Jeff - It is vital that everyone does their homework before acting at a whim.  On another note, how's that experiment going?

Hey Jeff,

Great Blog and very informative. Everyone is entitled to a free report but those FREE reports don't give the person any scores. I believe they should include the scores although the scores you can get from the bureaus as a consumer are never the same numbers as a mortgage broker will get.

Sean Allen

Mr Jeff, what great timing for this post as I have a 10 am meeting with a credit "optimizing" firm.  I can't wait to share what happens in this meeting.

Great point to bring up ... thanks for the refernce sites as well

Jason.....  that is so true... doing their homework and research. Thanks for your input.

Sean.....  I would only go to one place for the free reports and that is the link that I published. That is from the federal gov't and monitored. The others?  Well, read some of the stories that I listed. And thanks for the kind words

Joe....  Keep me posted on how your meeting tomorrow. Thanks for stopping by.

Allen.....  my pleasure and hope they come in handy. 

Hi Jeff,
Free--yeah, right!  When you hear those words, BEWARE!  As for the credit repair companies, I would not touch them with a 10 foot pole and advise my clients to stay away from them.  Good info.

It still amazes me that people will fall for this. Everyone should know about the annual freebies. I just hope they take the time to do an internet search and find your post before they get taken for a ride.

What experiment? Do tell! 

I have to disagree about nothing being free. As a 'chick' [wink wink]- I get free drinks, free 'extras' with purchase, get out of jail free cards, etc.. all the time. It's all in the approach ;-) Though I fully agree about credit reports. I have a couple of places I refer my clients if needed. One being my favorite mortgage brokers who assist them in cleaning up messy credit issues and preparing to be solid buyers. Sometimes it can take months, but it's a service I really appreciate. Keeps my clients in my loop.

Cynthia..... well, there are some good credit repair companies. But you really need to do your homework here also. And always be careful in giving up money quickly to them to get started. Check them out first. You will be surprised what you can find online nowadays.

Lisa..... the sad part is that so many of us are just trusting.... human.  And so many skip the fine print. That is the major problem.

Jennifer.....   lol...  you guys are killing me.... and your gossiping. Jason should be ashamed of himself.

On another note, you are so correct in your statement regarding some things to be free. Hence why I am always poor and I am not even married. lol  Yes, free drinks that I pay for....But it's not always the approach though. It could just be a good natured, good hearted person that just wants to buy a drink or do something nice.

But seriously, just for the fact that you have a few that you trust in your networking circle is key and important.  You hit the nail on the head... 'SERVICE'.....  and being kept in the loop.

Jeff, another great post. I make sure to talk to every client that walks through my door or I speak with on the phone about annualcreditreport.com and how it is different from some of the "free" services advertised on TV. Thanks for putting the word out on paper, or my computer screen, either way, keep up the good work.

Jeff,

I worked in an Office where after six Years, the owner Decided to Hire a Credit Repair Specialist.. So Called. I decided to move on, because it didn't feel right having him in our Office, he looked liked he was shady, so I agree with you.

Tom Weiss

Jeff, This is a great Post. I hope they would feature this.  This post will most likely get picked up on the web from other sites. 

Jeff J. .......   thanks for the compliment. That's a good point. I don't usually talk about annualcreditreport.com because if the client allows me to pull their credit, there is no need then. But we do need to educate everyone to let them know to beware. Thanks for your feedback.

Tom W. ...... I would not like that either. I was just called by a credit repair company explaining to me on how they help clients and that I can receive income for referring them. Hey, I LOVE money, but isn't that defeating the purpose? Help my client by making it less expensive then, right?

Matthew....  thank you very much for the kind words. I guess time will only tell. Besides, there are so many, it's hard to pick them all. But I will be writing about this again, because this needs to be picked up on the net. This has become a bad epidemic, the advertising of free credit reports...

Jeff, I was about to sign up with one of those companies---it said FREE.  Thank goodness I read it through, of course it wasn't free!  Thanks for the reminder.

I know a guy here in the Lehigh Valley that runs a side business regarding credit 'repair'. No where does he suggest free services.  His intent is to help people that can't seem to help themselves (as it's obvious we can ALL better our credit position with a bit of research, challenging some incorrect reporting, SAVING SOME MONEY, paying down credit cards, etc....).

So many people need to have an outside influence to keep them focused.

Nice blog Jeff - the buyer does need to beware. Free... now that's a word that should frighten anyone.

On a side note - I never checked my own credit through one of the big 3 credit agencies, but wifey checked hers.  She said that when she did, the on-line default was that she has now signed up for periodic reports at some cost $$$ - UNLESS she called within 30? days to cancel.  Is that really how the one time per year free credit report is offered by these companies?

Carole....    I think that is the biggest problem, so many of us are just too lazy to read the small print. And it can bite us in the rear.

Rob....   That is one point that I would like to clarify. There are some credit repair companies and or individuals that are good at what they do. They are certainly there to help those that can't help themselves. But the biggest issue are their promises in restoring credit and just taking the consumers money. You just need to be very, very careful of who you go with.

In regards to the free credit issue. From my understanding, the only place to get your credit report free with no hassles is through :AnnualCreditReport.com  Now, I haven't tried this site as of yet. But this site is backed by the gov't in their statement stating that you are allowed one free credit report a year. But that doesn't mean other sites have to obey this. They can still charge or get you to buy other services in order to obtain that so-called 'free' credit report. So, from my understanding, nothing else is really free. Except for that one site that I mentioned, which is part of the 3 major credit agencies. 

JEFF:  Thanks for sharing this important information.  Now, more than ever, our clients need to make sure that their credit is as good as possible.  It might be the difference between getting the loan that they need for a mortgage or missing out on the home of their dreams.

Good information, I think we all could learn something from this post.

ADAM.......  it's not only the consumer knowing that their credit is good, but more so to be careful about so many of these online companies that mislead the consumer and either take their money or their identity.

DWAYNE.......  thank you and for the polite words.

Well, actually there is some free stuff. I just wrote about it in by blog.

But I agree that consumers should beware of credit repair companies

TOM.....   sure, there is some.... but it's rare and you really need to be careful and read the fine print. And why take that risk when the one site that I mentioned is free, regulated by the gov't per se....   thanks for your feedback.

Jennifer     it's not you that is getting everything for free...it's "the girls" doing it for you...us guys are so pitiful!