How to maintain a healthy credit score

Having a healthy credit score is very important for your financial future. Poor credit score means it will not be easy to rent a property, get a credit card and can hinder with your day to day activities in ways you never thought possible. With planning and self-discipline you will be able to maintain a good credit score.

Pay your bills on time: one of the main factors that determine your credit score is paying your bills on time. 35% of your score depends on this.

Use only 30% or less of the limit available on your credit card. If you use more than one card do a balance transfer if needed to ensure that the balance is maintained at 30% or less. Credit card debt will affect your credit rating more than a monthly installment loan.

Maintain your oldest accounts: this will give you a long credit history with one lender.

Close unnecessary accounts: keep your oldest credit card and one or two others. Having too many accounts could lead to more debt which will adversely affect the credit score.

Check your credit report: request for credit reports from all three credit bureaus and check for accuracy and inform any disparities.

Student Credit Cards – Helping America’s Youth

Did you just start college and move away from home? If so, it is a good idea to apply for a student credit card at a local bank branch. Most banks offer student checking and saving accounts, as well as student credit cards, which often have a low interest rate. Student credit cards often have a limit of between $300-$1,000 dollars, so that students cannot get massively in credit card debt. Also, some students may send the credit card bill to their parents to help pay them off, which help students achieve a good credit standing.

Almost all banks offer online identity protection for all bank activity including checking and saving accounts and credit card accounts. Banks have secure websites and have taken many steps to protect online users from identity theft and other frauds. Most banks use special authentication tools with picture and password user identification for each time a user logs in to his or her account.

Unfortunately, not all students qualify for a credit card. However, some banks offer personal loans for very bad credit. Most banks offer loans to students with poorer credit if they have a co-signer, such as a parent or other family member who has good credit. This protects the student because he or she can improve credit with the extra protection of having a parent help pay off the personal loan. If you are a student in need of a little extra money, check with your local bank or other banks in your area.

First Step Towards Credit Repair

If you’re in the same boat as most Americans, your credit score may not be doing so well. You’re trying your best to make ends meet, but you’re lucky if you make your monthly payments on time. Due to this reason, credit card companies and other lenders are not handing you further credit. If you’re one of the many people in our country who are saying goodbye to good credit ratings and need help out, don’t fret. There are many steps you can take to repair your own credit score without resorting to bogus credit repair agencies.

The first step toward repairing your own credit is finding out your credit score. Discover your credit score by taking advantage of the many free credit score services online. Make sure that the free credit score service provides you with not one, but all three credit scores from the three major credit bureaus, TransUnion, Experian and Equifax.

Once you have obtained all three credit scores, you can then review the items on each credit report to ensure that it is accurate. If you find an error on either credit report, you can dispute the item by notifying the company in writing. You will need to request that the error be removed and provide information to support your reason.