cutting up your credit cards and canceling them is somewhat stress reducing, it could actually be bad for you, at least as far as your credit score is concerned.

If you have cards worth, say, $4k total available credit, and you have about an average of $1k in debt, monthly (ie: you spend $1000/mo on cc's), then you're running around with 75% free. Now if you decide to cut up a few cards and that drops your available credit down to say, $2k, suddenly you've jumped up to having only 50% available credit even though your balances haven't risen. So if you have cards you don't use, pay them off, but keep the accounts around (assuming they have no yearly fee). Keeping them around is also good for...

C: Credit longevity - There's a reason why credit card companies like to boast how long you've been with them. The longer you stay with a company, the less likely you are to suddenly float the max on the account and run off to Mexico. Credit longevity is something that can help overcome even bad stuff like foreclosures or even bankruptcies. So if you have that dinky $500 limit cc from 1990 that you've been thinking about closing because you never use it, just cut up the card and keep the account open.

D: Homes and cars - Mortgages are the ultimate credit uppers. Even if you're in way over your head (say you make $50k/yr and you just bought a $350k house :P), mortgages and home ownership make credit companies ga-ga. I suppose they figure that if you ever default on a card, they can always try and force you to sell your house. Cars and Rentals are the same way, but just not as "powerful." Before I got my own car and apartment, I used to be a "high risk" loan, even though I had no debt, no late payments, and a steady job. Once I got the car and apartment, that's when all the "automatically accepted" gold/platinum offers started to pour in.

There are 3 credit reporting companies and you can get a report from each. I forget the names... I bet they are listed on Suze Orman's web site... Let me look.
Here we go:

"All three scores and three online credit reports from TransUnion, Experian, and Equifax."

http://www.myfico.com/?lpid=GGLE4500

When I applied for my Mortgage my credit score was 760. I wonder what it would be now? Better or worse? That was my first house.

Mine is close to 800. Not too bad, considering for the past 7 years I was a freelancer.