Change Your Relationship with Credit to Boost Your Credit Score

Your credit score is a pretty meaningful number, and can determine whether you get the best interest rates when you finance a car or a home, or get turned away entirely. A recent FICO report explains the key to a better score is a combination of good financial habits and an understanding that credit is a tool to be used for a specific purpose?not something to be feared or worried about, but a tool to improve your financial situation.

Make no mistake, if you ask someone with a credit score over 800, they'll explain their good financial habits first. US News interviewed one person who improved his score in 18 months by financing an auto loan, opened revolving credit accounts, and doing what anyone should do: Pay the loan every month, focus spending on the credit cards and pay off half or more of the balances every month. At the same time though, the report explains that what you'll also find an upbeat mindset about credit in almost everyone with a high credit score:

John Ulzheimer, president of consumer education at SmartCredit.com and a former FICO employee, says high scorers approach credit differently than mid- and low-range scorers. For starters, they're not intimidated by it. "They look at credit more as something that's under their control, versus something that's controlling them," he says. "That's how credit should be used, rather than to keep up with the Joneses."

Transforming your relationship and mindset about credit is the first step towards building better financial habits. For example, using it to supplement your lifestyle or to buy things you can't normally afford is right out. The FICO report also noted some other behaviors of high score-holders worth noting: namely that on average they use about 7 percent of their revolving credit, their oldest account is about 25 years old, and they have an average of seven credit cards (including both open and closed credit accounts.)

The same report also notes that credit scores change monthly, and those healthy habits are more important than a high number, so don't obsess over the 800 number?it's more important to do what it takes to get there than get there. Hit the link below to read the full report.

What It Takes to Have a Perfect or Near-Perfect Credit Score | US News Money

Photo by IQoncept (Shutterstock).

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/lifehacker/full/~3/5x3FSWRw-mk/change-your-relationship-with-credit-to-boost-your-credit-score

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