Raise Your Credit Score: a DIY Guide |
By Kari Johnson on March 31, 2011
.jpg.aspx?width=75&height=75) If you’ve had problems with debt, your credit score will show the signs of it. You know you need your credit score to be as high and healthy as possible. So what can you do about it? Can you raise your credit score?
• Keep an eye on your credit report. If something shows up that you know is wrong, contact the creditor it is attributed to. If there are a lot of inaccuracies, you may want to speak to a professional about fixing them. Your credit score is based on events in your credit history. Getting rid of claims that are wrong is an easy way to improve your credit score.
• Have as little debt as possible. Whether its old debt that you never paid but collectors never called for or current debt, pay off as much of it as possible. You may never hear from collectors about that old debt, but it still shows up on your report. And, generally, if your debt is more than 50% of your available credit, it can mess with your score. In fact, most say you should keep it closer to 20% than 50%. The less, the better.
• Pay off the debt you are currently in, and pay it off on time. Making regular payments on loans or credit card debt is the best way to raise your credit score and to keep it from falling.
• Don’t apply for new credit unless you have to. Asking for money will appear on your credit report, and it will subtract points from your score. That being said, elongating your credit report will help, but all you can do for that is give it time and don’t remove your oldest accounts from your report. Also, having different types of credit on your report (credit cards, mortgages, unsecured loans, etc.) will help to give you a higher credit report. Don’t ask for new ones (unless you need them and can afford them), but don’t delete the different types of credit either.
There is no magical way to instantly raise your credit score. However, there are things you can do to improve it. The best way is to pay off your debts, and to give your credit score time to settle. Remember that the longer and more varied your credit report is, the better your score will be, besides the obvious factor of owing less money than creditors would give you. If you pay attention to your credit report, with time you can raise your credit score.
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