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The Big Three Credit Bureaus PDF Print E-mail
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Friday, 18 July 2008 11:31
Credit bureaus are for-profit corporations that offer a service: storing and maintaining credit records.

The 3 major bureaus, or Credit Reporting Agencies, (CRAs) are:
•    TransUnion
•    Equifax
•    Experian (formally TRW)

There are also local credit bureaus and reporting agencies. Their databases are not as widespread as those of “The Big Three.”

The local bureaus are may be used by some who may judge your credit worthiness.
In addition, all of “The Big Three” send your disputes to what are known as “third party databases”, to establish their legitimacy.

To report information to the credit bureaus, lenders must fill out an application and pay a fee to each bureau to which they wish to belong. Membership is voluntary. No creditor has to account anything to any bureau. Cheaper creditors may report to only one credit bureau. Since each bureau has its own private database and don’t share information, you may have up to three different credit histories.

The following subscribes to the credit bureaus for their information? :
•    Banks
•    Finance companies
•    Department stores
•    Taxing authorities
•    Landlords
•    Other most other “credit grantors”

This following information is stored by the CRA in a national database:
•    Your payment history
•    Place of employment and your employment history;
•    Your age
•    Your marital status
•    Your address history
•    Your salary

Credit bureaus also search public records for:
•    Bankruptcy information from the federal government
•    Judgment and tax lien information from courts (district, circuit, justice, municipal, superior, magistrate, probate, and state), town clerks, and registers of deeds.

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Last Updated ( Friday, 18 July 2008 11:34 )
 

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