Have you ever looked at your credit report and wondered what it was saying? If you have, you may want to take a closer look because that credit report will dictate a major portion of your life. So let’s look at what’s on your Experian credit report.
The first portion of your report is all of your identifying information. This information includes your name and any previous names you’ve gone by, your current and former addresses, and your current employer. All this information helps the credit bureau ensure that the information they receive is actually about you.
After your identifying information is information about your accounts, this is where each of your current accounts is located. Then, the credit bureau records information like the current balance, the terms of the agreement, and whether you’ve had any missed or late payments. This information can affect your score, so you want to keep your balances low and your accounts current.
You’ll also have closed accounts listed on your Experian credit report, and they could be there for up to seven years. Good accounts stayed current and were paid off in full according to the terms of the agreement. Poor accounts had missed or late payments that went to collections or were considered charge-offs. These can all affect your credit score as well.
Experian Credit Report Information
Another piece of your Experian credit report is any information about other charge-offs, judgments, collections, or bankruptcies. If you’ve had any of these, they will negatively affect your credit score. They could stay on your report for ten years or even more, depending on your state. The best case for you would be to avoid these at all costs.
Finally, you’ll find information about the credit you’ve applied for and whether you were approved or not. Every time you apply for any credit, the lender or creditor will check your credit report. That will cause a ‘hit’ on your report. These are minor, but they still affect your credit score, so it’s best to only apply for credit if you’re fairly sure you’ll get it.
When you check out your report, you’ll see all of this information, and all of it will work together to decide whether you will get approved for the type of credit you want. So whether it’s a credit card, a loan, a mortgage, or anything else, you want to ensure your report reflects well on you.
Your Experian credit report is important in several ways, so work directly with Experian to find out what you can do to keep it positive.