{"id":4062,"date":"2019-07-09T10:00:47","date_gmt":"2019-07-09T17:00:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.summerhillhomes.com\/blog\/?p=4062"},"modified":"2023-04-30T01:36:12","modified_gmt":"2023-04-30T08:36:12","slug":"5-essential-ways-to-improve-your-credit-score","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.summerhillhomes.com\/blog\/2019\/07\/09\/5-essential-ways-to-improve-your-credit-score\/","title":{"rendered":"5 Essential Ways to Improve Your Credit Score"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"Essential<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

If you\u2019re planning on applying for a mortgage for a new\nhome, you\u2019ll want your credit score to be its best. Your credit score can be\nthe difference between being approved or denied a mortgage and even your\nmortgage\u2019s interest rate! <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Is your credit score less than stellar? Don\u2019t worry; all is\nnot lost. With some work, you can you\u2019re your score around. Repairing your\ncredit isn\u2019t a quick fix; it typically takes between three to six months of\ngood behavior before a noticeable change appears. Don\u2019t be discouraged if you\ndon\u2019t see immediate changes; just keep plugging away!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here are some essential steps that will help improve your\ncredit score:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Review your credit\nreport<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Before you can begin improving your credit score, you need\nto know what you\u2019re working with. If you haven\u2019t already, request a free credit\nreport (you\u2019re entitled to one report each year from each of the three\nreporting agencies. And don\u2019t worry \u2013 requesting a free report won\u2019t affect\nyour score) and review it with a fine-tooth comb. Since your credit score is\nbased on the information in your credit report, it\u2019s especially important for\nthat information to be correct. Make sure your information is accurate and\nreport any mistakes to the appropriate agency. You\u2019ll want to review each\nreport separately as errors may appear on one report but not the others.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Pay your bills on\ntime<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Your payment history is an important factor to determining\nyour credit score, so missing payments can have a dramatic effect. Late\npayments (usually between 30-60 days overdue) typically remain on your credit\nreport for seven years so it makes sense to pay your bills on time. If you have\na history of late payments, consider signing up for automatic payments so you\nhave one less thing to worry about.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Reduce credit card balances<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Focus on paying off any outstanding balances, especially\ncredit cards. Because credit cards typically carry the highest interest rates\nyou\u2019ll want to get rid of those balances first. Start by focusing on card that\nis closest to being \u201cmaxed out\u201d and moving on to the next card once your debt\nhas been eliminated. If you can afford it, check with your credit card lender\nto see if they accept multiple payments during a billing cycle.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Avoid opening new\nlines of credit<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

While you\u2019re rebuilding and strengthening your credit score,\nresist the temptation of opening additional lines of credit. Often, opening new\nlines of credit is given as a \u201cquick fix\u201d for improving your credit utilization\nrate, it could lead to more trouble. Additionally, some creditors and lenders may\nview these new lines of credit as you taking on new debt or having issues\npaying it off. Instead, focus on paying down your current balances instead.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Watch your credit\nutilization rate<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Now that you\u2019re well on the way to a better credit score,\nyou\u2019re work isn\u2019t over just yet. You\u2019ll what to keep your eye on your credit\nutilization rate. Credit utilization rate is the percentage of available credit\nyou have versus how much you\u2019re using. The smaller the percentage, the better\nit is for your credit score. An ideal utilization rate is 30 percent or lower.\nIf your utilization rate starts to creep up, find ways to pay down outstanding\nbalances to lower it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Following these steps will not only save you money in the\nlong run, but it\u2019ll also help you to establish a healthy relationship with\ncredit. When you begin to apply for mortgages in the future, you\u2019ll appreciate\nthe hard work you did to clean up your credit report now.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

If you\u2019re planning on applying for a mortgage for a new home, you\u2019ll want your credit score to be its best. Your credit score can be the difference between being approved or denied a mortgage and even your mortgage\u2019s interest rate! Is your credit score less than stellar? Don\u2019t worry; all is not lost. With […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":4059,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[453],"tags":[486,485,385],"yoast_head":"\n5 Essential Ways to Improve Your Credit Score - SummerHill Homes Blog<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Improve your credit score with these essential tips from SummerHill Homes' blog.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.summerhillhomes.com\/blog\/2019\/07\/09\/5-essential-ways-to-improve-your-credit-score\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"5 Essential Ways to Improve Your Credit Score - SummerHill Homes Blog\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Improve your credit score with these essential tips from SummerHill Homes' blog.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.summerhillhomes.com\/blog\/2019\/07\/09\/5-essential-ways-to-improve-your-credit-score\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"SummerHill Homes Blog\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2019-07-09T17:00:47+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2023-04-30T08:36:12+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.summerhillhomes.com\/blog\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/SHH-Essential-Ways-to-Improve-Your-Credit-Score.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"560\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"315\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"SummerHill Homes\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"SummerHill Homes\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.summerhillhomes.com\/blog\/2019\/07\/09\/5-essential-ways-to-improve-your-credit-score\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.summerhillhomes.com\/blog\/2019\/07\/09\/5-essential-ways-to-improve-your-credit-score\/\",\"name\":\"5 Essential Ways to Improve Your Credit Score - 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