H. Scott Miller asked:
With millions of credit reports being ordered by creditors and individuals alike, the credit report is arguably the most misunderstood document in circulation. And for good reason… but unfortunately none of them are good for you.
This article will seek to demystify the contents, abbreviations and short hand language that is found throughout a typical credit report. Let’s get started…
Anatomy of a Credit Report
A credit report typically contains the following sections:
- Personal Information
Here you will find identifying information like:
* Name
* Current Address
* Social Security Number
* Date of Birth
* Spouse’s Name (if applicable)
* Employment Information (When Made Available)
- Public Record Information
This section will outline all public record items obtained by local, state and federal courts that reflect your history in paying financial obligations. This section will include:
* Bankruptcy Records
* Tax Liens
* Judgments
* Collection Accounts
* Overdue Child Support (applicable in many states)
- Collection Agency Account Information
Accounts that have been placed in collections in the last seven years will be listed here.
Contents to include:
* Collection Agency’s Name
* Amount Owed
* Contact Information (in some cases)
- Credit Account Information
Contents in this section usually consist of:
* Company Name (Name of creditor reporting information)
* Account Number (Lists the account # for specific credit account with the company)
* Whose Account (Indicates who’s responsible for the account and the type of participation that is included; see acronym chart below for definitions to common abbreviations)
* Date Opened (Specifies the month and year the account was established)
* Months Reviewed (Lists the number of months the account has been reported to the bureaus)
* Last Activity (Indicates the last payment and/or charge you made on the account)
* High Credit (Represents either the highest amount charged or the current credit limit)
* Terms (Pertains to installment debt; number of payments or the amount of total payments maybe listed)
* Balance (Reflects the amount owed at the time the report was ordered)
* Past Due (Lists any past due amount owed at the time the report was ordered)
* Status (An alphanumeric coding system used to indicate the account type and timeliness of payment; see acronym chart below for definitions to common abbreviations)
* Date Reported (Indicates the last time information was reported by the creditor to the bureaus)
Inquiries
This section will list all the businesses/creditors that have requested your credit report in the last 24 months.
Useful Charts
Whose Account Chart
0 = Undesignated
1 = Individual (borrower)
2 = Joint (borrower and someone else)
3 = Authorized User of Account
4 = Joint Account
5 = Co-maker
6 = On Behalf of
7 = Maker
8 = Individual Account for Spouse
9 = No Longer Associated With
Account Type Chart
I = Installment Account
M = Mortgage
O = Open Account
R = Revolving Account
Account Rating Chart
0 = too new to rate.
1 = pays in 30 days.
2 = pays in more than 30 days but less than 60 days.
3 = pays in more than 60 days, but less than 90 days.
4 = pays in more than 90 days, but less than 120 days.
5 = account is at least 120 days past due.
7 = bankruptcy
8 = repossession.
9 = collection.
Information Source Chart
XPN = Experian (formerlyTRW)
EFX = Equifax
TU = TransUnion
Misc. Account Types Chart
A = Automotive
B = Banking
C = Clothing
D = Department & Mail Order
E = Employment
F = Finance
G = Grocery
H = Home Furnishing
I = Insurance
J = Jewelry & Camera
K = Contractors
L = Lumber Hardware
M = Medical Health
O = Oil National Credit Cards
P = Personal Services Not Medical
R = Real Estate Public Accommodation
S = Sporting Goods
T = Farm Garden Supplies
U = Utilities Fuel
V = Government
W = Wholesale
X = Advertising
Y = Collection Services
Z = Miscellaneous Public Record
Experian Specific Codes Chart
C Current
N Current account/zero balance–no update tape received.
0 Current account/zero balance–reported on update tape.
1 30 days past the due date
2 60 days past the due date
3 90 days past the due date
4 120 days past the due date
5 150 days past the due date
6 180 days past the due date
7 Making regular payments or paid under wage earner plan or similar arrangements.
8 derogatory, e.g. repossession, foreclosure.
9 derogatory, e.g. collection, charge off.
