How to Get a Higher Credit Score Fast
Understand your credit report and score., Go online and get a free copy of your credit report., Check to see if there are any errors on your credit report., Clean up any old small debts.
Step-by-Step Guide
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Step 1: Understand your credit report and score.
Your credit report is a record of your financial past, including any loans, bills, credit cards, or other debts you've had and whether or not you made the proper payments on each account.
Your credit score is derived from this information and is a numerical representation of your credit risk.
In other words, it shows a potential lender your trustworthiness in repaying your debts.
Credit scores range from 300 to 850, with a lower score indicating less creditworthiness and a higher score indicating more.
Most financial professionals recommend a credit score of at least
700.
Scores at this level or above allow a borrower to get lower interest rates on loans and credit cards than other people with lower credit scores.
Your credit score is also affected by a number of other factors, including how much you owe in relation to your available credit, the length of your credit history, the variety of your credit sources (whether or not you have several types of credit, including loans and credit cards), and recent credit inquiries (more requests for credit may lower your score). -
Step 2: Go online and get a free copy of your credit report.
You are entitled to one free report every year from each of the three main credit report agencies (TransUnion, Experian, and Equifax).
Ideally, you should do this regularly, at least once a year.
Since the first time is free with every agency you can get a credit report as often as once every four months without paying. .
Should you need a further report, be prepared to pay.
You may want to get a report from each of the three agencies, at least the first time, as they will not necessarily match.This is usually nothing to worry about and just the result of minor discrepancies in reporting, but it is good to know what information is out there.
Remember, your credit report is not the same as your credit score.
It is the information that is used to calculate your credit score, but will not include the actual three-digit number you may be curious about.
However, you can pay the agencies to provide that if you choose., Even very small mistakes can make a significant difference if they're not caught.
This is one of the easiest ways to turn a low credit score around.
Contact any smaller credit and collection agencies on your credit report and ask them to verify the debts they are claiming.
If they are not able to show that it was you, at that particular address, who defaulted on the payment, you can ask that they remove the claim from your report.
This will improve your credit score immediately.
The same applies for companies that merged or closed down — if the information about you cannot be provided, you can request for it to be removed and therefore improve your credit score almost instantaneously.
For more information, see how to get an error off of your credit rating. , An old missed payment that went to a collection agency could be causing you trouble.
Take the opportunity to check your history and get everything in order.
Make partial or full payments of any remaining standout debts.
Even putting some money toward the payment of a debt will make you look better in the eyes of creditors.
Collection agencies will be happy to work with you, and will appreciate your efforts. -
Step 3: Check to see if there are any errors on your credit report.
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Step 4: Clean up any old small debts.
Detailed Guide
Your credit report is a record of your financial past, including any loans, bills, credit cards, or other debts you've had and whether or not you made the proper payments on each account.
Your credit score is derived from this information and is a numerical representation of your credit risk.
In other words, it shows a potential lender your trustworthiness in repaying your debts.
Credit scores range from 300 to 850, with a lower score indicating less creditworthiness and a higher score indicating more.
Most financial professionals recommend a credit score of at least
700.
Scores at this level or above allow a borrower to get lower interest rates on loans and credit cards than other people with lower credit scores.
Your credit score is also affected by a number of other factors, including how much you owe in relation to your available credit, the length of your credit history, the variety of your credit sources (whether or not you have several types of credit, including loans and credit cards), and recent credit inquiries (more requests for credit may lower your score).
You are entitled to one free report every year from each of the three main credit report agencies (TransUnion, Experian, and Equifax).
Ideally, you should do this regularly, at least once a year.
Since the first time is free with every agency you can get a credit report as often as once every four months without paying. .
Should you need a further report, be prepared to pay.
You may want to get a report from each of the three agencies, at least the first time, as they will not necessarily match.This is usually nothing to worry about and just the result of minor discrepancies in reporting, but it is good to know what information is out there.
Remember, your credit report is not the same as your credit score.
It is the information that is used to calculate your credit score, but will not include the actual three-digit number you may be curious about.
However, you can pay the agencies to provide that if you choose., Even very small mistakes can make a significant difference if they're not caught.
This is one of the easiest ways to turn a low credit score around.
Contact any smaller credit and collection agencies on your credit report and ask them to verify the debts they are claiming.
If they are not able to show that it was you, at that particular address, who defaulted on the payment, you can ask that they remove the claim from your report.
This will improve your credit score immediately.
The same applies for companies that merged or closed down — if the information about you cannot be provided, you can request for it to be removed and therefore improve your credit score almost instantaneously.
For more information, see how to get an error off of your credit rating. , An old missed payment that went to a collection agency could be causing you trouble.
Take the opportunity to check your history and get everything in order.
Make partial or full payments of any remaining standout debts.
Even putting some money toward the payment of a debt will make you look better in the eyes of creditors.
Collection agencies will be happy to work with you, and will appreciate your efforts.
About the Author
Jacob Wilson
Jacob Wilson specializes in lifestyle and practical guides and has been creating helpful content for over 3 years. Jacob is committed to helping readers learn new skills and improve their lives.
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