Getting ready to buy a home? Have you checked your credit lately? If not, you may want to start your home buying process with pulling your credit to make sure everything is in order. The time to find that your identity has been stolen is not when you are applying for your mortgage.
Since January 2005, more than 150 million people have received letters notifying them that their personal information has been stolen or lost. Among those affected were employees, students, consumers, veterans, soldiers, nurses, patients, teachers, homeowners, taxpayers and children. Each of these potential victims have one thing in common — they did nothing to deserve their fate but trust those who were entrusted with key information.
Victims Of ID Theft Spend A Lot Time Fixing Their Credit
For the seventh straight year the Federal Trade Commission has reported that Identity Theft was the largest consumer complaint and the fastest growing crime in America. It’s become clear that anyone with a Social Security Number is at risk of becoming a victim, and once victimized, the process of regaining what is rightfully yours is nearly impossible. The FTC reports that the average identity theft victim spends 300-600 frustrating hours talking to credit card companies, banks, police and credit bureaus repairing the damage.
Credit Resolution Products And Insurance Increasing But Are The Enough Protection?
To confront the problem, many people are turning to resolution products or insurance to protect them in the aftermath of identity theft. These products, though less expensive in most cases, do nothing to stop anyone from becoming victims or lessen the number of hours spent on the telephone resolving issues. Credit monitoring is a perfect example of these services.
Be Proactive - Take Preventative Measures
To be proactive, consumers are encouraged to take preventative measures to protect themselves against ID theft. One step to take is to get a copy of your credit reports from each of the three credit bureaus once a year. Check your banking and credit card statements for unusual transactions. Shred your mail. But credit industry leaders admit that these efforts are too little, too late.
“Everyone who has a social security number needs to take the necessary steps to make their personal information useless to anyone but them,” noted Life Lock CEO Todd Davis. “That is the only way to really remove the threat of becoming a victim of this crime. We still encourage people to shred their mail and important personal documents that they no longer need and to check credit reports.”
Sadly the crime of Identity Theft won’t be leaving our society anytime soon. Criminals from all over the world are stealing from American’s and getting away with it because until now we have been a nation willing to just pay the price to fix the problems that came as a result. It’s time to stop paying the price. Consider LifeLock Identity Theft Prevention
.
Protect your identity so that when it comes time to buy a home and apply for a mortgage you can have confidence that your credit report is fine and your identity is still just your identity.
Article written by Guaranty Title Agency of Arizona. Guaranty Title Agency has been serving the needs of the Arizona real estate community for over 30 years. During those years, we've developed a strong culture of valuing each client who asks us to serve them. We work for you. We don't ever forget that. We'll listen to your suggestions, and do everything we can to exceed your expectations. We're your Partner for Success.
