Why Is There a Need to Review All Three Credit Reports?
Nowadays, people no longer carry much cash in their wallets. This is because they no longer need them when buying things. If it is just small items, there is always a credit card. If you wanted to buy a car, a car loan is taken. If it is a house you fancy, you can always get a mortgage. Even an education can be obtained with the help of a student loan.
However, before you are given a credit facility by any bank or financial institution, they would need to first find out something about your credit background. They can do that by reviewing your credit reports. It is therefore a must that you review your credit reports before applying for a loan or a mortgage lest you risk the possibility of getting disapproved.
A “consumer reporting agency CRA)” is in charge of gathering and selling credit information. One common example of this is a credit bureau. There are three main credit bureaus in the USA at present and some minor ones. Likewise, there are 3 major types of credit reports, i.e., the annual credit report, the consumer credit report and lastly, the business credit report.
Experian, Equifax and TransUnion are the 3 major credit agencies where people get their credit reports from. All three maintain the “annual credit report”. This credit report can legally be requested by individuals from any of the three agencies every year for free. An extra copy will require a fee though.
Most of the credit agencies in the country maintain the “consumer credit report”. This one however is not free of charge but can be requested anytime of the year as long as the fees are paid. You can access the consumer credit report online. Likewise not free of charge is the last type, the “business credit report”. It contains the credit history of a certain company or business.
A credit report basically contains several information, first of which is the “identifying information”. This includes the name and aliases, the addresses and social security number and other pertinent details such as the date of birth, employer details and your spouse’s identifying details.
The credit report also includes the “credit information” such as the existing bank account details, the existing loans and all other related data. The report also indicates the “public record information” like the court records, previous bankruptcy records, etc. Finally, the credit report has “recent inquiries” which include the names of those who took a copy of the report for the last two years as may be needed.
It is vital that you get a copy of all three credit reports and review them well. They are quite important if you wanted to get future loans. By reviewing them before applying for a loan, you will prevent possible problems such as inaccuracies or errors. Credit reports are known to contain errors. Likewise, you will know the chances of your loans if you already know what your credit report contains. No unwelcome surprises.
