EDITOR'S PICKS

• Help! I'm Drowning in Debt

  The creditors are calling. The bills are mounting. The panic is swelling. Here's how to get back on track and out of debt.

• 5 Rules for a Healthy Credit Score

  With the help of some easy steps, you can improve and retain a healthy credit score

• Latest Credit-Score Fixes Fall Short

  More consumers than ever this year will see how their credit scores are used to determine their interest rates and insurance payments. But that may itself lead to more confusion.

THE LATEST

• Subscriber Content Read Preview

  March 22, 2013

  Credit Scores: Why Aren't They Free?

  WSJ.com

  In one of the more frustrating headaches in financial disclosure, you generally must pay to see your credit score—the three-digit grade that predicts how risky you are as a borrower.

• February 11, 2013

  Fixing your error-ridden credit report; The credit scores issued to millions of Americans are incorrect

  MarketWatch

  The first reaction many people have to getting their credit score is “this must be a mistake.” And according to a new report by the Federal Trade Commission, many of them are right.

• January 30, 2013

  More students delay repaying loans; Half of student loans are now in deferment or forbearance

  MarketWatch

  When their student loans come due, many borrowers have no choice but to postpone the inevitable. As of March, 51% of student loans were in deferment or forbearance — periods when, owing to financial hardship, borrowers are not required to ...

• Subscriber Content Read Preview

  January 11, 2013

  Credit Cards' New Gambit: Miss a Payment, No Penalty; Discover Is Latest to Jump on Trend; Credit-Score Damage

  WSJ.com

  Missed a credit-card payment? Until recently, that would have led to extra fees on your monthly statement and higher interest rates—as much as 30%—on your balance.

• December 9, 2012

  How You Can Become a Credit-Score Superstar

  WSJ.com

  You, too, can be a credit-score hotshot.Fair Isaac, creator of the commonly used FICO credit score, used to be tight-lipped about what it took to earn its best scores. But this fall, it provided some insights into common traits of the more ...

• Subscriber Content Read Preview

  November 30, 2012

  By Karen Blumenthal; Scoring a High Credit Score

  WSJ.com

  You, too, can be a credit-score hotshot.You don't have to be rich or good looking. But with some attention to how you pay your monthly bills and some careful tweaks of your credit portfolio, you might be able to raise your score to a level ...

• September 25, 2012

  Consumers’ real problem with credit scores

  MarketWatch

  One out of five consumers who purchase their credit score will likely receive a “meaningfully different score” than a lender, according to a study released Tuesday by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.

• March 14, 2012

  Don't Micromanage Your Credit Score

  WSJ.com

  Your credit score is like a movie: constantly changing until you decide to freeze a frame. Your score, which lenders use to assess your bill-paying ability, is in a constant state of flux and will vary from one credit company to the next. In ...

• January 12, 2012

  The biggest threat to your credit score; Commentary: Patience can keep you out of financial trouble

  MarketWatch

  BOSTON (MarketWatch) — We were all taught as children that patience is a virtue. No one said it’s good for our credit scores too. It might seem obvious — those who have patience don’t feel the compulsive need to use credit to get something ...

• September 11, 2011

  Lenders Aren't Passing On Rock-Bottom Rates

  WSJ.com

  With mortgage rates at a 50-year low and banks near his Brookline, N.H., home touting offers of 4% or less, Tom Rogers thought it would be a perfect time to refinance.

• September 7, 2011

  Where's My Super-Cheap Mortgage? There's a big gap between the lowest advertised mortgage rates and the average rates borrowers actually get.

  SmartMoney.com

  With mortgage rates at a 50-year low and banks near his Brookline, N.H., home touting offers of 4% or less, Tom Rogers thought it would be a perfect time to refinance. But in spite of a solid credit score, after an exhaustive survey of ...