Multiple loan inquiries might not do much damage to your credit scores but card applications may.
When you apply for any kind of credit, the application triggers a hard inquiry on your credit report which can cause your credit score to drop a few points (although the drop is temporary). The good news is.
FICO® scoring models may count multiple inquiries made within a short period as one inquiry — unless you’re applying for credit cards.
Confused? CNBC Select explains why FICO credit scoring models treat credit card applications differently and how you can prevent hard inquiries from giving your credit score a hard time.
When do multiple hard inquiries count as one?
If you’ve recently applied for a loan, such as a car loan, mortgage or student loan, you may immediately notice a hard inquiry on your credit report — especially if you’re using a credit monitoring service.
For example, Experian free credit monitoring might notify you as soon as a hard inquiry hits your Experian credit report. CreditWise® from Capital One sends an alert when your TransUnion credit report changes.