Quote:
Originally Posted by proudmamanow  About 6 months ago, we found out that one of our cc companies had given us a bad credit report because we had not received their statements (our fault, we forgot to change the address on the card after moving). Ironically we didn't have very much $$ on the card, but it was enough to get a bad report. We have been diligent ever since (as we normally are) and I would like to check my credit rating now, to see if it has improved. (We are thinking of selling our house and buying a new house in the next 12 months or so).
But I was wondering--will it have a negative impact on our credit for me to check the credit and get a report? I have this vague sense that too many 'report requests' on file is not good for your rating).
Any other info about credit ratings would be appreciated! Many thanks!
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First, your credit likely won't have changed much with six months of good reports. One bad report can cause a sudden drop, but there's no equally sudden return with good history, it takes longer.
Second, your vague sense that too many report requests can cause a hit is right, but from a different source. Your credit doesn't take a hit when YOU request a report. However, when you initiate another company to request a report, that can cause a hit. By this I mean, if you request a credit card from your bank, a loan from a car dealership, etc...too many of those can cause a hit to your credit. The idea is that it makes it look like you are trying to take on too much debt. But if you just request a report for yourself, that doesn't cause a hit.
Third, did you request a report back 6 months ago? You are entitled to on free report from each of the 3 agencies each year. If you saw the report 6 months ago, did you see all 3 companies, or just 1? Did you pay for it then? If you have never requested the free report that you are entitled to, you can request it through annualcreditreport.com. You can use that to get the free one you get once a year from each of the 3 companies. One thing you can't get from them free is your credit SCORE. The score is made using the report, but it is seperate and you do have to pay for that, it's usually like $5 or $8 from each of the companies. It will not appear on the free reports you get, but those reports will give you an idea of where you stand overall.
Also, on the credit score, there are two different types, the FICO and the VantageScore. FICO is the important one, it's the one most banks use. VantageScore is often what the credit agency will try to give you, if you want your score, get it directly from FICO.
The FICO score is often the only thing that credit places look at, which IMO is unfair. But if you are looking at getting credit for anything, it helps to know what that FICO score is, in addition to what's on your report.
