How Is My Credit Report Put Together?
It starts with your financial activities. You can establish and modify your line of credit by getting credit cards or shopping cards, taking out loans and mortgages from banks or other financial institutions, and paying your bills. Your credit providers then submit your credit information to a credit reporting agency such as Equifax, Experian, or Trans Union. The credit reporting agency will take your credit history and compile it, using it to calculate your credit report score. After this, the agency allows any persons or institutions with proper authority (including yourself) to view your credit score and history. How Is My Credit Score Computed?There are various factors used by credit reporting agencies to calculate your credit report score: - How many credit inquiries have been made, including granted and rejected applications
- What your usual practice is in paying your bills, such as whether you pay on time and if you pay the full amount on time
- What types of debt you have, including loans, mortgages, credit card debt, bills, etc.
- How much outstanding debt you have
- The length of your credit history ¿ remember, even if you are not in debt, if you have no credit history at all you will be considered as much as a credit risk as if you had a bad history
There are some factors that credit reporting agencies are prohibited from using when calculating your credit report score: - Race
- Sex
- Age
- Ethnic origin
- Marital status
- Any federal or state government financial support you receive
How Can I See My Credit Report?
You can request your credit report from any major credit report agency like Equifax, Experian, or Trans Union. It will usually cost you a small fee to see the report. What Should I Do if I Feel My Credit Report Score Was Calculated Using Prohibited Factors Such as Race or Sex?If you have already complained to the credit reporting agency to no avail, you may want to consider consulting an attorney with experience in consumer credit. Your attorney will be able to advise you of your rights and help you decide what would be the best course of action to take in resolving your credit report dispute. |
