Will changing my name from one that's very unusual to one that's very common impact my credit score?

[Anonymous]

On the name change forms in my state, it's stated that doing so can make it "very hard" to obtain credit. I currently have a very high score and would hate to lose it.  I've been a victim of stalking and would like to change my name to something very common so that it'll be hard to find me in a sea of "John Smith"s and "Jane Doe"s.  Why is the warning that a name change can drop one's score or make it harder to obtain credit always given? Can anyone advise? 

[Anonymous]

Name changes or variations in one's name can at times make it difficult to access their credit reports.  I have a suffix and depending on how my name is represented on my credit reports and how it's represented by my creditors I've run into issues with it throughout my life.  Certainly a more major change like your entire name could create the same issues.  I would think once you resolve the name change everything would be just fine though.  It's impossible for your score to drop from a name change.  All the change could do is prevent access completely if anything, which would prevent someone from being able to access your report(s).  If you are planning on applying for a loan in the next 6 months I probably wouldn't go down the name change route right away since it could create some headaches.  If you aren't looking to apply for credit though, go ahead and take care of the name change and then work on getting the change updated with the CRAs as well as your creditors.

[Anonymous]

Agree with above, as long as you aren't doing any major apps in near future, then do the name change now. Go for the common name, lock down social media and don't even use your real new name on it etc (stuff you already know), and don't look back. I've changed my name and never had issues applying for credit - it was seamless to me. Otherwise people would never get married or divorce

This is for your physical safety as well as emotional wellbeing, so it should def be a priority.

Best wishes. 

[Anonymous]

Thank you so much! This is very reassuring. 

[Anonymous]

Thank you; I really appreciate it.  I feel better about the name change, at least from the perspective of preserving my credit score!