Is there a set day, or time of the month that credit card companies send their information (i.e. balances, late pay info.) to the credit bureaus? I've read other places that it's the third week of the month but who knows for sure. Anyone have any ideas on this? Thanks
DISCOVERCARD sends it on the statement date... That caused a problem, even though I paid in FULL every month, it looked like I NEVER paid it, because I charged more on the card... Others may "SEND" 1st to 3rd of each month...
There was a post here a few weeks ago that explained how it was done. I thought it was Lizardking, but I may be wrong. Here's how I remember the post. You have a cut off date for your charges. Let's assume it is the 20th of the month. Everything you charge through the 20th goes on the this bill. Everything charged after that date goes on the next bill. At the end of the day on the 20th, the credit card company adds up all your charges and adds your interest, and then sends you a bill. They report it the next day or the day after that to the CRA's. (In this example, the 21st or 22nd). So what they report is a high amount because you have not had a chance to pay the bill. This is consistent with what George is saying. Even if you pay your bill in full every month, it always shows a balance. The person who posted this was watching it daily on one of the sites that allows you to check your credit report any time you want to. The point is to pay before the last day of your billing cycle so it reduces your total outstanding debt which may be helpful in getting more cards, especially if you are carrying a large balance on you cards.
I've got a few that I swear only report every couple of months...one hasn't updated since July. Weird. I've been checking Creditexpert almost daily and some aren't updating as quickly as what Tom posted. Hmmm. Does it do any good to dispute this as "not current information" or just let it lie if it's not anything derogatory?
If you subscribe to a monitoring service such as CE or privista then you can see when your creditors report. I just about have all mine down to a science except Citi has been very slow lately. Most major credit cards report every month, I have found that retail accounts report every 3 months or so at times. It's great to learn when they report, then you know at what time of the month your score is higher and you have better chances of approval. Amex very quick normally 3 days after your statement closes, same with Citi when they are on the ball. Providian usually within 3-5 days, Sears never and Penney's extremely slow. I haven't gotten discover down yet but I will soon.
I'd just let it lie. Some creditors may update quarterly. If it really matters, I'd give them a call and ask how often they update the database with the bureaus, and if they tell you every month and your is only happening every 2-3 months, let them know. They will fix it. Good luck!
