Understanding Credit Card Do’s and Don’ts: How to Build Your Credit

Healthy credit history is an important part of significant milestones in life. You’ll need good credit to qualify for mortgages, auto loans, and sometimes even a new job. Plus, when you use your credit wisely, it can help save you money, secure better interest rates and more.

If you’re just starting out with a credit card, check out the following tips that can help you build a solid credit history:

Do:

• Pay ALL your bills on time, EVERY time. Even if you are only a few days late, delinquent payments can significantly negatively impact your credit score. This applies to all your billing accounts, including utilities.
• Bring any past due accounts current. If you have any account balances that are past due, work towards bringing them up to date as quickly as possible and keeping it up to date.
• Check your credit report regularly for errors. If you request copies of your credit report for yourself, this will not hurt your credit report. Everyone is entitled to a free copy of their credit report yearly from each of the three major reporting bureaus through com.
• Dispute any inaccurate information on your credit report. Unfortunately, mistakes are common, so reviewing your statements regularly and bringing up any errors is crucial.

Don’t:

• Don’t utilize than 30% of your credit limit. Using up a significant percentage of your allowable credit can send a message to lenders that you may be borrowing more than you can afford. Doing this can hurt your credit score when you are trying to build credit. Contrary to popular belief, you DO NOT need to maintain a balance on your credit card to build credit.
• Don’t apply for new credit too often. Any time you apply for credit, it counts as an inquiry on your credit report. Too many inquiries could hurt your credit score.
• Don’t expect your credit score to change overnight. If you do ending up making mistakes when you are building your credit, it will take time to build your credit score back up.

The key to building healthy credit is to use it responsibly; cleaning up credit mistakes can take a lot of time, but if you follow the do’s outlined above, you should be able to build good credit and build good financial habits.

Are you ready to look at what credit card options that may fit your needs? Get more information here.

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Posted In: Ignite, Lending, Tips For Managing Finances