What is a credit report, and does the report matter if I don plan on borrowing any money?
Your credit report is both a snapshot and a history of your debts. If you aren’t sure about how many credit cards you have or how much you owe, or whether records show that you’ve had trouble with payments, this is how you find out. It includes your current credit eligibility, like the limits on your credit cards, and how much you owe. It also – and this is important – carries a record of blemishes on your credit history. Have you ever missed a payment? Defaulted on a debt? It’s all there. Any blemishes will affect your ability to get a loan or a credit card. Even if you have no plans today to seek either one, that may change. Cleaning up a bad report takes time, so it’s smart to start now.
