How To Remove Hard Inquiries From Your Credit Score

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Hard inquiries can be a real catch-22 for new loan or credit card applicants. That is because to borrow a loan or receive credit, the organization you are applying to has to inquire about your current financial status. Unfortunately, this negatively influences your credit report and can reduce it by a few points. You can learn how to remove and avoid hard inquiries to help improve your credit report over time. 

You can find out about how to get rid of inaccurate hard inquiries with the aid of a team of experts. Contact My Credit Repair Clinic for more information. 

All About Hard Inquiries

Hard inquiries are essential for many important financial decisions. However, you can avoid hard questions whenever possible to help keep your credit score from taking unnecessary dips. 

What is a hard inquiry?


A hard inquiry, also known as a hard pull, happens when you apply for a new line of credit for either a loan or a credit card. The creditor or financial organization will investigate your credit file once they receive this information. This will let them identify how much risk you might be, and if you are a good borrower, they can lend the requested amount to. 

Due to regulations outlined in the Fair Credit Reporting Act, all companies have to inform you when they perform a hard inquiry so that you are aware, and these inquiries require your authorized permission. Any hard credit pull will affect your credit score by a few points but won’t last forever. 

How do hard inquiries affect your credit score?

Hard inquiries cause drops in your credit scores. On average, you can expect your score to drop by anywhere between five to ten points. By comparison, a soft inquiry does not affect your credit report. 

A hard inquiry will remain on your credit report for two years. However, this negative impact only lasts a few months. If you obtain a large number of hard inquiries in a short time, it will appear as if you are trying to obtain debt that you cannot afford. This rings true for applying for too many personal loans or credit cards in one week. This can be seen negatively and will make you look like a risky borrower. 

Often, receiving a hard inquiry can’t be avoided. When you apply for an auto loan or a mortgage, the organization must perform a hard inquiry. This is especially true if you have to browse multiple lenders to compare rates when applying for a loan. However, there is some relief. On average, you won’t be penalized if several inquiries were performed for one specific loan type if they were all done within a 14 to 45 day period. However, if you apply for too many credit cards, this won’t fit within the criteria of grouped safe hard inquiries. 

Should you remove hard inquiries?

You cannot remove a hard inquiry; they will stay on your credit report for two years and be visible to all lenders who request one. However, you won’t see one influence your credit score for more than a year. 

The only way you can remove a hard inquiry from your credit report is if identify theft happened and it is some form of fraud. Otherwise, you won’t see a hard inquiry last very long as you can recover from these small dips within a short moment. 

What if a hard inquiry is inaccurate?

You can file a dispute or report it as a fraud in the case that a hard inquiry appears on your account, but it is inaccurate. You will need to dispute these errors with all of the credit bureaus: Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion. 

When these errors are disputed, they can be removed. You can first request a free credit report from all three bureaus to check for accuracy. Any hard inquiries that are incorrect or outdated can be removed if proved to be a legitimate error. 

You can start the process by applying through all three of their online dispute centers, calling each one by phone, or mailing your dispute to their listed mailing addresses. What you will need to do is outline each item you want to dispute. For each item, you have to list a reason for why the dispute is necessary. 

Always review your account and your disputes for accuracy so that you don’t make additional errors. After submitting your dispute, you have to wait for the process to finalize. You may receive additional updates or requests for more information, so you must be in constant communication with all three bureaus and respond promptly.

Track your dispute status by checking your account either online, by phone, or opening all recent letters. If the bureaus agree with you, they will delete the items that are not verified. However, you may receive items that remain unchanged on your report if they truly belong to you. 

Once they are ultimately removed, you will see your credit score bounce back up several points within a month. Filing a dispute will have no impact on your credit other than the final result of whether the item was removed or not. 

Get Help Removing Hard Inquiries From Your Credit Report

If you choose to work with a team that can help you review your credit history, they can guide you on how to remove hard inquiries that are not yours. For the ones that are, those should remain on your report. 

These are the steps that a professional team will take on filing a dispute:

Obtain Credit Report

The team will request a free credit report and review it with you. You can discover identity theft with this approach. Annual Credit Report provides free credit reports that are the most accurate across Equifax, TransUnion, and Experian credit bureaus. 

Review Disputed Items

These credit repair professionals will review the items you pointed out and guide you on whether or not they are worth disputing. If it is an obvious case of fraud, you can argue that these items are not legitimate. However, they may also remind you of a time you forgot a hard inquiry was performed. 

File A Dispute

If it is a case of identity theft, the team will file a dispute on your behalf. This will be done through their organization as they approach all three of the major credit bureaus. You will only need to provide information and any additional proof of this fraudulent activity. 

Update On Progress

The team will pass notices to you regarding any updates you may receive from any of the credit bureaus. This will continue until the outcome. 

Results 

When you receive the outcome, you’ll be updated on the decision. After this, the professionals may provide further recommendations on how to improve your credit score. 


Find Out More About Hard Inquiry Removal

You can get started on removing a hard inquiry you believe is incorrect. You can work with a team that is knowledgeable about credit scores and how to improve them. Call My Credit Repair Clinic now. 

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