Not Made Of Money

If you need to improve your credit score, there are steps you can take right now. Creditors are getting much pickier in the wake of the credit crisis about the type of borrowers they will offer credit to.  Today, in order to get credit, you will need to demonstrate the ability to make your payments, manage debt, and earn money.  So, how will you demonstrate all of this?  You’ll demonstrate it with a good credit score. Here are four steps to take to improve your credit score:
 
Make all of your payments on time.  Don’t take any chances that you might not you’re your payment made on time. You can always make your minimum payment right away each month. Then, if you manage to pull together extra money to send to your creditors, you can always send it later.
 
Pay down your debts.  Creditors want to know that you’re not overextended and living on credit.  To determine this they look at your debt as a percentage of your current credit.  Keeping your debt percentage lower (or getting it that way) will improve your score.  Even if you can’t pay off all of your debts right away, you can start chipping away at them by just paying a little extra each month.
 
Fix errors.  The last thing you need is some bogus item on your credit score dragging it down.  You can get a copy of your credit report for free.  Do it and then verify everything.  If you find something, you can require them to fix it.  You’ll need to notify the reporting agency whose report contained the error to get the ball rolling.
 
Apply for new credit sparingly.  Limiting your applications won’t raise your score, but it will keep it from going lower.  Don’t apply for every credit offer you see. You probably don’t need that ten percent discount on today’s purchases as much as you need to protect your credit score. Carefully consider which accounts will serve you well and only apply for those. 

• Paying Off Credit Card Debt
• Credit Report Errors – How to Fix Them

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