A credit report is a report that provides information about you, your past and present credit activities and any negative action that has been taken against you for unpaid or late bills. Your credit score has become extremely important over that last few decades as everything from approval for a home mortgage to an offer of employment has become contingent on a satisfactory report.
Credit reports are compilations of data and information supplied by consumer reporting agencies. Lenders, are a common example of a consumer reporting agency. When you obtain a car loan or home mortgage, the lender will report that information to a credit bureau. Your payment history will then be reported on a monthly basis for the life of the loan.
Along with a number of small, local, credit bureaus, there are three major credit bureaus that provide credit reports. The three major credit bureaus are Equifax, Trans Union and Experian. When someone requests a credit report on you, it is typically compiled by one of these three major bureaus; computed in to a ‘score.’
Your credit score contains a variety of information on you. It will have basic identifying information such as your Social Security number, current and previous addresses, past and present employment and date of birth. Your report will also have a section for public records. In this section, any judgments obtained against you or records related to bankruptcy filings can be found. The largest section in your credit report is generally the section where credit and bills are reported. In this section, you will find records related to car, home and personal loans, credit cards, student loans and debts that have been charged off as unpaid. Finally, there is a section that indicates who has recently requested your credit report.
All the information found in your credit report is used to calculate a credit score. This score is then used by many lenders to decide whether or not to extend you credit. Because of the importance of your credit score, checking your credit profile on a regular basis for inaccuracies is very important.
Article written by Editorial Staff @ www.collegeplastic.com