Quick Tips

1: Never be over 30 days late. Creditors do not report late payments to the bureaus until they are 30 days late.

2: Don't cancel old credit lines. The calculation for your credit score includes the amount of time you have had open credit lines. The longer they are open the better.

3: Keep a minimum of three credit lines open. This provides diversity and substance.

4: Get a credit card when you turn 18. Same reason as #2, it takes time to build a credit history.

5: Don't carry a balance. By paying off your credit cards each month you avoid interest payments but still build credit usage history.

6: If you have a home and credit card debt, refinance it and pay off the credit cards. Your payments will be lower and largely tax deductible.

7: Set a budget and stick to it.

8: Check your credit report often. Consider using a monitoring service to make this as easy as possible.

9: Get help if you need it but be aware that credit counseling will itself damage your credit. It simply looks bad to lenders.

10: Mark this site to your favorites! Or just use all the information provided to learn about and take control of the single most important factor of your borrowing ability, your personal credit!

Quick tips may help, but a credit repair service may be what you need.