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Protect Your Identity
by Nef Cortez
Protect Your Identity
One’s FICO score is a very important determinant of the ability to finance
the purchase or refinance of a home. The FICO score is determined by a
formula developed by Experian and takes into account many different
factors. In today's lending environment, automated underwriting has taken
a predominant position in the processing of loan applications. It has
become more cumbersome to address issues that do not easily fit into the
formula. It is of extremely high importance, therefore, to protect one’s
credit by guarding against identity theft. Once an item is shown as a
negative on one’s credit report, it is very difficult and very time
consuming to get it taken off. Also, while an item of bad credit is being
investigated and attempts are being made to rectify the problem, the
result is that the overall FICO score is reduced, and therefore reflects a
greater credit risk than it should.
The protection of your identity is one of the most important functions in
maintaining your financial health. Identity theft can cause many a myriad
of problems. One major problem could be the inability to achieve the
"American Dream" of homeownership. Even if you already own a home,
identity theft could cause you thousands and thousands of dollars due to
higher interest rates. In trying to refinance a home in order to remodel,
for example, the interest rate could easily be 2% higher than the current
market interest rate just because someone else used your credit and
negatively impacted it.
There are “Ten Top Tips for Identity Theft Protection” published by the
Office of Privacy Protection, California Department of Consumer Affairs,
www.dca.ca.gov. If one follows these guidelines for protection, one will
be far ahead of the average person in safeguarding their identity,
although no one is fully guaranteed complete immunity.
The following is a short, abbreviated list of these top ten pointers:
Tip # 1. Protect your social security number. (Don’t carry your social
security card with you)
Tip # 2. Fight “Phishing”-don’t take the bait. (Don’t respond online to
credit information requests).
Tip # 3. Keep your identity from getting trashed. (Shred information when
throwing away).
Tip # 4. Control your personal financial information.
Tip # 5. Shield your computer from viruses and spyware.
Tip # 6 press with caution! When shopping on line, check out the website
before entering your credit card number or other personal information.
Tip #7 Check your bills and bank statements right away.
Tip #8 Stop pre-approved credit offers.
Tip #9 Ask questions of anyone before giving personal information.
Tip #10 Check your credit reports-for free.
Identity theft can be devastating to a person’s finances. It often leaves
its victims credit and financial lives in shambles, but by practicing
these simple tips you can stay one step ahead of the identity thieves, and
be the only one who uses your identity.
For further information related to this article, visit
http://www.nefcortez.com
Nef Cortez may be contacted at
http://www.nefcortez.com/
cortezgroup@earthlink.net
For further analysis or information regarding market trends, please
contact me at 909-869-0259 or visit my website at
www.nefcortez.com. |
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