Information that is Included in Your Credit Report

Everyone knows that their credit report is important, but a surprising number of people don’t have the faintest idea of just what type of information their credit report includes. Although there are some creditors who opt to not report their accounts, most of your financial information is going to be included in your credit report. In addition to financial information, there is also going to be quite a bit of personal information such as your full name, that doesn’t impact your credit rating.

• Personal Information

The creditors need to know who they are dealing with when they are using your credit report to form an opinion about you. Every single credit report is going to include when you were born, your employment history, what your social security number is, and your full name. Even though this information doesn’t impact your actual credit rating, you want to check the credit report and make sure that the information is both accurate and up to date.

• Account Information

When a creditor reports you to the credit bureau, they are going to include the exact category of the account that you have created, the date the account was created, the amount that the account was for, and, most importantly, your history of making payments. If you are using a reporting service, you should get alerted to all of this as soon as it is reported to the credit bureau. You will want to make sure that all of the information is accurate. If it isn’t, the sooner you report it, the faster it can be corrected. This information is going to have a huge impact on your overall credit rating.

• Loan Applications

Don’t assume that because you didn’t actually take out a loan or new credit card that it isn’t going to impact your credit rating. Inquiries are also included on your credit report. The inquiries remain on your account for two full years. Inquiries that you make are only one of the things that show up. Involuntary inquires, which are made when credit card companies are trying to decide if you are pre-approved for some special offers, also remain on your credit report for two full years.

• Financial Problems

All of your financial information is going to show up on your credit report. This means that any time a collection agency got involved with an account, or if you declared bankruptcy or were sued, are all going to appear on your credit report. None of these things are going to raise your score, and most will really hurt it.