Does unemployment affect credit score - worried about my report
I've been on unemployment for about 2 months now and I'm starting to worry about my credit. I had to use my credit cards more than usual to cover some bills while waiting for my first NYS Department of Labor payment (took forever to get approved). Does being on unemployment benefits show up on your credit report? I'm scared this is going to hurt my credit score when I apply for jobs since some employers check credit. Also wondering if missing a few payments while waiting for benefits to start will stay on my report forever. Has anyone dealt with this?
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Evelyn Kelly
Unemployment benefits themselves don't show up on your credit report at all. Credit bureaus only track your payment history with creditors, not your income sources. What can hurt your credit is missing payments on credit cards, loans, or other debts while you're unemployed. The unemployment income from NYS Department of Labor won't be reported to credit agencies.
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Kiara Greene
•That's such a relief! I was worried employers would see I was collecting benefits. So as long as I keep making minimum payments I should be okay?
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Paloma Clark
Yeah the benefits don't show up but missed payments definitely will. I learned this the hard way during my last unemployment stint. One late payment can stay on your report for 7 years. Try to at least make minimum payments even if you have to use forbearance programs that some credit card companies offer.
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Heather Tyson
•This is good advice. Most credit card companies have hardship programs if you call and explain you're temporarily unemployed.
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Raul Neal
I was in the same boat last year! The waiting period for NYS Department of Labor approval was brutal - took almost 6 weeks for my first payment. I had to call them so many times but could never get through. Finally used this service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that helped me reach an actual agent who could check my claim status. They have a video demo at https://youtu.be/qyftW-mnTNI showing how it works. Saved me weeks of frustration trying to get answers about my delayed payments.
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Jenna Sloan
•Interesting, never heard of that service. How much does it cost?
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Raul Neal
•It was worth it for me since I was going crazy not knowing why my claim was stuck. Way easier than trying to call NYS Department of Labor directly.
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Christian Burns
been there!! unemployment is so stressful especially when you're worried about credit too. just focus on making those minimum payments and you'll be fine. the actual UI benefits are not credit-related at all
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