dallascutie asked:


Let me explain. I recently added my husband to my card to improve his credit score. I have excellent credit and never use the card. But I pay my bill on time every month. Will using the card improve my husband’s score? Or is paying the bill on time good enough? I have 1.9% interest rate unless I use the card which will go up to 9.99%
Let me say that the card is rarely used. I did a balance transfer.The current APR is 1.9%

Don

Flightwo99 asked:


I was young, dumb, and did not use credit wisely. Educated myself as much as I could and improved my score by 100 points. My score is now around 758.

My bank helped me with a credit rebuilding loan that I just paid off. But, I want to continue to improve my credit rating so I that I can buy a home in the next 2 years.

My question is should I apply for a credit card now? I have read where credit issuers are lowering credit limits, checking to see where you shop at and what you buy.
I want to make better choices with my credit now. I just want a few opinions.

Carlos

Wongawoman asked:


Following up on last week’s article, “Improving your Credit Rating – part 1”, this week will take you through a few more steps to build up, improve or maintain your credit rating.

1) Order a copy of your credit report

It’s wise to order a copy of your credit report every year in order to monitor any activity and changes.  There are a few reasons why you should do this annually. First, it’s easier to remember how much credit you applied for in one year, as opposed to two or more years. You’ll be more up-to-date on your financial happenings and end up jogging your memory less. Second, it’s also easier to chase up on inaccuracies or errors sooner than later, should you spot one. On that tip, you wouldn’t want any errors to remain on your credit history in case they are detrimental to your credit score.

You can order one free copy of your credit report annually.  There are a number of sites which can be found on the web that can assist.  I’ve listed a few below, but they aren’t all free:

http://www.annualcreditreport.co.uk/       http://www.experian.co.uk/      http://www.equifax.co.uk/

Order your credit report at the same time every year, like when you do your taxes, or on your birthday, then you’ll be sure to be consistent and never forget.

2) Learn which credit applications leave soft versus hard footprints

There are two different types of marks that result from inquiries into your credit, or a credit check. Whenever you apply for credit, this leaves a “hard footprint”.  This will show all other lenders exactly when and at what intervals you have applied for credit.  If you’ve applied for a lot of credit in a short period of time, then you could come across as a high-risk customer because you appear desperate for money. You want to limit the number of times that a credit check is run on you in order to avoid the negative effect of such a situation.

In contrast, a soft footprint will not have the negative impact as that of a hard footprint. Soft footprints are left during address verifications or if a credit card company wants to send you a credit offer.

Always ask beforehand if a lenders credit check will leave a mark on your credit history.

3) Don’t apply for credit with a “friend”

This may sound silly, but never apply for credit or co-sign a loan for a friend or acquaintance.  Be sure that you know exactly who you are dealing with because you will be very sorry if they leave you high and dry with a load of debt. Financial transactions that will impact your credit score are not to be taken lightly.

Keep on top of your credit score and be aware how loans and other financial transactions affect your credit. Short term loans with Wonga are one way to improve your credit score slowly. Wonga does a credit check and reports their findings to UK credit agency, Callcredit. Use Wonga responsibly by repaying your online loan on the promise date or early. Wonga offers borrowing advice and budget tools on its website.



Brent

Roxanne Black asked:


A credit rating score is probably the most important element in your financial life. It basically controls whether or not you are free to apply for financial items such as credit cards. Credit rating scores are there for a reason they protect business and organizations. It would be pretty risky for a financial organization to give out credit cards to anyone who applies for them. This is why it is important for you to have a decent or perfect credit score rating to keep businesses like this happy.

How to improve credit rating score

- Get organised

You can handle your financial affairs much more easily if you just plan your finances better. A family budget is a very good idea in this situation. IT might seem trivial, but if you try it and create one, you will be amazed at how it can help. Set out your outgoings and incomings. Pay close attention to any unnecessary, or luxury items that you discover you are spending too much money on. Spending too much on your car? Then walk. You and your family will get exercise so you will be saving your health as well as your credit rating score.

- Stay on top

Make sure that you keep a closer eye on things such as credit cards. How much of that account credit balance are you actually using? If you are using more than 50% than you should seriously consider ways to get it lower. It is recommended by other experts that you should aim to be using 20% or less. This stiops points from being taken off of your cred rating score.

- Be on time

Make sure that you do not delay when you get a bill for something. Cut out some “luxuries” if you have to, just make sure that you are not wasting any time in paying your bills. This can be very harmful to your credit score as well. Particularly in times of recession organizations are taking more of a bold approach and negatively impacting peoples credit scores even more than they suually would. So remmeber this and make sure you are never late.



Veronica

InsideYourHeart asked:


declared bankrupcy at 18
now 25 annoyed at stupidity I have been paying things on time lately but how do I improve my credit rating?

Milton

WENDY D asked:


I need to refinance my house but my credit score is 525. I need it at 580 minimum to be able to refi with a good rate and get cash out. Does anyone know how to get a score up that much in a short amount of time. I know I owe about $400.00 on credit cards and I have some lates on there. I am going to pay the credit cards off, but does anyone know how I can get that score up within 2-3 mths or so?

Monica

Rya M asked:


Hi i am approaching 19 and have no credit history, therefore wondering where i would be best to get a credit card to improve my credit rating?Thanks

Anita

annabanana4883 asked:


Here’s the situation: my credit rating is poor. I have a few charged off credit cards from my early college years. HOWEVER, I do have one credit card that I have never even been late. Also, I have some student loans that have perfect payment history.

BUT my rating is still too low. What should I do? I know that paying off charged off accounts will adversely affect my credit. So…how can I improve it now? Will secured credit cards work? What else? Thanks!
Currently, I only have one line of credit–the credit card I use sparingly and make payments on time. The student loans also are in perfect shape. It’s just that old debt that pulls me down. And I’ve heard from several financial advisors that paying off the charged off accounts will pull my rating down. So, what’s the way to improvement?

Douglas

Joel Cohen asked:


The earlier you realize you have a debt problem, the faster and cheaper your way out will be, if done correctly and cautiously. Debt relief carries multiple financial benefits and will eventually help improve your credit score, opening more doors for you when needed.

Choosing a Debt Solution

First, you must find a way to get out of debt. If you’re not too deep in debt you may attempt to eliminate it on your own. Contacting a debt management organization can be found useful and will give peace of mind. A quick search online will help you find non-profit organizations that may help reduce debt for free.

Naturally, working with a debt management organization will work out for you ONLY if your debt status is manageable. If not, consider contacting a debt settlement/negotiation company or consider applying for bad credit debt consolidation loans. The interest rate you will be quoted depends also on your credit ratings. A higher credit score will benefit the consumer with lower rates. My best advice here is to improve credit ratings before getting the loan.

Getting Back On Track

Once you’ve found the best debt solution for your needs, make sure not to make the same mistake from early days and build up your debt. Work on maintaining a financially balanced life and make payments on time. By paying your bills month by month on time, your credit score will quickly boost and you will gain financial creditability once again.

Managing your monthly payments is very important and in essence prevents debt from occurring. When found in debt, identify the main problem and reduce it to at least 50%, make sure not to forget that problem! Remember that if you have bad credit ratings you can get a bad credit debt consolidation loan.



Erin

ECREAM asked:


I have good credit. Will increasing my limits on my cards improve my credit rating?

Brent