Lawndale Tribune AND lAwNDAle News The Weekly Newspaper of Lawndale Herald Publications - Inglewood, Hawthorne, Lawndale, El Segundo, Torrance & Manhattan Beach Community Newspapers Since 1911 - Circulation 30,000 - Readership 60,000 (310) 322-1830 - May 11, 2017 Anderson Elementary Hosts Culture Night William Anderson Elementary School hosted its third annual Culture Night last month. This event brings families together while celebrating the diversity at the school. Families hosted tables and filled their tables with artifacts, maps, books, and photographs in an effort to teach visitors about their culture. Visitors walked around with passports and got stamped as they learned more about each culture, including this exhibit about Guatemala. There were also live performances and an interactive African drumming station. Photo by Anne Schmitt Credit Scores Expected to Rise a Bunch in July By Rob McCarthy New credit-scoring rules this summer will lift average scores by 20 points and push millions of American consumers into the good-borrower category, the industry’s California-based leader predicts. FICO, which developed the credit-scoring system used by consumer lenders, reported that the average credit score in April reached 699. That average score for American borrowers set a record and was just one point shy of the “good” range of 700 to 749. FICO is a San Jose, California-based analytics company that focuses on credit-rating services used by lenders and employers. About July 1, the nation’s three creditreporting bureaus no longer will count tax liens and civil judgments against FICO credit scores. Nearly 11 million people should see a 20-point jump in their credit scores, and another 700,000 people would see their scores go even higher. The credit bureaus Equifax, TransUnion and Experian are changing the rules in response to findings by a federal agency about shortcomings in how the bureaus use public data in credit scoring. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s April report highlighted a need for changes, specifically better identity-matching of consumers to avoid misreporting of unpaid taxes, child support or debts. Civil judgments can hurt a person’s credit score more than ordinary loans, according to industry experts. The effect of a court-ordered judgement on a FICO score is almost immediate, they add. Not all tax liens or judgments will disappear from people’s FICO scores, but most of them will, according to the Consumer Data Industry Association that represents the credit bureaus. The change is expected to push more consumers above the 700 mark and closer to the 750-800 range that signifies excellent credit. The two biggest factors in the FICO scoring model is paying bills on time and not carrying high balances or overextending available credit limits. Car and personal loans and credit card balances that together exceed 30 percent of a person’s available credit are counted against their score. Other factors in the scoring method are length of credit, new applications for credit, and whether a borrower shows a mix of credit. The scoring favors a combination of auto loans, home equity, personal loans and some credit cards. Credit report errors about late payments and balances are common and affect a FICO score. The Federal Trade Commission has estimated that 20 percent of consumer credit reports contain errors. Because of the error rate, consumers are advised to check their credit reports every year for accuracy. Consumers who believe their credit reports contain bad information may write a letter asking the credit bureau and the company See Credit Scores page 8 Free Digital Delivery Herald Publications is now offering to send you a link to your favorite community newspaper every Thursday morning! The emails will also include a list of upcoming local events. Just email us at: web@heraldpublications.com and tell us which local community newspaper you’d like. Simple as that and free!!! Inside This Issue Certified & Licensed Professionals.......................8 Classifieds............................3 Community Briefs...............3 Hawthorne Happenings....3 Legals................................ 6-7 Pets........................................5 Sports....................................4 Weekend Forecast Friday Sunny 66˚/55˚ Saturday Sunny 68˚/55˚ Sunday Partly Cloudy 67˚/54˚
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