A credit score is one of the most useful and widely used determinants of creditworthiness among lenders, creditors, insurance companies, landlords, and others. They perceive a higher score as an indication that you are a lower credit risk and will likely pay your bills as and when required. Thus, it is advisable to check the credit score periodically to make sure that everything is in order and follow credit score rebuilding tips to correct the credit score. However, it is believed that frequent monitoring of your credit score reduces the score by a small margin each time. The good news is that there are steps you can take to monitor your score without damaging it.
Another common method to get a free credit score without damaging it is to use the free credit score offerings of credit card companies and banks. Discover, Chase, Citi, Bank of America, Capital One, and some other major credit card companies now provide their customers with free FICO or Vantage credit scores. The scores they give could be derived from TransUnion, Equifax, or Experian. Generally, using your credit score for checking through these free offers does not pull your credit report, which is similar to the pulling done when you apply for credit. Simply go to the credit card’s online platform or the mobile application and be able to view your latest score and recommendations on how to increase it.
There is another way to track the changes in your credit reports and your credit score without affecting it: Credit Karma or Credit Sesame. These free services use information in your credit reports at the major credit bureaus to provide you with approximate VantageScores and to track shifts in your credit status. They also give advice and suggestions on how to enhance your credit score. Even though these scores are not the same as FICO scores, they can be used to get a sense of the direction and trends in your reports and scores. To top it all, the above services only pull a soft credit check and therefore do not impact your score. These sites can be visited as many times as possible without the need to worry.
Many of the credit card and credit monitoring sites also offer free credit alerts which can inform you of changes in your credit file as soon as they are made for example: new accounts that are opened in your name; changes to your address; inquiries and so on These alert services can work 24/7 and you do not have to buy credit reports or be constantly logged on to sites looking for changes. Free credit alerts do not have any effect on the credit score of the person in any way.
Also, you can get a free credit report once a year from the three main credit bureaus at annual credit report. com. Federal law entitles you to a copy of your credit report from Equifax, TransUnion, and Experian once a year for free so that you can inspect your reports for inaccuracies or fraudulent activity. Reading this free annual report is harmless and does not impact your scores if you get them from annual credit report. com. It also enables the respective bureau to investigate the errors that you find and that could be pulling down your scores.
To get the best understanding of your credit state, many analysts suggest using your actual FICO score from myFICO. com or directly from credit bureaus at least quarterly, if not bi-semester. MyFICO offers your FICO scores that lenders see and full copies of your Equifax, TransUnion, & Experian credit reports. This does involve paying for your score and reports from the horse’s mouth instead of getting free scores and reports from other websites. However, myFICO performs a soft credit check that does not affect the credit score at all. It is therefore advisable to once in a while look at your actual FICO scores to confirm you are in the right direction.
Regardless of whether or not you are accessing it through offers from credit card companies, free credit monitoring sites, or directly with the credit bureaus, none of these sources necessitate a hard pull. Therefore, merely checking one’s score does not reduce the score as long as one does not apply for new credit lines. Furthermore, monitoring your credit profile often lets you identify any issues early on, show responsibility when it comes to credits, and act as a good incentive to improve your score in the future. Monitoring services also give suggestions on what you should do depending on your credit status so that your credit score will improve. However, they should not frequently monitor several sources daily. It is advisable to check it every few months from one or two trustworthy sites.
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