Do You Know That Not Paying Your Utility Bills on Time Can Affect Your Ability to Buy a Home?
Not paying your electric bill or gas bill on time might affect your credit report.
Most utility companies don’t report to the big three consumer reporting agencies (CRAs, which are Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion) whether or how regularly you pay on time.
BUT, if you fail to pay a bill, and it is sent to a collection agency, that debt could show up on your credit reports from any of the big three consumer reporting agencies.
At least one specialty consumer reporting agency, the National Cable, Telecommunications and Utilities Exchange (NCTUE), shares information about new accounts and payment histories among the over sixty large telecommunications, cable TV, and utility companies that are members. Any NCTUE member may use this information to decide whether or not to offer you services. That member may also use this information to decide whether to require you to pay a deposit before receiving services, if they do decide to accept you as a customer.
Here is a list of some specialty consumer reporting agencies, including NCTUE, along with some information about how you can obtain copies of your reports.
Tomorrow, I will cover how you can get a free report from any of these Consumer Reporting Agencies, and what to do if you find an error!
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