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What is a hard inquiry? |
The credit bureaus keep a record whenever a lender or other service provider views your credit history, creating a hard inquiry on your credit reports. These inquiries are made by lenders, landlords, credit card providers, service providers and insurance companies.
A record of all hard inquiries will remain on your credit report for one to two years. Having one or two hard inquiries is okay, but if you have multiple hard inquiries (especially within a short time period), your credit scores will likely take a hit. This is why it is a bad idea to apply for many store credit cards around the holidays, for example. So think twice before accepting a department store's offer of 10 percent off if you open their credit card!
There are actually two kinds of inquiries: hard and soft. The consumer version of a credit report includes both kinds, but the version that is provided to businesses shows only hard inquiries. Soft inquiries include your own request for your credit report and job-related requests.
Read more about credit inquiries.
Not sure where you stand? Check your credit reports and scores online today!
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