There are 3 main credit reporting bureaus that show up on a tri-merge consumer credit report. They include:
Equifax – EFX
Experian – XPN
Transunion – TU
Each credit bureau reports separate information from one another, and they work independently, so different reporting may occur within each bureau. This is why it is common for consumers to see three entirely different credit scores when they look at a tri-merge credit report.
And this is the same reason banks and lenders take the mid-score of the three reporting bureaus. While they may not all report the same information, taking the median score will give potential creditors a good idea as to where you stand. And even if one bureau doesn’t report a collection or a late, another bureau may, and it will be considered in your overall credit profile by the creditor.
So if one of the three bureaus reports a mortgage late, and the other two don’t, the creditor can still deny you credit if they don’t allow mortgage lates.
If for some reason your credit report only comes up with two scores, the creditor, bank, or lender will take the lower of the two scores.
When you look at your credit report, you will see the symbols of each credit bureau next to each line of credit that is being reported. You may notice only 1 or 2 of the bureaus symbols next to a particular trade line or collection account. As I mentioned above, the 3 credit bureaus may not report everything equally, so you may need to target only 1 or 2 of the credit bureaus to remove any discrepancies.
The 3 credit bureaus also sell credit reports and provide credit monitoring to consumers through their websites. These services usually charge fees of nearly $30 a month, but can be worth it as your working directly with the credit bureau itself.
But the best way to check your credit is to order free credit reports from Annualcreditreport.com for each of the 3 credit bureaus. And once you analyze your free credit reports, you can determine whether you need to use one of the bureau’s services.
I ordered a “free credit report” from Experian a few years back before I knew anything about credit, and found a medical collection on my report. The one advantage of their service was it allowed me to dispute the collection, and it ultimately got removed from my account without incident, and boosted my score from 660 to 720. I did end up paying for one month of service, but it was definitely worth it in hindsight. But that’s why you should order a free credit report first from the official site to determine if you’ll need to use one of these credit monitoring sites to clear anything up.
