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Found 3 posts tagged as "Credit Score"
Having mulitple credit cards can be a good thing, as long as you use them wisely, and never beyond your means.
 If you have good control over your use of credit, don’t close out those extra cards. Not because doing so will necessarily affect your score adversely, but rather keeping them open and using them strategically will, among other benefits, positively affect your score in the following three ways:
Jeff C. writes: "I've been told that I have a decent credit score of 720. How are credit ratings or scores determined?"
Credit scores are based on a calculation system derived by FICO (Fair Isaac Corporation): a company that developed a rating system to apply to your credit report that predicts how good or how risky you are with your credit.
Scores are between 300 and 850 and just like your high school report card, the higher the number the better your score. There are five categories within the model that have specific weightings:
 Most of us are guilty of a few financial bad habits. There's neglecting the family budget you've started, not tracking your spending or expenses, and ignoring your Tax-Free Savings Account. These are common errors that can easily be fixed with a little attention, and making these mistakes shouldn't harm your credit score.
But there are some costly bad habits you may not be aware of that can negatively impact your credit score -- a three-digit number that lenders and insurers use to gauge your credit behaviour to determine if you're a good candidate for a mortgage or other credit. Read the 5 Minute Guide to Your Credit Report and Credit Score to find our more about your score.
If you're looking to buy a home, purchase a vehicle, or qualify for a loan then it pays to avoid these five bad habits. 1. Carrying a big balance.
Are you close to your credit card limit? Spending up to the max may seem like an OK idea -- you were given this much credit after all -- but the closer you are to your limit the more likely it is that credit reporting agencies will see you as a risk of going over the top. If the total amount you owe on all your credit cards and loans is over 80% of your total available credit, then your credit score could take a hit. To avoid this drop, try to stay well below half of your available credit limit.
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