I’ve been covering the mortgage market and buyer financing over the last two weeks and was asked by several buyers how to raise their credit scores. Accordingly, I thought I’d share an incredible resource with you that can help to raise your credit score before applying for a loan. It can mean untold thousands of dollars of savings in lower interest rates and may make the difference on whether you can even get the loan you need to purchase that dream house.
One company that can help you is The Kelly Group located in Danbury, CT. Jeanne Kelly started this credit consulting firm in 2000 and has a great track record for raising client credit scores by interceding with creditors and collection agencies to remove derogatory items on credit reports, and advising clients on what actions they should and should not take and what their effect on credit ratings will be.
I spoke with Jeanne recently and she amazed me with advice that I’m sure will surprise you, too. Did you know that cancelling and cutting up credit cards or not using them can negatively affect your credit rating? Those with “healthy credit” have and use at least five credit cards and don’t exceed 20 percent of the credit limit on each card.
Here’s another tidbit. If you have a Citibank credit card, call the customer service number and ask them to report your credit limit to the credit reporting agencies. It seems that Citibank is the only bank that does not report credit limits on their cards to the agencies for confidentiality reasons. This hurts your credit score since the agencies then use zero for the limit and any balance on your card is, by definition, over your zero credit limit. Also, if you’re about to apply for a mortgage, wait to get a car loan since pulling your credit score will cost you 2 points and getting the loan will cost you another 8 points (new “trade line”). Wow … thanks Jeanne.
Jeanne told me that the credit scores from the three credit reporting agencies (Experian, Equifax, and Transunion) are dramatically different from the FICO scores first developed by Fair Isaac & Co. in the late 1950's and now also done by Beacon and Empirica. Don’t waste your money buying the credit reporting agency scores. If you want to know your true score (from 350 to 850), pay the $47.85 charged by MyFico.com. It’s only then that you’ll see exactly what lenders and employers are seeing.
Just like any other game, you need to know the rules to win. To read up on how to play the new credit game, go to KGroupConsulting.com on the Internet or call The Kelly Group at (203) 798-9592. You’ll be amazed at how they can improve your credit score. Good luck.
Vacation Tips
Since many of you will be taking your vacations soon, I thought I’d share a list of safety tips that Dave Leopold of Pillar to Post Professional Home Inspection gave me. This firm is a licensed and ASHI-certified home inspection company that I frequently give as a reference to my clients. You can check them out at PillarToPost.com/Fairfield or call them at (888) 801-7111.
To not make your empty house a target for break-ins and burglaries …
* Inform a trusted neighbor that you are leaving town. For short trips, request that they pick up and store your mail and newspaper deliveries.
* For long vacations, call your newspaper service and have them hold delivery two days earlier than you leave so that it happens by the time you've left. Go to the post office and stop mail delivery until your return.
* Make arrangements for someone to cut the grass and keep shrubs maintained around the front of the house.
* Inform your alarm company that you are going on vacation.
* Turn the volume down on your phone and answering machine so passersby will not be alerted to unanswered calls. Avoid leaving an outbound message on your answering machine that alerts callers to your vacation status. (Hi, we're in Vermont. Feel free to take whatever you like while we're gone!)
* Automatic timers for your light fixtures are an inexpensive purchase that should be set to your usual evening schedule. Televisions and radios can be put on timers to provide noise - it takes a pretty bold thief to enter a home with a TV on, visible from a door or window.
* Leave a car in the driveway, if possible, and ask your trusted neighbor to park there occasionally.
* Check the locks on all doors, windows, and fences. If you have a detached garage, lock it. If attached, unplug the automatic opener.
* Leave the blinds and curtains open as if you were home.
* The day you leave for vacation try to make your departure as unobvious as possible. Load your car in the garage with the garage door closed, or do it at night. This will help make your imminent departure less obvious.
* Prepare for the worst by taking a photograph of every room and your most valuable possessions. Bring all valuable jewelry, credit and ATM cards, and computer back-ups to your safety deposit box. Leave behind all non-essential credit cards you won't use while on vacation. If your vacation will involve lots of swimming, think about leaving expensive jewelry home.
* Photocopy the front and back of all cards and IDs you are taking in your wallet and your passport/visa, leaving one copy at home and one copy with your traveling partner.
* When writing your automatic "out-of-office" E-mail reply, do not indicate the nature of your absence. Try "I'm working on a special project from 8/9-8/16 with very limited access to phone and E-mail. Please pardon any delay in responding." After all, having a relaxing vacation is a special project.
Ok — you're ready. Have a wonderful vacation - you deserve it!
This Week’s Success Quote
“A vacation is like love - anticipated with pleasure, experienced with discomfort, and remembered with nostalgia.” - Anonymous
Ken Edwards is a Realtor and Accredited Staging Professional in Greenwich and has lived in town since 1974. All opinions expressed in this column are entirely his own and have not been authorized by his real estate broker.
Comments, questions and suggestions may be sent to EdwardsK@RaveisRE.com. Questions of general interest will be addressed in this column while others will receive individual responses.Your browser may not support display of this image.