• My credit card company just increased the spending limit on my card. Will this help or hurt my credit score?
• Will closing accounts increase my credit score?
• Will shopping around for a mortgage or car loan hurt my credit?
• Do credit card offers hurt my score?
• Will paying off my debts instantly improve my credit score?
• How often should I check my credit report?
• What information appears on my credit report?
• Are the credit bureaus owned by the government?
• What’s not in my credit report?
• Why does student loan information appear more than once on the credit report?
• What should I do if I am a victim of identity theft?
• Why don't I have a credit score?
• If my spouse had bad credit before we were married, will that affect my credit score?
• How does divorce affect a person's credit?
• Does it matter how many credit cards I have?
• Will paying for everything with cash help my credit rating?

My credit card company just increased the spending limit on my card. Will this help or hurt my credit score?

A credit limit increase on your credit card may actually help to improve your credit score. If you don’t use the new credit, it will lower the percentage of your available credit that you've used. Lenders like you to use only a small percentage of your available credit, usually less than 30%, so you don't appear to be maxing out your cards. Charging $1,000 when you have a $5,000 limit, for example, looks a lot better than charging $1,000 when your limit is only $3,000.

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Will closing accounts increase my credit score?

Having too many credit accounts can negatively affect your credit score, but canceling them may not improve it. In fact, it could do harm. Credit bureaus look at the difference between your available credit and what you are using. Close down accounts and your total available credit shrinks making you appear over extended. Also, closing older accounts can also make your credit history appear younger than it actually is, which can also hurt your score. If you do close an account, consider closing your newest one and transferring the balance to an older account.

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Will shopping around for a mortgage or car loan hurt my credit?

When you apply for a loan or get pre-approved for a loan it shows up as an inquiry to your credit. Having too many inquiries can lower your score, however all of the inquiries that fall within a 14 day period are only counted as one. Also, all the mortgage or auto inquiries made in the 30 days prior to when you choose your loan will not affect your score.

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Do credit card offers hurt my score?

Credit card offers don't affect your score, assuming you don't respond to them and use all of the available credit. Most credit card offers are prescreened or “preapproved’ offers, which are based on only part of your credit report information. There will be inquiries on your credit report showing which companies viewed your information, but those will not hurt your credit score.

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Will paying off my debts instantly improve my credit score?

Paying off debt will not undo the damage overnight. Paying off your outstanding debt will help, but it will not remove any record of late or missed payments. They will be updated to show “paid “, which is better than “unpaid” but those will still have a negative affect on your credit score. Improving your credit takes time.

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How often should I check my credit report?

You should request a copy of your credit report at least once a year to make sure that all off the information is correct. It is also a good idea to know what is included in your credit history before applying for credit or a loan. The information can differ from one credit bureau to another, so it is important to get a report from each of the credit-reporting bureaus.

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What information appears on my credit report?

A typical credit report contains four types of information: personal information, credit information, public record information and inquiries.

Personal information includes your legal name, current and previous addresses, phone number, social security number, birth date and current and previous employers.

Credit information includes the date opened, loan amount or credit limit, monthly payment and balance for all accounts. Payment history on each account is also included.

Public record information includes any judgments, tax liens, foreclosures or bankruptcies.

Inquiries show how many times your credit has been reviewed in the last 2 years. This will include when someone else has obtained a copy of your report and every time you have applied for credit.

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Are the credit bureaus owned by the government?

The credit reporting companies are for-profit organizations and are not owned by the government. There are however general rules or guidelines that the bureaus must follow. These rules are the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA), Fair Credit Billing Act (FCBA), Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act (FACTA) and Regulation B.

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What’s not in my credit report?

With all of the information that is included in your credit report, it’s nice to know that there are some things that are not included. Credit reports from Experian, Equifax or TransUnion do not contain:

- Your gender
- Your race or ethnicity
- Your national origin
- Your religious preference
- Your political affiliation
- Your checking or savings account information or major purchases that were paid in full with cash or check
- Business accounts (unless you are on record as being personally liable for the debt)
- Details about your personal lifestyle or friends
- Bankruptcies that are more than 10 years old
- Charge-offs or debts placed for collections that are more than 7 years old
- Your credit score (although your credit score is based on the information in your credit report, it is not part of the report itself)

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Why does student loan information appear more than once on the credit report?

Student loans are reported unlike any other loan. Each semester’s or year’s loan can be reported as individual loans and appear to be separate entries on a credit report. You could have 4 to 10 credit lines reported on what you think of as one loan. If those loans are all paid on time it will help your credit, but if you default it will show 4 to 10 negative items, not just one.

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What should I do if I am a victim of identity theft?

The first thing you should do is write everything down. Keeping a record of everything is very important. You should call your creditors to let them know what happened and to close your accounts. Call any one of the credit bureaus and have a fraud alert placed on your credit report. The other 2 two bureaus will be notified automatically. If the state that you live in allows you to freeze you credit report, do it. If your state does not allow this, you can add a victim’s statement to your credit report to show that there is a problem. You should also call the police to file a report. Make sure that you get a copy of the report incase any of your creditors need it.

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Why don't I have a credit score?

Credit scoring models cannot generate scores without sufficient credit information. If you have little or no credit history, credit scores probably cannot be calculated. This does not mean that you have bad credit, but that you need to build you credit. If you have never had a credit account, try applying for a retail, gas or secured credit card to begin your credit history.

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If my spouse had bad credit before we were married, will that affect my credit score?

Your credit will only be affected if you hold a joint credit account, have co-signed a loan or have authorized use of another person's credit. If your spouse had bad credit, but you were not listed on those accounts, then it will not be included in your credit report. It's important that joint account holders or authorized users understand that their credit behavior does affect the other joint account holder or main account holder.

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How does divorce affect a person's credit?

When you obtained credit, you and your spouse signed a contract agreeing to pay your bills. A divorce decree doesn't change that contract. When you divorce, each of you remains fully liable for your debts. There are several ways you can prevent credit obligations from making divorce more difficult - and reestablish your own distinct credit lines after divorce occurs.

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Does it matter how many credit cards I have?

Yes. Every credit card you have has a credit limit. Having many accounts open may affect your ability to get a loan. Even if your balances are low, the actual credit limits are considered when you apply for credit. It’s not just what you owe now, but what you could owe later.

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Will paying for everything with cash help my credit rating?

Unfortunately, not using credit does not help your credit rating. You have to have some history of using credit responsibly to build your credit rating. Credit is not a bad thing, but abusing it is. Establishing and maintaining different types of credit for an extended amount of time will help you to improve your credit score.

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