What can I do to Improve My Credit?

In order to improve your credit you must be patient. There really are no quick-fire alternatives – so don’t fall for any advertising jargon claiming a fast end to your credit problems. You must be ready to do some work over what could be a period of several months. Keep faith in yourself and follow these five tips to boost your credit score.

1. Get a Free Credit Report:Remember how important it is to check your credit report for errors? Well the first thing you should do is get a free credit report from Equifax, Experian or TransUnion. Immediately check to see if there are errors regarding late payments and that the amount due on each account is accurate. If, for example, you discover a payment that you made on time marked late, contact the credit bureau. You can use New Leaf Credit’s dispute letters to help.
2. Pay Your Bills:If you don’t pay your bills on time, there’s not a credit repair kit or credit repair professional in the world that can help you. Set up a schedule to pay your bills if necessary. Managing your debt is one of the most important factors when it comes to improving your credit score. It should be a priority to you, something to take pride in.
3. Cut the Debt You Owe:In other words, pay off your debt and stop using your credit cards so much. Don’t rely on your cards to pay off other bills if possible. Also, take a look at all of your credit cards and separate them by the amount of interest you pay on them. Take the highest interest rate cards and pay them down first. Then slowly but surely start paying off the other cards. This is a classic example of how to properly manage your debt. By keeping your debt level low, you improve your debt utilization ratio, which is a major factor in your credit score calculation.
4. Get Current on Your Cards:If you were late or missed payments in the past, get current on all your accounts – that means making sure everything is paid up to date. You can’t change what happened in the past, but make certain you stay current on your cards from now on. Remember, your most recent mistakes negatively impact your credit score more compared to past mistakes. The longer you continually pay your bills in a timely manner, the better your credit score becomes.
5. Be Patient:There is really no other way to put it; you have to be patient during this process. Get your free credit report and start there – it won’t be easy, and some days will be better than others, but if you keep at it your credit scores will improve.