B Account condition change, payment code not applicable
-(Dash) No history reported for that month. Blank No history maintained; see payment status comment
Experian Score Factor Codes Chart
01 Current balance on accounts
02 Delinquency reported on accounts
03 Too few bank revolving accounts
04 Too many bank revolving accounts
05 Number of accounts with balances
06 Number of finance company accounts
07 Unable to evaluate recent payment history
08 Number of recent inquiries
33 Proportion of current loan balance to original loan amount
09 Number of accounts opened within the last 12 months
10 Proportion of balance to high credit on revolving accounts
11 Current balance on revolving accounts
12 Length of revolving account history
13 Length of time (or unknown time) since account delinquency
14 Length of time accounts have been established
15 Insufficient or lack of bank revolving account information
16 Insufficient or lack of revolving account information
17 No recent (non-mortgage) account balance information
18 Number of accounts delinquent
19 Too few accounts rated “current”
24 Lack of recently reported balances on revolving/open accounts
20 Length of time since legal item filed or collection item reported
21 Amount “past due” on accounts 22 Account(s) not paid as agreed and/or legal item filed
32 No recent installment loan information
30 Length of time since most recent account established
37 # of finance co. accounts relative to length of finance history
25 Length of installment loan history
26 Number of revolving accounts
99 Lack of recent information on finance accounts, or lack thereof
31 Too few accounts with recent payment information
28 Number of accounts established
98 Lack of recent information on auto loan, or lack of auto loans
36 Length of time open installment loans have been established
Transunion Specific Whose Account Codes Chart
A Authorized user of shared account
C Joint contractual liability
I Individual account for sole use of customer
M Account for which subject is liable, but co-signer has liability if the maker defaults
P Participant in shared account which cannot be distinguished as C or A
S Account for which subject is co-signer and becomes liable if maker defaults
T Relationship with account terminated
U Undesignated
X Deceased
Transunion Date Indicators Chart
A Automated
C Closed
D Declined
F Repossessed/Written Off/Collection
I Indirect
M Manually Frozen
N No Record
P Paid Out
R Reported
S Slow Answering
T Temporarily Frozen
V Verified
X No Reply
Transunion Manner of Payment Code Chart
00 Too new to rate, or no rating
01 Pays (or paid) within 30 days of payment due date, or not over one payment past due
02 Pays (or paid) within 30 days of payment due date, but not more than 60 days, or not more than two payments past due
03 Pays (or paid) within 60 days of payment due date, but not more than 90 days, or not more than three payments past due
04 Pays (or paid) within 90 days of payment due date, but not more than 120 days, or not more than four payments past due
05 Pays (or paid) within 120 days of payment due date or not more than four payments past due
07 Making regular payments under Wage Earner Plan or similar arrangement
08 Repossession
8A Voluntary Repossession
8D Legal Repossession
8P Making payments to account with MOP/08
8R Repossession redeemed
09 Bad debt; placed for collection
9B Collection account
9P Making payments or paid with an MOP of 09 or 9B
UC Unclassified
UR Unrated
Negative Remarks Code Chart
- CURR WAS FOR. Foreclosure proceedings began on your account. However, all past due amounts have been paid and the account is now current.
- CURR WAS 30-2. Your account has twice been 30 days past due, but is now current.
- DEED IN LIEU. You gave a creditor a deed to your property to prevent them from foreclosing.
- DEL WAS 120. At one point, your account was 120 days past due. You have made some payments, but the account is still 30, 60, or 90 days late.
- GOVCLAIM. You failed to repay a government loan, and the government filed a claim against you.
- FORECLOSURE. A foreclosure occurred on your property as you failed to pay the creditor.
- NOT PAY AA. An outstanding balance still exists and you are not paying according to the agreement.
- CHARGED TO P & L. The creditor charged-off the debt on their profit and loss statement as they felt it was uncollectible.
- REPO. Your property was repossessed because you failed to repay your loan.
- VOL SURR. To prevent repossession by a creditor, you voluntarily surrendered your property.
- 30-DAY DEL. You payments are at least 30 days late on one or more accounts.
Negative Remarks Dictionary
- Bankruptcy – bankruptcy indicates you once were financially unable to pay your obligations when due.
- Tax Lien – you owe taxes and an IRS or state tax lien was entered against your property.
- Judgment – there is now a judgment on record against you due to losing a lawsuit either at trial or because you failed to defend.
- Settled – a pending lawsuit was resolved before trial.
- Child Support – you failed to pay court-ordered child support.
- Withdrawn – a bankruptcy case was withdrawn.
- Dismissed – either the court ruled in your favor or the creditor failed to show up and your case was dismissed.
- Discharged – bankruptcy was filed and the court relieved you of your debts.
- Paid and Satisfied – a court judgment or a collections account has been fully paid.
- Suit – there is a legal action pending against you.
Still confused?
I wouldn’t blame you; it’s a lot of information to process…
Click HERE to request a sample credit report with a detailed explanation of the contents that serves as a handy reference when you need it.
