Equifax is one of the three major credit reporting bureaus in the United States.
in this guide we will walk through a sample credit report from Equifax online version with a FICO score. If you do not already have your Equifax credit report you can get a real-time access to Equifax or three credit bureau report and FICO score Equifax.com. This service will provide you a free Equifax credit report, free FICO credit score and a free trial of a credit monitoring service that will help you keep an eye on any changes to your credit file. Since Equifax offers a free 30-day trial, you can register without any risk.
You are also entitled to a free credit report per year from annualcreditreport.com. Keep in mind that credit reports ordered by annualcreditreport.com not include FICO score, which is a good indicator of your overall health credit. If you choose to order your Equifax credit report by annualcreditreport.com or order a free credit report without a FICO score, however, this guide will still apply after the first section.
We explain how to read each section of the report and how to spot potential errors that can lower your credit score and cost you money or impact on your financial life in other respects . Like most other reports and credit monitoring services, Equifax offers consumers the opportunity to purchase what is known as a relative or "3 in 1" "three desktop" which includes credit information from Equifax , Experian and TransUnion. Keep in mind that if you buy a credit report three bureau Equifax, we strongly suggest because it will give you an overview of how lenders see you in three offices, information Experian, and TransUnion sections of the report have been provided by the respective offices.
so even if you will be able to see the side of the side information, all information disputes non- Equifax will be taken directly to the appropriate credit bureau. the first installment of our series "How to read, analyze and challenge credit reports," explains how to review the information from Experian, and a future payment will explain how to switch to review information from TransUnion.
That said, let's dive right in your Equifax credit report.
Section # 1: Credit Score
This section tells you your FICO credit score, explains what factors affect your score, which means your score, and how you can improve it.
The score summary section gives you your FICO score, which is a number between 300 and 850, and tells you if your score falls in comparison to other consumers. It also breaks down the main factors that affect your score.
The section entitled "Understanding your score" decomposes the reasoning behind your FICO score more depth, and lists the specific factors that are both hurt and help your score. This section also offers suggestions on how to mitigate any harmful factors.
The following explains what it means to your FICO score to lenders, and how it will impact their perception of your credit risk.
The FICO Simulator is a useful tool that predicts how your score may change over time. The first three tabs allow you to play with different scenarios to see what actions could increase or decrease your score, and the fourth tab gives you tips on the best strategy to improve your score.
Section 2: Credit Summary
The purpose of this section is to provide a quick overview of your current credit history and before showing the total open credit accounts and closed on your behalf, your outstanding balance to the different types of credit accounts in your name and history of delinquent accounts.
This section lists a variety of information of all your credit accounts. The types of accounts in this section are as follows :.
- mortgage - this section includes the accounts relating to real estate that you bought
- Deposit - This section includes the fixed amount of credit accounts such as car loans. the payment of accounts are usually a fixed amount and are paid over time.
- revolving - credit accounts this section includes renewables such as credit cards. They are called revolving accounts because even though they may have an upper limit on what can be borrowed at one time, you can use as much credit you have available.
- Other - this section includes additional accounts that do not fit into any other category types .
For each type of credit account listed above this section lists the following information:
- Total - the total number of credit accounts by type that have been reported to Equifax throughout your recorded credit history. This includes open and closed accounts. For example, if the number of your installment accounts is' 2? then it would mean that Equifax has data on two different installment accounts in your name, even if some of these accounts were closed by you or the creditor.
- balance - the balance of all accounts of a particular type. Here is what you need for all creditors of this particular type of credit account according to information reported to Equifax and will be listed as an amount in actual dollars.
- . Available - The unused credit remaining on each account
- Credit limit - the maximum amount of credit allowed for each account .
- credit debt ratio -. The percentage of your available credit you are currently using
- monthly payment amount - the amount you pay each month .
- Accounts with a balance -. The number of accounts of each type that carry an outstanding balance
Here are some important things to look for in this section:
- Make sure that the number of accounts a specific type, total accounts or the total balances do not seem higher than they should be.
If you see errors in all areas of the Summary section of credit, you should go immediately to the account history of your credit report which will have more detailed information on an account account basis. This will help you better check whether your credit report contains errors.
