How to increase your credit score?

• Pay on time.
  Try as best as you can to get your payments in on time. This includes car payments, rent payments and utility bill payments.
• Don’t run up your credit cards.
  Yes, that advertisement for a heart-shaped necklace that keeps popping up on your facebook page sure is pretty, but do you really want to max out your credit card to buy it? Not if you want to raise your credit score.
• Make more than the minimum payment on your credit cards.
  Even if it is only a few dollars more, it pays down the amount you owe faster and helps when your credit score is calculated.
• Get your free credit report and study it.
  The problem with checking your credit score is you might have to pay for it, and you will also get flooded with pop up advertisements and applications for memberships on credit reporting websites.

The three credit report companies (Experian, TransUnion and Equifax), by law must send you a free credit report when requested. However, they might charge to send the actual credit score. Credit Karma will give you the scores for free, but the scores they show tend to be a little higher when compared to the scores from the three credit report companies. And you will see ads at that website also.

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) consumer information page here lists a source for a free credit report to download, and a phone number to call to order a free credit report: (877) 322-8228.

It is recommended to download the free credit report so you can review any problems that show up. Also, check your report for accuracy. If you find something that is not correct, contact the credit report company and the business providing the information, to get it resolved.

You can also read the FTC pamphlet, Building a Better Credit Report.