Credit Reports can be a Teaching Tool
If you have recently been denied credit or plan to apply for credit soon, it would be wise to obtain your credit report. You know that it is a document that is the foundation of a decision on whether you will receive credit.
We can obtain copies of our credit report for free, on an annual basis, from the three major credit reporting agencies: Experian, TransUnion, and Equifax. Go to annualcreditreport.com to obtain these copies. Please request reports from all 3 agencies because they may differ.
The reports will have several sections. Know that there will not be personal private information about your race, worth, or salary included. There will be the usual identifying such as name, address, social security number in the first section.
Any of your credit lines will be included. Such items will include loans, mortgages, credit cards, department store and gas cards. This section will show when the account was opened, credit limits, monthly payments, payment history ( late payments also), unpaid child support and overdrawn bank accounts.
Credit reporting agencies also receive information from the court system. This section will have a listing of bankruptcies, liens, judgments, divorce.
Any time you apply for a loan or credit card there will be an inquiry made to a credit reporting agency. Your credit report will include not only these inquiries but inquiries by you. Credit inquiries remain for 2 years.
If the information on your credit report is positive, this is to your benefit. If the report has negatives, this information will remain for 7 years. A bankruptcy remains for 10 years.
It is highly recommended that we obtain and seriously review our credit reports to be aware of differences on each report, locate any and all errors. It is up to each individual to monitor his/her own credit profile, fix errors, and repair personal credit.
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