It is a pretty common line you get fed when applying for credit with a car dealer: “Don’t go shopping around because too many inquiries will drop your credit score!” Like so many other things a car dealer will tell you, it is not entirely true!
There are many factors that go into making up your credit score. They include the length of history on the bureau, the makeup of the accounts on your credit, the balances you carry, and much, much more. Inquiries are just a small part of your credit score.
Also, all the national bureaus take into account that customers rate-shop. Rate shopping is when you check around with various lenders for the best deals. The credit reports “adjust” for rate shopping on home mortgages, auto loans and student loans. Credit cards are another issue altogether, but we will cover that later.
Basically, your credit score will lump all inquiries within a 14 to 30 day period together as just one inquiry when they are related to either a home loan, a car loan or a student loan. So you can check with your credit union or shop with a couple of dealers without worrying about your score.
But, inquiries in general will lower your score. You should carefully consider whether you need to apply for credit before doing so. It doesn’t take long to add up, when you take into account the gas card, the credit card offer, the store card, and then add in car loans, personal loans, and home loans.
And you might not even be aware you are having your credit run by other places as well. Often your insurance company, your landlord, and even your bank will check your credit when you open an account. Pretty soon, your inquiries run longer than your whole credit report.
The reason inquiries in general do impact your score is that potential lenders need to know you may have unreported credit. Many lenders do not report to the national bureaus, but will check your credit before offering you a loan. So a bunch of inquiries might mean a bunch of unreported debt that will impact your ability to pay future loans. And that is really all your credit score is supposed to measure anyway.
So limit your credit checks when you can, but don’t always listen to what your car dealer says!
Check out these pages for more information in the future that will help you manage your credit score.
If you need our help, just give us a call at 877-942-2769 or send me an email personally at ajwiley@cawcawcaw.com. We are located at 537 Richmond Road in Staunton, VA just off I-81.
There are many factors that go into making up your credit score. They include the length of history on the bureau, the makeup of the accounts on your credit, the balances you carry, and much, much more. Inquiries are just a small part of your credit score.
Also, all the national bureaus take into account that customers rate-shop. Rate shopping is when you check around with various lenders for the best deals. The credit reports “adjust” for rate shopping on home mortgages, auto loans and student loans. Credit cards are another issue altogether, but we will cover that later.
Basically, your credit score will lump all inquiries within a 14 to 30 day period together as just one inquiry when they are related to either a home loan, a car loan or a student loan. So you can check with your credit union or shop with a couple of dealers without worrying about your score.
But, inquiries in general will lower your score. You should carefully consider whether you need to apply for credit before doing so. It doesn’t take long to add up, when you take into account the gas card, the credit card offer, the store card, and then add in car loans, personal loans, and home loans.
And you might not even be aware you are having your credit run by other places as well. Often your insurance company, your landlord, and even your bank will check your credit when you open an account. Pretty soon, your inquiries run longer than your whole credit report.
The reason inquiries in general do impact your score is that potential lenders need to know you may have unreported credit. Many lenders do not report to the national bureaus, but will check your credit before offering you a loan. So a bunch of inquiries might mean a bunch of unreported debt that will impact your ability to pay future loans. And that is really all your credit score is supposed to measure anyway.
So limit your credit checks when you can, but don’t always listen to what your car dealer says!
Check out these pages for more information in the future that will help you manage your credit score.
If you need our help, just give us a call at 877-942-2769 or send me an email personally at ajwiley@cawcawcaw.com. We are located at 537 Richmond Road in Staunton, VA just off I-81.
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