Credit Score

- an important number to know!

For most of us, credit cards, loans and the like are a part of everyday life, and as such it is important to know what your credit score is.

Ok, let's back up a little. What is a credit score anyhow?

Your credit score is a number which takes into account all kinds of information to help decide whether or not you are credit worthy. The credit score looks at the following:

• Your payment history ( what accounts you have on file, for example mortgages, loans and credit cards, and whether these payments were made promptly, how late past due items were etc. )
• Any amount that you owe on your accounts, including the percentage of your balance to your total credit used.
• The length of your credit history, and how long your accounts have had activity in them.
• Whether you have opened any new accounts recently, and the activity on those accounts.
• The types of credit you use, whether it is all credit cards, or mortgages, or car loans.

It is also important to note that although your credit score only takes into account your financial information, lenders will also look at your employment history and income level to help them decide whether to approve you for a loan.

Because your credit score takes into account so much of your credit information, you need to make sure that it is accurate, You can do this by contacting a reputable credit bureau like www.equifax.com or www.experian.com, but keep in mind that you do have to give them some of your personal information for them to be able to confirm that you are indeed requesting your own report. 

Once you know your credit score, then you can start improving it. Never panic if you discover your credit score is low, it's a good thing to know, so that you can start improving your credit score, and take advantage of these money-saving techniques.