November 19, 2006

Q. My husband and I filed for bankruptcy, and our home went into foreclosure about a year ago. We want to own another home someday and have been trying to straighten up our credit by making an effort to pay our bills on time.

How long do you think this will take us? Will it be even possible to obtain another mortgage with a foreclosure in our past? If we have a good down payment, would that be beneficial?

A. The question you really need to ask is not whether you can qualify for a mortgage. You could get a mortgage today. Instead, think about how much you want to pay for your next home loan.

Today, lenders rarely say no to anyone who applies for a mortgage, even those with a bankruptcy or foreclosure in their past. But they adjust upward the interest rate and fees for a new loan. If someone with great credit pays 6.25 percent for a 30-year, fixed-rate loan with zero points, you might pay 8.25 percent with 2 points.

The not-so-good news is that it'll really take two to four years of on-time payments to qualify for those lower interest rates.

But if you get a mortgage now with a legitimate lender, it might help improve your credit history and score more rapidly. Ask the lender whether it reports your on-time payments. The reporting of those on-time payments will help burnish your credit score.

Q. I know someone who wants to execute a quit-claim deed to take his name off the title to his house and add another name to the title. Is this legal? This man has a terminal illness and wants a friend to take ownership of his home. Is this a good move, or would he be better off just leaving the house to the friend after he dies?

A. It is not illegal to quit-claim any ownership interest in a property to another person. But in general, it's better to receive a piece of real estate as an inheritance than assume ownership via a quit-claim deed.

When someone inherits a property, he/she receives it at the market value on the date of death of the owner. If the owner quit-claims the property, the new owner's cost basis is the same as what the original owner paid for the property.

For example, if a property was worth $100,000 on the day of purchase, but worth $500,000 on the date of the owner's death, the person who inherits the property gets it at a $500,000 cost basis. If this person then turns around and sells the property for $500,000, he/she keeps the equity (sales price minus any mortgage on the property). But if someone assumes ownership of the same property via a quit-claim deed, the cost basis is $100,000. If the person then turns around and sells the property, he/she would pay taxes on the gain of $400,000.

You should really consult an estate planner to discuss the many issues your friend might face. The planner might recommend a living will and could have other suggestions.

Write Ilyce R. Glink at Real Estate Matters Syndicate, P.O. Box 366, Glencoe, IL 60022 or contact her through her website, www.thinkglink.com.

Last Update: 7:28 PM ET Nov 16, 2006

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) -- Question: Can you please tell me, or direct me to the source, of how to request reports from the major reporting agencies. Are they free? Richard Waide. Answer: Yes, by law, everyone is entitled to one free credit report each year from each of the three major credit reporting agencies, which are:

Equifax Information Services, P.O. Box 740241, Atlanta, Ga. 30374, 800-685-1111, www.equifax.com.

Experian, P.O. Box 2104, Allen, Texas 75013, 888-397-3642, www.experian.com.

TransUnion Corp., P.O. Box 390, Springfield, Pa. 19064, 800-916-8800, www.transunion.com.

Monday November 20, 6:00 am ET

The Rate at Which Consumers Are Opening New Credit Accounts Declined Nearly 17 Percent Compared With Five Years Ago; Late Payments Increased Nearly 13 Percent

IRVINE, Calif., Nov. 20 /PRNewswire/ -- Experian Consumer Direct, a leading provider of online direct-to-consumer credit reports, scores and monitoring, today announced the results of a recent National Score Index study showing a 16.9 percent decline from 2001 to 2006 in the rate at which consumers are opening new credit accounts and a 12.6 percent rate at which late payments of 90 days or more are increasing. The national average credit score is 675 -- 7 points lower from 2001 when it was 682. National and statewide results for the study can be found on Experian's National Score Index® Web site at www.NationalScoreIndex.com.

The rate of consumers opening new accounts, including installment loans (i.e., auto and student loans) and revolving credit accounts (i.e., bank and retail credit cards), in 2006 has fallen to 41.0 percent from 49.3 percent in 2001. The rate at which consumers were 90 days or more late in payments increased 12.6 percent from 2001 (39.6 percent) to 2006 (44.6 percent).

"The drop in the rate of consumers opening new accounts in 2006 may give the appearance that they are being more conservative with regard to using credit, however this may not be the case when combined with other results from our study," said Ty Taylor, president of Experian Consumer Direct. "Although our data shows a drop in the rate of consumers opening bank credit card accounts, it also shows that their balances on other types of loans, such as installment loans, are increasing."

Study results include the following:

Change from 2001 to 2006 Auto Loans Bank Cards

Installment Loans* Percentage of consumers opening new accounts -17.5% -19.6% -15.6% Percentage of consumers at least 90 days late -4.1% -11.9% 15.5% *Installment loans exclude bank cards and mortgages.

Experian® empowers consumers by offering products and information through Web sites such as www.FreeCreditReport.com to help them proactively manage their personal finances conveniently and securely online. Products include credit reports from all three national credit reporting companies, credit score reports that show the positive and negative factors that affect a consumer's credit score, and credit monitoring products that provide daily monitoring of their Experian credit report or all three national credit reports.

The Experian study compared data from August 2006 and August 2001. More information about the study plus additional credit data at the state and local levels can be found on Experian's National Score Index Web site at www.NationalScoreIndex.com.

About Experian's National Score Index

Experian's National Score Index study is based on a nationwide sampling of 3 million consumer credit files. Using the PLUS Score® model, the national average credit score for July, August and September 2006 was 675 for each month. Experian's National Score Index Web site is updated monthly with the most recent Experian data on U.S. consumers' credit and is a powerful indicator of the nation's overall financial health. In addition to providing average credit scores for the nation, regions, states and local areas, the National Score Index monitors several other components of consumer credit behavior, including average debt, credit utilization, late payments and credit inquiries.

About Experian Consumer Direct

Experian Consumer Direct is part of Experian Interactive(SM) and a market leader for online credit reports, scores and monitoring products delivered directly to consumers through Web sites such as www.FreeCreditReport.com. Among its products, the business provides consumers with instant access to their credit report and credit score, plus credit monitoring products that monitor all three national credit reports daily and include identity theft insurance and fraud resolution. Experian Consumer Direct has established integrated, co-branded partnerships with leading online financial destinations that provide consumers with a broad range of comprehensive online financial products and information essential to managing one's financial life. For more information, visit www.experian.com.

About Experian

Experian is a global leader in providing analytical and information services to organizations and consumers to help manage the risk and reward of commercial and financial decisions. Combining its unique information tools and deep understanding of individuals, markets and economies, Experian partners with organizations around the world to establish and strengthen customer relationships and provide their businesses with competitive advantage. For consumers, Experian delivers critical information that enables them to make financial and purchasing decisions with greater control and confidence. Clients include organizations from financial services, retail and catalog, telecommunications, utilities, media, insurance, automotive, leisure, e-commerce, manufacturing, property and government sectors.

Experian Group Limited is listed on the London Stock Exchange (EXPN) and is a constituent of the FTSE-100 index. It has corporate headquarters in Dublin, Ireland, and operational headquarters in Costa Mesa, Calif., and Nottingham, UK. Experian employs more than 12,500 people in 32 countries worldwide, supporting clients in more than 60 countries. Annual sales are in excess of $3.1 billion.

For more information, visit the Group's Web site at www.experiangroup.com.

The word "Experian" is a registered trademark in the EU and other countries and is owned by Experian Ltd. and/or its associated companies.

Contact: Deanne Hollis Experian Public Relations 949 567 7646 deanne.hollis@experian.com --------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Source: Experian Consumer Direct