Key Facts
- Criminal records can indirectly affect your credit score by limiting employment and housing opportunities, leading to financial instability.
- Expungement clears certain convictions from public records, improving job prospects and access to credit.
- With an expunged record, individuals may face lower interest rates on loans, making it easier to manage payments and improve credit scores.
- Expungement can lead to long-term financial benefits, including savings, investments, and opportunities for entrepreneurship.
- Professional notary services simplify the expungement process, ensuring documents are properly executed and reducing delays.
For many people, past mistakes can follow them for years—affecting employment, housing, and even financial stability. One area that often surprises people is how a criminal record can indirectly impact creditworthiness. While criminal convictions themselves don’t appear on your credit report, they can influence the financial opportunities available to you, which in turn affect your credit score.
How Criminal Expungement Can Improve Your Credit Score
| Area of Life | Before Expungement: How a Record Hurts You | After Expungement: What Improves | Credit Impact Over Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| Employment | Background checks reveal old convictions, leading to fewer job offers, lower pay, or unstable work. | More employers pass you on screening, giving access to better, more stable income. | Higher and steadier income makes it easier to pay bills on time and reduce debt, which boosts your credit score. |
| Housing | Landlords may deny applications when a conviction appears, forcing you into short-term or high-cost housing. | Expunged cases are less likely to appear on routine checks, improving rental approvals in Los Angeles. | Stable housing makes on-time rent and utility payments more consistent, supporting stronger credit health. |
| Loan & Credit Card Approvals | Some lenders use background checks in addition to credit reports and may deny applicants with a record. | With an expunged record, more lenders focus on your current income and credit history instead of past mistakes. | Better approval odds help you build a healthier mix of credit accounts and positive payment history. |
| Interest Rates | When approved at all, applicants with records may be offered higher-risk, higher-interest loans. | Cleaner background checks can qualify you for more competitive, lower-rate offers. | Lower interest means lower monthly payments, fewer late payments, and faster debt payoff — all good for your score. |
| Long-Term Financial Stability | Limited opportunities keep you in survival mode, making it hard to save, invest, or plan for the future. | Expungement opens doors to better jobs, safer housing, and fair-rate credit options. | Over time you can build savings, avoid predatory lending, and grow a strong credit profile. |
Note: Expungement itself does not change the information at Experian, Equifax, or TransUnion.
It improves your credit score indirectly by helping you qualify for better employment, housing, and loans so you can
pay bills on time and lower your overall debt.
This is where criminal record expungement becomes so valuable. By clearing or sealing your record, you can unlock new financial opportunities, increase your access to credit, and rebuild your financial health. At Anshin Mobile Notary and LiveScan, we regularly assist clients with notarization and document authentication required for expungement, helping them take an important step toward a fresh start.
In this article, we’ll explore in detail how criminal expungement can improve your credit score, why it matters, and what steps you can take to move forward.
Understanding Criminal Expungement
What Is Expungement?
Criminal expungement is a legal process that removes certain convictions from your public record, essentially giving you a clean slate. Once expunged, your conviction is no longer visible to most employers, landlords, or financial institutions.
How Expungement Works in California
In California, expungement typically applies to misdemeanor and some felony convictions, provided the individual has completed probation, served their sentence, and met other eligibility requirements. Once granted, the conviction is dismissed, and you can legally state on most applications that you have not been convicted of that crime.
At Anshin Mobile Notary and LiveScan, we know that the paperwork for expungement can be overwhelming. Our notary services ensure that your forms and affidavits are properly signed and authenticated, reducing delays in the process.
The Connection Between Criminal Records and Credit
Do Criminal Records Appear on Credit Reports?
Contrary to popular belief, your criminal record does not appear directly on your credit report. Credit bureaus like Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion focus on financial behavior, not legal history.
How Criminal Records Indirectly Affect Credit
Although convictions aren’t listed, they influence your credit in several indirect ways:
- Employment Barriers: With limited job opportunities, it’s harder to build stable income and repay debts.
- Housing Challenges: Landlords may deny rental applications, forcing individuals into less stable living conditions that make it harder to maintain financial obligations.
- Loan Rejections: Some lenders perform background checks in addition to reviewing credit reports, and a criminal record can influence their decision to deny credit.
- Higher Interest Rates: If approved, applicants with criminal records may face higher interest rates due to perceived risk.
How Expungement Can Improve Your Credit Score
Improved Employment Opportunities
Expungement can help you secure better employment by removing barriers during background checks. With stable income, you’re more likely to pay down debts, lower your credit utilization ratio, and boost your credit score.
Easier Access to Housing
When landlords no longer see convictions on your background check, you gain access to safer and more stable housing. Stability reduces the likelihood of late payments on utilities or rent, which indirectly supports stronger credit health.
Greater Loan Approval Chances
Many banks and credit unions use background checks as part of their lending decisions. With an expunged record, you’ll have a stronger chance of approval, which allows you to diversify your credit mix—an important factor in credit scoring.
Lower Interest Rates
When lenders don’t see a criminal record, they may offer better loan terms. Lower interest rates mean lower monthly payments, making it easier to stay current and improve your payment history—the single most important factor in credit scores.