Scott
With millions of credit reports being ordered by creditors and individuals alike, the credit report is arguably the most misunderstood document in circulation. And for good reason… but unfortunately none of them are good for you.
This article will seek to demystify the contents, abbreviations and short hand language that is found throughout a typical credit report. Let’s get started…
Anatomy of a Credit Report
A credit report typically contains the following sections:
- Personal Information
Here you will find identifying information like:
* Name
* Current Address
* Social Security Number
* Date of Birth
* Spouse’s Name (if applicable)
* Employment Information (When Made Available)
- Public Record Information
This section will outline all public record items obtained by local, state and federal courts that reflect your history in paying financial obligations. This section will include:
* Bankruptcy Records
* Tax Liens
* Judgments
* Collection Accounts
* Overdue Child Support (applicable in many states)
- Collection Agency Account Information
Accounts that have been placed in collections in the last seven years will be listed here.
Contents to include:
* Collection Agency’s Name
* Amount Owed
* Contact Information (in some cases)
- Credit Account Information
Contents in this section usually consist of:
* Company Name (Name of creditor reporting information)
* Account Number (Lists the account # for specific credit account with the company)
* Whose Account (Indicates who’s responsible for the account and the type of participation that is included; see acronym chart below for definitions to common abbreviations)
* Date Opened (Specifies the month and year the account was established)
* Months Reviewed (Lists the number of months the account has been reported to the bureaus)
* Last Activity (Indicates the last payment and/or charge you made on the account)
* High Credit (Represents either the highest amount charged or the current credit limit)
* Terms (Pertains to installment debt; number of payments or the amount of total payments maybe listed)
* Balance (Reflects the amount owed at the time the report was ordered)
* Past Due (Lists any past due amount owed at the time the report was ordered)
* Status (An alphanumeric coding system used to indicate the account type and timeliness of payment; see acronym chart below for definitions to common abbreviations)
* Date Reported (Indicates the last time information was reported by the creditor to the bureaus)
Inquiries
This section will list all the businesses/creditors that have requested your credit report in the last 24 months.
Useful Charts
Whose Account Chart
0 = Undesignated
1 = Individual (borrower)
2 = Joint (borrower and someone else)
3 = Authorized User of Account
4 = Joint Account
5 = Co-maker
6 = On Behalf of
7 = Maker
8 = Individual Account for Spouse
9 = No Longer Associated With
Account Type Chart
I = Installment Account
M = Mortgage
O = Open Account
R = Revolving Account
Account Rating Chart
0 = too new to rate.
1 = pays in 30 days.
2 = pays in more than 30 days but less than 60 days.
3 = pays in more than 60 days, but less than 90 days.
4 = pays in more than 90 days, but less than 120 days.
5 = account is at least 120 days past due.
7 = bankruptcy
8 = repossession.
9 = collection.
Information Source Chart
XPN = Experian (formerlyTRW)
EFX = Equifax
TU = TransUnion
Misc. Account Types Chart
A = Automotive
B = Banking
C = Clothing
D = Department & Mail Order
E = Employment
F = Finance
G = Grocery
H = Home Furnishing
I = Insurance
J = Jewelry & Camera
K = Contractors
L = Lumber Hardware
M = Medical Health
O = Oil National Credit Cards
P = Personal Services Not Medical
R = Real Estate Public Accommodation
S = Sporting Goods
T = Farm Garden Supplies
U = Utilities Fuel
V = Government
W = Wholesale
X = Advertising
Y = Collection Services
Z = Miscellaneous Public Record
Experian Specific Codes Chart
C Current
N Current account/zero balance–no update tape received.
0 Current account/zero balance–reported on update tape.
1 30 days past the due date
2 60 days past the due date
3 90 days past the due date
4 120 days past the due date
5 150 days past the due date
6 180 days past the due date
7 Making regular payments or paid under wage earner plan or similar arrangements.
8 derogatory, e.g. repossession, foreclosure.
9 derogatory, e.g. collection, charge off.
