Your credit scores usually determine the price you pay for your money (your mortgages, your auto loans and leases, your credit cards, business loans, etc.).
Perhaps the most significant part of your credit report is your credit score.
Credit scores range from 350 to 850, with 850 being the best possible credit score that you could receive, and 350 being the worst possible credit score.
There are five factors that determine your credit score:
There are five factors that determine your credit score:
YOUR CREDIT HISTORY
(HOW LONG YOUR ACCOUNTS HAVE BEEN OPENED)
15% IMPACT ON YOUR SCORE
Don’t close your credit accounts. If you must, close the newest ones instead of the oldest ones.
Your score will improve over time if you keep accounts open and use them every once in a while. Think twice before jumping on that latest 0% credit card offer or opening a new card just to get a 10% discount at a department store.
The longer your accounts have been opened, the higher your score will be; newly opened accounts will bring your score down. Here are three practical steps for you to improve your score in this area:-
✅ Think twice before jumping on that latest 0% credit card offer or opening a new card just to get a 10% discount at a department store.
NUMBER OF RECENT INQUIRIES
MADE BY CREDITORS
10% IMPACT ON YOUR SCORE
Multiple auto and mortgage inquiries are treated as only one inquiry if made within 45 days of each other. So, it’s better to shop for a car or a mortgage over a two week time-frame, rather than to prolong it over a longer timeframe.
Don’t apply for a lot of credit or open multiple credit cards at the same time; and If you’re thinking of applying for a mortgage within the next 90 days, it would be good to wait until after your loan closes before you apply for any new credit.
Inquiries affect the score for one year from the time they’re made. Your score isn’t impacted when you check your own report. It’s only affected if a potential creditor checks your credit. These include department stores, as well as credit card, auto finance and mortgage companies. Here are three steps you can take to improve your score in this area: