Six Mistakes That Waste a Tradeline Purchase

A tradeline is a simple purchase. You choose a seasoned card, we add you as an authorized user, and the card issuer reports it to the bureaus. Several of the ways an order can go wrong are things you can fix in a few minutes before you check out.

Here are six mistakes that waste money, grouped by when they happen. Every one of them is in your hands.

Mistake 1: Shopping before you've read your own report. Pull your free reports from all three bureaus at AnnualCreditReport.com. Look at your oldest account, your average account age, and your balances against your limits.

If your accounts are young, age is the gap, and an older tradeline fills it. If you carry balances, limit is the gap. Buy the wrong kind and you've paid to fix a problem you didn't have. And if late payments or collections are your real problem, a tradeline won't remove them. Our Buyer's Guide shows how to match a listing to the gap.

Mistake 2: Picking a Reporting Period that ends too late. If you have an application coming, for a lease or a card or a loan, the tradeline needs to be on your report before the lender pulls it. Choose a Reporting Period that ends ahead of that date, then leave a few days for the bureaus to update your file. Card issuers report on their own schedule, so the Reporting Period is the date that matters, not the day you check out.

Mistake 3: Leaving a credit freeze or fraud alert in place. A freeze or fraud alert is one of the common reasons an order fails to post. Freezes are placed bureau by bureau, so check Equifax, Experian and TransUnion separately. Lift your freeze before you buy and keep it lifted until the tradeline shows.

Mistake 4: Submitting details that don't match the bureaus. The account is matched to you by name, address, date of birth and Social Security number. An old address or a nickname can send it nowhere. Use your details exactly as they appear on your current report. If you've moved recently, check which address the bureaus have on file before you submit anything.

Mistake 5: Waiting until the last minute to set up your account. Buying requires a free, verified account. Every listing also has a purchase deadline, the last day we can add you, and once it passes the listing comes off the catalog. Create your account now so verification isn't the thing standing between you and the tradeline you picked.

Mistake 6: Checking too early, or claiming too late. Looking at your report in the middle of the Reporting Period tells you nothing, because the issuer may not have reported yet. Wait until the period ends, give the bureaus a few days, then check.

If it hasn't posted to two of the credit bureaus by the end of its Reporting Period, you choose a full refund or an exchange for another tradeline. Claims go by email within 21 days after the Reporting Period ends. Put that date on your calendar the day you order.

One more thing, and it's a deal-breaker rather than a mistake. Our customer agreement forbids CPNs, alternate SSNs or EINs used in place of an SSN, and any false information. We add real people under their real identity. No exceptions.

Avoid those six and a tradeline does what it's meant to do. It puts a seasoned account on your report, and you're never responsible for the debt. Results still vary and no one can promise a score, but you won't lose a cycle to something you could have fixed.

Your checklist is done. Go to the catalog, choose the listing that fits your gap and your timeline, and place your order today.