Common Credit Mistakes to Avoid

Credit score is a 3 digit number that lenders use to determine your borrowing risk. Here are some common credit mistakes that can lower your score faster than you think. 

 

• Late or missed payments, even once, can drastically take a toll on your score.
• Maxing out credit cards; it's best to keep your card utilization under 30% but 10% is best. 
• Applying for too much too fast causes multiple hard inquiries to your credit score. 
• Only making minimum payments will keep your overall credit utilization high and lower your score. 
• Closing out old accounts lowers your average age of credit history and overall total of available credit. 
• Not having a variety of accounts types. It's best to keep a mix of credit cards and other loan types rather than just one or the other. 
• Bankruptcy, collections, foreclosures and repossessions severely damage  your credit score.