As part of the loan application process, a mortgage company will order a copy of your credit bureau report. Your credit bureau report contains a list of all your debts reported by credit reporting agencies, your payment history and a credit score. A credit score is a number that lenders use to help determine if the borrower will repay the loan as agreed.

Most mortgage loan and real estate professionals recommend that you obtain a copy of your credit bureau report several months before you apply for a loan on a major purchase. This will allow you time to review your credit bureau report before a lender sees it. If an error or inaccuracy is found on your credit bureau report, the process for correcting it may take some time.

There is a lot of misinformation about credit scores. Many times we get customer questions about improving credit bureau scores. The best place to find information about credit bureau scores is at any one of the three credit bureau reporting agencies: Equifax, Experian, or Transunion.

We have found that some of our customer's have received "misinformation" concerning their credit bureau scores. Here are some common statements that usually fuel misinformation:

1. Checking your credit score can hurt your credit.
   
   When you order a copy of your own credit report or credit score through a credit reporting agency, it does not count as a credit inquiry. Before you make a large purchase such as a home, you should check your credit report to make sure you do not have any errors.

2. Closing accounts can help your credit score
   
   It is true that having too many open accounts can hurt your credit score. But once you've opened the accounts, the damage is already done. The credit score takes into consideration the difference between your available credit and your current credit balance. By shutting down these accounts, your total available credit may shrink. Rather than closing these accounts, pay down your credit card debt.

Click here for more information on correcting credit bureau report errors: Correcting Errors on Your Credit Bureau Report.

Credit bureau reports may contain errors or inaccurate information. If this is the case with your credit bureau report, you'll need to contact the reporting agency listed at the bottom of your credit bureau report and file a dispute. Under the Federal Fair Credit Reporting Act, investigations of a disputed credit bureau report must be completed within 30 days of receiving the dispute. Once the investigation is completed, a revised copy of your credit report, reflecting the results of the investigation, will be sent to you. There are three credit bureau reporting agencies. If you find an error on one credit bureau report, you may also want to contact the other two credit reporting agencies. The three credit bureau reporting agency telephone numbers are: Equifax - (800) 685-1111 Experian - (888) 397-3742 Transunion - (800) 916-8800

If you need more information on credit scores or corrected credit bureau reports, please check out the following websites:

• Transunion
• Experian
• Equifax