Your credit score is more important to your total financial health now than ever before! Everyone wants a higher credit score, but not that many people really understand how pervasive credit scores really are.
What does a credit score affect? Here is a starter list….I’ll add more later:
- Home Loans – mortgages
- Home Equity Loans and Lines of Credit
- Employment options (hey, I live near D.C.)
- Auto Insurance rates
- Car Loans (more about this one later)
- Business Loans
- House and Rental Insurance rates
- Store Credit Card interest rates
- Mastercard and Visa interest rates
Enough for now, we’ve got a good starter list. I welcome other ideas and I’ll add them…
The impact of credit scores today is even bigger than how much your interest rate will be on a home loan. The real impact is whether you will even get a home loan!!!
Today it’s the difference between being qualified and not qualified. The days of easy credit are over for a while, maybe a long while, and a credit score is absolutely critical to obtaining financing and especially financing on good terms.
Qualify: Can I even get a loan?!?
Home loans used to be available for people with under 600 credit scores.
Now what do you need to have a good discussion with a loan officer? OVER 700….higher?
Even people with high credit scores (700-800) are having trouble getting loans, but the real lesson is that people with a LOW credit score, no matter what their other qualifications are really just out of the market.
Many people are turning to professional Credit Repair providers to improve their credit scores. This is a smart move, considering how much scores impact the cost of living.
Try to buy a car – that used to be easy too, and it’s still easier than buying a house. Read the fine print on dealer financing:
GM just announced a requirement of 700 minimum credit score for some of their financing deals. That is going to start squeezing the number of people that can use those programs.
Try to get a credit card – medium credit scores will still get you there….but it won’t be the good card, with the good terms. Read the fine print….if you don’t qualify for the card advertised here, we have the option of offering you a different card or terms or even moving you to a sister company…
You get the idea — credit scores can work for us or work against us. Millions of Americans seek Credit Repair services to improve their credit scores and get them working for them.
High credit scores save consumers money because they qualify for lower interest rates (loans, insurance, other items) – that means that we are spending less of our paycheck on interest payments.
Consequently, LOW credit scores keep us trapped into worse interest rates on a house, a car, credit cards, insurance, and the list goes on. The translation is that all these things cost more, just because our credit score is low.
“How can I fix my credit?” This is one of the questions I get most often today.
You work on the ‘positives’ and get help with the ‘negatives’ — that is my standard answer, and it works for most people and works quickly.
Positives – focus on current and future cash flow issues. Pay your bills on time and work to reduce your debt load; generate ‘cash for now‘ and use it wisely. These actions will add positive items to your credit report and increase your score.
Negatives – get professional help to remove negative items from your credit score. Choose a Credit Repair Service that eliminates negatives, works quickly, has a proven track record, and offers a guarantee so you’re confident you are moving in the right direction. Get it started and then just track it.
Credit scores are more important now than ever before. Luckily, with a little care and feeding, your credit score can grow into a real asset for you and your financial plan.
