It's important to check credit scores regularly in order to ensure that your financial standing remains at par with the latest standards. There have been several changes made to check credit score procedures and it's important to understand them. In fact, they're pretty straightforward. The first major change is the introduction of the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA). Part of this law requires that you annually request your credit rating from all three credit reporting bureaus once per year.
The second major change is the creation of the official consumer credit report. Your FICO score will now be derived from the contents of your actual credit reports contained in the three credit bureaus: Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion. This information was not available prior to the implementation of the FCRA. Prior to this point, consumers were only able to get their credit reports via mail.
The third and final major change introduced by the FCRA is the creation of three credit scoring bureaus. These bureaus are Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion. They work in conjunction with each other to provide a standard credit report to consumers based on the information contained within the individual credit reports. In other words, these bureaus operate as one big credit agency. As such, the information contained in each credit report is pulled from the credit bureau that has the most accurate information. The end result is that when you check your credit rating, all three bureau's information will be reflected accurately.
The idea here is to allow consumers to have access to their credit reports. So how do you go about checking your credit scores? The process has changed quite a bit since you could only get a hard copy of your credit report via mail. Today, you can get your free credit report online through an online portal provided by all three credit bureaus. This process was created in order to provide consumers with more access to their credit reports and to help them make informed decisions regarding their credit and their finances.
After you receive your report online, it is important to look over the report in detail. Pay special attention to the details on any disputes that you find. Disputing the information on your credit report will lower your overall credit score. This is because the credit bureau has to investigate the validity of the dispute in order to provide any meaningful correction. If you manage to successfully resolve any disputes or mistakes, this will have a positive impact on your credit rating.