B Account condition change, payment code not applicable
-(Dash) No history reported for that month. Blank No history maintained; see payment status comment
Experian Score Factor Codes Chart
01 Current balance on accounts
02 Delinquency reported on accounts
03 Too few bank revolving accounts
04 Too many bank revolving accounts
05 Number of accounts with balances
06 Number of finance company accounts
07 Unable to evaluate recent payment history
08 Number of recent inquiries
33 Proportion of current loan balance to original loan amount
09 Number of accounts opened within the last 12 months
10 Proportion of balance to high credit on revolving accounts
11 Current balance on revolving accounts
12 Length of revolving account history
13 Length of time (or unknown time) since account delinquency
14 Length of time accounts have been established
15 Insufficient or lack of bank revolving account information
16 Insufficient or lack of revolving account information
17 No recent (non-mortgage) account balance information
18 Number of accounts delinquent
19 Too few accounts rated “current”
24 Lack of recently reported balances on revolving/open accounts
20 Length of time since legal item filed or collection item reported
21 Amount “past due” on accounts 22 Account(s) not paid as agreed and/or legal item filed
32 No recent installment loan information
30 Length of time since most recent account established
37 # of finance co. accounts relative to length of finance history
25 Length of installment loan history
26 Number of revolving accounts
99 Lack of recent information on finance accounts, or lack thereof
31 Too few accounts with recent payment information
28 Number of accounts established
98 Lack of recent information on auto loan, or lack of auto loans
36 Length of time open installment loans have been established
Transunion Specific Whose Account Codes Chart
A Authorized user of shared account
C Joint contractual liability
I Individual account for sole use of customer
M Account for which subject is liable, but co-signer has liability if the maker defaults
P Participant in shared account which cannot be distinguished as C or A
S Account for which subject is co-signer and becomes liable if maker defaults
T Relationship with account terminated
U Undesignated
X Deceased
Transunion Date Indicators Chart
A Automated
C Closed
D Declined
F Repossessed/Written Off/Collection
I Indirect
M Manually Frozen
N No Record
P Paid Out
R Reported
S Slow Answering
T Temporarily Frozen
V Verified
X No Reply
Transunion Manner of Payment Code Chart
00 Too new to rate, or no rating
01 Pays (or paid) within 30 days of payment due date, or not over one payment past due
02 Pays (or paid) within 30 days of payment due date, but not more than 60 days, or not more than two payments past due
03 Pays (or paid) within 60 days of payment due date, but not more than 90 days, or not more than three payments past due
04 Pays (or paid) within 90 days of payment due date, but not more than 120 days, or not more than four payments past due
05 Pays (or paid) within 120 days of payment due date or not more than four payments past due
07 Making regular payments under Wage Earner Plan or similar arrangement
08 Repossession
8A Voluntary Repossession
8D Legal Repossession
8P Making payments to account with MOP/08
8R Repossession redeemed
09 Bad debt; placed for collection
9B Collection account
9P Making payments or paid with an MOP of 09 or 9B
UC Unclassified
UR Unrated
Negative Remarks Code Chart
- CURR WAS FOR. Foreclosure proceedings began on your account. However, all past due amounts have been paid and the account is now current.
- CURR WAS 30-2. Your account has twice been 30 days past due, but is now current.
- DEED IN LIEU. You gave a creditor a deed to your property to prevent them from foreclosing.
- DEL WAS 120. At one point, your account was 120 days past due. You have made some payments, but the account is still 30, 60, or 90 days late.
- GOVCLAIM. You failed to repay a government loan, and the government filed a claim against you.
- FORECLOSURE. A foreclosure occurred on your property as you failed to pay the creditor.
- NOT PAY AA. An outstanding balance still exists and you are not paying according to the agreement.
- CHARGED TO P & L. The creditor charged-off the debt on their profit and loss statement as they felt it was uncollectible.
- REPO. Your property was repossessed because you failed to repay your loan.
- VOL SURR. To prevent repossession by a creditor, you voluntarily surrendered your property.
- 30-DAY DEL. You payments are at least 30 days late on one or more accounts.
Negative Remarks Dictionary
- Bankruptcy – bankruptcy indicates you once were financially unable to pay your obligations when due.
- Tax Lien – you owe taxes and an IRS or state tax lien was entered against your property.
- Judgment – there is now a judgment on record against you due to losing a lawsuit either at trial or because you failed to defend.
- Settled – a pending lawsuit was resolved before trial.
- Child Support – you failed to pay court-ordered child support.
- Withdrawn – a bankruptcy case was withdrawn.
- Dismissed – either the court ruled in your favor or the creditor failed to show up and your case was dismissed.
- Discharged – bankruptcy was filed and the court relieved you of your debts.
- Paid and Satisfied – a court judgment or a collections account has been fully paid.
- Suit – there is a legal action pending against you.
Still confused?
I wouldn’t blame you; it’s a lot of information to process…
Click HERE to request a sample credit report with a detailed explanation of the contents that serves as a handy reference when you need it.
Scott
