Reading Your Credit Report

Interactive Video

[A woman reading a paper looking confused and frustrated.]

[A credit report card with a credit score gauge and the following grades: payment history - A+; credit history - B; credit mix - B-; inquiries - A.]

Narrator: A credit report is like a report card for your credit history. You won’t see your credit score on the credit report. These are separate things. [Credit score gauge disappears from the credit report card.]

[Sample Credit Report with social security number, date of birth, names used, phone numbers, addresses, employment records, account numbers partially concealed, bankruptcy, status of accounts.]

A credit report is a detailed record of your monthly financial activities for the past several years. It includes anything that has your name attached to it. [Four coins appear with the name “Jane Doe” appearing next to each one.]

[A credit score gauge with ratings from the poor range: 300-579 to the excellent range: 800-850.]

Knowing that a score is calculated from this report AND that score can be used by others to make decisions about your job, your housing, interest rates you’ll pay, or whether you’re even approved to borrow money, you’ll want to review this report for accuracy. [The needle on the gauge moves from the Good range to the Very Good range. A magnifying glass moves across the credit report pages.]

[Logos for credit agencies: Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion.]

Each credit agency’s report might be organized differently, but generally your credit report is divided into four sections: personal information, account or credit history, public records, and inquiries. [Credit report pages appear with each section listed as mentioned in the narration.] Sometimes you could see a fifth section, a personal statement, which we’ll get to in a bit. [“Personal statement” is added to the list of sections.]

[Sample credit report appears:

Report Date: 3/1/2023   Report Number: 999999

PERSONAL CONSUMER INFORMATION

SSN #: XXX-XX-6789 (Your SSN has been masked for your protection)

Date Of Birth: 01/01/1988

Names Reported: John Doe, John Q. Doe Jr.

Telephone Numbers Reported: 555-555-5555, 555-123-4567

Addresses Reported:

510 Maple Ln. Frostburg MD 99999

141 Franklin Ave. Rochester NY 00000

Date Reported:

4/5/2021

6/10/1991

EMPLOYMENT RECORDS

Employer Name: Littles Packaging Inc Date Reported: 3/15/2021

Location: 555-555-5555 Hire Date: 02/2021

PUBLIC RECORDS

REGIONAL FEDERAL COURT

Docket# XVZ789

111 Court Street, Capital City, NY 11111

Account Number: ***9514

Type: Chapter 7 Bankruptcy

Status: Filed

Date Reported: 04/2022 Closing Date: 07/2022

Filed as: Individual Account

Liability: $35,000

Exempt Amount: $7.500

Asset Amount: $14,500

Paid: $3,350

Estimated month and year that this item will be removed: 04/2032

ACCOUNT HISTORY

Codes: OK=paid on time; X=not reported; 30/60/90= days late; blank=no data available

Automobile Finance Inc. Acct#: 70705606

Flint MI 44444

Date Opened: 05/01/2021

Responsibility: Individual Account

Account Type: Installment Account

Type: Automobile

Pay Status: Current; Paying as Agreed

Remark: Open; one 30-day late payment

Balance: $6,580

Last Payment Made: 05/01/2023

Payment Received: $240

High Balance: $12,400 Terms: $240 per month; paid Monthly for 60 months

Convenient Credit Card Acct#: XXXXX3333

Freedom FL

Date Opened: 12/02/2020

Responsibility: Joint Account

Account Type: Revolving Account

Type: Credit Card Account

Pay Status: Current; Paying as Agreed

Remark: Open; never late

Balance: $1,576.23

Last Payment Made: 05/01/2023

Payment Received: $48

High Balance: $1,860

Credit Limit: $3,500

Terms: Paid Monthly

INQUIRIES

Inquiries are posted when someone accesses your credit information from

Sample Credit Reports These inquiries will remain on your credit file for up to 2 years

Convenient Credit Card

PO Box 58122, Fargo, ND 77777

Automobile Finance Inc.

Requested on: 11/18/2020

Requested on: 04/30/2021

112 Ford Ave Flint MI 44444

PERSONAL CONSUMER STATEMENT

Narrator: I was in a serious car accident in 2021 and couldn't work for 12 months. I filed for bankruptcy in 2022 because of the overwhelming medical bills.]

