What is a Credit Report?
A consumer credit report is a document that contains a factual record of an individual’s credit payment history. Credit grantors are permitted by law to review your credit report to objectively determine whether to grant you credit. There are 190 million credit active people in the United States who have a charge account, car loan, student loan, or home mortgage. As those people pay their bills, most lenders report credit payment information to credit bureaus. So most of the information in your consumer credit report comes directly from the companies you do business with.
A consumer credit report is factual record of an individual’s credit payment history. It is rather like a snapshot because it reflects information that is current as of that date, but is subject to change. Credit reports are provided to credit lenders for a purpose permitted by law. The main purpose of a credit report is to help a lender make a decision quickly and objectively about extending credit to an individual. Click here for more on Understanding Your Credit Report.
A credit report is a record of the information in your credit file that is used by a prospective lender, employer, or others to help evaluate you when you apply for a loan, job or in other circumstances. Credit reports chronicle the credit payment history of a prospective borrower. A company that collects and sells this information to creditors, employers, insurers, and other businesses is called a consumer reporting agency (CRA). Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion are the three largest CRAs in the United States.
A credit report is a file that contains information on how you pay your bills, where you live and work, and any information that is on public record, such as bankruptcy, judgments, tax liens and lawsuits. Your permission is required before a lender can order a copy of your credit report. In order to obtain the report, they will request your name, address and social security number.
