Dealing With Credit Bureaus
The best way to get and keep a good credit score is to earn a steady income,
borrow some—but not too much—and pay all of your bills on time.
And don’t get sued by anybody. And do all this consistently, over your
whole adult life.
Not everyone manages the credit equation perfectly. In fact, most people
have problems with some part of it at some point. If you’re one of those
many, you’ll need to manage your credit score—especially if you
want to buy or refinance a house, get a new car or start a business.
Credit scores are designed to be hard to change, though. They are part
of a decentralized system: one group of companies keeps your financial data,
another group analyzes it and a third uses the analysis to make lending
decisions.
The best way to improve your credit score is to know and manage your financial
data, which is kept by credit bureaus. (These companies are more formally
called “consumer reporting agencies” or CRAs.)
Financial counsellors usually recommend getting a credit report from each
credit bureau three to six months before you apply for a home loan, buy a
car or attempt to borrow a large sum of money for any other reason. Even if
you aren’t planning a major purchase, most experts suggest that you
check your credit reports once a year.
You should check them more frequently if you’re cleaning up your
credit history, or if you’ve been a victim of fraud or identity theft.
Next: How to Get Your
Reports |
