Do you know your credit
score? Are you happy with where it’s at? If you’re like the average American
you either don’t know your score or you need to make some improvements to that
very important number. Finding your credit score is easy and you can do it
through several websites without doing damage to your score. I personally use
Credit Karma to keep up with mine but there are other websites out there or you
can request your score directly through Equifax, Experian, or TransUnion. But
where do you begin to do the work towards growing your credit score into that
“Excellent” range? Here are some useful tips:
1. Watch
those credit card balances
One major factor in your credit score is how much revolving
credit you have versus how much you’re actually using. The smaller that
percentage is, the better it is for your credit rating. The optimum: 30 percent
or lower. To boost your score, “pay down your balances, and keep those balances
low,” says Pamela Banks, senior policy counsel for Consumers Union.
2. Pay bills on time
If you’re planning a major purchase (like a home or a car), you
might be scrambling to assemble one big chunk of cash. While you’re juggling
bills, you don’t want to start paying bills late. Even if you’re sitting on a
pile of savings, a drop in your score could scuttle that dream deal. One of the
biggest ingredients in a good credit score is simply month after month of
plain-vanilla, on-time payments.
3. Fix Your Late Payments
Even closing an account won’t make your late payments disappear.
Your best bet here is to get yourself back on the right track — set up payment
due date alerts with all your credit cards and loans, and get organized. You
can move credit card payment due dates around pretty easily on your bank or
lender’s website. Be sure to check your payment due dates in relation to your
paycheck schedule.
Ask your credit card issuer or lender if they can forgive that
late payment. Maybe you were out of the country on vacation or the check got
lost in the mail and you had no idea the bill existed. Credit card companies in
particular are pretty forgiving if you have a long track record of making
on-time payments.
4. Get a Credit Card
If you’ve never had a credit card before, your scores may be
suffering because of the account mix factor. Just make sure you make on-time
payments — a new credit card account with a bad payment history will hurt you,
not help you improve your credit scores. If you have a fair, good or excellent
credit score, there are many credit card options out there for you. If you have
bad credit look into opening a secured credit card.
5. Limit Applications
The 10% discount for signing
up for a store credit card may seem worth it in the moment, but your credit
score will take a hit for applying, whether you get approved or not.
A inquiry will impact your credit score for a full year, though your score
will start improving almost immediately after you apply. The hit is small
(normally around 3 to 5 points) but if you’re on the edge of two credit score
tiers or applying for lots of credit offers in a short time span, you can do a
lot of damage.
Info
From:
“The best person to “face” the problem is also
the best person to “fix” the problem – that is you!!! - The Credit Repair Book:
The Credit Repair Company's Secret Weapon.”
Thank you,
Wenona Mertens
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