If you've ever applied for credit, whether it's a credit card, a loan, or a mortgage, you've probably had a hard inquiry added to your credit report. Hard inquiries are requests from lenders or other creditors to view your credit report, and they can have a negative impact on your credit score if there are too many of them.
Fortunately, there are steps you can take to remove hard inquiries from your credit report. As a credit repair company, we've helped many clients improve their credit scores by using a combination of strategies, including sending letters to request the removal of hard inquiries.
Here's how it works:
- Review your credit report: Start by reviewing your credit report to identify any hard inquiries that you want to dispute. You can get a free copy of your credit report from each of the three major credit bureaus (Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion) once a year by visiting annualcreditreport.com.
- Determine if the inquiry is valid: Before you start disputing hard inquiries, make sure they are actually inaccurate. Hard inquiries can only be removed if they were made without your permission or if they are a result of identity theft.
- Draft and send a letter: If you find that there are inaccurate hard inquiries on your credit report, you can send a dispute letter to the credit bureau or the creditor that made the inquiry. In the letter, explain why the inquiry is inaccurate and request that it be removed from your credit report. Download our free letter below!
4. Follow up: Once you've sent the letter, follow up with the credit bureau or creditor to confirm that they received it and are taking action. You may need to send additional letters or make phone calls to ensure that the hard inquiry is removed.
5. Monitor your credit report: Finally, continue to monitor your credit report to ensure that the hard inquiry has been removed. It may take some time for the inquiry to be removed, but if it's still on your credit report after a few months, follow up again to make sure it's taken care of.
It's important to note that removing hard inquiries from your credit report can be a time-consuming process, and there's no guarantee that your requests will be successful. Additionally, while removing hard inquiries may help improve your credit score, it's not a silver bullet for repairing your credit. To improve your credit score in the long term, you'll need to work on other factors like paying your bills on time, keeping your credit utilization low, and managing your debts responsibly.
If you're struggling to improve your credit score, a credit repair company like ours can help. We have the expertise and resources to develop a customized plan to address your specific credit issues and help you achieve your financial goals.
