If you are now, or ever will be interested in purchasing a home in the near future, it is in your best interest to make every effort to increase your credit score. Especially if you have issues that you know you should deal with. It is often the case that people are not aware of bad marks on their credit record until they apply for financing for a major purchase, such as a home.
As I have said before, 79% of all credit reports contain inaccurate information.
During the loan process is not the time to find out that you have inaccuracies on your credit report that are affecting your score negatively. You can take advantage of the opportunity to get a free credit report from each of the three main Credit Reporting Agency’s (CRA’s): Equifax, Experian and TransUnion. (See past posts for information on how to receive your free credit report.)
As a sidebar, you can choose to get the free report from all three bureaus at the same time, so you are aware of what information each bureau has collected. Another option is to pull your credit report from one agency, and reserve the right to get your free reports from the other two CRA’s as you work on improving your credit standing.
I believe it is best to have the full overview up front. Different CRA’s have different methods of calculating these scores, and may also have different information contained within their findings. Consider the adage, “Why jump over nickels to pick up pennies?” If additional reports are needed within a 12−month period from any of the three CRA’s, the cost is extremely minimal compared to the potential savings that can be realized by an improved credit score, and if you run a credit report on yourself it will not affect your own score as an inquiry.
The underwriter who is making the decision as to whether or not you should get the loan you are asking for will generally look at the scores generated from all three CRA’s. Typically, the score will not be the same from all three reports, and the underwriter will consider the middle score as a barometer.
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