Section # 3 :. Accounts
The purpose of this section is to provide detailed information on all credit accounts you've opened that were reported to Equifax
For each account contained in this section, there will be specific information on the type of account, the current state, the dates and amounts of payment and any negative information associated with
This section also includes a 81 month payment history each account listed that gives potential creditors to understand how you kept on your existing accounts. This information is graphically represented to show the performance of your account each month.
The information that is reported in the history payment account includes :.
- * - This account is paid on time and in full
- 30/60/90/120/150/180 - The number of days the account was past due .
- CA - This account is remarkable and was sent to a third party for collection .
- CO - This account is remarkable and the creditor seeks to collect payment .
- F - Property related to this account was foreclosed .
- VS -. Property related to this account was given voluntarily
- R -. Property related to this account has been repossessed
- NR - No data available for a given month. This is usually because either the account has not been opened or the creditor does not report information to Equifax in a given month.
Here are some important things to look for in this section:
- Ensure that the information in this section is accurate. Pay particular attention to any information related to delinquency, or collections of overdue accounts, either in the area or account details in the 81 months of payment history, all these things negatively impact your credit report and your credit score.
- Make sure all your accounts in good standing are represented. Not all creditors report to all account information to the credit bureaus, Equifax then may not have access to information on all the information in your account positive (of course, this means they can not have access to account information both negative). If you do not see an account you believe to be in rule in your Equifax credit report and contact your creditor and ask them if they report the account information to Equifax.
- Make sure you recognize all creditors and accounts listed in this section. All unrecognized accounts could mean that your financial information may have been compromised and that identity thieves may have opened accounts in your name.
Keep in mind that different creditors Equifax Information Report in different cycles so that certain information, such as the balance on your account, can not be completely up to date. This is fine as long as you have verified that it is an account that you recognize and that the information listed was correct at some point in the recent past. If you do not see this type of update information over time, it is a good idea to contact your creditor to see if there are problems with your account or ask how often they state the your account information to Equifax.
Section 4: Inquiries
The purpose of this section is to show that companies have requested your credit report from Equifax. This includes surveys that can affect your credit rating, and investigations which are not. Equifax treats both types of inquiries very differently.
Inquiries that can affect your credit rating (hard inquiries):
- are generated as a result of action taken by you as complete a credit, insurance, mortgage or other loan or due to the transfer of an account by the creditor to collections.
- Stay on your Equifax credit report for up to two years.
- are visible to creditors when they review your credit report.
Inquiries not affect your credit rating (soft inquiries):
- are generated when a company pulls your credit report to assess you for a credit offer that you did not ask. Pre-approved offers of credit card companies that you receive in the mail are usually generated as a result of a fresh survey by the creditor who sent the offer to you, for example.
- have no impact on your credit report or credit score.
- are not visible to anyone other than you.
For each application, either a hard or soft inquiry, the following information will be listed :.
- The name of the company who requested the investigation
- The type of business that the company operates. For example, if you completed credit card application with your bank the resulting investigation would be listed as "Banks & S & Ls'.
- The date of the investigation has been requested.
Here are some important things to look for in this section:
- Make sure that all inquiries are accurate hard. If you do not recognize the name of a company listed in this section, then research to find out whether or not you actually open a credit check with them. Keep in mind that some organizations have consumer brand names that are different from their actual company names, so you may not recognize the name listed in the report, even if it is a valid inquiry. the company name search in an Internet search engine like Google or Yahoo is a good way to know who they are.
- Be sure to note the total number of hard inquiries and their dates. Since consult hard to stay on your credit report for up to two years and have a negative impact on your credit report and your credit score, it is good to be aware of the number and age difficult investigations were reported to Equifax.
If you find difficult investigations do not appear to be specific, it is best to contact the company that made the request first. The creditor may do research for the purpose of the investigation and help you get it removed from your credit report if it was wrongly reported to Equifax.
Although soft inquiries will not affect your credit report or credit score anyway, because they are visible only to you, there are ways to eliminate or at least limit the number requests for flexible information you receive. The Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) allows consumers to opt-out of receiving pre-screened credit offers by calling 888-567-8688 or by visiting optoutprescreen.com.
Section # 5: Negative Information
The purpose of this section is to document any information that could harm your credit score. This includes negative accounts, accounts that were handed over to a collection agency and informing the public record. Public information record includes federal district bankruptcy documents, the state and county court records, tax liens and monetary judgments that were brought against you. In some states child support in arrears is also reported in this section. Public Record items will generally remain on your credit report for 7 to 10 years.
