Answers from Our Care Team: How Do I Get and Read My Credit Report?
Summary: Part 3 in a Series –The IDX Care Team is here to provide answers to some of the most commonly asked questions from IDX members. In this article: How to access free credit reports from the credit reporting agencies, and what to look for once you receive your report.
![Image of a credit report](/assets/images/KC-Images/Credit-Report_639x639.png)
You can access your credit report by visiting AnnualCreditReport.com, a site authorized by federal law. There you can fill out a form to receive free credit reports from the three credit reporting agencies (Equifax, Experian, and Transunion). Extended through April 2022, the agencies have each agreed to provide consumers with free weekly credit reports. (The standard allowance is one free report per year from each agency.) If your IDX membership includes a credit report, you can access your report directly from your dashboard.
Once you receive your credit report, here’s what to look for:
- Personal information – Does everything look accurate?
- Credit accounts – Are all the accounts recognizable to you? Does the payment history for each account look accurate?
- Credit inquiries – Do you see any “hard inquiries” that you don’t recognize? Hard inquiries appear on your report when you’ve applied for a new line of credit, and the creditor has requested to view your credit file. As these inquiries can affect your credit score, it's best to limit them. (You may also see “soft inquiries” from insurance companies or organizations seeking to offer you a line of credit—these don’t affect your score.)
If you spot any inaccurate or unusual information in your report, notify the credit reporting agency. If the activity appears suspicious, notify IDX. Find more information on how to read your credit report here.
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