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Credit Reports

Credit-report terms that explain bureaus, tradelines, inquiries, and the records that shape a consumer credit file.

Credit report pages explain what appears on a consumer credit file, who gathers that information, and how lenders use it. This section is the right starting point when a borrower is reading a bureau file, monitoring new activity, or trying to understand negative reporting.

Many concepts here connect directly to scores, underwriting, disputes, and collections because the report is where those outcomes become visible.

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In this section

  • Credit Report
    A credit report is the file that lists a consumer's credit accounts, inquiries, and other relevant reporting data.
  • Credit Bureau
    A credit bureau is a company that gathers and maintains consumer credit-file information.
  • Tradeline
    A tradeline is an individual account entry on a credit report.
  • Hard Inquiry
    A hard inquiry is a credit-file check tied to a credit application or another approval decision.
  • Soft Inquiry
    A soft inquiry is a credit-file review that is not treated like a full new-credit application pull.
  • Collection Account
    A collection account is a debt that has been sent or sold to collections and is now reported in that status.
  • Public Record
    A public record is a court or government record item that may be associated with a consumer's credit-reporting history.
  • Dispute
    A dispute is a challenge to credit-report information that the consumer believes is inaccurate or incomplete.
  • Derogatory Mark
    A derogatory mark is negative credit-file information that suggests elevated repayment risk or account trouble.
  • Authorized User
    An authorized user is someone allowed to use another person's credit-card account without being the primary account holder.
  • Identity Verification
    Identity verification is the process of confirming that the person requesting credit or file access is who they claim to be.
  • Credit Monitoring
    Credit monitoring is ongoing observation of a consumer's credit-file activity for changes, alerts, or suspicious events.
  • Average Age of Accounts
    Average age of accounts is the typical age of the accounts on a credit file when viewed together.
  • Dispute Letter
    A dispute letter is a written notice used to challenge credit-report information the consumer believes is inaccurate or incomplete.