The section of the negative accounts lists the "overdue" accounts that have been reported to Equifax on your behalf. These include open and closed accounts. Creditors will usually report a delinquent account Equifax if it has been paid for at least 90 days, although it may be technically reported earlier.
The collections section will list all accounts that were handed over to a collection agency by one of your creditors because they believe that the account was not paid as agreed.
The section of public records will list information on bankruptcies, judgments and tax liens.
Here are some important things to look for in this section:
- Ensure that the number and dollar amount of overdue accounts for each type of credit seems accurate. This is an important area to focus on because mistakes creditors or opened fraudulently in your name by identity thieves accounts are likely to become delinquent accounts before they are sent to collections. Catching overdue accounts early, you can prevent them from being sent to collections, which can have a significant negative impact, and often a higher cost to you.
- Make sure that the number of collection accounts seems accurate. Once an account is sent to collections it will start to have a significant negative impact on your credit score. You have simply not been able to pay your bills, the creditor has made a reporting error, or if you have been a victim of identity theft, the collections section must be carefully analyzed for accuracy.
- Ensure that all public folder items are accurate.
Section 5: Personal Information
The purpose of this section of your credit report is to document your personal information such as name (s) age, address and work history.
The specific information contained in this section includes:
- Full legal name
- All other names you can or have previously used to obtain credit
- Social security number
- birth date
- current and previous addresses
- current and previous employers
- The alerts that have been placed on your credit report
Here are some important things to look for in this section:
- Make sure that your name is displayed correctly and that all names or alternative alias is accurate. If there are other listed names you have never used then it could be a sign that Equifax has confused your credit file with another user with the same or similar names.
- Make sure your birth year is correct. Again, an error in this section of your credit report could mean that you are confused with another consumer.
- Make sure that there is no address where you have never lived or employers you have never worked for companies listed in the respective sections. Keep in mind that it may take some time for these sections to update when you move to a new residence or take a new job. For this reason, it is fine if the information is outdated, as it is still correct. For example, it is not a problem if you recently changed jobs and your credit report still lists a former employer that your current employer. However, if your credit report was to show that you currently or previously worked for an employer for which you have never been used, then you may have a problem.
Section 6: Dispute File Information
If you find information you believe is inaccurate on your credit report, it is important to act quickly because these errors may not only cost you money, but could also be warning signs of possible identity theft. Fortunately, Equifax is simple enough to challenge any credit report item you believe to be inaccurate.
This part of your credit report, you can simply click on the link that says, "Click here to start an online survey of the information found in your file." This will take you to a form of online dispute resolution. Be prepared with the confirmation number at the top of your credit report. When submitting your dispute, an explanation of why you think the topic is inaccurate. You should be as descriptive as possible. Just say "This is wrong" or something similar will not be enough. You must provide specific reasons why you think the information on your Experian credit report is incorrect and any evidence support that you may have. Equifax will review your application and notify you within 30-45 days of their decision on the dispute. If the dispute is resolved in your favor, Equifax remove or correct information that is inaccurate or can not be verified during the investigation.
If you want to receive the results of your dispute by mail, as opposed to email, you must submit your dispute by mail or phone.
In addition to dispute inaccurate information with Equifax, we strongly suggest to contact the company who reported the account details to them first. Under the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) both the credit bureau and the company that reported the information are responsible for the accuracy of the account information on your credit report. If you think one of your creditors has reported inaccurate information, you should contact them directly. Each company has a different process of dispute resolution, but it is a good idea to contact their customer service as a first step, as they will likely be able to provide you with the appropriate action.
Conclusion
Your credit report is like your resume to prospective lenders. It provides an overview of the positive and negative aspects of your credit history based on information from your previous creditors. It is important not only to limit the number of negative items on your report by practicing credit usage patterns in good health, but to ensure that you have an overview of any incorrect or inaccurate information potential as these errors can cost you thousands of dollars or more.
We invite you to visit our online credit report comparison guide control services where you can learn more about credit reports and monitoring of a variety of service providers.
We hope this guide has been a useful tool to help you better understand the information on your Equifax credit report and, equally important, to have a better idea of how potential lenders may see you . Stay tuned for our next installment we'll cover the specifics of reviewing your TransUnion credit report.
In the meantime, let us know if you have comments about this guide or if you have additional questions you may have on your Equifax credit report by leaving us a note in the comments.