Overcoming past credit problems can sometimes be a long, tedious process (especially if you are going it alone without professional assistance). However, thankfully there is a strict time limit regarding how long past credit mistakes are allowed to haunt your credit reports. In other words, most negative credit…
Category: Credit Scores
The Ideal Credit Card Balance to Optimize Credit Scores
As a reader of the GreatCredit101 Blog you already know that credit cards can be a very powerful tool – when used properly – to help drive your credit scores upwards. A credit card with a $0 or very low balance can potentially help to give your credit scores…
Incorrect Personal Data on Credit Report
Errors occur on credit reports. This is a fact, and it’s not really breaking news to anyone at this point either. In fact, the Federal Trade Commission released a study in 2013 which suggests that somewhere between 20 million and 42 million consumers have errors on their credit…
Will Paying Collections Help My Credit Scores?
Paying collection accounts is usually the first place people start when deciding to try to fix a damaged credit report. However, the idea that paying off a collection account will boost a consumer’s credit scores is, unfortunately, very wrong. The FICO credit scoring model was built to help…
Credit Cards: Evil Traps or Useful Tools?
Your credit scores are arguably the most important numbers in your life. After all, credit has an impact upon you when you apply for a mortgage, try to finance a vehicle, open a new utility account, and credit may even impact you when you apply for new insurance…
How Long Can Items Remain On My Credit?
One of the most common credit questions that I hear on a weekly basis is as follows: “How long can an item account remain on my credit report?” If you are a credit savvy consumer then you already know that, thanks to the Fair Credit Reporting Act, there…