There are a number of steps you can take
A credit score is more than just a number tucked away in some credit agency’s files. Poor credit can hinder car loans, mortgages and school options, ratchet up interest rates and push life goals out of reach.
If you’re dealing with out-of-control debt, step two is to evaluate your accounts and develop a repayment plan — especially collection items — possibly closing some credit accounts, says Jacqui Allard, who oversees personal financing products at the Royal Bank of Canada. Paying a collection agency debt in full will remove the negative effect on your credit report in about three years. Settling with a credit agency for less than the amount owed will also put you in the clear, but will stain your report for its full six- or seven-year tracking period, according to Scott Hannah, chief executive of the Credit Counselling Society, based in the Vancouver area.
Maintaining a low outstanding balance in relation to the borrowing cap on a credit card or line of credit will bolster your rating, Hannah said. Punctual payments, whether on loans or cellphone bills, are a must, as payment history factors in to credit scores. For home hunters with checkered borrowing histories, he suggests going to a mortgage broker who will check their score only once, rather than making the rounds at individual banks.
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