Credit scores can help or hamper you in business and life. Building a good credit history is very important. Re-building yours after some type of personal or business financial reversal is intensely frustrating but critical to getting back on your financial feet. These scores are used by everyone from banks to landlords to insurance companies to evaluate you. And it isn't just about your personal life, like getting a mortgage or renting a home...your business is affected as well.
Why should you care?
It costs you money. A bad credit score can:
- increase the cost of your business insurance premiums
- raise the interest rate on your business credit cards
- prevent you from leasing an office or warehouse space
- stop you from leasing equipment or raise the lease rate you pay
- keep you from getting the business credit lines you need to build your business
What's the difference between a credit report and a credit score?
There are three major reporting companies: Equifax, Experian and TransUnion. These companies track financial information from public records and a wide variety of financial sources, mortgage lenders and collection agencies. Your credit report is a detailed list of this information which each one of these companies compiles from your creditors and other public records. A credit score is a numerical computation that is based on the information contained in each of your credit reports. Each company calculates their scores independently and, since they each have their own proprietary formula, your actual score may vary from company to company.
What's in a credit score? There are five factors that contribute to your credit score:
- Payment History
- Outstanding Debt
- Length of Financial History
- Amount of New Credit
- Types of Credit Used
1. Payment History
Payment history accounts for approximately 35 percent of your credit score. Payments made on time and in full have a positive impact; late payments, financial judgments, bankruptcies or charge-offs have a negative affect.
2. Outstanding Debt
Approximately 30 percent of your credit score is based on the amount of your outstanding debt. There are several calculations that come into play here:
- the ratio of the total debt outstanding to total available debt
- the ratio of the total balance outstanding on each individual credit obligation to the amount available on that loan or credit card
- the number of accounts that have balances
- the amount owed on different types of accounts, e.g., credit cards, installment loans or mortgage debt.
Paying down balances is an important way to improve your score. Keep balances on individual cards below 30 percent of your credit limit when possible. And always avoid reaching or going over the maximum credit limits on any debt obligation or credit card. It's quirky, but your credit score will be better if you spread a balance around on several credit cards rather than maxing out one credit card: Putting $2,500 on each of 3 credit cards with $10,000 credit limits each will be better for your score than putting the $7,500 on one card with a $10,000 limit. The overall amount owed doesn't change, but the way it's perceived by the scoring models does. Obviously, the best thing to do is pay all debt down as soon as possible and not make any late payments.
3. Length of Credit History
The length of time you've had credit counts for approximately 15 percent of your score. Generally, the longer your credit history the better, as it allows lenders to see how you've handled your debt obligations over a period of years.
4. Amount of New Credit
New credit applications and new credit accounts represent approximately 10 percent of your score. Opening multiple new credit accounts in a short time period can hurt your score. So be careful about balance transfers onto new cards and those 10% discount offers for opening a new credit card with retailers. Opening new accounts to get the store discount can cost you on your credit scores, so don't do it if you're currently in the market for a mortgage or other credit.
5. Type of Credit
The type of credit you have has an approximately 10 percent impact on your credit score. A mix of credit card, auto, installment and mortgage debt is positive. A concentration of only credit card debt is not.
Helpful Hints for Improving Your Score
- Check your credit reports at least once per year and contact the credit reporting agencies to correct anything that's wrong.
- Don't lower your credit scores by opening a number of accounts in rapid succession.
- If you are rate shopping for a mortgage or car loan, try to do it within a short period of time. Credit scoring agencies try to distinguish between comparison rate shopping for one mortgage or car loan, and looking for multiple new credit lines or credit cards.
- Closing an account doesn't make it go away on your credit report. By closing an account you lower the overall amount of credit you have and this can negatively impact your score.
- Pay your bills on time - those hefty late payment fees add up and late payments can really hurt your credit score.
Summary
It's very important to check your credit report regularly and correct any inaccurate information. Get a copy of your free credit reports from each credit reporting agency annually and take the time necessary to correct any problems you find. Many issues can be addressed through the companies' websites after you have obtained the credit reports. Or follow the instructions on the sites and handle it in writing.
Connacht "Conny" Cash is a Certified Financial Planner professional, author and speaker on business and finance topics. More small business resources can be found at http://www.AskConny.com Check out her blog at http://bit.ly/askconny
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/expert/Connacht_Cash/52282
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