Understanding Credit Reports Analyzing John's Fina

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Examining Your Credit ReportCHAPTER 4,LESSON 3DIRECTIONSReadJohn'sstory and review the sample credit report. Then, read the article " How to Read YourCredit Report.'Use the information in your textbook (Chapter 4, Lesson 3)ron the sample credit report , and from the articleto answer the q uestions.John's StoryJohn Doe moved to Los Angeles, California, three years ago after graduating from college.He was offered an incredible job that he couldn't pass up. He loves his job and is currentlysaving as much money as he can to get enough for a down payment to buy a house.However, he thinks that's going to take at least another year. He does all of his banking atSkyline Financial in Los Angeles—checking, savings, and a money market account. He hasone credit card that he owes less than $900 on, and he just signed up for a new credit cardfrom Rillards because he needed a new suit for work.When he moved to Los Angeles, he bought a new car with a loan from M&X Finance. Hislargest debt is his student loan that eats up about $350 every month. He makes minimumpayments on his credit card and student loan debt. Recently, John was considering tryingto save gas by buying a motorcylce to get around the city, and the motorcycle shop ranhis credit through their finance company—WB&T Dealer Finance. He also recently checkedwith another insurance company—Allstop Insurance—to see if he could get a better deal onhis auto insurance.

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Sample Credit ReportPersonal InformationName:John DoeSocial Security Number:1 2 3 - 4 5 - 6 7 8 9Date of Birth:Jan 1,2000Phone Number:5 5 5 - 7 6 5 - 4 3 2 1Address:123Sevent?. S t r e e t .Loa Angeles,CA 54321Credit SummaOpenand PaidAvailableRemainingPaymentCredit AccountsCreditLoan BalancesHistoryChartC r e d i ta 3 ,00038 70E£X Finance3 3 0 . 0 0 0323, 45630US DeptofEd333, 450AccountsShared WithSomeone ElseAccounts ThatHave BeenSentto CollectionsPublic RecordsBankruptcies:You c u r r e n t l yhavenonei nyourf i l e .Judgments:youcurrentlyhavenonei nyourf i l e .Liens:you currentlyhavenoneinyourf i l e .Credit InquiriesHard InquiriesDateCompanyAug i ,2021.■TBtT D e a l e rFinanceJuly3 ,2021SesameN a t i o n a lEanl:SoftInquiriesDateCompanyDescriptionJuly5,2021A l l B t o p InsCoPromotionalInquiryJune23 ,2021HillardsPromotionalInquiry

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Examining Your Credit ReportCHAPTER 4,LESSON 3How to Road Your Credit Reportyour information to whatever company may bec o n s i d e r i n g g i v i n g a loan or credit account.These bureaus all operate i n d e p e n d e n t l y , sotheir reports on you may contain slig htly differentinformation d e p e n d i n g on the credit-reportingcompany they used.HOW TO GET A CREDIT REPORTYou're allowed one free copy of your cred it reportevery year from each of the major credit-reportingagencies we just talked about. But the reportsaren't automatically mailed to you— you haveto ask for them! And since each agency keepsdifferent details on file, it's worth checking withall three. If you play your cards right, you caneven stagger them so you re getting a free reportnearly every quarter.Nowthat you know how to get your credit report,we II walk you through the four major areas youneed to check for any red flags. These couldhelp you spot potential identity theft situations,so listen up!HOW TO READ YOUR CREDIT REPORTIdentifying InformationThis section has any personal information thatcould be used to identify you, including:• Name• Address• Social Security number• Date of birth• Phone numberBy now, you know exactly how we feel about creditscores (hint: they re bogus). But one thing youstill need to pay attention to is your credit report.Even if you re debt-free and don't care what bigbanks and lenders think of you, you can't justignore your credit report. You still need to checkit for errors or signs of fraud at least once a year.But sifting t h r o u g h these things can be prettyconfusing, especially if you do nt know how toread your credit report or what kind of red flagsto look for. We know it can be a lot to take in.But don t worryI We've done the heavy lifting soyou don't have to. Ready, set, let's walkthrougheverything you need to know about how to readyour credit report.WHAT IS A CREDIT REPORT?A credit report is kind of like a report card for yourcredit history. It car be used by potential lenders todetermine your "risk," which is basically just howlikely you are to pay your monthly payments ontime. A credit report all about you can tell them:• The date you opened any credit accounts ort o o k o u t any loans• The current balance on each account• Your payment history• The credit limits and total loan amounts• Any bankruptcies or tax liens• Your identifying information {name, address,Social Security number)A c r e d i t bureau or credit-reporting c o m p a n ylike Equifax, Experian or TransUnion will provide

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