Patty Manzi’s Tri-Valley Real Estate Blog

With the new year rapidly approaching, now is a good time to remind you that each year you are eligible to receive a FREE copy of your consumer credit report from each of the three major credit bureaus.  TransUnion, Experian, and Equifax will provide these to you at NO CHARGE. 

Go to www.AnnualCreditReport.com to obtain your FREE reports.  There is no credit card information required on this site to obtain your reports.  There are other sites out there that say they are free, but they will ask for credit card information before giving you access to your information.  All sites will offer access to Credit Scores, and there is usually always a fee for that report.

You will have the opportunity to download all three credit bureau reports at once, or you can download one (of your choice), and revisit the site at a later time to download another.  Some credit professionals suggest downloading one every 4 months to keep an eye on changes throughout the year.  Whichever method you choose, this is a valuable tool!

In some cases, if the system is unable to identify you online, you may be required to order your report via phone or mail.  If this happens to you, simply follow the online instructions for obtaining the phone number, or the appropriate form to download and mail.  You will receive your credit report in the mail, usually within 2 weeks.

You can also download forms to correct errors, dispute incorrect information, and/or remove outdated information. 

Hope you found this information useful!