You’ve probably heard of a soft inquiry, soft credit pull or soft credit check. Why do they happen though? These occur when credit card issuers or mortgage lenders check your credit for preapproval purposes. They don’t impact your credit score because they aren’t attached to a specific application for credit.
Soft inquiries may appear on your credit report but should not adversely affect your credit score.
Did you realize however that you can check your credit score at any time? As a consumer, you are entitled to one free copy from each major credit bureau, Experian, Equifax and TransUnion, once every twelve months available at AnnualCreditReport.com. Some banks also provide free credit score checks – check with your bank to see if that option is available to you.
So what’s a hard inquiry? A hard inquiry occurs when a borrower makes a new application for credit. Hard inquiries WILL impact your credit score and will remain on your credit report for about two years. The impact is usually minimal and scores tend to rebound within a few months if no new negative information appears.
As a borrower, you’ll want to be concerned about multiple inquiries when you’re shopping for rates or even sometimes approvals. Sometimes, those multiple inquiries will also affect your credit score and may be something you would want to keep an eye on.
Hard inquiries don’t need to concern you. More than likely, they will even play a minimal role in your credit score. And, no matter how many soft inquiries you have – they will never affect your credit score.
If you have concerns with that “hard pull” on your credit score, working with a trusted mortgage professional is of the utmost importance. A mortgage professional may even be able to advise you on some things which could improve your credit score – and those things might improve your score, providing you a lower rate which could safe you thousands over the life of your mortgage.
Not sure who to trust with your mortgage decisions? Your real estate professional can recommend a trusted mortgage professional to you.
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