Your credit score report can be affect by more than your available credit history. We talk about how credit cards, mortgages, car loans, and any type of loan that reports to all 3 credit bureaus will affect your credit score. We don’t always talk about utility companies and how they can have a negative impact on your credit report. Here are utility companies I like to consider non-creditors. In other words these companies don’t give you a line credit, they just provide a service.

Credit repair scams are abundant as more and more people who have taken on debt are desperate to find a way out. The scam is the same over and over again. These companies promise to erase your credit and help you start fresh, and all you have to do is pay them a fee.

Citi is another credit card that is offering free credit scores in the latest financial institution perks to give customers free credit scores through the FICO Open Access program, FICO announced, making it the largest participant in the program that will be available to more than 60 million consumers in 2015.

You need to have a firm understanding of the minimum credit score for auto loan — applying for a car loan without such basic knowledge will hurt your chances.

A credit bureau is an information clearinghouse that compiles information on consumers. The credit grantors, or lenders, report consumer payment history to the credit bureaus. The credit bureaus then compile that information together with information on tax liens, bankruptcies, and court judgments that is available in public records. In return, when consumers apply for credit, lenders can check credit reports to determine the creditworthiness of consumers.