Tips to improve your credit rating

There are a number of ways to improve your credit score. This involves being careful with your credit activities and managing your finances in an effective way. Your credit report is affected by a number of factors. Even a little carelessness goes down as a big negative in your credit report.

The first basic thing to take care of is regular payments. You need to make sure that you are regular with your payments and that you make all your payments before the given limit. Late payments go down as a big stigma in your credit report and dip your credit score substantially. Make sure that installments on loans, mortgages, etc are paid on time. On time payments help your credit score to the maximum.

Don’t apply for too many credit cards in a short span of time. This prompts inquiries and inquiries go down as a negative in your credit report. Similarly make sure that you do not use more than 30% of your limit on each credit card. This helps in the long run. Keeping low balances in your credit cards helps in cases of emergencies and adds to your credit score.

Safeguard yourself against ID theft. ID theft is one of the fastest growing crimes in America. In order to protect yourself against identity theft you need to be careful with your personal and financial details. Make sure that you do not give away your personal details to any body who asks for it. Make sure that the organization or the individual is genuine and requires your details for a valid reason. Avoid making transactions online and don’t give away your personal details over the phone.

Check your credit report on a regular basis. You can avail of a free annual credit report once a year from any of the three major credit bureaus. So you can check for mistakes in your credit report and inform the bureaus to correct them.