I have no debt now but my credit is still low....HELP?

Question

Equifax-598
Experian-589
Transunion-588

I have paid off all of my college loans with no late payments. I have a past car payment that was paid off satisfactory with no late payments. I have old credit card payments that were late that went into charge-offs but they have been paid off for 2 years now. It also seems that between the 3 credit bureaus....1 or 2 bad debts still look like they are still on there even though they have been paid off for years. I have some inquiries, but not many. I have 2 credit cards now....1(AMEX) with a limit of $1000 and the other (Orchard Bank) with a limit of $300. I also have a car loan with a balance of $18K. That is all that is on my credit report. I am selling my car right now too since I have a company car now that my work pays for so soon I wont even have the car payment on my credit. I make roughly $80K per year. It is driving me nuts that I am doing so well now with my job with money in the bank and I want to get a house soon and I need my credit to get higher. How do I make my credit score get higher and fast? Is there a company that can help me or is this something I can do on my own? HELP!!!!

Answer 1

Scores usually look at the last 24 months for the heaviest consideration. Things like charge offs, even tho paid will still count as a negative.

The further out you get from those charge offs, the more the score will rise. But, don't expect it to rise a lot because it is still negative!

In 5 years, when they fall off, your score will jump up.

When you sell the car, and no longer have that auto loan, you should see a rise as well, due to the debt to credit ratio now being way less.



Also, are you maxing out those cards you do have? Debt to credit ratio is a HUGE factor in scoring. If you are using more than 20% (don't listen to numbers larger than that) of that 1300 in credit limits you have, then you are keeping your score down.

Scores measure risk, not how much money you make or have in the bank!

It's a game, and you have to play the game by their rules.

I highly recommend this site that I read daily. You will be happy you checked it out. It's a blog. An awesome freaking blog about credit and scores, and how it all works.

Start with the one that says "Fair Issac's Web Conference..."

http://www.creditmattersblog.com/



Plus, here's a really great tool that's free. It's a score simulator. You can put in different scenarios to see how it will affect your score.

http://www.bankrate.com/brm/fico/calc.asp

Answer 2

Contrary to prevailing opinion, your credit score isn't the only thing that governs your ability to obtain a mortgage. Down payment is a big factor, as it recent credit history. If you have been clean for two years, you are right on the verge of better times credit-wise.



First, go through those credit reports and contest any errors. You want them to be accurate.



Next, make an appointment with a bank near you that does mortgage lending. Not sure where you are located but call a real estate agent and ask them who does a good job. Stay away from mortgage brokers, at least at first. Try SunTrust, Wells Fargo or the like.



Keep saving as much as possible. You are doing well and will be able to qualify for a loan soon.

Answer 3

Make sure those 2 bad debts are listed as paid, dispute it if you must. Stop with the inquiries, don't apply for new credit. If you have 2 cards pay those on time, 1,000 don't charge any more than 30 %, $300, the same with the other 300, or $90. Save for a down payment, the bigger the better. You should be able to afford up to 240k, it doesn't mean you have to spend that much. You can apply for a mortgage without a neg. on your credit. It feels like years, just to boost the score a few lousy points. Use a calculator like bankrate.com for a house payment.

Answer 4

Have you considered using one of those authorized user tradeline programs. They are very affordable and would get you well on your way to having better credit. My mom used it and not only was able to open other accounts, but her score jumped 110 points. They also offer credit repair which would help bump the remaining negative items off the report. Check out the free evaluation form at www.totaldebtsolutionsllc.com They can help.

Answer 5

Please check out my guide on Credit Repair. It's free. There are various techniques of building your credit, but they are going to take from 3 months to 6 months to see results. Knowing exactly what information is on your credit reports is a start. Make sure you the latest copy from all three credit bureaus. Maintaining the right "debt to credit" ratio on your credit cards is crucial. Paying off your cards each month actually has a negative effect. I could go on.....



Claim your complimentary copy of

"The Ultimate Credit Repair Guide" here:

http://www.CleverCreditRepair.com/UltimateCreditGuide

Answer 6

You have to stay in debt to get and keep a high credit score.



Building credit is the biggest joke of the 21st century.

Answer 7

Charge offs and most negatives fall off 7 years from the DOFD.

You may want to pull up your credit reports again and look it over and dispute all negatiives. You can do this online for free. Go to www.annualcreditreport.com it's free.

Just continue to pay your bills on time.

Answer 8

You need to check out this video on how to increase your credit score by using a 100% legal loophole. Here is the video URL: http://www.creditscoresecret.org



I was able to get to 595 from 489 in just one day and from 489 to 748 in just a few week; that's pretty fast in my book. Good luck!

Answer 9

Maybe, but I'm not 100%

Answer 10

Try https://tr.im/1kQ0W

Answer 11

yes, it could be