Monthly credit repair tip

Saturday, March 15, 2008

Your credit score is derived from many different categories.

Thirty-five percent of your credit score comes from payment history on credit cards, installment loans, mortgages, etc. If you are delinquent on accounts 30 days for more, this counts against you. Collections, bankruptcies and judgments count even more. It is possible to "clean up" these problems and raise your score.

Thirty percent of your score is based on amounts owed on credit cards and other installment accounts. The balance owed on credit cards should be less than 30 percent of the limit.

A tenth of your score is based on the length of your credit history. The older the account is, the better the score.

Fifteen percent is based on types of credit used and the final 10 percent is based on new credit.

None of these alone determines your entire score. All of these categories can be improved.

Next month's tips are simple things to keep your credit score up.

These tips, which appear monthly in the Business Scene, are provided by Becky D. Ault of Specialized Recovery Credit Solutions, located at 119 S. New Madrid Street in Sikeston.

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