Credit Help Ten Points to Best Answer?

Question

I am new to this whole credit thing. So I have a couple of questions.


1. I have a about 13 or 14 inquires on my credit report because I had to apply for school loans and credit cards. I was able to get 3 small loans and two credit cards. How will this effect my score?



2. I paid my credit cards balances in full for nearly 5 months, but one month i could only pay the minimum payment will this hurt my score?


3. My credit scores are 689, 698, 715 is this good or bad?


4. I have a couple months left until next school year, and i will have to apply for more loans, (pharmacy student) will i have better luck now that i have some credit history?


5. I know this is a lot but i would really appreciate the help. And I would appreciate any tips on credit, credit scores, and getting the best score possible.
Note: I have been very responsible with my credit cards except one month when i could only make the minimum. So please no lectures on the evils of credit cards

Just to be clear, I am a college student when I graduate I will have a very good paying job. But right now i make minimum wage and want to get the best deal on student loans and i have to have good credit to do that.

Answer 1

1. If you applied for the school loans within a 14 day period, then your score will not be affected as much. (It would be the same as if one company only pulled the report once.) Each time you have a hard inquiry, your score is lowered. (It's usually about 5 points, but can vary depending on the other items on your report.) The average person only has 1 inquiry within the past year.

2. Not only should you look at paying the bills on time, you should look at paying them before the billing date. The amount listed on the billing date is the amount the companies usually report to the bureaus, so if you charged a lot that month and used more than 30% of your limit, then your score fell that month. As long as you paid the minimum amount on time and weren't late and then caught the balance back up to less than 30% of the credit limit the next month, you are okay.

3. Your scores are good. You should qualify for more credit, but don't apply for things just to be applying. When your score gets up to 720, you will qualify for prime rates (the lowest interest rates offered) so make sure you maintain your scores and don't let them drop.

4. Yes, you will have better luck since you have established credit and have good scores. Just make sure you aren't late on one of them or all your items could default to higher interest rates.

5. I've listed a couple of sites below which I have found helpful. Enjoy and good luck.

Answer 2

1. the inquiries should not have that much of an effect in the long term. As far as the loans and credit cards are concerened, make sure you are not late on the payments. this will kill your score. make sure that you are not maxed out on your credit cards and try to have no more than 50% of your available credit used.

2. You are probably taking a small hit on your score until you pay them down. It would not normally be a huge hit.

3,4,5. Your credit scores are decent. Just having a history with credit cards and student loans is not going to help you get a car loan or home loan when you get out of college. When getting these types of loans lenders want to see how well you have paid your past installment credit. If you have not ever had any then you may have some trouble.
For a car loan my company requires 3 tradelines of which at least one line is at least 2k worth of installment credit with 12 months of good pay history.
If your current car is financed and your parents are paying for it, see if you can get it refinanced and put your name on the contract. If your parents are about to purchase a vehicle, see if you can get on the loan with them. After 12 months of good pay history reported to the bureau you would have no problem getting a loan yourself.

Answer 3

Well as to #3. Those are good scores. Anything over 700 is considered excellent credit. The score ranges from 350 to 850, with the average being about 678.

I would say keep doing what you are doing by keeping your balances low and paying on time.

Answer 4

Sorry to rain on your parade, but being "responsible" with your credit cards is NOT the same as winning with money. Furthermore, there is a very good chance that sooner or later one of these lenders will misapply or fail to apply one of your payments, then you will wind up with a late fee that you have to fight with them about, etc. The point is, if you do not borrow money, you never have to concern yourself with your "credit score". In fact, it is both possible (& desirable IMO) to go through life & never even have a credit file opened on you. Besides, having actual MONEY is far more preferable than having "good" credit. Trust me on this, I have not borrowed a dime since 2002. We drive paid for cars, have money for emergencies/large purchases & have paid off most of the student loans & other debt accumulated in college. It is very freeing to be able to laugh at people talking about "great" deal they got on a car loan & fretting over their credit scores. I personally look very forward to having NO credit score b/c I have NO debt.

Answer 5

You have a lot.

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