About 12 million people will get a lift in their credit scores next month as the national credit reporting agencies wipe from their records two major sources of negative information about borrowers: tax liens and civil judgments.
The change stems from a lengthy crusade by consumer advocates and government officials to force the credit bureaus to improve the accuracy of their reports, which are often speckled with errors and outdated information. Those mistakes can limit borrowers’ access to credit cards, auto loans and mortgages, or saddle them with higher borrowing costs.
Starting July 1, the three major credit reporting companies — Equifax, Experian and TransUnion — will enforce stricter rules on the public records they collect, requiring each citation to include the subject’s name, address and either their Social Security number or date of birth. Nearly all civil judgments and at least half of the nation’s tax lien records do not meet the new standards, and will be eliminated from consumer credit reports.
You can read the full article here.