Jane Kyrie
Jane Kyrie is a stay at home mother who has 3 children. Her husband, an investment banker, always has had an impeccable credit score, so after their graduation from school, Jane didn’t see the need to have a great credit score. So, her husband gave her a credit card with a limit and he pays it off each month. Jane now has a credit score of 702, which is certainly above the national average but she’s running into problems with this credit score now.
She wants to buy a car of her own and can’t without a better credit score. The dealership she went to wants her credit score to be a little bit better and her credit records to be longer, with more accounts on them. In order to prove a point, she opened three lines of credit that day and maxed out each of her credit cards, and then she forgot to pay the bills! Not only is her husband angry, but her credit score is about to nose dive from 702 to below the national average.
What does this score mean?
If you have a credit score around 700, you should be proud that you have a score that is above the national average! Most people in the United States have a credit score around 680. With a credit score around 700, you can get many lines of credit with great interest rates, lease a car, lease an apartment, etc. However; this credit score is not “better than sliced bread”. It’s actually just barely good enough to get a mortgage. With a few steps, you can have this score up to 750 in no time, at all.
How do you get a credit score around 700?
If you find yourself with a credit score around 700, you may have done some of these things with your finances:
- Not really had a lot of experience with credit cards.
- Not had a lot of experience with other lines of credit.
- Made simple mistakes with credit and not repaired it.
- Paid each bill on time from lines of credit.
- Recently paid off a student loan or debt.
- Always paid at least the minimum balance on credit cards.
How can you improve this credit score?
In order to improve this credit score, consider taking some of the following steps:
1) If you have troubles with your credit score, you should try talking to a credit counselor. Each credit situation is different and therefore, the solutions vary for each person.
2) Give it time! We know that it can be a lot of pressure to wait for a score to go up. However, this will not happen over night. Time will heal this credit score – if you take necessary measures to help.
3) Get some lines of credit open and make sure to pay off your statement, in full, each month.
4) Make sure to balance your lines of credit – this makes all of the difference in your score. For example, if you do not have the money to pay off each credit card, in full, each month, do not spend that money on that card. Only spend what you can pay off.
