Your credit score matters. Perhaps more than you think.
Your bank, your landlord or even your employer may take an interest in your credit score, depending on the nature of your relationship and whether or not they decide to do business with you may necessarily depend on your ranking.
There are specific things you can do to ensure a healthy credit score, even if it has been tarnished in the past. This blog post will share the six most critical steps you can take to improve your score.
Pay your bills in full, on time
Your phone, credit card, cable and electricity bills – while they add up over the course of the month, it is essential to your credit health to pay them in full and on time. Certain utilities may alert credit reporting agencies of late payments, which can directly impact your credit score.
Limit your credit applications
Sometimes, the deals just seem too good to be true, and having multiple lines can be tempting. But having multiple lenders examine your credit history in a short period of time can have a negative impact on your score. (Note that when you ask for your own credit history, it does not have an impact.)
Keep your balances under 35%
Try to keep credit card use to a minimum, postpone big purchases, and pay down a good proportion of your debt. By keeping your line of credit balance to less than 35%, you will help ensure that your credit score is healthy.
Maintain your history
It might seem counter intuitive, but instead of closing down old credit lines and credit cards, keep them paid off, and use them sparingly every several months. This will improve your debt-to-available credit ratio, which positions you well for lenders.
Double check negative entries in your credit file
Equifax and TransUnion are not perfect. In fact, it is not uncommon for consumers to find typos and errors in their credit reports that negatively impact their scores. Make sure you review the information carefully to guard against this happening to you.
Do not hire a company to repair your credit
You should be wary of any company that promises to repair your credit score for a fee. There is nothing that any company can do that you cannot do for yourself. There is no magic wand to wave and no abbreviated time frame for the restoration of good credit. The only way to improve your credit score is to embrace good credit practices and stay the course.
If you were just alerted that your credit score stinks, don’t despair. If you follow these key steps, you can improve your score and undo the damage. For more information on what you can do to improve your credit score, contact Miller Bernstein today.
