Adding a Mortgage to Your Credit Report

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Mark Cappel

UpdatedJan 26, 2010

Is it beneficial to have your home mortgage on your credit report?

Is it beneficial to have your home mortgage on your credit report? I have had a house for the last 15yrs and it does not appear on my credit file?

Thanks for your questions and good to hear that you are concerned about your credit score and the contents of your credit report. It is increasingly important to monitor your credit file to make sure that you know what is being reported by your creditors and to be alert for indications of identity theft.

It is definitely beneficial to have your home mortgage listed on your credit report. For most Americans, the home mortgage is the largest single loan they will ever have and therefore, the largest financial responsibility. Assuming you make your mortgage payments in a timely manner, it is a huge benefit for you to show that to any one who views your credit file. And of course, it is a huge benefit for your credit score.

Since your mortgage is not currently showing on your credit file, we strongly recommend that you contact the customer service group at your mortgage lender or servicer (whoever's name appears on your mortgage payment stubs) and request that they report your payment history to the credit bureaus. If for some reason, your lender is unable or unwilling to report your payments, the next best thing that you can do is to maintain a record of your payments either with canceled checks, or with an transaction log from an online banking account. But definitely urge your lender to submit your history to the bureaus. If they refuse, try finding a new lender through the Bills.com matching engine!

I hope this information helps you Find. Learn & Save.

Best,

Bill

www.bills.com/

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8 Comments

JJan, May, 2014

We purchased a home in 2012. The seller did owner-finance and he told us he would report our payments, and never has. How can I get the payments reported? I asked him to do so and he won't. Can you tell me what I need to do to get them reported because it is hurting our credit score?

BBill, May, 2014

It is possible but not practical for a private individual like the owner-seller-financier here to report information to the consumer credit reporting agencies, which include Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion.

To report information to the consumer credit reporting agencies, the reporter must agree to strict legal criteria to report, update, and verify account information. Lenders reporting to the consumer credit reporting agencies must bear significant costs related to compliance, technology, and reporting standards.

As a practical matter, it is too expensive for an individual to report a single account.

mmike, Mar, 2013

I have a mortgage through a foreign bank in the city and my credit report does not show i have this mortgage. I am thinking about getting another mortgage. My question is, can I pretend I have no mortgage and get a mortgage for a second property as if this is my first house?

BBill, Mar, 2013

You need to be truthful in your disclosures. If the lender asks you to list your other financial obligations, you need to come clean or risk committing mortgage fraud.

EEric, Nov, 2012

Good day, I am a US citizen but live in a foreign country with a mortgage with a foreign bank. Since I am a citizen, my credit report still shows and affects me like any other citizen. "Can I add a my foreign mortgage to the US credit report system with a letter?" Thanks

BBill, Nov, 2012

The answer to your question is "yes" and "no." A consumer is permitted to add a consumer statement of up to 100 words to a credit report. This can occur only after a consumer obtains a personal credit report. However, only creditors may add an account and account history to a consumer's credit file.

In your case, you may ask each of the three major US consumer credit reporting agencies to add a consumer statement to your three credit reports. But only your lender may add account information to your credit reports.

RRaydene, Aug, 2011

Since my lender does not report to the 3 major bureaus and I DO NOT want to change lenders, can I personally request to the bureas that they add my mortage history. Currently I show no mortage account on any of the bureaus and my mortage payment record is EXCELLENT.

BBill, Aug, 2011

Under the Fair Credit Reporting Act, lenders have no obligation to report a debt or a debtor's information to the consumer credit reporting agencies (CRAs). Many mortgage servicers do, but obviously not all. The only obligation a lender has under teh FCRA is that if reports consumer information to the CRAs, the reports must be accurate. A consumer has no real leverage to force a lender to report information to the CRAs.

A consumer can send letters to the CRAs asking them to add a note to that consumer's credit file. In your case, the note could say something like, "Established $100,000 mortgage with Farm Tractor Bank on January 1, 2009." This entry will have no influence on your credit score, however.