Many
homebuyers
frequently
wonder,
"If
I am
shopping
for
a
home
loan
will
my
credit
be
affected
each
time
a
credit
report
inquiry
is
made?"
It's
a
logical
and
intelligent
question
to
ask;
the
answer
is:
not
significantly,
if
the
credit
checks
are
done
in a
short
period
of
time.
When
a
credit
check
is
made
by a
potential
lender
it
is
called
a
hard
inquiry.
When
a
hard
inquiry
occurs
it
does
have
an
impact
on
your
credit
score.
However,
when
you're
shopping
for
a
mortgage
or a
car
loan,
credit
bureaus
typically
cluster
the
hard
inquiries
together
because
the
credit
reporting
bureaus
understand
that
the
consumer
is
shopping
for
the
best
loan.
"So
for
example,
if
you're
shopping
for
a
new
mortgage
and
three
potential
lenders
pull
your
credit
score
within
three
weeks,
that
is
looked
at
as
one
inquiry
for
that
purpose,"
says
Steven
Katz
a
spokesperson
for
TransUnion's
TrueCredit.com.
Keeping
your
credit
clean
is
critical.
Katz
offers
the
following
advice
to
help
ensure
healthy
credit.
One
card
you
should
not
carry:
Leave
your
Social
Security
card
at
home.
"There
is
basically
no
reason
that
you
need
to
carry
that
with
you,"
says
Katz.
Most
people
have
their
Social
Security
card
number
memorized.
If
you're
not
one
of
those
people,
then
only
carry
your
card
with
you
when
you
know
you
need
the
information
on
it.
Your
Social
Security
card
number
contains
personal
information
that
if
it
gets
into
the
wrong
hands,
can
cause
major
credit
dilemmas.
Lock
it
up:
Apartment
complexes
and
condominiums
typically
have
locking
mailboxes,
but
these
types
of
secure
mailboxes
aren't
as
common
in
residential,
single-family
neighborhoods.
"If
at
all
possible,
people
should
have
a
locking
mailbox,"
says
Katz.
Katz
says
mailboxes
with
locking
devices
are
becoming
more
popular
at
hardware
stores
because
identity
theft
is
spreading.
Taking
precaution
to
protect
your
personal
information
can
save
you
months
of
agony.
Shred
your
documents:
Katz
says
if
you
don't
shred
your
personal
documents
and
criminals
access
the
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information,
the
result
can
be
devastating
to
your
credit.
Criminals
will
often
attempt
to
open
new
accounts
using
your
name
and
information.
If
they're
successful,
they
will
use
the
new
account
and
divert
the
account
information
to
the
criminals'
address
or
post
office
box.
"So,
you'll
never
even
know
that
the
account
was
established.
They'll
be
receiving
the
bills
and
then
just
throwing
them
out.
It's
ruining
your
credit."
says
Katz.
Keep
an
eye
on
your
credit
card:
Katz
says
while
it
is
difficult,
people
should
not
let
their
credit
card
out
of
their
sight
or
else
they
run
the
risk
of
becoming
a
victim
of
skimming.
Skimming
has
become
prevalent
at
some
restaurants
and
gas
stations
where
a
clerk
might
have
a
small
device
that
scans
the
consumer's
credit
card.
"It's
a
very
small
scanner
that
captures
all
the
information
that
is
on
the
magnetic
strip,
and
then
the
card's
information
can
be
cloned,"
explains
Katz.
Of
course,
keeping
your
credit
card
visible
at
all
times
is
nearly
impossible.
Katz
says,
"If
you're
going
to
go
to a
restaurant
in
an
area
that
you're
a
little
uncertain
of
--
that's
in a
fringe
area
or
you're
in a
foreign
country
and
you're
not
too
certain
about
where
you're
dining
--
attempt
to
use
cash."
Also,
when
using
credit
cards
be
sure
that
the
receipt
you
leave
with
the
merchant
does
not
have
your
credit
card
number
exposed.
Most
merchants
have
credit
card
systems
that
only
print
out
the
last
four
digits
of a
consumer's
credit
card;
however,
some
still
show
the
entire
account
number
on
the
print
out.
If
your
full
credit
card
account
number
appears
on
the
receipt,
scratch
it
out
with
a
pen.
Additionally,
in
rare
cases
where
carbon
copies
are
used,
ask
for
the
carbon.
Check
your
credit
history
Consumers
can
check
their
credit
history
for
free
once
a
year
at
http://annualcreditreport.com.
Katz
says
that
the
free
reports
will
not
contain
an
actual
credit
score,
but
you
can
get
the
scores
for
a
fee.
Another
good
credit-checking
resource
is
found
at
http://truecredit.com.
The
website
offers
access
to
tools
to
manage
a
consumer's
credit
health
by
receiving
credit
reports,
credit
scores,
credit
monitoring,
and
informational
materials.
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