A new service offers easy access to credit reports, a boon for buyers who want to clean up their credit before buying a home. This service is also a boon to REALTORS^® who want to save frustration working with buyers who have known or unknown problems in their credit history.

REALTORS^® can benefit by offering the URL to their prospective buyers to assure that there will be "no surprises" when the buyer works with a mortgage broker or direct lender. Although a lender may find that one or two credit reports are clear, there may be a cloud on the third agency's records, which can delay closing, or put closing in jeopardy. When derogatory, inaccurate or incomplete information finds its way into consumer files, the effects may be severe.

Consumer credit information is obtained and stored in the United States by three major credit bureaus. People most often check their credit reports when applying for a loan or lease, to make sure there are no inaccuracies that will be viewed by prospective lenders or landlords. Credit reports contain significant information on more than 190 million Americans, about the entire adult population of the United States.

QSpace, makers of iCreditReport.com, claim it is the first service to deliver credit reports in real-time over the Internet. iCreditReport.com gives Internet users the ability to access their credit files at any time, determine if their report contains information or inquiries that they do not recognize, and challenge inaccuracies more rapidly. iCreditReport.com allows users to instantly receive their personal credit reports over the Internet for $8 a report. Individuals can also access iCreditReport.com by going to the Yahoo! Finance Loan Center and clicking on the Credit Reports link.

iCreditReport.com offers users a quick and secure method to monitor their personal credit record online. The proprietary system authenticates a user's identity from multiple sources in a matter of seconds, then releases credit information only after a positive identification of the legitimate recipient. This is a boon to the over 190 million individuals with credit files who do not regularly review their own credit report because of the time involved and the difficulty in obtaining the report.

All data sent and received via iCreditReport.com uses the Internet's highest encryption protocols for securing transmissions. The process of encryption scrambles the user's personal information and securely transmits it over the Internet. Once the encrypted information is authenticated by iCreditReport.com's secure servers, the system goes to work.

In order to ensure privacy on the user's side, the service also truncates account and social security numbers when displayed on browsers, and does not transmit information over unsecured connections such as e-mail. In addition, iCreditReport.com does not store credit reports on its servers once the transaction is completed.

For those visiting the Yahoo! Finance Loan Center, there are additional reports available, plus free credit analysis. Additional credit services are available from iCreditReport.com such as a credit monitoring service with quarterly update subscription ($49.95 a year online) and the full three -bureau merged report ($29.95 sent by mail). Both services include a free instant credit report.

You can help smooth the road to home ownership by sharing this unique credit report tool with your buyers. As you know, the more you know on the front end, the more likely the transaction is to close!

Published: September 18, 1998

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