How much do negative items hurt your score?
FICO Score® provides these numbers to show how negative items can lower your score dramatically:
| Negative Items | If your score is 680 | If your score is 780 |
| Maxed-out account | Down 10 to 30 pts. | Down 25 to 45 pts. |
| 30-day late payment | Down 60 to 80 pts. | Down 90 to 100 pts. |
| Debt Settlement | Down 45 to 65 pts. | Down 105 to 125 pts. |
| Foreclosure | Down 85 to 105 pts. | Down 140 to 160 pts. |
| 90-day late payment | Down 100 to 120 pts. | Down 180 to 220 pts. |
| Bankruptcy | Down 130 to 150 pts. | Down 220 to 240 pts. |
| Source: FICO |
How do I see my negative items?
Most credit reports will have a "negative items" section that will show you exactly what is listed with that bureau.
If you have negative items weighing down your score, and you find them innacurate, unverifiable, misleading, or biased, you can dispute them with the bureaus and negotiate with your creditors to have them removed, and like thousands of people -- every day -- you can remove your negative items from your credit report and increase your score.
How much do maxed-out accounts hurt your score?
| Problem | If your score is 680 | If your score is 780 |
| Maxed-out acount | Down 10 to 30 pts. | Down 25 to 45 pts. |
| Source: FICO |
How can I see my debt-to-credit ratio?
Almost all credit reports will give you your account balances and credit limits. You can write these down and determine your own debt-to-credit ratio by dividing the credit limit by the amount you owe (limit ÷ debt = ratio):
Other credit services calculate your ratio for you:
Paying off your debts can seem like the obvious solution, but there are some other ways to help improve your debt-to-credit ratio. We explore all the options:
Source: FreeCreditReports.com
Many times, hard inquiries are put on your credit report that you have no part of. You need to challenge these inquiries and have them removed. Every point counts.
Inquiries per credit bureau:
TransUnion lists credit inquiries in two categories:
Regularly inquiries: These are equivalent to "hard pulls" and will remain on the credit report for two years;
Account review inquiries: These are "soft pulls" and according to TransUnion, companies use "soft pulls" for the purpose of an account review or other business transaction with you. These inquiries are not displayed to anyone but you and will not affect any creditor's decision or any score.
Experian shows credit checks as:
Requests viewed by others: These requests are usually "hard pulls" as they are results of actions involving you, such as the completion of a credit application or the transfer of an account to a collection agency, application for insurance, mortgage or loan application, etc. Creditors may view these requests when evaluating your creditworthiness.
Requests viewed only by you: These are "soft pulls" that are not available to creditors when they evaluate your credit.
Equifax displays inquiries in three parts:
Inquiries in the last 12 months: These inquiries are "hard" or voluntary inquiries and were generated because you authorized the companies listed to request a copy of your credit report.
Most credit scores are calculated using only inquiries from the last 12 months. Your credit score is generally not affected by several inquiries that are posted at about the same time, such as when you shop for the best auto loan or mortgage rates.
Inquiries that do not display to companies and do not impact your credit score: These are "soft" inquiries from previous definition. These inquiries are not shown to creditors and, thus, are not considered in credit evaluation.
Companies that requested your credit file: This section is unique to Equifax as the other two don't have a third category. What interesting is that it's unclear whether the information under this category will affect credit score because Equifax says lenders "may view these requests when evaluating your credit worthiness."
