5 Proven Ways to Repair Your Credit

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Hands up if you’ve been a bit too frivolous with money in the past? I bet there are times when all of us could say we’re guilty of not being as sensible with money as we once were. Of course, with hindsight we know it wasn’t the best decision we could have made – but the pull of nice clothes and nights out on borrowed money just seems too strong! Although this type of lifestyle is fun, when we get older and start to settle down these can have an effect on things like being able to rent a house or apply for a mortgage. Thankfully, I’ve been reading all about credit repair so thought I would share some tips with you.

Start At The Beginning

Before you can really know what work you need to put in in order to repair your credit, you need to know where you are at. Your credit score is a number than financial intuitions use to decide whether you’re a safe bet to lend money to – download your credit report to get an idea of where your score is at and how much work you need to do.

Check Your Report

Go through the report and make sure that it is accurate – for example, doesn’t include any debt that you have paid off or that is not yours. If there is anything that you feel shouldn’t be on your report then contact the company involved and ask that they report this to the credit referencing agencies in order to get it removed.

Work On Your Credit Score

Now is the time to start showing that you are responsible with money and can be trusted with money lent to you. One way to do this is to take out a small credit card. You can’t use this frivolously but you should use it for one or two purchases a month than you can pay off as soon as the statement arrives – this shows that you are someone safe to lend money to.

Play The Game

If you are working hard to repair your past credit, you need to be on board with your current credit to. Paying bills late really does dent your credit score so this is something that you should avoid where possible. Speak to companies if you do need to pay late and ask them for a delayed payment plan as this dents your credit history far less.

Close off Credit

If you have had any credit cards in the past you should work though these and close them down. Although you might think it is harmless your credit report sees this as potential access to borrowed money and therefore may affect the money lenders now want to lend you.

If you have any financial savvy tips we’d love you to share them below.