To qualify for a mortgage, or even possibly get a better rate, you may need to make some changes in your financial situation to improve your credit score. Here are 9 simple tips to improve your score:
Get a Credit Card: Having a credit card or two can really help build scores; just be responsible when using them.
Find out what's happening in Cummingfor free with the latest updates from Patch.
Add an Installment Loan to the Mix: You'll get the fastest improvement in your scores if you show you're responsible with both major kinds of credit: revolving (credit cards) and installment (personal loans, auto, mortgages and student loans).
Find out what's happening in Cummingfor free with the latest updates from Patch.
Pay Down Existing Credit Cards: Lenders like to see a big gap between the amount of credit you're using and your available credit limits. Getting your balances below 30% of the credit limit on each card can really help; getting balances below 10% is even better.
Use Your Cards Lightly: Racking up big balances can hurt your scores, regardless of whether you pay your bills in full each month. What's typically reported to the credit bureaus, and thus calculated into your scores, are the balances reported on your last statements.
Check Your Limits: Your scores might be artificially depressed if your lender is showing a lower limit than you actually have. Most credit card issuers will quickly update this information if you ask.
Dust Off an Old Card: The older your credit history, the better. So you might want to charge a recurring bill to one of those little-used accounts or take them out for dinner and a movie occasionally -- always, of course, paying off the balance in full.
Get Some Goodwill: If you've been a good customer, a lender might agree to simply erase that one late payment from your credit history. You usually have to make the request in writing, and your chances for a "goodwill adjustment" improve the better your record with the company. But it can't hurt to ask.
Dispute Old Negatives: Say that fight with your phone company over an unfair bill a few years ago resulted in a collections account. You can continue protesting that the charge was unjust, or you can try disputing the account with the credit bureaus as "not mine." The older and smaller a collection account, the more likely the collection agency won't bother to verify it when the credit bureau investigates your dispute.
Blitz Significant Errors: Here's the stuff that's usually worth the effort of correcting with the
bureaus: Late payments; charge-offs; credit limits reported lower than actual; accounts still listed as unpaid that were included in bankruptcy; and negative items older than seven years that should be gone.
On Q Financial is a purchased-focused lender. The majority of the loans we process are all for people who are making life changes, like moving. That’s why we go the extra mile to guide you through every step of the mortgage process with outstanding customer service.
If you have any questions regarding the loan process, please contact me.