[Credit report pages appear zoomed in on the “Personal Consumer Information” section.]

The personal information can contain basic details about you such as your name (and any previous names or aliases), current and previous addresses, Social Security number, and date of birth. [Each part is highlighted as mentioned in the narration.]

[Five diverse people sharing the same thoughts: “Do I have a popular last name? Jr. or Sr?”]

Think about this: 

Do you have a popular last name like Johnson or Rodriguez? [Question appears in thought bubble: “Do I have a popular last name?”]

Or, are you a Jr. or Sr. with the same name as a family member? [Question appears in thought bubble: “Jr. or Sr.?”]

[“Personal Consumer Information” section with an additional unrelated “Jonathan Doe” appearing under the “Names Reported” and a woman pointing at the additional name with a concerned look on her face.]

Well, it’s not uncommon for information to get reported incorrectly, and before you know it, your information is tangled with someone else’s. [Circle appears around the unrelated name, “Jonathan Doe.”]

[A man named Jonathan Doe appears next to “John Q. Doe,” the real owner of the credit report.]

That could mean that if that person has a negative credit mark and now it’s on your report, as far as the credit agency is considered, it’s yours. Or if someone else’s debt is erroneously added to your report, now your total debt looks higher than it actually is. [A debt bomb rolls onto the screen.]

You get the picture! It’s up to you to patrol your credit report to verify its accuracy. 

The account or credit history section lists all your active and open credit accounts, such as loans or credit cards, and includes your payment history, balances, and credit limits. [The page scrolls down to the credit account. Highlights appear around each section as mentioned.]

Payments are detailed month by month. Late payment markers are shown on the month they occur. [Highlight appears around “30” in the June of 2021 box on the chart.]

A payment that is 30 days late will remain in your history for 7 years, although your credit score can start improving as soon as 6 months pass with regular on-time payments. [“7” appears, then a highlight around the six “OKs” after the “30” on the chart.]

[Credit report pages appear zoomed in on the “Public Records” section.]

The public records section details any legal actions related to your finances such as evictions, unpaid child or spousal support, vehicle repossessions, tax liens, foreclosures, and bankruptcies. [Each item is listed as mentioned in the narration.]

Entries in this section are normally perceived as red flags on your credit score and can linger on the report for 7 years. Some bankruptcies can take up to 10 years to clear! [A red flag appears. “7-10” appears under the red flag.]

[Credit report pages appear zoomed in on the “Inquiries” section.]

The inquiries section notes when your credit is checked. [An image representing credit inquiries appears.] When people talk about checking your credit, there are actually two ways they can check it. The first type, called “hard inquiries” or “hard pulls,” requires your consent. [“Hard inquiries” appears under the image.] The entity requesting your report and the date are recorded. [The first inquiry on the report is highlighted.] The number and frequency of hard inquiries are factored into your credit score calculation. They take up to 2 years to fall off your credit report. [The number “2” appears on top of the highlighted inquiry.]

[Credit check application on a laptop.]

Other inquiries, called “soft inquiries” or “soft pulls” don’t include your credit score and don’t require your consent. [Credit inquiries image appears on screen.] It’s more of a credit report to assess creditworthiness or financial responsibility. Landlords and employers normally pull soft inquiries. [A landlord icon and an employer icon appear.] These are not recorded on your credit report, so they are not calculated in your credit score. [The credit score gauge disappears from the credit inquiries icon, leaving just the magnifying glass.]

[Credit report pages appear zoomed in on the “Personal Consumer Statement” section.]

A personal statement is an optional section. You can request that credit agencies add a personal statement to your credit report that lenders can consider when they review your report. [Personal statement icon appears.]

Maybe you have a past relationship in which your partner used your credit irresponsibly and left you holding the bag, or you’re trying to get an error off your report but it’s taking time. [Broken relationship icon appears.] These are things you could note, because nothing clears up overnight! [Alert icon appears.]

[A woman reading a paper looking confused and frustrated]

The key takeaway is your credit report represents you and your financial history. Make sure you know what’s on it and that it accurately represents you and your financial decisions.