HOW TO BOOST YOUR CREDIT SCORE: • Use less than 30% of your credit card limit across all your credit cards. (This is your credit utilization ratio.) This even matters if you’re paying your balances in full each month. (If you need to go over the 30%, consider making a double payment that month if you can.) • See if your credit card companies will give you a credit limit increase without doing a hard credit inquiry. • Don’t close credit card accounts that you don’t use. (It helps your credit utilization ratio.) • Pay off your credit cards. • Know that it’s better to have a balance on one or two credit cards rather than small balances across multiple cards. • Don’t open new lines of credit if you don’t need them. • Consider getting a secured credit card. Generally, this is when you put money into a checking account, then get a line of credit based on how much money is in that account. This can increase your positive payment history. • Leave your old debts on your credit report. (This shows you handle your debt well and pay it off, plus your score goes up when you have a longer record of good debt.) • Pay your bills by their due date. If you have overdue payments, pay them! • Check your credit reports regularly to make sure there are no problems. Dispute problems (e.g., incorrect accounts on your report) if there are any. You can check all three bureau reports for free every 12 months, so check one every four months.
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