Your credit score has a very large impact on many aspects of your life. It can affect your ability to get a car, personal, or house loan. It can also affect the interest rate that you would pay for any of these loans. It is very important that your credit be as high as possible.

1. The first step to improving your credit score is to request a copy of your credit reports. Make sure to request a report from each of the three major credit reporting agencies. You can do this for free once per year. It is important to look at a recent copy of your credit report to determine if any errors have been reported against you.

2. Report any errors that you find to the credit reporting agency. These errors can include late payments that were not late, accounts that are not yours, and credit limits that are reported as lower than the actual limit. This should be in the form of a written letter. If you have proof that the information reported is not factual, this should be mailed along with the letter.

3. Pay down credit card balances. Lending institutions look at how much credit you have used compared to the amount available to you. Most companies recommend that people who use credit cards never charge more than half of their credit limit. This shows lenders that you have restraint and that you do not overextend yourself in terms of credit.

4. Pay your bills on time, every time. Late payments can cause large drops in your credit score, so it is important to avoid them at all costs. If possible, try to set up automatic withdrawals from your bank account so that your payments will never be late. Making your payments on time is one of the best ways to quickly improve your credit score.

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About the Author:
The first step in taking command of your credit and your life is to find out where you stand. How’s your credit score? 0-600 Poor, 601-680 Fair, 700-774 Good, 775+ Excellent. Find out your score now! There are no excuses since you can get a Free Credit Score!
See your Credit Score for $0 at CreditReportViewer.com. It’s Free and available in seconds.
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Collect your financial information. Create a spreadsheet of you incomes and your debts as well as your available lines of credit. This can be either from your credit cards or a line of equity from your home. In an ideal world the best way to improve your credit score would be to pay off your debt. However, if you’re just not in the best position financially then you should transfer part of the balance to other cards to spread the burden.

Step 1

Spread your debt. It is better to carry a little debt on all your cards or all your lines of credit than to have all your debt be all in one place. Carrying a high credit card balance reduces your score. Try to keep credit card balances below fifty percent of your limit for each card.

Step 2

Once you get your credit score up a little from spreading your debt, apply for more cards. Yes, this sounds like a bad idea, but if you’re responsible than all you are doing is increasing your access to credit. Creditors like to see that you have access to funds and if you have a lot of credit cards with little balances then your debt to available credit ratio is low. Lenders like that so your credit score will go up.

Step 3

Raise your income. If you raise your income then your debt to income ratio will improve for lenders. This is especially important when trying to purchase a home. It may not directly raise your credit score, but it will give you a better chance at more credit which will then raise your score.

Step 4

Take care of loose ends. Start paying your bills on time, sign up for automatic bill pay if you have difficulty keeping track of due dates. Settle or negotiate any debt judgments or collections against you. Defaulting on debt can damage your credit rating big time.

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About the Author:
The first step in taking command of your credit and your life is to find out where you stand. How’s your credit score? 0-600 Poor, 601-680 Fair, 700-774 Good, 775+ Excellent. Find out your score now! There are no excuses since you can get a Free Credit Score!
See your Credit Score for $0 at CreditReportViewer.com. It’s Free and available in seconds.
Article Source