Credit Report

A $400 tax credit provided by the economic stimulus plan may leave more than 15.4 million Americans owing money to the IRS because of under-withholding from their paychecks, an inspector general report said. The IRS said the number will be far lower. The Treasury inspector general for tax administration said many employers advanced more than the $400-per-individual tax credit. Workers will have to return the difference when they file tax returns, and some might have to pay penalties. - Bloomberg News

With foreclosures, short sales and credit card defaults at record levels, an aggressive breed of firms has sprung up offering to power-wash consumers' damaged credit files and boost credit scores, thereby eliminating records of bankruptcies and mortgage delinquencies, even when the information is accurate. Such services - promoted on the Internet and in radio ads - are attractive to people who want to buy a house but whose credit scores are too low for a mortgage through the Federal Housing Administration, Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac. The problem with these companies, say federal and state authorities, is that their promises may be deceptive and illegal.

If you're thinking about buying a home or refinancing - even if you've got excellent credit - you may want to avail yourself of a forthcoming free service that could help you get a better mortgage rate. Under the terms of a national class action settlement, you may qualify for six or nine months of daily monitoring of your credit file plus unrestricted access to your credit report and score. To be eligible, you need to have had any form of open credit account - a charge card, student loan, auto loan or a mortgage - at any time between Jan. 1, 1987, and this past May 28. An estimated 160 million American consumers can meet that criterion, though eligibility expires Sept.

I've heard from more than a dozen readers who were confused by a recent column on how to clean up your credit history (also known as a credit report) and credit score. So, let's clear the air. First, your credit history also includes personal information, such as your name, Social Security number, current address, how long you've lived at your current address and past addresses. Your credit history is primarily a list of all of the financial activity in your life. It lists all of the credit accounts you have ever opened, and how long they've been opened, including credit cards, a mortgage, home equity loan, student loans, car loans, personal loans (provided that those were reported to the credit-reporting bureaus)

You don't give out your Social Security number to strangers. You never click on phishing schemes. You shred all credit card solicitations or papers bearing account information. For all your precautions, it only takes one computer hacker or one stolen laptop for thieves to get your personal information and open credit accounts in your name. You can't control data breaches at businesses and government agencies. But next year you will have more power to limit the damage thieves can inflict.

Elizabeth J. Gammie is not dead. I haven't known her long, but I'm going to vouch for her. Standing before me on a recent afternoon, her cheeks looked rosy and her hand felt warm and soft when we shook. The almost 81-year-old Parkville resident was heading out to play a mean game of cards with friends. Just to make sure it wasn't a body double, I inspected her passport and Maryland driver's license to make sure she really is who she says she is. Short of a DNA test, I was convinced. But I digress.

Maryland lawmakers are developing a bill that would allow state residents to block access to their credit reports, a tool that consumer advocates say is needed to protect against identity theft in an age of instant credit. Passage of the bill is far from assured, however, as lobbyists in Annapolis are at loggerheads. Banking, credit bureau and insurance lobbyists want provisions that could weaken support among privacy activists and consumer groups, such as limits on who can put a "security freeze" in place and for how long.

Homebuyers and refinancers face higher fees for credit reports beginning Jan. 1 -- a price boost that has mortgage, credit industry and consumer group leaders fuming. Some believe that the higher fees will have an inordinately heavy impact on moderate-income and minority first-time mortgage applicants who have nontraditional credit patterns, marginal credit scores or "thin" credit files. They also predict that as a result of the increased costs, mortgage loan officers may not shop as aggressively for such clients -- leaving them with higher interest rates and worse mortgage choices than they'd otherwise receive.

A lawyer for Lt. Gov. Michael S. Steele said yesterday that Steele is considering whether he will sue a former staffer for the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee and possibly the committee itself if additional questions are not answered this week about the employee's efforts to obtain his credit report. E. Mark Braden, who is representing Steele and worked as counsel to the Republican National Committee during the 1980s, said he wants to know whether Lauren B. Weiner, who is expected to plead guilty to a misdemeanor tomorrow in federal court, shared the information she found with her Democratic colleagues or others.

A former staffer for the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee who used the Social Security number of Lt. Gov. Michael S. Steele to fraudulently obtain his credit report has reached a plea agreement with federal prosecutors that will allow her to avoid jail time. Lauren Weiner, 25, a former committee researcher, will plead guilty to a misdemeanor, her attorney, Whitney C. Ellerman, said last night. Weiner will agree to complete 150 hours of community service and after a year, her case will be dismissed under a deal reached with the U.S. attorney's office in Washington, the lawyer said.