What are the top 5 ways to build or rebuild your Credit score?

Question

I've seen a few suggestions on the board, and put a few up myself as answering another person's question, but out of all the techniques out there, what are the 5 or 6 you find most effective?

Answer 1

Well first, it helps you know what makes up your credit score:

1. Payment history-35%
2. Total debt owed vs. available credit -30%
3. Length of time establishing credit- 15%
4. Types of credit established- 10%
5. Inquiries and new accounts- 10%

Now, with that in mind, you can let logic follow

1. Pay on time, since that's the most important component of your score

2. Like bdancer222 said, live within your means. Don't max out your credit cards. Use them lightly ($15-20) to where they can be easily paid off on time every month. It's important to use 25-30% of your combined avaialble credit for all your credit cards.

3. Don't close old accounts and start using them again. Since when you started using credit is also taken into consideration (#3.) It's important to make sure that you don't close any accounts that would shorten the average age of all open accounts making it look like you've established credit more recently. Accounts that have been opened for several years are considered "seasoned accounts" which carry considerable more weight than a bunch of accounts that have been opened more recently.

4. Don't just load up on one type of credit. Credit was designed for those who use it to show versatility. There's 2 types of credit: revolving [credit cards, lines of credit] and installment [furniture and appliance loans, car loans, personal signature loans, student loans, and mortgages] A good example of a balanced mixture of credit would be 3 credit cards (2 major, 1 department store) and 2 installment loans (car loan, student loan)

5. Don't apply for a lot of credit. Credit was to be designed out of a necessity basis. Each time you apply for credit whether you're approved or not, your score drops several points. And if in fact you do get approved it can take anywhere between 6 months to a year for it to start positively reporting. It ties in to the other 4 things I've mentioned. If you have one or two cards that you've had for quite some time with an excellent history, chances are the CC company will increase the limits on them to where you won't need additional cards. Taking on a slew of newer cards could give an impression that you're reckless with credit, although it may not be the case.

6. Lastly, monitor your report. A lot of times a person's credit can suffer because of something that's not even theirs. It's important to check what's on there and dispute anything that is incorrect with the credit bureaus. That's why the Fair Credit Reporting Act and other credit laws were put into place: to protect our rights as a consumer. Also, it helps if to make arrangements to pay the delinquencies that you may have. Although the collectors may not agree to it at first, but there would be a chance that you could negotiate a "payment for deletion" which is a payoff amount in exchange for removing it from the credit report altogether. Hopefully, if they agree, GET IT IN WRITING BEFORE PAYING. And also, don't use your checking account, a cashier's check sent certified mail, will do just fine.

So, these are the things I feel that will help you rebuild and/or build your score.


Hopefully you'll find these useful

Answer 2

Saber Hillal

Its not impossible and it didnt take a lot of time , We Did this

to our selves and then we blame Credit Companies , any way

Look :

Pay the old Collections and make sure to delete them too .

Alaways Pay in time whatever happen dont forget .

try to use only one card and dont exceed 30 % of your limit .

for more effective tips and tricks go to Only Best Deals

I am sorry i cant post the site link here so open Yahoo & type :

Only Best Deals

Now in search results the first a line a site called Only Best

Deals open it and check the right green titles about Credit

Score Rebuild tips and tricks , also Saber Use the top

search box there which must lead you directly to these posts ,

Just a little more Advice , CASH is KING

in past i used to buy by Credit , But now i learned my lesson ,

i never do this any more .

GOOD LUCK .

Answer 3

1. first pay off old debts and dont get any more debt
2. make sure everything is correct on your credit file
3. use credit wisely dont maxx out card use less than 10% to really boost your score.
4. pay all your bills on time and make a habit of it.
5. time is really the only thing we cant control..you have to show your good habits over time.

Answer 4

You may have to open a secured credit card for 6 months to a year. If you go this route, shop around - fees and charges vary and picking the wrong secured card could cost you quite a bit of cash. As for signing on as a co-signer, that may actually work to the other person's detriment - if your credit is bad, the other person may not get approved.

Answer 5

As I see it , there really are only 2: Adding a tradeline or 2 to give you a 100 point boost quickly or using a credit repair service to boost it over 3-4 months (costs less.) There is a free evaluation form at www.totaldebtsolutionsllc.com --I really believe in them as they helped me out twice. I suppose you could use a combination of both services to really chase a high score. Good luck to you.

Answer 6

If you ARE going to use a credit card (which I DON'T recommend), then the two biggest factors are payment history and debt-to-credit ratio.

I agree with the above poster, though. Check out DaveRamsey.com and read the Total Money Make Over book. It will really open your eyes about credit and the myths associated with them. Two months ago I cut up ALL my credit cards and the balances are paid off. I will never use them again.

Answer 7

1. Pay your bills on time.
2. Pay your bills on time.
3. Pay your bills on time
4. Don't run up credit cards.
5. Live within your means.

Follow these rules and you won't have to worry about negotiating pay for deletes and beg creditors to remove negatives.

Answer 8

I know that paying more than your minimum payment and paying on time in consectutive payments help boosts your score but I do not know how much it completely effects your credit score.

Answer 9

1. Dispute and remove old collections. Don't just pay them get them deleted!
2. Reduce utilization to under 20% or less.
3. If you have a thin file get more credit and use it wisely.
4. If you have late payments showing try writing letters to your creditors asking for goodwill adjustments.
5. Don't close old accounts just b/c you don't use them the age can really help.

Answer 10

1-5 pay your bills on time!!!