How to Remove Aged Credit Inquiries From a Credit Report

Credit inquiries are recorded every time a potential lender views your credit report. Although inquiries are a necessary evil, too many of them can drop your credit score. Multiple inquiries, especially during a short time period, show new credit grantors that you are looking to take on more credit. Most of the time, hard credit inquiries will drop off a credit report after two years. If aged inquiries are still lurking on your credit file, take steps to have them removed.

Instructions

Instructions

1

Order your credit reports from each of the major credit reporting bureaus: Equifax, Experian and TransUnion. Each American consumer is eligible to receive one free credit report each year from each of the three bureaus. If you have not yet ordered a credit report for the year, request the free one. Otherwise, credit reports can be purchased directly from the bureaus for a minimal charge.

2

Look over your credit reports from the three reporting bureaus and determine which inquiries you want removed. Inquiries nearing the two-year limitation will drop off on their own shortly. If any inquiries older than two years remain, mark those for further investigation.

3

Record the addresses of each lender that made an old unwanted inquiry. The addresses may not appear on all of your credit reports, but by cross-referencing the three reports you should be able to find the information you need. If no address is listed, call the credit bureau to ask for the lender's mailing address.

4

Write letters to each of the inquiring lenders. The letter should explain that the inquiry is more than two years old. Mention that the Fair Credit Reporting Act requires that only authorized inquiries be reported on a credit file and they should drop from the report two years from the date of the inquiry. Mail your letters via certified mail with return receipt.

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Will Taking Care of Collections Make My Credit Score Higher?

Seriously delinquent credit cards, loans and other accounts are often turned over to collection agencies. This lowers the consumer's credit score considerably, according to FICO, a major credit score provider. Taking care of collection accounts by paying them off does not necessarily undo the damage. Extra steps are necessary to repair the credit score.

Definition

A collection account is an unpaid account that has been charged off and turned over to a collections department or agency, Liz Pulliam Weston of MSN Money explains. When someone stops paying on a credit card or other unsecured debt, the creditor eventually writes it off in its records and reports it to the credit bureaus as a charge-off. Often it gives the charged-off account to its own collections department, hires a collection agency or sells it to an outside agency. This entity reports the negative information to the credit bureaus.

Time Frame

Pulliam Weston advises that many banks and other creditors charge off an account after six months of skipped payments. The account itself, including information on its bad status, remains on the consumer's credit report for seven years and affects the credit score for that entire time frame. FICO states that its influence goes down as time passes.

Solutions

Smart consumers can get collections removed from their credit reports, which raises their credit score, through negotiations. The creditor wants the money and may be willing to stop reporting the delinquent debt to the credit bureaus or report it in a neutral or positive way in return for payment. Pulliam Weston advises asking for a status of "paid in full" rather than "settled" if the collection agency will not stop reporting it entirely. The Credit Infocenter credit repair site recommends pushing for complete removal because "paid in full" still looks bad on credit reports when a collection agency is involved.

Considerations

Consumers should not inquire about collection accounts unless they are prepared to take care of them, according to Pulliam Weston. It takes negotiation to change the way the debt is reported, and the creditor may refuse to make the change. It may then renew its collection efforts because it knows the person who inquired has money and is concerned about credit records.

Warning

Paying off a collection account can sometimes hurt a consumer's credit score, Pulliam Weston warns. The company may promise to stop reporting the collection account or to list it as "paid in full" or some other positive designation, then never follow through. The pay-off makes the problem account seem more recent, which hurts the score. Always get a written agreement about account removal before taking care of a debt with a collection agency.

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How Do I Improve My Credit Now That Bills Are All Paid?

Paying all your bills is just the first step to re-establishing a healthy credit score. It is a terrific first step, and you should be proud of yourself, but also realize you need to establish a lengthy credit history that proves you are trustworthy. Accomplishing this requires avoiding additional debt, maintaining healthy relationships with creditors and acting responsibly. It will take several years before your credit is healthy enough that you can seek a loan or mortgage, but for now, be patient.

