What Are Credit Bureaus?
What is a Credit Bureau? A credit bureau is a library of information for credit history. It collects information about consumer’s payment habits from credit grantors such as banks, savings and loans, credit unions, finance companies, and retailers. The credit bureau stores this information in a computer database in the form of a credit report. When you apply for a new credit card or loan, the credit grantor orders your credit report from a credit bureau and analyzes the information to decide whether to grant you credit. There are over 1000 local and regional credit bureaus throughout the United States. Most credit bureaus are either owned or under contract with one of the nation’s three major credit reporting agencies . These national agencies maintain centralized databases containing the credit records of more than 190 million Americans. Which are the major Credit Bureaus? There are three major credit bureaus that provide nationwide coverage of consumer credit information in the U.S.
