What do you do with a DUNS number?

[Eric M.]

I recently found out my company had a DUNS number from Dun and Bradstreet.
Apparently similar to a FICO score but for business credit.(of which I have some)

But it seems that not every business credit provider reports to D&B. Some of the things I have read indicate that I might have to request lenders provide reports to D&B.

Anyone know for sure how this works and tips to improve my DUNS number?

Thanks
Eric

[Bryan Hancock]

Your DUNS number is the actual number to identify you. Your paydex score gives lenders an indication of how likely you are to pay your trade lines on time. The following site:

Paydex Score

gives you more information than you probably would want to know about the score. Anything over 80 is generally acceptable.

These scores matter when businesses look to formulate credit terms with you. For real estate investors it generally doesn't matter a whole lot unless you are seeking unsecured financing. If you personally guarantee loans then your global cash flow and credit history are dominant factors that lenders look at when they price your debt. This happens after looking at the viability of the project and your resume.

D&B, Experian, and Equifax all keep credit data on your company. Different vendors report to different ratings agencies and the only way to tell which ones is to call them each up individually and ask them.

For what it's worth the following is a line item on a standard scorecard from companies that try to put companies "in compliance" in advance before they are sent to lenders:

//Begin Rating
10 points if established profile (5+ accounts), 8 points if established profile (3+ accounts), 6 points if established profile (2+ accounts), 4 points if established profile (1 account), 2 points if established, no credit, 0 points if no profile, -5 points if type of business is indicated as risky in the notes or summary section of the report, -5 points if the SIC/NAICS code is incorrect, -3 points if address and/or phone is inaccurate, -5 points if revenue number is drastically off, 10 points if all data on report matches with provided information, -2 points if a UCC attached to a piece of equipment, -4 points if a general UCC on the business, -6 points if more than 3 general UCCs on the business, -5 points if there are minor credit problems, -5 points if owner/personnel is inaccurate, -5 points if RDR is above 50%, -10 points if RDR is above 75%, -10 points if there are modest or severe credit problems listed
//End Rating

You would need to use the scoring above for each of the 3 bureaus cited above as input into your overall score.

Hope that helps to provide some context...