In today’s world, a person’s credit report along with their credit score has come to be an issue of much more importance than in the past. Anyone who might need to borrow money needs to be up to date on what their credit report and score says about them. Access to this information is available through different sources including the internet, postal mail, and the telephone. Access to a free credit report and credit score is often available through various offers, and both are available at any time for a fee, so it is a simple enough matter to stay abreast of one’s credit information.

There are lots of helpful things a person should know about their credit and how it affects their ability to borrow. Some of these will seem minor, but are actually quite important. For instance, most married couples probably aren’t aware that if they apply for a loan together, the lower credit score of the two is the one used to decide the interest rate of the loan. Even if one of them has perfect credit, it doesn’t matter.

Another thing most people might be unaware of is this. If a potential borrower has had an account listed on their credit report as having gone to collection, that fact will hardly affect their credit at all after as little as two years. So, if this is the case, and if it is at all possible, they might be wise to wait before applying for their loan until this collection account is at least two years old.

When applying for credit, a person should always be certain to use the exact same name each time. If this isn’t done, his or her credit information might be listed in reports under the different variations of names they used rather than listed in the same single report. It might even be listed under someone else’s name and create major problems for all concerned. So, it is best to use the first and last name with the middle initial and to note any Jr, Sr, II, or III if applicable.

A lot of people are under the impression that the credit bureaus are government agencies. This is simply not true. They are not government controlled, they have no legal powers, and they are simply private businesses selling information.

The Fair Credit Reporting Act makes it mandatory for the credit bureaus to remove all defamatory data after seven years, or ten years if bankruptcy was filed. Most people don’t realize, though, that credit bureaus do not have to keep this adverse information in the reports for that length of time.

Though there are many other facts everyone should know about their credit reports, people need to be aware that correcting errors or disputing questionable facts is not as daunting a task as they might think. In fact, it can often be done quite easily right from their home computer.