Consumers are being urged to check their credit reports at least once a year.
Errors in credit reports can keep consumers from purchasing a home or a car by causing them to be denied loans, the Federal Trade Commission warned in a blog late last week.
When people are getting ready to make an important purchase where credit is a must, they should get their free credit reports from the three large reporting bureaus—Equifax, Experian and TransUnion—by going to AnnualCreditReport.com, the FTC recommended.
If an error (or more) is found, the agency suggests taking the following two steps:
• Dispute the report yourself—don’t need to use a credit repair service. By law, consumer reporting agencies and the creditors that provide the information in your credit report are responsible for correcting inaccurate or incomplete information.
• If errors on your credit report seem to be the result of someone stealing your identity, go to identitytheft.gov to get personalized steps to report and recover from identity theft.
To keep good credit, the FTC said it is important to pay bills by the date due. Also, don’t close older credit cards since having credit for a long time boosts ratings; don’t get new credit cards that aren’t needed since a lot of cards can hurt an individual’s credit history; and lower the amount owed on cards, the FTC says.
“Owing a lot of money hurts your credit history,” the FTC warned consumers.