You know those college ads that assure you that you “aren’t just a number”? They lied. Sometimes you are just a number. That “sometimes” includes when you are applying to rent an apartment or trying to get a mortgage and that “number” is your credit score. Yes, a seemingly arbitrary number between 300-850 sometimes determines your worth as an individual. Accept it.
While we all know that our credit reports from Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion can each be accessed for free once a year (you did know that, right?), many people don’t know that you can now obtain your credit score for free! Like FREE, free. No credit card information, no 7 day trials, no vial of blood or promising of your first born child. Do you want to unlock the secret code that determines why lenders approve or deny your credit requests? The password is…“Credit Sesame”.
Credit Sesame is a free, easy to use resource that provides a monthly update of your credit score via Experian. It also provides personal advice to maximize savings on your goals – whether your priorities are securing a home or auto loan or you are looking for the best credit card to meet your needs. (To be paid off in full each month, right?)
Credit Score
Your score is based on your personal credit history, consisting of your number of credit inquiries, the average age of your accounts, the amount you owe on mortgages or your lack of mortgages, and your balance to limit ratios on accounts. This score determines your creditworthiness. Credit Sesame analyzes your number to determine whether you are likely to be approved for credit (fair – excellent) or not so much (very poor – poor). If you are part of the latter group, you need to read Johnny Moneyseed more often. You clearly haven’t learned anything.
Debt
If you want an updated snapshot of your debts and you aren’t a dork with multiple spreadsheets of this data (like me!), Credit Sesame has that as well. The name of the game is pie charts and there are plenty of them here. Does anyone else have a weird love of charts? So colorful and organized — it’s love! The “My Finances” tab spells out your total loans & debt, monthly payments, and debt to income.
Goals
Are you looking to take out a personal, home, or auto loan? Plug in the amount you want to borrow and your annual household income and Credit Sesame will send you an alert when a loan with your desired payment becomes available. What about a credit card? Specify why you want the card (save money, build credit, earn cash back, or earn rewards) and Credit Sesame will recommend cards that are in line with your goals. Or maybe you just want to optimize everything? Credit Sesame will provide you with savings advice for everything, leaving you to twiddle your thumbs or spend time with that first born you didn’t have to trade for a free credit score.
Sign Up for Credit Sesame!
The whole process takes about two minutes. Just enter your basic information (name, address, SSN), answer a few questions to verify your identity (past loans, year of birth, etc.), and add a goal to get started. It is absolutely free (have I mentioned that?), so put that credit card away!
Do you use Credit Sesame or any other credit score sites?
The post Credit Sesame Unlocks the Secrets to Credit Approval appeared first on Johnny Moneyseed.
