This blog post was published by Chris O’Shea from SavvyMoney Hub.

What you should know about soft credit pulls.

A soft pull, or soft inquiry, happens when someone checks your credit report, like in the case of a pre-approved credit card offer. Unlike a hard pull, a soft pull does not impact your credit score. Here’s everything you should know about soft pulls and who can do them.

The Basics

A soft inquiry occurs when someone, or a company, checks your credit report. These pulls aren’t anything to worry about. Here are some of the most common examples of soft inquiries:

• A credit card company pre-approves you for a card.
• You check your own credit score.
• A landlord checks your credit score.

Check Your Report

You can see soft inquiries on your credit report, even though they don’t affect your score. To check what inquiries have been made, you’ll need to check your reports from all three credit bureaus.

Tip: Checking your credit reports should be a habit. It’s free and will help ensure accuracy and prevent identity theft. You can also keep your credit score high by catching and reporting incorrect information to the credit bureaus. Our credit score reporting tool, Credit Sense, makes it easy to monitor and manage your credit history. It can be found in First eBanc and First eBanc Mobile.

Hard Credit Pull

Hard pulls are the inquiries you should keep an eye on. They can stay on your credit report for up to two years and can lower your credit score. Typically, hard inquiries don’t impact your score by much, often just a few points. However, as long as you don’t apply for multiple loans and credit for months straight, the impact of hard pulls is usually not that bad. 

Do One Thing: Check your credit reports at all three bureaus regularly. 

About First Community Bank and Trust
First Community Bank and Trust is a privately-owned bank. Established in 1916 First Community Bank and Trust has been serving Beecher, IL, Peotone, IL and the surrounding communities for over 108 years. Our commitment to providing the best banking products and services is matched only by our outstanding customer service. We offer traditional community banking services, including mortgage, consumer, and commercial lending, as well as state of the art electronic banking services.

Press Contact:
Steve Koehn, Senior Vice President
First Community Bank and Trust
(708) 946-2246

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