Web APIs are one of the most effective tools in the modern world, but they’re often misunderstood. Fundamentally, the application programming interface performs a very simple function: drawing information from a server-side database and simply displaying that information on a user-end interface. But functional APIs can offer a whole lot more information than a raw data dump.
Modern APIs tend to come with a variety of different filtering options, slick interfaces, and relatively easy integration that allows developers to set up an incredibly effective and largely self-maintaining tool. CRP’s Credit Score API takes the fundamentals of an API and applies them to personal credit data. That makes it a natural choice for landlords and lenders, but it can be beneficial to a surprisingly broad amount of businesses. Here’s how Credit Score API works.
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Drawing From All the Bureaus
When you decide to file for a credit report, there are three big credit reporting agencies to choose from: Equifax, TransUnion, and Experian. Each of those brands offers their own APIs, but each agency has plenty of blind spots. Because these different companies have different connections and policies – and since they’re not inclined to share that information with the competition – you can often only get the whole picture by getting reports from all three agencies.
That means having to manage three separate APIs if you use these first-party solutions. CRP draws information from all three services, but it offers flexibility in how you decide to file for reports. You can pick and choose the bureaus you draw from or get all three at once. And no matter what path you take, the API can process your request fully and return you comprehensive results in a matter of seconds.
Records That Go Beyond Credit
Credit only tells one part of the whole story. While the main focus of CRP’s API is obviously credit, they also draw from LexisNexis’ extensive databases to draw from public records and reports that can offer a whole range of new dimensions. That means you can dig deeper into the criminal and arrest records of anyone you’re screening to help keep your tenants or your employees safe. Records include both watchlists and national criminal records, and that extends to outstanding warrants.
There’s also plenty of information on home ownership issues. Whether you’re looking for outstanding liens, property ownership records, or flood compliance reports, you can get all that data through CRP’s API. This information can help fill in the gaps that credit reports don’t cover and offer added context that goes well beyond outstanding credit card debt.
An Orderly Approach Built to Scale
Whether you’re simply looking to rent out a handful of small apartments or you’re in charge of hiring for a national company, the Credit API can scale admirably to your needs. The very quick turnaround makes it suitable for handling huge amounts of data, but the bespoke, software-as-a-service approach to the API lets you customize a plan that’s scaled to your practical needs and fiscal demands.
That sense of orderly flexibility extends to the features available here as well. Thirty different templates are available out of the box, and all of them can be customized to suit the needs of a particular business. And since this API is built to be as responsive as possible, it can be simply deployed as a couple of lines of code in your website or integrated tightly into your complex in-house app. The breadth and the depth makes the credit report API one of the most cost-effective tools for running credit and background checks.
