Credit Card Improvement 101
Looking back at my views I notice that you guys seemed to be really interested in credit cards. I will be open and honest I only have 4 years worth of credit history, my score starting out around 700 and now I hoover over 790. I was just an average american with a credit card in college, and just worked it up from there. I have no mortgage, or student loans on my account, however I’ve worked with many people who were close to filing bankruptcy and helped them move there score over 100 points in 1 year! I also know the quick fixes that can improve your score by next month!
KNOWLEDGE IS KEY
If you can recite your phone number, or social security from memory you should be able to know what your credit score it, or the range it falls under. When you don’t know this viable information it’s easy for your score to suffer. Knowing is half the battle. What if your identity was robbed, what if there was a mistake on your report and your score is suffering from it. With many credit cards and app like Credit Karma you should be able to access your score rather easy. Once I did the research and put it to the test I was able to see direct impacts of my score going up.
NO DEBT NO PROBLEMS
We all know the saying more money more problems, well its opposite in the credit world. The more money you can have loan to you the better, but the trick is to only use it at a max of 30%. Everyone in life is out to win, and how the credit card companies “win” is they try to give you a 0% intro rate and a 5,000 limit. You then rack it up and by the time the year is over with, they hit you with a 24% apr rate. Ouch!!! The way to improve your score is only use 30% of what has been lend to you. This is called credit utilization. I myself love using my credit cards. I am all about the points and cash back, however I can’t just load my credit cards with bills and pay them off in full every month and expect my score to go up. I can only use 30% of what my card gives me to make my score improve. If you feel like you always spend over 30% ask for a credit limit increase, or until the time being work on self control and use 30% for the next few months and watch your score go up then ask for a credit limit increase.
PAY OFF IN FULL
Only put on credit what you have in cash. When you try to out smart the credit companies and charge your cards to get a higher score that can be great, until you have no cash to pay the full balance. When you get tempted and start paying the min, you will lose control and end up in a ball of debt. Make sure to only charge what you can afford. I tend to just put bills, gas and groceries on my card. I may have the credit limit to buy a boat but it doesn’t mean I need too!!
MULTIPLE ACCOUNTS
Credit cards help your credit score. When the credit companies see you only have 1 card and you may use it well. That’s great but it also put you in the high risk category as you don’t have enough credit to really asses your worthiness. I would start small and only open another account gradually as this has a small impact on your credit. If you have 650 plus credit and are using 30% of cards and notice your score not moving you can apply for another card. But please use caution this tip has more to do with someone who doesn’t have student loans,car notes, and more than 4 cards. I was one of those, I opened a new account and my score went up 11 points and 25 the month after.
ON TIME PAYMENTS
My mothers favorite saying growing up was, if you want to get paid on time you pay other people on time. You must always pay your credit card bill on time, the moment you miss one payment your score can suffer tremendously. If you hit hard times and can’t pay the full balance at least pay the min, its better than being hit with a late fee and interest. On time payments make up a huge factor in your score so don’t let forgetting to make a payment cause your score to suffer 100 points or more.
Your credit score is all about how you play the game. If you know the rules then you will be able to succeed and win. However not staying updated and educated on the requirements of your score will make it suffer.