| A | B |
|---|
| FICO score | A credit rating developed by Fair Isaac & Company. It was developed by Bill Fair and Earl Isaac in the late 1950's. It is accepted by lenders, insurance companies, employers, landlords, and others as a reliable means of credit evaluation. A three-digit numbers ranging from 300-850. |
| default | Failure to pay back a loan. |
| delinquent payments | Is a missed or late payment on a financial obligation, such as a loan, credit card bill, or rent. 30 or more days late falls in this category. It usually takes two months of before the information is reported to credit reporting agencies. |
| garnishments | Court Ordered; when money is withheld from an employee's paycheck that is then in-turn paid directly to an individual or company that the employee did not pay on a timely basis. |
| The Three Main credit bureuras/consumer reporting agencies | TransUnion, Equifax, Experian |
| Credit Reporting Agencies/Credit Bureauras | Businesses that gather, store and sell credit information about individuals to their business members. |
| credit | The act of borrowing now and paying back later with interests to your financial institution. |
| APR Annual Percentage Rate | The yearly equivalent of a rate of interest when the rate is usually quoted monthly. This applies to mortgages, loans and credit cards. |
| grace period | A free period that allows you to avoid the interest charge by paying your current balance in full before the due date shown on your billing address. |
| credit limit | The maximum dollars an individual can borrow from a lending company. |
| The Truth in Lending Act | A federal law designed to require credit companies to disclose its terms, calculations and costs in a standardized manner. |
| The Fair Credit Reporting Act | Gives you the consumer the right to know what’s in your credit file. The agency is required to investigate and correct inaccuracies within 30 days. |
| finance charges | Any fee associated with the cost of credit or the cost of borrowing. |
| mimumum payment | The smallest amount an individual can pay back on a credit card or loan. |
| Card incentives/rewards | credit card companies offer to encourage people to use their cards instead of cash or debit cards. Points, cash back, travel perks, and bonus promotions are types of benefits that the consumer can use while making purchases on the credit card. |
| lien | is a legal claim against your property that acts as a security for a debt. It gives the creditor a right to your property if you fail to pay the debt, and they can take possession and sell it to get their money back. |
| judgement | This order gives the creditor the legal right to collect the money, which can lead to actions like wage garnishment, bank levies, or liens on your property. |
