subject: How to Get a Good Credit Rating [print this page] What does it take to get a good credit rating score? Well, first it does take some time. Having excellent credit rating doesnt happen overnight. First of all you actually have to HAVE credit before you worry about having a great credit rating. To do that, you may want to start out in a small way with a department store or gas credit card. These are relatively easy to get. Once you have the card, charge some minor items and then pay the bill off completely. Do this for several months. Be careful here, don't charge more than you can pay off in full. If you carry a balance over, it wont reflect well on your credit report.
Another way to get a great credit rating score is to have a co-signer on a big loan, like a car loan. The co-signer is actually guaranteeing that you will repay the loan and if you do, it will reflect very well on your credit report and raise your credit score. In other words, what you require to get a good credit rating score is a history of on-time payments and no abuse of credit.
What we mean by that is that you should not apply for and get a number of different credit cards and charge items on all of them. This tactic just shows the credit companies that you are being irresponsible with your credit and have small financial finesse or know-how when it comes to managing money.
To get a good credit rating score, the most vital thing to remember is to always pay on time. This cant be stressed enough. Most companies that extend credit to you will give you a grace period to make the payment. For example, if your payment is due on the first of the month, they usually advise that late charges will occur if you pay after the 13th. So essentially, you have between the 1st and the 13th to make your payment. While this sounds great, if you wait until the 13th to make your payment, this really can reflect poorly on your credit report. So if your bill is due on the 1st, pay it on the 29th, 30th, or 31st of the previous month just to be quite sure.
A very good way to insure that you are making on-time payments is to have them deducted directly from your checking account. This alone will contribute toward a beneficial credit rating score because it shows fiscal responsibility. Additionally, it insures that your payments are put through on time and you wont miss any payments. Of course, youll have to be sure always theres enough cash in your account to cover the payments since credit bureaus also look at your checking accounts.
If you put your mind to it, getting and maintaining a good credit rating score is actually quite easy.
