What is the best way to improve my credit?

1 Not impossible to get, but difficult. You may have to pay TWO months rent ahead along with security deposit.

2. Timely payment is the biggest thing.

3. Do not close an unused credit card, use it on a limited basis. Then pay off ALL of balance each month.

Whatever you do, do not pay anyone to fix your credit. The things which can be done can be done by you fairly easily. These are not numbered according to your questions, but instead, according to your initial question.

1. Get a copy of your credit reports. This is the site where you get your free annual credit reports. The score does not come with the free report; however, you can pay to also receive your score. Your credit score is considered proprietary information and may be different from one credit reporting agency to another. You are allowed one free copy of your report every 12 twelve months from each reporting agency. You can take them all at one time or spread them out throughout the year. Once you get the credit report, make sure all the information is accurate. All the debts and accounts are yours. There are sometimes errors which can negatively impact your credit score.

2. Landlords can and do get copies of credit reports to ensure you pay your bills. Renting from a private individual may be easier than from a large corporation. If you have been paying your bills on time for several years, they may see your habits have changed. However, they may require a bigger deposit from you or security plus 1st and last.

3. Do you have other credit cards? If this is your only credit card, do not close the account. Use it to buy things you would normally purchase such as groceries and pay the bill in full each month. Once you start paying on your new set of student loans, there will be no need to do this with the credit card because your payment of the student loans on time will build your credit.

I will recommend this book for information on personal finance in general. This website for information on credit scores and how they are determined. Sorry, I wrote a book, but if you have any other questions, please feel free to ask.

How do they close a student loan debt?? I know someone with an outstanding government student loan that is still being hounded for it 20 years after the fact??!! closed after 3 years or so? please, I don’t think so… it will ruin your credit.

Keep you credit card, use it, pay off the bill in full every month. After a few months ask to have your limit increased, or open another card. Your open credit ratio to what you owe is a big part of your credit score. Even if you pay the entire balance every month, you technically have debt while there is charges on your card not paid. Don’t use the card to its limit, open credit gives you a good rating. Also, even though I recommend increasing your limit or another card, don’t take this as advice to overspend. It is only to increase your unused credit amount. Paying the minimum amount is like throwing money on the street, don’t let anyone tell you it is a good idea, it is financial suicide.

Check you credit reports and make sure there is not anything on there that is lowering your score that is incorrect.

I don’t think it’s a good idea to seek increased credit limits or to open additional cards and not use them as a means of increasing your credit score. When you’re trying to repair your credit, paying bills on time is the way to do it, plain and simple. If you have too much credit available to you, even if you’re not using it, that’s looked at as “potential debt,” and frowned on by future lenders. Plus, I think too many credit inquiries in a given period of time, such as when you open a new line of credit, has a negative impact on your rating as well.

It’s true multiple credit inqiries negatively impact your credit score. I guess it is debatable whether to open another credit card, I was only saying one more, or better yet raise the credit limit on a current card, and don’t utilize the open amount, just have credit available. But, since this seems to be a gray area, maybe read up on it some more. I have no idea what your credit imit is, not that I am asking. Could be $1000 could be $10,000. For sure do not close your current credit card. Just make sure you pay it off every month. Credit avalable and not used demonstrates you don’t just spend cause some idiot company was willing to give you credit. That you manage your money. Here is a link about credit scores. And another from Suze Orman’s site.

The easiest way to fix your credit is to pay your bills on time.

If you’re late paying your car loan, then automobile finance companies will want to charge you more interest or not work with you at all. If you’re late paying your rent, property management companies (those that run credit checks) will likely want a larger deposit or not work with you at all.

Sometimes people get into financial trouble, like you. And want to climb back out. Let’s use the car loan example. Let’s say you need a car and you’re going to finance it. And let’s say the best offer you get on a loan is 24% (legal max is 24.99%). They’re charging you such high interest because of the risk of working with you based on your history. So, here’s what you do. Take the loan. Pay on it diligently for 13 months. Then re-negotiate the terms to get a lower interest rate (i.e. apply for a new loan). You’ll have established a strong history with that particular lender and they will be likely to come down on the rate substantially. And your overall credit history improves.

I have a rental property that I lease out. I run a credit check on potential tenants. Of course, I want the best credit report back possible, but I will work with someone with a few dings in their history if they have never been late paying rent before. The same holds true elsewhere.

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Remember, when you get a loan (or any other kind of credit line), you’re trading on your trustworthiness to pay it back. Finance companies assess risk based on the likelihood that they’ll get their money (and profit) in return. They hedge that risk by charging you higher interest rates, requiring certain stipulations, or simply not working with you.

You can fix this. It’s not as hard as you might think. Pay your rent and your car note on time every time.

And please, never ever get a title loan on your car (”...interest rates typically range from 36% to as high as 651.79% (APR)”).