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LaToya's Credit / Debt Blog

By LaToya Irby, About.com Guide to Credit / Debt

How Often Are You Checking Your Credit Report?

Wednesday May 9, 2007
When asked "How long ago did you last check your credit report?", 64% of respondents answered that they've have checked their credit report within the past year. Excellent! It's been more than a year since 16% checked their credit reports. Finally, 16% have never checked their credit reports.

If you're over 18, or under 18 and using credit, I suggest checking your credit report at least once a year. Annualcreditreport.com allows you to get one free copy of your credit report from each of the credit bureaus each year.

Other than annual financial maintenance, there are some other key times you should check your credit report, like before you apply for a mortgage. Checking your credit report at these crucial times can help save you from the embarrassment of being turned down for credit.

Comments

May 9, 2007 at 10:33 am
(1) R/C says:

>>>Annualcreditreport.com allows you to get one free copy of your credit report from each of the credit bureaus each year.

May 10, 2007 at 7:06 pm
(2) Steve "The Debt Settlement Man" B says:

One little tip of advice is to not pull your credit report very often as it will end up lower your score.

May 10, 2007 at 8:56 pm
(3) LaToya says:

Actually, Steve,your own requests for your credit report do not affect your credit score. In fact, the version of your credit report that potential lenders see does not include inquiries made by you. So, consumers can several copies of their credit reports without any effect to the credit score.

May 11, 2007 at 7:00 pm
(4) R/C says:

LaToya,

My full comment and question did not fully show up on the 9th. I think the brackets blocked most of it out. Could you check and fix it?

Thanks,
R/C

May 14, 2007 at 10:29 am
(5) Trisha says:

LaToya is right. You can check your credit as often as you like if you do it on your own and not through a mortgage/auto or any 3rd party companies. MyFico has a great monitoring service for a year to check your credit as often as you like.

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