The blog
Plain-English guides to phone lookups, credit scores, tenant and lead screening, and doing it all by the book.
66 articles
The FCRA lists a handful of reasons you're allowed to pull someone's credit. What each one means in real life, which one fits your situation, and the simple record that protects you if anyone asks.
A tenant credit check takes minutes once you know the order of operations: consent first, then the pull, then a careful read of what the file actually says about paying rent on time.
A reverse phone lookup stacks several different data sources into one result. Some layers are solid, some go stale fast, and a few things no lookup can ever show you. Here's how to read one like a pro.
FICO Score 4 is the TransUnion version of the Classic FICO scores mortgage lenders use. Most people have never seen theirs, and it can sit a long way from the number their app shows.
Both kinds of credit check read the same file. What changes is why it was opened, who can see that it happened, and whether the score moves. Plus the rate-shopping rule that trips up most mortgage borrowers.
One phone number goes in. A name, a current address, phone details and a real FICO Score 4 come out. Here's what happens in the ten seconds between, and what the results actually mean.
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Name, current address and real FICO® Score 4 from TransUnion data. Results in seconds. As low as $9.99.
