An excellent credit score is something everyone yearns for. Every significant moment in one’s life, from purchasing a home or car to retiring, requires good credit. While acquiring a credit card can boost your credit score, there are many ways to drive it up without a card!
Break Down Your Credit Score
If you want to rebuild your credit score, it’s first essential to take a look at your credit report. It’s not just card debt that can affect your score! Take a look and see what factors are contributing to the low score. Often, other bills can have an impact as well. In fact, payment history can make up as much as 35 percent of your FICO score, which is quite a lot! Now that you understand what’s affecting your credit score, its time to tackle the issues head-on…
Pay Rent On Time
If you’re renting a house or apartment, one of the easiest ways to boost your credit score is to simply pay rent on time. Today, there are many rent reporting services that keep track of your rent payments and report their findings to TransUnion, one of the major credit monitoring companies. Those that use a service and pay rent on time often see a 30 to 100 point increase in a few months! Why hesitate to pay rent, anyway? Build a pattern by creating reminders, so you never fall behind on the rent again! If combined with a rent reporting service, this is one of the easiest ways to improve a credit score.
Be Responsible With The Bills
Bills are a lot like rent: it pays to pay them on time! It doesn’t matter if it’s a phone, cable, college, hospital, or any other kind of bill; simply repaying it on time will help repair a damaged credit score. Credit monitoring companies view other bills in much the same way they view credit card bills – they want proof you can pay back what you owe. Make sure to mark down bill due dates on the calendar or set reminders on your phone, so you never miss another payment!
Apply For Specific Loans
Most loans can negatively affect one’s credit score. However, two actually help: a federal student loan and a credit-builder loan! If you have any intentions of going back to school, a federal student loan is actually quite easy to get. Just fill out the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) without any credit check and wait to hear back! Credit-builder loans, on the other hand, are a tad more complicated. With a credit-builder loan, the bank holds the amount borrowed in an account while you make payments, building credit. You get the money when the loan is paid off. They can present all of the benefits with far fewer risks.
Boost Your Credit Score With Some Help
Got a friend, family member, or a significant other who’s very good at paying off bills? Ask to become an authorized user on their card. This can help build credit, without actually having the card in your wallet. However, only do this with those who you can genuinely trust. After all, if they do anything negative, it will also impact your credit score! But, if they’re trustworthy and reliable, this is a fantastic option.
It’s crucial to gain credit score for any grand occasion. Be careful with your spending habits, and contact a professional financial advisor in case of confusion or struggle!
Sources: MoneyTalkNews, Paydayville