Tuesday, March 10, 2009

How Long Does Derogatory Data Affect a Credit Score?

How Long Does Derogatory Data Affect a Credit Score?

Credit scores can be affected by any number of items, both positive and negative. Some of these can only remain on a credit score for a limited amount of time, while others have no time limit.

Credit Report Basics


    Consumer credit reports are maintained by the three credit reporting agencies: TransUnion, Equifax and Experian. Each company maintains its own records, and each report may contain different information than the others.

Judgments

    If a creditor sues a consumer and wins a judgment in court, that judgment can stay on the debtor's credit report for up to seven years. However, if the state's statute of limitation on judgments is longer than seven years, the judgment can stay on the report for as long as state law provides.

Bankruptcy

    Bankruptcy items can remain on your credit report for up to seven years. The bankruptcy itself can remain for seven years for a Chapter 10 or 13, and 10 years for a Chapter 7, 11 or 12.

Job Applications

    If you've applied for a job with an annual salary over $20,000, the inquiry can remain on your credit report indefinitely. You can ask the employer to have it removed.

Mistakes

    Any errors or mistaken entries can be removed by a consumer who provides proof of the mistake and demands the credit bureau to remove the item. Items that remain on the credit report longer than their allowed time can similarly be removed.

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