A credit report is a summary of your credit history. Potential creditors and lenders use credit reports as part of their decision-making process to choose whether to extend you credit — and at what interest rate. It's important to check your credit report regularly because creditors and lenders use the information in it, such as your payment history and the number of active credit accounts, also known as “tradelines,” to evaluate your creditworthiness.
There are two nationwide credit reporting agencies – Equifax and TransUnion – both of which maintain consumer credit reports containing information reported to them by lenders and creditors. Your credit report may not be identical with each of the two agencies, as some lenders may report information to both of them, just one, or sometimes none at all.
Your credit report lists the credit accounts, also known as “tradelines,” that you have established with lenders. Each credit account as reported by lenders generally contains information on the type of account (for example, a credit card, mortgage, or auto loan), the date you opened the account, your credit limit or loan amount, the account balance, and your payment history.
Soft inquiries may include your own requests for your credit history, inquiries by companies extending you pre-approved offers for credit cards, or inquiries made by your current creditors who wish to perform a review of your credit (also known as “account monitoring”). Soft inquiries are only visible to you and not to potential lenders or creditors.
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