Instructions

1

Avoid incurring any additional debt. If you must borrow money, whether through a credit card or a loan, ensure that the balance never exceeds 50 percent of your available credit. More importantly, always pay beyond the minimum balance and never submit a late payment. Just one late payment will dent your credit again and delay the improvement process by additional years.

2

Keep your credit card accounts open. By maintaining relationships with your creditors, you will over time prove to other creditors that you are trustworthy. This will significantly impact your ability in the future to acquire a loan or mortgage. The key lies in not taking advantage of the credit. Tear up your cards if it is necessary to prevent yourself from using the available credit, but do not close the accounts.

3

Act with caution when seeking additional credit or a loan. If you require additional money for an emergency procedure or a house purchase, avoid submitting too many applications. Also, try seeking money from a bank before you seek it from a finance company or a credit card company, because a bank holds more clout. Never open new accounts just to improve your rating, because you risk actually hurting your rating.

4

Review your credit report for any inaccuracies. If you find incorrect or incomplete information in your report, write a letter to the credit reporting agency that supplied the report and argue your case. Cite every error, provide copies of documents that back up your claims and recommend feasible solutions. Be patient, as it will take at least 30 days for the agency to review your letter.

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How to Remove Bad Information From Your Credit

Inaccurate information on your credit reports can greatly affect your credit score and your ability to get credit. Credit reporting agencies are required to display accurate information on your credit accounts, and get the account information from your creditors. If the creditor is providing bad information, you can file a dispute with the credit-reporting agency. Upon receiving the report, the agency will launch an investigation to obtain the accurate information.

Instructions

Transunion

1

Navigate to Transunion's online dispute website (see Resources).

2

Click the button labeled "First Time? Click Here" to setup a user account. You may already have a user account at Transunion if you use the credit monitoring or annual credit report services. Log in with your username and password.

3

Click "Report Inaccuracy" under the "Credit Report" option on the user navigation bar.

4

Click "Submit Dispute" to open the investigation panel. Click "Request Investigation" by any account that has bad or problematic information on it. Select the dispute reason. Click "Submit" after completing your selections.

Equifax

5

Navigate to Equifax's dispute page on its website (see Resources).

6

Provide your Equifax report number, if you have one. Provide the additional requested information. Click "Submit."

7

Respond to the identity verification questions on the next page. Click "Submit" when finished.

8

Click "Start a new dispute." Navigate to the "Negative accounts" section on your credit report. Click any inaccurate listings and select "Dispute this item." Click a reason for the dispute and click "Add Dispute."

Experian

9

Navigate to the Experian website and its Credit Dispute Center (see Resources).

10

Order an Experian credit report, if you haven't obtained one within the past 90 days. Several Experian report ordering options are given on the page, with options ranging from free for the annual report to a subscription for the reports that come with online credit-monitoring services.

11

Click the option labeled "Yes, I have a credit report number" and click "Submit."

12

Input the credit-report number and information for any field marked as required. Click "Submit" once you have completed the form. The Experian credit report appears on the screen. Click "Dispute this item" by any account that you feel is inaccurate or has bad information. Provide the nature of your dispute and click "Submit your dispute."

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Does Having a Co-Signer on a Car Hurt Your Credit Score?

When your credit history is less than stellar, you can still obtain a loan with the help of a co-signer, which is someone who agrees in writing to repay your debt if you are unable to. Sometimes, especially in the case of expensive car loans, you may be required to have a co-signer if your credit history is insufficient or poor. Knowing how co-signing affects both the buyer and the co-signer is essential to making a decision on obtaining a car loan.

What a Co-Signer Will Do

Having a co-signer wont affect your credit score one way or another. Instead, having someone co-sign on a car loan may help you obtain a better interest rate because the lender will factor in the co-signers credit history. If you are confident that you will be able to make regular payments on your car loan, having a co-signer to give you an extra boost in the beginning may be the key to bridging the gap between poor or nonexistent credit and good credit. In effect, having a co-signer may actually help increase your credit score in the long run.

