Keep your credit report clean. For that you need to see how you can solve the problem. If its about late payments start paying on time. If that is tough talk to your creditor and speak about your problem so that payment date can be adjusted. See to it that your account is not reported as late payment.
Let me give you some points so that it becomes easier to repair credit.
*Pay your debts on time (this has been mentioned in previous posts by Laura and Polly)
*Keep different types credit cards if any
*Try to keep it to the usage of 25% of the balance on your credit card
*Dont take unnecessary credit, use your existing credit card for that.
*Dispute incorrect items on your report if you have proof of the mistake
*Of course keep a check on your credit file if you are working on improving your score.
It does take a while to clean up your credit. However.......it can be done!! I felt like i had the WORST credit, in the world. But.....making payments on time, 'disputing' innacuate items, etc. will raise your score. Every time someone 'inquiries' about your credit, your score goes down....remember that, too. Hope this helps.
There is a couple of things that you can do about it :D
1) Open up Excel and write down all your creditors - what you owe them (balance), what are your minimum monthly payments, what are your fees (monthly maitenance fees, program fees, annual fees etc), your APRs. You can get that information by calling the credit card CUtomer service departments. Having this written down will help you understand where you stand and how much it costs you per month.
2) Write down all your spendings per month. Write every penny, even if you have to walk around with a notebook. It will show you how much money you need per month, it may come up that you are spending more than you make.
3) Try to cut down on costs
4) Consider a consultation with a debt counselor - they can help you consolidate your credit card debt and save money and time
5) Pull a copy of your credit reports - you can do that for free at www.annualcreditreport.com. Check for mistakes and get them resolved if there is any.
Good luck and let me know if you have anymore questions :)
It seems that the excel has helped you a lot as well. I do the same. I have two credit cards and its easy for me to maintain. I just record my expenses amd all the important dates of payments. It helps a lot.
I have sold off some unnecessary items. I was surprised that those were actually bought by someone. Got a new charger for my phone with that :) and a paper back novel as well.
I'm really a 'pack rat'. I started going though somethings, that i don't really use anymore, and I was amazed!! Sold a few things, too. Gotta make room for more stuff!! LOL
I always sell the stuff that I don't need. I usually put everything on craigslist and most of the time somebody is buying it. The last thing that I sold was my old computer that others would throw away - I got $120 for it. Sometimes I also buy things and later on I realize thta I don't need them. That goes on CL as well :)
See...seriously there is no quick way of fixing your score. You really need to work on it and it takes time.
Simple enough would be to start making your payments on time if that is the only reason for your low score.
Fixing it quickly cannot happen.
Keep your credit report clean. For that you need to see how you can solve the problem. If its about late payments start paying on time. If that is tough talk to your creditor and speak about your problem so that payment date can be adjusted. See to it that your account is not reported as late payment.
Let me give you some points so that it becomes easier to repair credit.
*Pay your debts on time (this has been mentioned in previous posts by Laura and Polly)
*Keep different types credit cards if any
*Try to keep it to the usage of 25% of the balance on your credit card
*Dont take unnecessary credit, use your existing credit card for that.
*Dispute incorrect items on your report if you have proof of the mistake
*Of course keep a check on your credit file if you are working on improving your score.
Hope that much helps
credit
It does take a while to clean up your credit. However.......it can be done!! I felt like i had the WORST credit, in the world. But.....making payments on time, 'disputing' innacuate items, etc. will raise your score. Every time someone 'inquiries' about your credit, your score goes down....remember that, too. Hope this helps.
Hello taviccy,
There is a couple of things that you can do about it :D
1) Open up Excel and write down all your creditors - what you owe them (balance), what are your minimum monthly payments, what are your fees (monthly maitenance fees, program fees, annual fees etc), your APRs. You can get that information by calling the credit card CUtomer service departments. Having this written down will help you understand where you stand and how much it costs you per month.
2) Write down all your spendings per month. Write every penny, even if you have to walk around with a notebook. It will show you how much money you need per month, it may come up that you are spending more than you make.
3) Try to cut down on costs
4) Consider a consultation with a debt counselor - they can help you consolidate your credit card debt and save money and time
5) Pull a copy of your credit reports - you can do that for free at www.annualcreditreport.com. Check for mistakes and get them resolved if there is any.
Good luck and let me know if you have anymore questions :)
It seems that the excel has helped you a lot as well. I do the same. I have two credit cards and its easy for me to maintain. I just record my expenses amd all the important dates of payments. It helps a lot.
I believe in frugal living. I do keep track of all my expenses. My savings have also increased...:)
money
Yard sales are great to save money!! I love it!! Also.....I do live on a budget, like alot of people. But..I get the 'most' out of it!!
I have sold off some unnecessary items. I was surprised that those were actually bought by someone. Got a new charger for my phone with that :) and a paper back novel as well.
debt
I'm really a 'pack rat'. I started going though somethings, that i don't really use anymore, and I was amazed!! Sold a few things, too. Gotta make room for more stuff!! LOL
I always sell the stuff that I don't need. I usually put everything on craigslist and most of the time somebody is buying it. The last thing that I sold was my old computer that others would throw away - I got $120 for it. Sometimes I also buy things and later on I realize thta I don't need them. That goes on CL as well :)