Psychological and Financial Reset
Expungement offers more than legal relief; it offers peace of mind. This psychological boost often translates into better financial discipline. People are more motivated to rebuild credit when they feel unburdened by their past.
The Long-Term Financial Benefits of Expungement
Building Savings and Wealth
With access to better-paying jobs and more affordable loans, expunged individuals can focus on savings, investments, and retirement planning—cornerstones of long-term financial stability.
Breaking the Cycle of Debt
Without the barriers of a criminal record, you can avoid high-interest predatory lending and move toward healthier financial products like personal loans, auto financing, or credit cards with rewards.
Unlocking Business Opportunities
If you plan to start a business, an expunged record can improve your ability to secure business loans, grants, or partnerships, opening doors to entrepreneurship and financial independence.
The Role of Notary Services in the Expungement Process
Expungement paperwork often requires notarized affidavits, sworn statements, or certified documents. At Anshin Mobile Notary and LiveScan, we simplify this process by offering:
- Mobile Notary Services – We come to your home, office, or even correctional facility to notarize documents.
- Live Scan Fingerprinting – Many expungement cases require background checks through Live Scan, which we provide quickly and securely.
- Convenient Scheduling – We understand that time is critical, and we work around your schedule to help you meet filing deadlines.
By ensuring accuracy and compliance, our services help you avoid costly delays and move forward toward financial recovery.
Steps to Begin the Expungement Process
Step 1: Determine Eligibility
Check whether your conviction qualifies under California law. Not all cases are eligible for expungement.
Step 2: Gather Required Documents
Court records, probation completion documents, and identification are often required. Many of these will need notarization.
Step 3: Complete Filing Forms
File the expungement petition with the court in the county where you were convicted.
Step 4: Notarize and Authenticate Documents
Use a trusted provider like Anshin Mobile Notary and LiveScan to notarize affidavits and verify signatures.
Step 5: Attend the Hearing
In some cases, you may need to appear in court. If approved, your conviction will be dismissed.
FAQs About Criminal Expungement, Credit, and Los Angeles
Does getting a California expungement directly raise my credit score?
No. A California expungement does not change the information on your credit report at Experian, Equifax, or TransUnion. Instead, it can indirectly improve your score by helping you qualify for better jobs, housing, and loans in Los Angeles so you can pay bills on time and reduce debt.
How can expungement help me qualify for jobs, housing, and loans in Los Angeles?
Once your record is expunged, many employers, landlords, and lenders in Los Angeles County will no longer see the old conviction on standard background checks. That can make it easier to pass screenings, secure stable income, and access fair-rate credit—key ingredients for rebuilding your credit profile. To understand the overall process, start with our California Expungement Guide.
How long does expungement usually take in Los Angeles County courts?
Many California expungement cases take about three to six months, but timing depends on the specific court, judge, and complexity of your case. Starting early and making sure every form is correctly completed and notarized can help you avoid preventable delays.
Can Los Angeles landlords or employers still see an expunged conviction?
In many routine private background checks, an expunged California conviction will not appear the same way it did before. However, law enforcement agencies, certain government employers, and some licensing boards may still see that a case existed or was dismissed, so an expungement is powerful—but not a total eraser—of your history.
Will expungement remove collections, judgments, or wage garnishments from my credit report?
No. Expungement changes how your criminal case appears in the court system, not how past-due accounts, collections, or judgments appear on your credit report. You’ll still need to work directly with creditors, collection agencies, or the courts to resolve those items and then practice strong credit habits going forward.
What should I do with my credit after my record is expunged?
After expungement, focus on the basics: pay all bills on time, keep credit card balances low, avoid unnecessary new debt, and check your credit reports regularly for errors. Some people also use tools like secured credit cards or credit-builder loans to rebuild positive history over time.
Do I need a lawyer, document preparer, or just a notary for expungement in Los Angeles?
Many people benefit from legal advice, but others choose to file expungement petitions on their own using court forms. Either way, the court may require properly notarized declarations and signatures, and that’s where we come in—our team at Anshin Mobile Notary & LiveScan can notarize your expungement paperwork in our Los Angeles and Beverly Hills offices or via mobile service. To see all the ways we support expungement clients, visit our Expungement Services page.
How can Anshin Mobile Notary & LiveScan help with my expungement and credit goals?
We don’t give legal or credit advice, but we make the expungement process smoother so you can focus on rebuilding your financial life. Our team provides Live Scan fingerprinting, helps you see your own criminal record, and notarizes expungement forms—either in our West Adams Los Angeles office, in Beverly Hills, or at your home or workplace—so you can move faster toward better opportunities and stronger credit.
Conclusion
Criminal expungement is not just about clearing your legal record—it’s about reclaiming your future. By removing barriers to employment, housing, and financial opportunities, expungement can set you on a path toward better credit and long-term financial stability.
At Anshin Mobile Notary and LiveScan, we stand ready to support your journey with professional notary services and Live Scan fingerprinting, ensuring your documents are handled with accuracy and care.
If you’re ready to take control of your financial future, start your expungement process today.
Also Read: Why Notaries Matter: Protecting Your Real Estate Deal from Start to Finish
