When you are checking out at your favorite store, you may be asked if you want a store card. Sometimes this comes with free gifts or a good coupon. Even if you have cash in hand it can be beneficial to do the purchase through the store options for these advantages. You find yourself completing the application with just a simple push of a button and then the ultimate betrayal…you’re not approved.
For some reason, maybe one of which you’re not even aware, your credit score is not acceptable enough for the store to take the risk on you.
This can be such a stressful event. You will need to get to the bottom of this because this is a number that follows you all throughout your life. It can fluctuate frequently and must be watching. This is important to your financial future.
There are mitigating factors that play into where your DTI (debt to income) ratio comes from. Some of the factor that kill your credit are:
- High Debt
- Late Payments
- Missed payments
- Low diversity
- Short credit history
Some of the listed items you can control and/or correct with a little work. Try to figure out what went wrong and start there. If it is a missed or late payment you may can possibly contact that particular business and get it corrected. If it is the other instances then take some time to work on it. Make smart purchases paid off as soon as you have the cash in hand and make sure they are properly credited to either your account or balance. Follow the path to what went wrong and take the steps necessary to correct them, make them a more acceptable level.
Once you know what happened, stay up to date with the three major credit bureaus. Transunion, Experian, and Equifax are the bureaus. You can make an account to check your score and report.
If you don’t have the time to check them all, you can use a company that can help you improve your credit score. Different purchase and lenders will require different scores. The better your credit range the lower your interest rate. Always try to keep the debt low and the income high to achieve a good score.
Remember once you know your number and know how it got there be vigilant not to let the same mistakes happen again. This is an ever-changing number throughout your life and has implications in most all you want or need.
Larger purchases, like for a vehicle or a home will require stronger credit profiles. Stay in charge of your debts, loans and payment history. A missed or late payment will greatly impact your score and is takes longer to fall off your report.
Also, decide how bad you want or need the item your credit will be checked for. When you check your score, it is considered a soft inquiry and doesn’t do any harm. When lenders check your credit, it is considered a hard inquiry. You are only allowed a few hard inquiries per year before you start to get points deducted. The takeaway is that you need to be responsible with your credit to get a good credit score.