9 Ways to Improve Your Credit Score
1. Paying bills on time, since any payments more than 30 days late will affect the credit score. Note that a bill issued March 15 with a due date of March 31 does not become 30 days late until April 30.
2. Paying the higher payment if a crunch makes it necessary to choose between paying two bills. For example, if an $800 house payment and a $300 car payment are due, and the person can only lay hands on $800, it will work out better for their credit score if they pay the house payment.
3. Never declaring bankruptcy, since it can affect credit scores for more than a decade, depending on state law. Anything is better for one’s credit score than bankruptcy even working with a credit counseling service to get everything paid down.
4. Trying to maintain 3-5 credit lines, since one’s score will be lower if he doesn’t have any credit.
5. Trying to get rent and utility payments factored into one’s credit score as nontraditional credit if the person otherwise has no established credit.
6. Attempting to stay within 10-30% of the maximum on each credit line, and not go over 50% on any credit line in any event. Although this contradicts the advice many credit companies give when trying to get new customers to transfer balances, it will lead to a higher score than consolidating everything into one credit line and max it out. Try to convert revolving debt to installment 45 days (or more) before making a big purchase like a home or auto.
7. Becoming an authorized signatory on one or more of one’s parents’ credit cards that they carry a balance on. If the parents pay it responsibly, the authorized signatory’s credit score will benefit, whether he personally charges anything to the card or not. This tip is especially useful for young adults with little or no established credit.
8. Keeping an eye on how student loans are reported. Student loans are notorious for being reported multiple times, making it look like one’s monthly payment obligations are higher than they actually are.
9. Avoiding causing too many inquiries to be made right before applying for a big loan that depends on credit score. One’s credit score is affected by recent inquiries made by anyone other than the individual, their insurance companies, and certain others specified by law. When a person applies for new credit, for instance, and the creditor checks the credit report, that can cause a temporary dip in their score.
Source: http://onlyidol.com/index.php/2006/03/02/9-ways-to-improve-your-credit-score-2/
2. Paying the higher payment if a crunch makes it necessary to choose between paying two bills. For example, if an $800 house payment and a $300 car payment are due, and the person can only lay hands on $800, it will work out better for their credit score if they pay the house payment.
3. Never declaring bankruptcy, since it can affect credit scores for more than a decade, depending on state law. Anything is better for one’s credit score than bankruptcy even working with a credit counseling service to get everything paid down.
4. Trying to maintain 3-5 credit lines, since one’s score will be lower if he doesn’t have any credit.
5. Trying to get rent and utility payments factored into one’s credit score as nontraditional credit if the person otherwise has no established credit.
6. Attempting to stay within 10-30% of the maximum on each credit line, and not go over 50% on any credit line in any event. Although this contradicts the advice many credit companies give when trying to get new customers to transfer balances, it will lead to a higher score than consolidating everything into one credit line and max it out. Try to convert revolving debt to installment 45 days (or more) before making a big purchase like a home or auto.
7. Becoming an authorized signatory on one or more of one’s parents’ credit cards that they carry a balance on. If the parents pay it responsibly, the authorized signatory’s credit score will benefit, whether he personally charges anything to the card or not. This tip is especially useful for young adults with little or no established credit.
8. Keeping an eye on how student loans are reported. Student loans are notorious for being reported multiple times, making it look like one’s monthly payment obligations are higher than they actually are.
9. Avoiding causing too many inquiries to be made right before applying for a big loan that depends on credit score. One’s credit score is affected by recent inquiries made by anyone other than the individual, their insurance companies, and certain others specified by law. When a person applies for new credit, for instance, and the creditor checks the credit report, that can cause a temporary dip in their score.
Source: http://onlyidol.com/index.php/2006/03/02/9-ways-to-improve-your-credit-score-2/
posted by bradley at 10:37 PM
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