Archive for August, 2009

An amendment to the federal Fair Credit Reporting Act requires each of the major nationwide consumer reporting companies to provide you with a free copy of your credit report, at your request, once every 12 months.

To order your free annual report from one or all the national consumer reporting companies, visit AnnualCreditReport.com, or call toll-free 877-322-8228.  Do not contact the three nationwide consumer reporting companies individually; they provide free annual credit reports only through AnnualCreditReport.com, 877-322-8228, and Annual Credit Report Request ...

Early detection of a potential identity theft can make a big difference. Keep an eye out for any suspicious activity by routinely monitoring:

Your financial statements. Monitor your financial accounts and billing statements regularly, looking closely for charges you did not make.

Your credit reports. Credit reports contain information about you, including what accounts you have and how you pay your bills. The law requires each of the major nationwide consumer reporting agencies to provide you with a free copy of your ...

Stay alert for the signs of identity theft, like:

•debts on your current accounts that you can’t explain.
•inaccurate information on your credit reports, including accounts and personal information, like your Social Security number, address(es), name or initials, and employers.
•not receiving bills or other mail. Follow up with creditors if your bills don’t arrive on time. A missing bill could mean someone has taken over your account and changed your billing address.
•receiving credit cards that you didn’t apply ...

Last month, 126,434 Americans filed for bankruptcy. This is the highest monthly total since changes were enacted five years ago. The increases are linked to unemployment, home foreclosures and tighter credit. This data comes from the American Bankruptcy Institute.
Recent bankruptcies include a couple of celebrities who have filed for Chapter 11 protection: actor Stephen Baldwin, who is fighting foreclosure, and former Philadelphia Phillies star Lenny Dykstra. Reported from USA Today.

In many situations, filing for bankruptcy is the best remedy for debt problems. In others, however, another course of action makes more sense. If your main concern is that creditors are harassing you, bankruptcy is not necessarily the best way to stop the abuse. You can get creditors off your back by taking advantage of federal and state collection laws that protect you from harassing conduct.
If you have income, or you have assets you can sell, you may be ...