Demonstration site. DisputeValet Literacy Coach is a sample education group created to show DisputeValet.com partner co-branding. Not a real organization; courses, workshops and memberships are illustrations. The DisputeValet subscription offered here is real and billed by Gamboa Software LLC. Details →
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Credit literacy course

Understanding Credit Reports and Scores

What is in a credit report, who keeps it, how scores are built in general terms and what federal law says about seeing and disputing your information.

6 lessons · Estimated time: about 3 hours

Read the free sample lesson Enroll

Overview

Credit reports are used by lenders, landlords, insurers and sometimes employers, yet many people have never read one. This course goes through a report section by section, explains how a report differs from a score and covers the rights the Fair Credit Reporting Act gives consumers.

Facts in the lessons link to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, the Federal Trade Commission or the text of the law, so they can be checked at the source.

What you'll learn

  • The main sections of a credit report and what each one lists
  • Who the three nationwide credit bureaus are and how to get free reports
  • The general factors credit scoring models consider
  • How long different kinds of information can stay on a report
  • How the dispute and reinvestigation process works under federal law

Lesson outline

  1. 1. What's in a credit report Free sample
  2. 2. The nationwide bureaus and free reports Members
  3. 3. How credit scores work in general terms Members
  4. 4. How long information stays on a report Members
  5. 5. Your right to dispute inaccurate information Members
  6. 6. Credit freezes and fraud alerts Members

Estimated time: about 3 hours, in lessons of 25 to 35 minutes.

Partner program

Credit Literacy, with DisputeValet.com

DisputeValet Literacy Coach members can use DisputeValet.com, browser-based software for organizing and writing your own credit report disputes. You do the work yourself; the software keeps it organized.

Sign up for DisputeValet Access your DisputeValet account

DisputeValet.com is self-help software. It is not a credit repair organization and does not guarantee any change to your credit report or score.

7-day free trial on the Advanced plan: card required, cancel anytime before it ends, then $25/month.

Enroll

Take the whole course.

Lesson 1 of every course is a free sample. Lessons marked Members are part of the $12/month membership in this sample program.

Demonstration site: enrolling sends nothing and creates no enrollment. Courses are general education, not financial, legal or credit advice; they explain how things work and don't review anyone's situation.