Credit Reports: What Do They Say About Me?

The “Big 3” credit bureaus, Experian, Equifax and Transunion, each collect data on consumers who hold credit history. They then take this data, create a report on each of the individual consumers, and compile these reports into a massive storehouse to be sold to both consumers and lending institutions alike. But what specific information is included within a credit report?
As with anything to do with finances, especially credit, the answers are never very simple or short—but that doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t investigate to find out exactly what credit agencies know about you and your financial history.

Your personal information
Credit reports include a great deal of financial data, but what they also include is a great deal of your personal information. Though this may not make much sense, your personal data is included on your report simply because the credit bureau and credit agencies need to know the difference between you and the hundreds of thousands of other consumers that they have generated reports on. Specifically, the information that they gather is full name, current and past addresses, date of birth, history of employment and social security number.

Your public records
Along with your personal information, credit reports also include any court record that you may have concerning your finances; for example, if you have filed for bankruptcy, foreclosed on a loan, had unsatisfactory starting credit card accounts, had your salary garnished, or have had a tax lien placed against you, then that information is gathered and added to your report. The reason behind this is quite simple: if you have had financial problems in the past, then lenders will want to know the details.

Records of loans
The section that lending agencies will be most interested in on your credit report is your borrowing history. This data will help them most in determining your credit worthiness by showing proof of your activities as a borrower. For example, included is an itemized list of all loans in your name (past and present), types of loans, amounts of loans, and payment history. Clearly, lenders are interested in this information because it shows them what to expect from you if you borrow from them.

Who has inquired about you
Finally, your credit report will also include a list of all agencies that have requested your report. Additionally, this list includes the instances that you have requested a copy of your own personal report.

Information you shouldn’t worry about
Though it may seem as if your whole life is siphoned into your credit report, you can rest assured that some things will never be included. This includes your race, ethnicity, sex, amount of income earned, and even bounced checks. These are all pieces of data that are not gathered, nor are they incorporated in your credit report for lending agencies to read.

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