Skip to navigation Skip to main content

Credit Smarts

Factors That Could Hurt Your Credit Score

Credit report on laptop

It's no secret that maintaining a good credit score is essential to strong financial health. It is a must if you ever wish to take out a substantial loan or need to apply for rental properties. Most people know the basics of what may hurt or help your credit score. However, you may not know about a few surprising things that can hurt your score. Here are six factors that may negatively impact your credit score.

Read this article

Understand Credit Scores

Credit Score graphic

Your credit score is a vital part of your financial history. Lenders and other organizations use it to understand how much of a risk you are regarding financial matters and repaying your debts. Understanding how your credit score is made up and the typical ranges and ratings can help you gain insight into your creditworthiness and allow you to make improvements.

Read this article

Improving Your Credit Score

Maintaining a good credit score may mean the difference between being able to borrow money for important purchases and not being able to borrow money at all. For lenders, your credit score is an indicator of how responsible you are and how likely you are to pay back a loan. A higher credit score will likely get you a better rate on your loan, while a low score could come with a higher rate. That difference could add up to tens of thousands of dollars over the course of a lifetime.

Read this article

Building Your Best Credit Score

The information used to calculate your credit score comes entirely from the information in your credit report. Credit scores tell lenders and other businesses how likely it is that you will fail to make payments in the next two to three years. Scores range from 380-850, with 850 being the best.

Read this article

Understanding Credit

Credit is everywhere! From auto loans to mortgages to credit cards, there’s a whole lot of credit everywhere. The older you get, the more people will try to sell it to you. The bottom line is that all that credit costs you money—and some loans will cost a lot more than others. It’s all too easy to get trapped in a very expensive loan.

Read this article