IS SCORE WATCH WORTH IT?

[MissExcellentCredit]

Hey everybody. My 10 day trial period with Score Watch is about to end and I was wondering if anyone else out there who has score watch thinks it's worth it. I already have Suze Orman's FICO Platinum Kit.  If my math is right, at 12.95 a month at 12 months, that's nearly $155.  Should I keep it or use that $155 to pay down my CC balances?

[JM-AM]

This is a matter of preference more then if it is worth it.

If you are rebuilding credit and wanting to see if changes are taking place then having ScoreWatch or any CMS is a good idea to keep track of your progress. If your reports are clean and not in the rebuilding stage then having ScoreWatch or any CMS is more for protecting yourself against ID theft and or awkward changes. 

IMO while rebuilding using ScoreWatch or a CMS is very helpful to keep track of your progress and know how changes are taking effect in your CR's and scores. Once you are finished with the rebuilding process then I personally do not see any reason to have a monitoring service on a daily or monthly subscription, but would pull reports on a quarterly or bi-yearly (buy one and use annualcreditreport for the other) to keep track of what is going on with my reports.

You can google MYFICO discounts and save a few dollars if you decide to purchase from here. You can also look at EQ for ScoreWatch monitoring or purchase just a one time report, you can also obtain your score from TU by going to transunioncs.com to obtain your TU FICO score and report. Then you have the option to just pull reports from EQ and TU with-out a score and save a few dollars.

If monitoring your CR's is something you feel is necessary for you and the price is a little expensive then IMO I would choose the TU Quarterly reports from MYFICO. You can also apply whatever discount codes you find to this report, just remember to choose yearly payment so the discount code is applied for the entire year. This would probably be less then 1/3 the expense of ScoreWatch and you will get 4 TU reports per year plus scores in total and lets you keep track of your progress.

[smallfry]

I pay 7 bucks monthly for EQ SW and I am not sure I am going to keep it. It's only 7 bucks but with next to nothing going on with my reports other than aging I have to ask what is the point of paying anything.

[MissExcellentCredit]

What's up JM-AM,

I'm in the process of diligently rebuilding my credit, so I think I'm gonna keep Score Watch.  At least for 3 months.  I've been enjoying it so far.  Thanks for the info. on the discounts though.  On a side note, can you tell me why myfico doesn't give me my Experian score?  I purchased the Suze Orman Fico Kit and you're supposed to be able to get all 3 reports there too.  I only got TransUnion and Equifax. Thanks.

[MarineVietVet]

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@MissExcellentCredit wrote:

What's up JM-AM,

I'm in the process of diligently rebuilding my credit, so I think I'm gonna keep Score Watch.  At least for 3 months.  I've been enjoying it so far.  Thanks for the info. on the discounts though.  On a side note, can you tell me why myfico doesn't give me my Experian score?  I purchased the Suze Orman Fico Kit and you're supposed to be able to get all 3 reports there too.  I only got TransUnion and Equifax. Thanks.

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No one has been able to buy their own Experian FICO score since February of 2009. You can read about that here: http://ficoforums.myfico.com/t5/Experian-has-stopped-offering/IMPORTANT-ANNOUNCEMENT-The-sale-of-Exp....

Creditors can pull Experian and also there is a CU in Pennsylvania that supplies that information to it's members only. None of the 3 in 1 monitoring services offer an Experian FICO but the reports are accurate.

From a BK years ago to:
EX - 9/09 pulled by lender 802, EQ - 10/10-813, TU - 10/10-774

"Some people spend an entire lifetime wondering if they've made a difference. The Marines don't have that problem".

[JM-AM]

Experian is no longer offered to the general public for FICO scores except through creditors/lenders and one CU located in Pa (PSECU). You are now allowed a way into this CU which there is an entire thread on if you were not allowed to join before. 

While we all feel disappointed in Experian's decision not to allow us to purchase our FICO scores it was a decision that Experian made not to renew their contract with Fair Issac. It is possible they may come to an agreement at a later time, but as of now it is not available. 

EDITED: Due to slow typing lol

[marty56]

If you are in the score rebuilding process or need to watch your FICO score closely, I would recommend the product.

[MissExcellentCredit]

Thanks Marinevietvet, JM-AM and Marty 56. You guys rock.

I felt so "out-of-date" asking that question, because as I was sitting here reading Women and Money, Suze tells me that the formula Experian uses is not the same formula FICO uses to compute my score.  Plus, I hear Experian decided on their choice back in early 2009. I feel so bad for not knowing then. But what matters is that I know now and am in control of my financial destiny.  And yeah, I'm definitely sticking with score watch for a while. It will be so encouraging to get some e-mails that say my score has improved!  What a way to make my day!

[Creasy]

If the Experian score/credit report is no longer available what did I purchase on the 2nd of this month? I clicked on the 'Buy today's FICO score powered by Experian data' on this site and purchased a report/credit score. The report shows all of my current accounts, inquiries, etc etc. I'm confused LoL  Well anyway as far as OP's topic goes I have score watch and TU quarterly. Since I'm rebuilding my credit it gives me peace of mind knowing I'm on top of it and have good info from where it counts (FICO). 

[lg8302ch]

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@Creasy wrote:

If the Experian score/credit report is no longer available what did I purchase on the 2nd of this month? I clicked on the 'Buy today's FICO score powered by Experian data' on this site and purchased a report/credit score. The report shows all of my current accounts, inquiries, etc etc. I'm confused LoL  Well anyway as far as OP's topic goes I have score watch and TU quarterly. Since I'm rebuilding my credit it gives me peace of mind knowing I'm on top of it and have good info from where it counts (FICO). 

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It is an old thread. EX Fico is available for purchase again....you did purchase the EX Fico score ...LOL