Credit Score Blog

So I didn’t know a whole lot about Credit Scores or anything really of that sort until recently. All throughout college I had credit cards and I would make payments when I could. Sometimes they would be late, but not that often. In college I also had a lot of the utilities in my name because my roommates weren’t very responsible. We would each pay our bills separately. So I would pay mine online and the others would either pay online or send a check. If they sent/mailed it out a few days after they were due, I wasn’t concerned as long as they were sent.

I didn’t realize it then, but each time I made a late payment or my buddies didn’t pay the bills (that were in my name) on time—that was hurting my credit. I got a free credit report and I was shocked at how bad my score was. The report was very detailed and it explained your credit score and what exactly your number means. I actually think you are only supposed to check your credit score once or twice a year, anymore than that and it hurts your credit. I’m not sure if that’s true but I’m not taking any chances.

I heard that the more bills you pay on time and the less time it takes you to pay them off, the better score you will have. So thankfully my score won’t always be terrible and there are ways to make up for my college days and unreliable friends. No matter who you are, you should get your credit checked out every year, just so that you can be aware of where your life is heading. You don’t want to get married one day and try to buy that dream home and realize your credit score is shot and you have to have your significant other worry about putting it in their name.

Make sure you pay everything on time and don’t put any bills under anyone’s name that is irresponsible. Also, you should try and pay more than the minimum amount due. Good luck!