Credit scores are important. Anyone who has dreamt of owning a home, or starting and growing their own business, will assuredly need a loan at some point in time. Credit can also be helpful – if not necessary – for other large expenses such as buying a car, furnishing a home, or traveling.

Because credit is useful for so many things, it is important to have a good understanding of what makes someone a strong borrower, and how they can improve their chances of having access to the credit they need, when they need it.

Chief among these factors is a person’s credit score, which is often the first litmus test a lender uses to determine whether a loan or credit card applicant is someone they want to help. Credit scores involve complex algorithms, but there are some simple steps that you can take to make sure your credit score does not send lenders running.

  1. Start building a credit history. If you do not yet have any loans or credit cards, apply for one or two low-limit credit cards. When you can, take out a small loan. Do not run up large balances, but use these credit facilities for daily purchases and make sure to make payments above the minimum, and on time. Try to pay off the balance each month if you are using your cards for daily living expenses such as groceries and household expenses. Credit scores rise as a person builds a history of handling credit responsibly, so you cannot have good credit score without building a history.
  2. Do not miss payments. Always, always, always make at least the minimum payment on time. Missing payments not only counts against your credit score but also brings penalties or additional interest that make it even harder to pay down your balance in the future. Many loans or credit cards that come with attractive rates will reset to much higher rates if you miss a payment.
  3. Find your sweet spot for a number of credit accounts. It is important not to accumulate too many sources of credit (loans or credit cards). Credit scores suffer if you have too many or too few. If you find that you have got too many accounts, you can close a couple. Too few, and you can add a new credit card or two (just be sure not to spend unnecessarily when you get your new cards).
  4. Do not use all your allowable credit. Credit reporting companies use your credit utilization rate – total outstanding balances divided by total amount of credit that you have access to – as part of determining your credit score. What they want to see is that you are not running up credit balances simply because you can. Try not to let this figure rise between 25 to 40% on a regular basis. If you pay off your daily-use credit cards at the end of each month, this should not be a problem.
  5. Track your score and underlying factors. Free credit reporting tools are available through some credit card providers and independent websites. Using these tools can not only keep you updated with the credit score that lenders will see but also point out areas for improvement based on your specific circumstances. They can help you determine the right number of credit accounts, keep track of your credit utilization rate, and may even remind you of loans or cards that you have forgotten. Consumers have better access to their own credit data than ever before, so use it to your advantage.
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The world of finance and credit can be a tough place to navigate. Deciding how to finance a business or a large purchase can be tough enough. First, it is important that you have many options. While you have plenty of tools at your disposal, you need to make sure you have spent time preparing, so that you will look as attractive as possible on paper to potential lenders. Maximizing your credit score is one big way to earn the trust of lenders, so you can get the credit that you need to grow your business or buy a home when the time is right.

Sam Wilson

Sam is a financial specialist who’s helped people improve their credit scores and financial state across the years. Sam writes for fastcredit.repair and is dedicated to helping those in need. In his spare time, he likes to relax and take his kids to the local park.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, May 23rd, 2017 at 4:10 pm and is filed under Credit, Credit Score. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.

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