Credit Reporting Companies Download Guide

Credit Reporting Companies - Who Are They?

When we are talking credit reports there are 2 major players in Canada: Transunion and Equifax.

What’s the difference? How do I get a credit report?

Equifax: 1-800-465-7166
  • Primary Choice for us, as Mortgage Brokers, to obtain your credit report
  • Holds items on your Credit Bureau for 7 Years. (When you hear that something may cause a problem on your credit score for 7 years, this is the credit company they are referring to)
  • Most lenders feel that the most recent 7 years is the most reflective of your repayment capability. Something that happened 20 years previously shouldn’t work against you for your whole life of credit.
TransUnion : 1-800-663-9980
  • Entire Credit History (If you’ve had 20 years of Credit, we will see the entire Credit history on the report)
  • Secondary Credit Company option for mortgage brokers. If you have had credit issues in your past this credit report can be the less preferred option.
  • Quite a few Canadian banks use this as their primary so getting a bad score or a decline on a pre-approval can be the reason for this.

Wondering about the “free score” options through your bank or companies like Credit Karma etc? Don’t worry, personally pulling your own credit has no affect on your credit score. When you inquire yourself you aren’t seeking new credit – simply inquiring into your own score. The reports & scores you will get from the above-mentioned sites or any of the free reporting sites aren’t always the exact same scores as what we, as brokers, see but are a great reference point for you to know what your credit score is at and how your monthly credit & debt management affects the score.