Welcome to Ask Clark, a column designed to answer your financial questions, by money expert Clark Howard.
Does Asking for a Credit Line Increase Affect Your Credit Report as a “Hard Pull”?
Leon from California asks: “You’ve mentioned that you increase your credit line every year to reduce the utilization rate. I was wondering if requesting a credit increase from the bank does a ‘hard pull’ on your credit score.”
Clark’s Take on Whether Requesting an Increased Credit Limit Results in a Hard Pull Inquiry
Clark says: “I have not seen that this has caused a hard pull on my credit report. But even if it did, I wouldn’t worry about it, especially because the hard inquiry hit is a small enough impact on the credit score.”
Clark says any drop in your credit score will be minimal and temporary. Here’s why:
“The credit bureaus already have continuous access to your credit report because it’s part of what they do,” Clark says. “They want to check your credit report every 30 days so they know if you have become a danger to them before you end up with charged-off balances.
“So they already have that information, and that’s why I don’t think it ever shows up as a hard inquiry when I do request the credit limit increase.”
Want to learn more about things that could ding your credit score? Here’s why your credit score may have dropped.
To hear Clark’s full take on this question, listen to the segment:
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