Did you know that one in five Americans don’t know their credit score? On top of that, nearly half of them don’t pay off their balances each month. That’s one surefire way to hurt your credit score.
There are quite a few factors that go into determining your credit score but payment history is by far the biggest one. And, missing more than a few payments can leave marks on your credit report that will stay there for years to come.
So, if you haven’t been monitoring your credit score up until now, it’s time to start. You’ll want to check your credit report for free first and take a look at any and all derogatory marks and issues that are causing a poor score Then, you can start to work towards rebuilding your credit.
Check Your Credit Score
As mentioned, the first step towards rebuilding or building your credit is to check your credit score. There are three major credit reporting agencies that compile financial information to come up with their own scores. You can access one free credit report a year via Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion.
However, if you want to check your own credit score more often, we’d advise doing so via a third-party app such as Mint or Float. These kinds of financial apps will allow you to see an updated credit score more often without any penalties. And, they’ll provide you with a lot more tools you need to stay on top of your finances, such as tools that help with paying bills on time and budgeting your expenses.
What to Know About Derogatory Marks on Credit Report
After checking your credit score, you’ll be able to view a few different factors, such as your payment history, the accounts you have opened, how long they’ve been open for, and any derogatory marks that are hurting your credit score.
What are derogatory marks on a credit report? They can be:
- Missed payments
- Accounts in collection
- Repossessions
- Foreclosures
- Chargeoffs
- Judgments
- Bankruptcies
- Tax liens
Each individual mark can hurt your credit score and make you look less creditworthy. And, these types of negative marks can stay on your credit report for quite some time. Major issues such as bankruptcy can make it hard for you to raise your credit score as they usually stay on your credit report for up to ten years. Other derogatory marks such as missed payments will usually stay on your report for seven years.
Different Ways to Build Credit
Take one look at a credit score chart to see whether or not you have an excellent credit score. 21% of Americans actually have a pretty exceptional credit score, which is considered to be anything over 800 (on a scale of about 300-850).
If you don’t have a good credit score then that’s okay. There are ways to either rebuild your credit or simply build credit from scratch. According to Experian, building credit from scratch takes about three to six months of consistent credit activity. This can include:
- Applying for a secured credit card. Secured cards are great for those with no credit as they’re easy to get approved for. These types of credit cards, however, will still allow you to build credit fast until you’re able to be approved for an unsecured card with a higher credit limit.
- Taking out and paying off installment loans. Installment loans like student loans are a great way to build your credit as long as you pay them off on time. If you’re having trouble making those payments, speak with your lender about lowering the monthly payment so that you don’t miss a payment.
- Become an authorized user. If you’re young enough, you can ask your parents or a close family member to add you as an authorized user on their credit card. You’ll be able to take advantage of their credit until you’ve build up enough to get your own credit card.
Paying all debts on time and working towards clearing up any collections or liens owed is a surefire way to build your credit fast.
Build Credit With Cheese
If you're looking for a way to start building your credit, except for getting a credit card, getting a credit builder loan can be a great alternative. Cheese Credit Builder is a great tool to build your credit score and save money at the same time. Simply apply for a credit builder loan of as little as $500 and choose a term length of 12 or 24 months. Use our autosave feature to make on-time payments and build a great credit history little by little. Cheese reports all your on-time payments to 3 credit bureaus.
Sign up here to get started today!
