Information and advice on improper inquiries on credit report

BILL'S ANSWER

Generally speaking, it is not against the law for potential lenders obtain a copy of your credit report for marketing purposes, such as making pre-approved credit offers. So, it is possible that a potential lender could pull a copy of your credit report simply to review your credit rating as part of its standard marketing campaign. While your credit report will show that the mortgage company pulled a copy of your credit report when you pull a copy of your own credit report, anyone else who requests a copy of your report, such as other potential lenders, should not be able to see this information. This type of credit listing is called a "soft inquiry."

Whenever a company pulls a copy of your credit report, the credit bureaus will list an inquiry on your credit report. Credit inquires fall into two general categories: "hard" inquiries and "soft" inquiries. Hard inquiries, which can negatively impact your credit score, appear when a potential lender checks your credit as a result of your applying for new credit. Soft inquiries appear when a company pulls your credit without your prior authorization, or when you pull your own report. For example, an unsolicited "pre-approval" letter from a credit card company will result in a soft inquiry. Soft inquiries are not disclosed to potential lenders when they pull your credit report, and they do not affect your credit score. The primary purpose of soft inquiries is to allow you to see who has been reviewing your credit report.

How you should proceed in resolving the mortgage company's pulling your credit report depends on what type of inquiries are appearing on your credit report from the mortgage company. If they are soft inquiries, then there is little concern, as these inquiries do not affect your credit score. However, if they are hard inquiries, you may want to review the listings more carefully. As stated above, hard inquiries result from your applying for new credit, not from established creditors pulling your report for review or from unsolicited credit offers. If you find inquiries you think are being improperly reported, you should notify the credit bureaus, Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion, of the problem. You can get a free copy of your report at AnnualCreditReport.com. If the inquiries have been reported inaccurately, you should have little difficulty in having the problem corrected. See the Federal Trade Commission document FTC Facts for Consumers: How to Dispute Credit Report Errors for more information.

I wish you the best of luck in resolving these inquiries on your credit reports. I hope that the information I have provided helps you Find. Learn. Save.

Best,

Bill

www.Bills.com