Even though there are many ways to work on repairing your credit if it has been damaged one of the best and quickest ways is to verify the information on your report is accurate. The task credit reporting agencies have is colossal and makes for many mistakes in reporting. Sometimes other peoples information is included on your report, sometimes the credit bureaus do not remove information when it should be.
Each of the three main credit bureaus, TransUnion, Equifax, and Experian, each have their own methods for gathering credit information on people, as well as their own databases for record keeping. The combination of these factors means that there is an extremely high likelihood of mistakes appearing on a credit report and that it will affect a persons credit rating. These facts along with the sheer volume of information being entered by a high number of people make it virtually impossible to avoid mistakes completely.
Each of the credit bureaus will calculate a FICO score, so you will have three different scores. If there is a sizeable discrepancy between the scores then it is probable there is a mistake on your report somewhere.
All three scores are important, and have a direct impact on your ability to borrow, and terms by which you can borrow. Lenders have different guidelines, but it is fairly common that they use your middle score. Therefore, merely getting your credit report is not enough if you want to improve your score. Instead, you should get all three reports from each of the agencies and carefully conduct a line-by-line review to look for mistakes.
Reviewing every line of the report is important because a mistake may not involve the entire entry; it may be just the amount of money reported, the timing of the debt, or how the debt was finalized. One commonly employed measure (used to keep information on your credit report longer) is to report information at an inappropriate time. Also, keep an eye out for incorrect dollar amounts being reported.
Bear in mind that information is being added to your credit report regularly. Verifying the information on your credit report is an ongoing enterprise. However, it is recommended that once a year is enough, or about nine months before applying for a major loan.
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