Our credit scores determine much about how we live our lives. We buy practically everything on credit. When applying for a loan, our good credit scores help us receive reasonable interest rates. In fact, from landlords, to insurance companies, to utilities, everyone looks at our credit scores, as they are a reflection of our financial health. A healthy credit score may determine what various agencies will charge for their services. Today, even employers check personal credit scores before offering a job.
Knowing more about our credit scores and the factors affecting them may help us build a positive credit history. But first, let’s look at how they are maintained by the various credit reporting agencies.
Three major credit bureaus – Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion – calculate credit scores. Though they use the same methods and formula to calculate scores, they sometimes come up with a different rating for various reasons. One agency may have more updated information about an individual. A creditor may have shared information with one agency only, but not with the others. Creditors, while checking on our scores, take the average of the three scores from these three agencies.
Credit scores range between 300 and 850. A score of 680 and above is excellent for obtaining mortgage financing at low interest rates. A credit score of 621 to 679 is an average score and you would have to pay a slightly higher rate of interest. A credit score of below 600 makes us potentially unreliable and harder to obtain credit. When a credit score falls below 600, credit repair steps should be taken immediately.
The following are factors affecting credit scores and basic steps to take to maintain an accurate credit score rating with the credit bureaus:
1. Routinely check payment history and the current credit debt held.
2. Credit history length is a determining score factor. Naturally, the longer a ‘good’ credit history, the better.
3. Do not close old or paid off accounts. These show the credit history length and contribute to higher credit scores.
4. Pay off debts to improve credit scores.
5. On-time payments. Delayed payments appear on credit reports and adversely affect it.
6. An individual’s race, sex, age, level of education, or marital status has no bearing on a credit score, nor does the fact that an application for credit was previously turned down.
Taking care to maintain a high credit rating enables us to receive credit and loans at good rates. Our credit score is a reflection of how we manage our finances and a determining factor for many aspects of our lives. Knowing early on how to have a healthy credit history is the best way to avoid bad credit and limited loan options in the future.
By: Sherry Frewerd
Posts Tagged ‘Major Credit Bureaus’
Credit Repair Advice – How to Improve Your Credit Score
April 6th, 2010Secured Credit Cards Help with Bad Credit
March 22nd, 2010
If you’re reading this article right now, there’s a good chance you have bad credit. Does bad credit make you a bad person? Absolutely not. As the years go on this earth, the debt continues to go on as well. In fact, over thirty to forty percent of all Americans have some sort of debt that doesn’t include their mortgage. So, the question is, “What do you do when you have awful credit and no where to turn?” The answer is quite simple, apply for a secured credit card.
A secured credit card is a great way to re-establish your credit. Instead of applying for a bad credit credit card and have a low success rate of being approved, you should turn your head to a secured credit card where your chances of getting approved are almost one hundred percent. With such a high approval rate, this is why many people turn to a secured credit card when they are looking to re-establish their credit.
If you’re not familiar on how a secured credit card works, I’ll guide you through the process. Keep in mind that this type of card is very different than a regular credit card. When you apply for a secured credit card, chances are they you’ll be approved. This is because you’ll have to supply the credit card companies with a deposit The reason you’ll have to supply the companies with a deposit is because if you don’t pay off your bills, they will have something to fall back on.
Depending on what credit card you apply for, most credit cards only make you supply them with anywhere from three hundred to five hundred dollars to start. Usually, whatever you supply the credit card company with, this is going to be your credit limit. So, if you try to spend more than what you deposited, you’re going to find that you’re going to get denied for the purchase.
When you’re looking to apply for a secured credit card, make sure that the card you’re looking at reports to all of the three major credit bureaus. Most of the time, the credit cards will. If not, this will defeat the purpose of applying for a card to establish your credit all over again. Yes, a secured card will help build your credit because you’re technically still “borrowing” money from the company to prove that you can pay it off. Like I mentioned above though, if you can’t pay it off, the company will take away from your deposit. You’ll want to avoid this though because like in the past with your credit, you’ll want to avoid it because it will affect your credit.
If you’re looking to re-establish your credit and you have had no luck applying for credit cards, make sure you tend to avoid the bad credit credit cards and go the secured credit card route. If you learn your lesson from your credit past, you should make a change in your spending and you’ll be able to get the better cards and have better credit in no time.
By: Tom Tessin
