A standard credit score report is divided into four sections: identifying information, credit history, public records and inquiries. Identifying information is just the basics, such as name, address and social security number.
Look over this information to ensure it’s accurate because it is not unusual for there to be multiple spellings of your name or more than one Social Security Number. Your free credit report may also include your date of birth, previous residences, driver’s license number, your employer and your spouse’s name. Don’t worry about this information too much, as it’s all confidential and security-protected.
The main section to look at in your credit scores report is your “Credit History” or “Trade Lines.” Your accounts will fall into 1 of 5 categories: Real Estate (first and second mortgage), Installment (car loan, regular payments), Revolving (credit cards), Collection (seriously past due) and Other.
Each account will list the creditor/lender’s name and the account number. Sometimes, more than one account will be indicated on your report from the same creditor, especially if it gets sold off into collection, but only one account should be marked “open” at a time.
You should be able to see when you first started the account, the type of account, the total amount owed, how much you still owe, the status of the account (open, inactive, closed, paid) and how well you’ve paid the account. If it’s noted “charged off,” that means the credit made efforts to collect but gave up.
If you see a code like “R1,” then this generally indicates how well you’ve been at paying on a scale of 1 to 9. If you have had any late payments on your account, then you’ll see a little square with 30, 60, 90 or 120 in the box, indicating how late you were.
If you see a green OK and a 0, you’re in good shape with high scores. If you see “charged off,” “bad debt” or “placed in collections,” then your account went 120 – 180 days past due and was sold off to debt collectors. Charge-offs and Debt Collections are bad since these poor credit scores remain on your report for seven years.
If you find a mysterious account or an incorrect amount owing on your credit score report, then you can fill out an online form to dispute the claim. The most recent estimate indicates that as many as 80% of all reports have some kind of misinformation.
Financial advisers recommend that you keep up with your credit score and check up on it at least once a year to ensure accuracy. Now that you understand some of the sections and terms, you’ll be better prepared.
Charge-offs on your credit score report will be the #1 reason you are denied credit. Often, in order to qualify for new loans, you’ll be required to pay any unpaid charge-offs. Once you pay the full or partial amount, it will be noted “paid charge-off.” This will remain on your credit for seven years and 180 days from the date of your first nonpayment.
You can hire legal advisors who may be able to get charge-offs taken off your accounts. A company like Lexington Law Firm (“Lexington Law”) specializes in legally disputing and removing paid charge-offs to help you improve credit scores, which might be a good bet if you’re planning to buy a house or make a big financial investment.
