Credit Bureau Information

Lenders verify credit for individuals applying for GradPLUS or private loans, on a yearly basis. These loans will be denied to you based upon a "bad" credit rating. We recommend that all students obtain a copy of his/her credit report to review your history/rating and to insure the accuracy of the credit bureau records. Financial transactions of any sort are reportable to credit agencies, i.e., bankruptcy, default on prior student loans as well as personal consumer debt. We see an increase in the number of students that are being denied credit to borrow student loans. Thus, we feel our recommendation is a very sound piece of advice that we can give.

To request a copy of a credit report (the cost may vary by state), students should send a written/signed request -- including their full name, social security number, current address, any previous addresses for the past two years, date of birth, current utilities bill, copy of driver's license, place of employment, employment phone number and daytime-evening telephone number -- to one of the following four bureaus:

TRANS UNION-TU

Customer Assistance
P.O. Box 390
Springfield, PA 19064-0390
(800) 888-4213
URL www.tuc.com

CSC Credit Services (EQUIFAX)

Consumer Assistance
P.O. Box 105873
Atlanta, GA 30348
(800) 997-2493
URL www.equifax.com

EXPERIAN (formerly TRW)

Consumer Assistance
P.O. Box 2104
Island, TX 75013-2104
(888) 397-3742
URL www.experian.com

CREDIT COMM

(ALL THREE MAJOR CREDIT REPORTING AGENCIES ON ONE REPORT)
Receive your report in 4 to 5 days.
Cost $30.
(800) 777-9700 or
URL www.creditcom.com

HELPFUL ORGANIZATIONS FOR CREDIT PROBLEMS

National Foundation for Consumer Credit
(800) 833-2227

Genus Credit Management
(888) 436-88715

National Center for Financial Education
www.ncfe.org

Visa
(800) 847-2511

Mastercard
(888) 999-5136
www.mastercard.com

Bankcard Holders of America
BHA
524 Branch Drive
Salem, VA 24153