Ok I am about to go look at getting fianancing for a vehicle, and last month my CC was pretty much maxxed, because of work expenses. I have paid it off to only a few hundred dollars. I know my Credit card company reports to the bureau my balance as of the 3rd of the month, however I ran a credit check on myself yesterday, and its still showing last months balance, so my score was alot lower than it could be, with my Revolving balances being paid down to like 10%. So I guess the question is, how long does it typically take for this to be updated to the credit bureau? I would have thought that a week after it would be updated.

K...well just so others know. It took 3 weeks, for the credit bureau to be updated, with the new info. My CC reports to the Bureau the balance as of the 3rd of each month. And I decided to run another check on the 18th, and the info was updated. My score jumped by 22 pnts.

How do you actually check your credut rating? I see ads and such all the time but they say free and then want you to pay for something else. Anyone know a site to do it for free? I am curious what mine is.

You can run a credit check, and get all the info for free, from any of the 3 major bureau's website. If you want your Credit Score, you will need to pay, like 15-25$. Its a good idea to run a check yearly, and see what your info looks like, and what your score is. Also helps you correct any wrong information on your report as well. This is esp important if you are trying to build or improve your credit, or if you have any major purchases planned in the next year or 2. Correcting wrong information can take awhile, so best to take care of that asap if any exists in your file.

If you want your score to increase don't be checking it all of the time. If you check your credit constantly it looks like you are desparate for money and it hurts your score....they can't tell who it is they just know someone is interested and it could be creditors.

it sometimes takes up to a month for all 3 bureaus to recieve updated information on made/missed payments. Just as important on major purchases (cars, bikes, houses) is credit history (length, amounts, consistency).

Easy! Once you pay down your balances, it may take as long as 30-60 days to show on your credit report. One way to get it to show quicker is to dispute the balances directly with the credit reporting agencies when you get your statements. Contact Equifax @ 1-888-766-0008. They ask you to fax the statements, then they'll confirm it with the creditors. This will update your info much sooner then later. ... Good Luck!!! :cheers