Improving Credit Scores
Credit agencies offer several ways to improve credit ratings. The first and perhaps most obvious way to improve one’s credit rating is to pay bills on time and manage debt responsibly. Making advanced payments will reflect positively on a credit score; it’s also a great way to make up for late or missed payments.
Credit cards can be tricky—they can pull credit scores up or down depending on how they are handled. It’s not a good idea to close unused accounts just to raise one’s credit score, or to get new credit cards to raise available credit. Credit card balances should be kept low to avoid reaching or approaching the credit limit. Rather than transferring debt to new accounts—thus making the debt more recent—it’s better to just pay it off and lose the debt altogether.