2023-04-05

How to Get a Free Credit Report

A step-by-step guide 🔍

IN THIS ARTICLE:

Lenders use your credit score to decide whether to lend you money. If you’ve ever been rejected for credit, knowing and understanding your credit report can help you figure out why your score may be lower than required.

Your credit report is an important document that contains information about your credit history and financial behavior. It’s important to review your report regularly to make sure the information is accurate and to monitor your credit score.

And tons of people don’t know that you can get access to this information for free 💪

It’s true…

So stick around because in this blog post, we’ll cover how you can get a free credit report and what you should look for when reviewing it.

And if you wanna find out more about Cleo’s Plus subscription, here’s How to Get the Max Amount from a Cleo Cash Advance💡

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Firstly, why is it important to review your credit report?

It’s important to review your credit report regularly for the below reasons:

Errors or inaccuracies: Your report contains a detailed history of your accounts and payment history so it’s important to make sure this information is accurate as any errors or inaccuracies can negatively impact your credit score.
Potential fraud: Reviewing your report can also help you detect potential fraud or identity theft. If you see any accounts or inquiries on your report that you don’t recognize, these should be reported immediately as it could be a sign someone has opened accounts in your name. (PSA: You can’t try and pin the fact you spent $100 on takeaways on someone else though.)
Improve your score: Your credit score is a numerical representation of your creditworthiness, and it’s used by lenders to determine whether they’re able to approve you for credit and which interest rate to offer. By checking your report, it’ll help you identify the areas that need improving, such as paying off debts or paying bills on time.

You’re entitled to a free credit report from each of the three major credit bureaus (Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion) once a year. Here’s how to get it…

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Equifax

To get a free credit report from Equifax, you just need to visit their website and follow the below steps:

Click “Support” in the top right-hand corner of the homepage, and then select “Get a free copy of my Equifax credit report.”
Select “Get Started” and enter your personal information, including your name, address, Social Security number, and date of birth.
Follow the prompts to verify your identity.
Once you’ve been verified, you’ll then be able to access your Equifax credit report for free 🙌

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‍Experian

Similarly to Equifax, you just need to head over to Experian’s website and follow the below steps:

Click on the “Credit Support” tab in the top right-hand corner of the homepage and then select “Free annual credit report.”
Select “Request your free credit reports” and fill out the required information.
You’ll need to answer a few questions based on your credit file information to get verified.
Once you’ve verified your identity, you’ll be able to view your free credit report 🚦

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‍TransUnion

Visit TransUnion and follow the below steps:

Hover over the “Products” tab on the homepage and select “Free Annual Credit Report.”
Fill out the required information (name, address, Social Security number etc).
Verify your identity by answering a few questions relating to your credit file.
Once you’re done, you’ll be able to view your credit report from TransUnion ✨

You can also get your free credit report by visiting AnnualCreditReport which is the only website authorized by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to provide free credit reports.

Getting a free credit report is an important step in managing your finances and ensuring that your credit history is accurate. By reviewing your credit report regularly, you can catch errors or fraud and take steps to correct them.

Here’s to taking control of your financial future 🤝

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PSA: If you're looking for a new place to rent, instead of your potential landlord charging you for a credit check when applying for an apartment, check to see if you can provide your own free credit report and just show this to them instead.

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And if your credit report isn’t looking so gorgeous right now, we’ve got something that could help…

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‍‍The Credit Builder Card*

With the Credit Builder Card**, you’re totally in charge of deciding how much money you want to spend. The money you add to your card’s security deposit then becomes your credit limit (FYI, there’s a minimum deposit of $1).

It’s pretty simple.

For example, you add $50 to your security deposit, you spend $50 and that’s it. It’s really hard to go over 💸

And with our auto repayment option, it’s all set up so it’s pretty much impossible to miss a payment.

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‍How can the Credit Builder Card help build your credit?

Cleo reports your payment history to the credit bureaus and over time, on-time payments may help your credit score.

If you select the ‘carefree credit building’ option, Cleo will automatically take your payment so you never have to worry about missing a payment.‍
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What does Cleo report to the credit bureaus?

Outstanding balance owed: The balance not paid off from the prior month. If you paid off your last statement in full, your outstanding balance should be $0.
Payment status: The status of your payment. Your payment status is a reflection of whether or not you paid last month’s statement.

✨ (If you have the ‘carefree credit building’ option switched on, you shouldn’t have to worry about the above two points.) ✨

Current balance: The amount you have spent during a statement cycle that is owed on the due date for that statement.
The highest credit: The highest statement amount – also known as the most amount of credit you’ve ever spent with Cleo

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All you need to do is…