Credit Reports

Everyone wants to have a good credit score, but there’s more to achieving this goal than paying your bills on time and hoping for the best

It’s important to understand what makes up a credit score. With this knowledge, it’s much easier to adjust your financial approach to improve your chance of boosting your score and avoiding harmful mistakes.…
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Are you in the process of building your credit score from scratch? While everyone has to start somewhere, this can be a frustrating place. Fortunately, there are a variety of steps you can take to establish credit sooner rather than later.

Here are three of the absolute best ways to build credit for the first time:

• Use a secured credit card.

Even if you do your best to maintain a high credit score, you could run into trouble at some point in the future. Worse yet, it’s possible you could make a mistake without knowing what you’re doing.

There are a variety of mistakes that can drag down your credit score, with these five among the most common:

• Late payments.

Getting your first credit card can be frustrating.

You may have found that creditors refuse to issue you a credit card because you have no credit history. And you may wonder how you’re going to build a credit history if no one will give you a credit card. You probably feel like you’re a great candidate for a credit card – you’ve been dutifully paying your rent, utility and phone bills, insurance, and medical costs on time without fail for years. …
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There are a few ways to obtain your credit score:

When getting your free annual credit report
By law, all consumers are entitled to a free credit report from each of the three major credit bureaus each year. The only government-authorized source of this free report is www.annualcreditreport.com.

A credit report is necessary to check for identity theft or fraudulent account activity and to verify the accuracy of your credit history, but your credit score is not included in the free annual credit report.…
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Credit scores range from 300 to 850 and higher is better.

Generally, a credit score of 720 or higher is considered an excellent credit score and applicants may qualify for credit cards with no annual fee, a low APR, and generous rewards. Depending on income, credit limits can be very ample.…
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It’s a good idea to know where you stand in the eyes of creditors before applying for a new credit card or any other type of credit.

Your credit score is the three-digit number that uses information in your credit report to summarize your credit risk. Credit scores range from 300 to 850 and higher is better.…
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Getting your good credit rating was a gradual process. It took years of responsible debt management to finally put you in the low-cost credit club.

Lenders and credit card issuers are delighted to receive a credit application from you, and you’re very likely to get the best deal they offer.…
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