Criteria for a Credit Report

Your credit report contains your credit score, an important number that can determine your financial well being. The report is maintained by the three major credit bureaus: Equifax, TransUnion and Experian. Monitoring your credit report is an essential part of a personal financial strategy. The major criteria for a credit report are payment history, amounts owed, length of credit history, new credit and types of credit.

Identification

Your credit report is a reflection of your creditworthiness for lenders. It can influence things such as loans, credit cards, mortgages, property rentals and even your employment prospects. Credit scores can range from 300 to 850, and the higher your score, the better. Most scores fall within the 600s and 700s range.

Payment History

Payment history is worth approximately 35 percent of your credit report, according to Credit.com. This includes items like paying your bills on time and collections notices. Late payments and missed payments can have a large adverse effect on your score. Payment history is pulled from credit cards, retail store accounts, student loans and mortgages.

Amount You Owe

The amount you owe is worth approximately 30 percent. This represents the dollar amounts you owe on all open credit accounts, such as credit cards, student loans and car loans. Two more factors taken into consideration are your total available credit and your debt-to-available-credit ratio, according to American Student Assistance.

Length of Credit History

Your length of credit history accounts for approximately 15 percent of your credit report. This represents the length of time your accounts, such as credit card and loan accounts, have been open. This can be a problematic criteria for young people who have only recently gotten their first credit card.

New Credit

New credit accounts for approximately 10 percent of your credit report. It represents the number of times you have applied for new credit over a period of time. Lenders consider too many requests for credit as a credit risk, so the more you apply for credit, the bigger the adverse effect can be.

Types of Credit

Your types of credit make up the final 10 percent of your credit report. This represents your account diversity. If your accounts include credit cards, student loans, a car loan and a mortgage, you will receive a small boost to your score. Different accounts are viewed differently. For instance, a high student loan balance will not affect your report as much as a high credit card balance, according to American Student Assistance.