ny name is a description of the type of account (such as student loans, credit card or line of credit), some payment history and or the account's status (such as charge off, collection account, payment deferred, account transferred or account closed by consumer.)

• The Account Number

Now that you have obtained your credit report, the first thing you need to do is read through it and understand what it all means. Don't feel bad if you don't understand what the credit report is saying to you. Most credit reports are coded because it allows shorter time for the computer to transmit all the information between the reporting agency and its clients. All reports should have the codes print directly on the back of the report itself or on a separate attachment telling you what the codes stand for.

Credit Bureaus may not all have the same format on how the report should look, but they all have the same information included on the report. Equifax is the only credit-reporting agency that provides consumers with a credit report in a column format. This means that Equifax reports are easier to read and easier to understand. In this chapter you will be shown examples of what is on the report from Equifax, Trans Union and Experian/TRW.

EQUIFAX: They often separate out the accounts with the different collection agencies. The Company Name is the name of the business reporting the information. In many cases, just below the company name is a description of the type of account (such as student loans, credit card or line of credit), some payment history and or the account's status (such as charge off, collection account, payment deferred, account transferred or account closed by consumer.)

• The Account Number

o transmit all the information between the reporting agency and its clients. All reports should have the codes print directly on the back of the report itself or on a separate attachment telling you what the codes stand for.

Credit Bureaus may not all have the same format on how the report should look, but they all have the same information included on the report. Equifax is the only credit-reporting agency that provides consumers with a credit report in a column format. This means that Equifax reports are easier to read and easier to understand. In this chapter you will be shown examples of what is on the report from Equifax, Trans Union and Experian/TRW.

EQUIFAX: They often separate out the accounts with the different collection agencies. The Company Name is the name of the business reporting the information. In many cases, just below the company name is a description of the type of account (such as student loans, credit card or line of credit), some payment history and or the account's status (such as charge off, collection account, payment deferred, account transferred or account closed by consumer.)

• The Account Number

report should look, but they all have the same information included on the report. Equifax is the only credit-reporting agency that provides consumers with a credit report in a column format. This means that Equifax reports are easier to read and easier to understand. In this chapter you will be shown examples of what is on the report from Equifax, Trans Union and Experian/TRW.

EQUIFAX: They often separate out the accounts with the different collection agencies. The Company Name is the name of the business reporting the information. In many cases, just below the company name is a description of the type of account (such as student loans, credit card or line of credit), some payment history and or the account's status (such as charge off, collection account, payment deferred, account transferred or account closed by consumer.)

• The Account Number

ll be shown examples of what is on the report from Equifax, Trans Union and Experian/TRW.

EQUIFAX: They often separate out the accounts with the different collection agencies. The Company Name is the name of the business reporting the information. In many cases, just below the company name is a description of the type of account (such as student loans, credit card or line of credit), some payment history and or the account's status (such as charge off, collection account, payment deferred, account transferred or account closed by consumer.)

• The Account Number

ny name is a description of the type of account (such as student loans, credit card or line of credit), some payment history and or the account's status (such as charge off, collection account, payment deferred, account transferred or account closed by consumer.)

• The Account Number is the number from the company reporting the information and who is responsible for the account and what type of obligation you have. Here are sample codes explaining what they are:
A = Authorized user (of someone else’s account)
B= On behalf of another person
C= Co-maker/Co-signer
I= Individual
J= Joint
M= Maker
S= Shared
T= Terminated
U= Undesignated
• Date Opened is the month and year you opened the account.
• Month's Review is the number of months for which your account payment history has been reported to the credit bureaus and when it was last looked at.
• Date of Last Activity is the date of the most recent month and year that something happened on the account. This may be the last time you made a payment or when the account was charged off or sent to collections. This date is important because negative information can stay on your report for up to seven years after the date of the last activity.
• High Credit is the credit amount of any loan you took out, your credit limit or possibly the highest amount you have ever charged on that specific account.
• Te