Having a Co-Signer

While having a co-signer wont negatively affect your credit score, it has other risks. If youve been told by a potential lender that you need a co-signer, consider your other options. Needing a co-signer may be a signal that the loan is too expensive for you altogether, and it may be smarter to wait until you can afford the loan. Even if you do find someone to co-sign, your interest rates may be still be high and your payments unmanageable.

What Affects Credit Score

If you want to improve your credit score, knowing what does affect it may be helpful. According to the leading credit scoring company, FICO, what weighs the heaviest on your score is your payment history. If you make timely payments on all of your accounts and pay your required balances, your score will improve. Also, keeping your debt low, having a long credit history, opening new lines of credit and having different types of accounts will all boost your credit score.

Risks for a Co-Signer

Your co-signer takes a much bigger risk than you do when co-signing on your car loan. If you miss a car payment, your lender will expect your co-signer to pay it. Even if youve demonstrated good money management, you may still deal with hardships like losing your job or getting sick in which case your lender will also expect your co-signer to take on your debt. If your co-signer isnt able to back you up, his credit score will take the hit, and your relationship with the co-signer may suffer as well.

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How to Get Credit Scores from All Three Reporting Agencies

Reviewing your credit reports from all three of the nationwide bureaus will give you a complete view of your credit history. Reviewing all three reports instead of only one is a smart move because not all creditors report to all three agencies. That means a delinquent credit account showing up on your Equifax credit report might not appear on your TransUnion or Experian report. Federal law entitles you to three free reports every 12 months, including one from each of the bureaus.

Instructions

1

Get one credit report from the website Annual Credit Report. (See resources.) This is the site the credit bureaus set up to offer the free reports as mandated by the Fair Credit Reporting Act. Order from the site for immediate access to your Experian, TransUnion or Equifax report. Or see instructions on the home page for ordering by phone or through the mail.

2

Wait four months and order a second report from another of the credit bureaus.

3

Order a report from the third agency in another four months. Staggering the requests in this way will allow you to check your credit three times a year for free. Or request all three of your reports at once on your first visit to Annual Credit Report.

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Can I Report A Higher Credit Score?

Your credit score is a summary of your credit history and a gauge that helps measure your future likelihood to repay loans. You may need to provide your credit score when you apply for a mortgage, buy a car, rent an apartment or get a job. While you can't report your own credit score, there are steps you can take to ensure your score is accurate and make it as high as possible.

Credit Reporting Agencies

Three different consumer credit reporting agencies have the authorization to track your financial transactions and compile a credit score. The three agencies are Equifax, Experian and TransUnion. The Federal Trade Commission regulates credit reporting and requires these agencies to offer free credit reports to all consumers once a year, though credit scores typically require paying a fee. When someone requests your credit score, it contacts one or all of the credit reporting agencies and uses the three numbers, which are usually very similar, to make a determination on your application.

Reporting

Only credit scores from the consumer credit reporting agencies are valid. In addition, they only refer to a consumer's credit score at that specific point in time. Credit scores do not indicate if your score was recently higher or lower, nor do they predict future changes. Even if you've ordered your credit score in the recent past, lenders will still want to request your credit score themselves to ensure they get the most accurate, up to date information. If the score they receive is lower, you may not submit your older, higher score instead.

Accuracy

Each consumer credit reporting agency has its own methods for determining your credit score, but mistakes are still possible. If you have any reason to believe that you've been a victim of fraud or identity theft, or that a recent credit score was lower than it should have been, you can contact the credit reporting agencies directly to request free credit histories. These reports include the information that goes into your credit score. Check for accounts or transactions that you don't recognize. While you may not be liable for actions someone else performs using your identity, your credit report can suffer without you knowing it until you investigate.

Improving Your Score

Even without a case of fraud or identity theft your credit score can fall due to missed payments, excessive borrowing or major events such as repossession of property, bankruptcy and foreclosure. To get the credit reporting agencies to report the highest credit score possible, always pay your bills by the due date. Don't apply for too many loans, including credit cards, in a short time frame, as this can lower your score. Finally, avoid maxing out your credit cards to improve your credit-to-debt ratio, which will also help increase your credit score.

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