To get a mortgage loan to buy a home, you know you need good (or at least decent) credit. But it will not do the trick to check your credit score once and then forget about it. Your financial decisions will affect your credit score, such as major transactions and even mistakes that can and do creep in. And you’re supposed to stay on top of it. To help you manage your credit when buying a home in Sacramento, read on to find the best apps and services.
Best Apps to Help Track Your Credit When Buying a Home in Sacramento
Allt’s apps are available for Apple and Android to help track your credit listed below and are theoretically free (although some need an account…
“The Credit.com mobile app allows you to view your entire credit profile, including your credit score and insight into how it compares to your peers, one of the few really free credit monitoring apps- most others enable you to have a paid subscription to their digital service to use the ‘free’ app.” With this app, as well as any adjustments in your score and what caused those changes, you will see where you actually stand credit-wise.
MYFICO
This app is free, but requires an active FICO account (as we warned) that costs a minimum of $20 / month. You can display and monitor your FICO scores-the most commonly used credit score-and credit reports with this app, however. They also have a FICO Score Simulator, which shows you how, if you take certain acts, your score will be affected.
LOCK & ALERT (EQUIFAX)
For security against both identity theft and fraud, Equifax’s Lock & Warn helps you to lock and unlock your Equifax credit report. You can access and have a measure of security from your Equifax credit report (although a credit lock is less safe than a credit freeze).
SCORESENSE SCORES TO GO
“ScoreSense provides credit ratings and reviews from all three credit bureaus and regular credit tracking and updates to changes in your reports, free but needing a ScoreSense account.” You also get contact information for the creditor so that you can quickly take care of your credit report mistakes, as well as a feature that allows you to check changes in your score.
Best Services to Help Track Your Credit When Buying a Home in Sacramento
For the best services that help you track your credit, here are both free and paid ones . . .
CREDITWISE FROM CAPITAL ONE
This is a free service that provides a decent range of characteristics to help you track your credit. Plus, it is open to anyone, regardless of whether you are a cardholder of Capital One. CreditWise features are integrated into the Capital One mobile app if you’re a Capital One customer, so there’s no need to download the CreditWise app as well.
You get an updated VantageScore credit score from TransUnion every week, along with “real time credit report updates from TransUnion and Experian” to help you closely track your credit. CreditWise stands out by providing dark web scanning and monitoring of social security numbers, unlike other free services. You may use the credit score simulator as an additional tool to check the possible effect on your credit score that certain acts, such as paying off debt or closing a credit card, could have.
EXPERIAN
Without having to have a credit card number, you can sign up for this service. With a range of characteristics close to those of other paid services, Experian lets you track your credit.
“You will receive real-time updates with this service about new inquiries and accounts opened on your behalf, adjustments to your personal details and suspicious activity found on your credit report from Experian. Every 30 days, users of Plus receive a revised Experian credit report and FICO credit score.”
Although it does not provide dark web scans, on sign-up you get a one-time dark web monitoring. Furthermore, Experian Boost helps you to “add to your Experian credit file positive payments for phone and energy bills, potentially increasing your credit score.”
IDENTITYFORCE ULTRASECURE
By providing an comprehensive suite of security features, this service lets you monitor your credit. “These features” monitor your data on a variety of websites and services, including the dark web, court records and social media (checks if there is inappropriate activity on your accounts on websites such as Facebook , Instagram and Twitter that can be considered profane or discriminatory).
You get alerts about potential fraud and complete credit monitoring and identity protection with the UltraSecure+Credit service. You also get credit score updates from the three major credit bureaus with this plan. “You can also track how your score changes over time and simulate how your score can be affected by certain actions (though with some free services, such as CreditWise, you can do this).”
You get two months free upon signing up for any annual plan, or you can opt for a 30-day free trial for a monthly plan. You can sign up for monthly or yearly payment plans after that.
Finally , remember that tracking your credit is only part of the equation when buying a home in Sacramento. You also need to understand how your credit impacts your prospects of home-buying and how that will affect home shopping, offering, and negotiating. That’s where they can help your local real estate agent. If you are ready to do more than just track your credit.