If you apply for a mortgage, you may get a lot of competing offers quickly in your inbox, on your answering machine, and in the mail. It's not that the company you applied to is selling your information or giving it to other people. Instead, it's because creditors, like mortgage companies, are using a federal law that lets them find people who might be interested in their products and then market to them. The Federal Trade Commission, the country's consumer protection agency, wants you to know why your application for a mortgage may lead to competing offers, how you can use them to your advantage, and how to stop getting them if you don't want to.
"Prescreened" or "pre-approved" offers of credit are often used to describe calls, emails, and letters that you don't ask for about competing offers. They are based on information in your credit report that suggests you meet the criteria set by the creditor making the offer. For example, you live in a certain zip code, you have a certain number of credit cards, or you have a certain credit score. Insurance companies, lenders, and other creditors buy lists of people who meet the criteria from credit bureaus and other consumer reporting companies.
The lender usually gets a copy of your credit report when you apply for a mortgage. The lender will then put a "inquiry" on your report to show that they looked at it. The inquiry shows that you want to get a loan. Because of this, mortgage companies buy lists of people whose credit reports show a recent inquiry from a mortgage company. This is legal under federal law as long as the credit offer meets certain legal requirements.
There's no doubt that some mortgage companies benefit from this. Consumers can also benefit from prescreened offers. These offers can show you other products that are available and make it easier to compare prices while you look carefully at the terms and conditions of any offers you might be interested in.
Still, some people might rather not get any offers of credit or insurance that have already been checked out. Here's what you can do:
When you call 1-888-5-OPTOUT (1-888-567-8688), you will be asked for some personal information, such as your home phone number, name, Social Security number, and date of birth. Your information will be kept secret and will only be used to handle your request to opt out.
You can still apply for credit and get it even if you choose not to receive prescreened offers. Your request to stop getting prescreened offers will be handled within five days, but it could take up to 60 days for them to stop coming. If you and someone else have a mortgage together, both of you need to opt out for the prescreened offers to stop. Use the same phone number if or when you want to opt back in.
Put your phone number on the National Do Not Call Registry run by the federal government to cut down on the number of sales calls you get at home. Call 1-888-382-1222 from the phone number you want to register to add it to the registry or find out more about it. After registering your number, you will get less telemarketing calls in the next 31 days. Your number stays on the registry for five years, or until it stops working or you take it off.
There are many other ways for companies to find marketing prospects, and the Do Not Call Registry won't protect you from all telemarketers, like those with whom you already do business. Even if you don't want prescreened offers and put your phone number on the National Do Not Call Registry, you will still get some offers you didn't ask for.
