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Now that you know what credit is and why it’s so important you may be wondering how to ensure your credit is good? What are the simply daily, monthly, yearly actions you can take to ensure you always have good credit? Today I am going to lay those out for you so you can stay on top of it.

10 Ways To Ensure Your Credit Is Good

Paying Balances Each Month: This is something I only wish I had done from the beginning. But pay off your credit card balances each month. Don’t carry over a balance. It’s just not worth it. Paying your card off every month shows you aren’t spending beyond your means.

Not Making Late Payments: I will go into auto payments more below but DO NOT MAKE LATE PAYMENTS! I always have bills scheduled to deduct either on their due date or a day or two before. I just think it’s easier and gives you so much less stress. Late payments can really hurt your credit especially if they are VERY late payments.

Going Over Your Credit With A Professional: This could be a financial planner or a service like Lexington Law. If your credit score is low or needs improvement having someone go over it with you and figure out what’s wrong is key. You want to do this before it’s too late. Don’t wait until you need to be approved for a loan or mortgage.

Disputing False Claims On Your Credit: This is another great thing Lexington Law can help you with. If you have a ton of stuff on your report that is not your fault or false they can go in and help you dispute these things. I can’t tell you how much disputing a false claim and having it removed can help your credit.

Not Opening Too Many Accounts At Once: Such a mistake I see made by young people especially. Once you get approved for one credit card you think “oh great I will open more!” Well, too many hard inquiries (what happens when your credit is pulled) can really ding your score. These can stay on your report for around 12 months so you don’t want to have more than one or two at a time. Here is some in-depth info about hard inquiries.

Don’t Max Out Cards: DO NOT MAX OUT YOUR CARDS! Credit utilization is a huge factor in your credit score. This means the ratio of credit you have to credit used. Maxing out a card can really hurt this! Keeping your credit utilization under 10% is ideal.

Keep Up To Date On Other Bills: I know I talk about credit cards a lot but other bills are just as important. Things like medical bills, tickets, student loans, mortgage payments, etc. Most of these can be done on auto-pay (more below) but one off payments can easily fall through the cracks. My tip is to pay them as soon as they come! Don’t shove in a drawer, or let them pile up on a counter.

Set Autopay up: Autopay is my very favorite tool in the world of bills. Who has time to remember to sit down monthly and pay bills? I don’t! We have pretty much everything on auto-pay that can be! Credit cards, mortgage, utility bills, student loans, car payments, etc. Any recurring payment should be on autopay if there’s a way to do it! This will save you so much time and so many headaches! It’s also a great way to ensure you don’t have late payments.

Compare Rates Before: Before you open a new account compare the rates for similar accounts. Sure maybe that one credit card has awesome miles or rewards but a super low interest rate is key!

Stay On Top Of Your Finances: This is the most important! Know what’s going on with your finances. Double check that bills are on autopay, make sure payments are being made, make sure balances are paid off, make sure you are looking at credit cards and no charges have been made that you didn’t make, make sure there aren’t accounts open in your name that you didn’t open etc. This is why Lexington Law is so wonderful! If any of these negative things are going on they can help! They can make sure you are on the right track and getting negative items removed.

Ensuring your credit is good is only going to help you in the long run. These 10 things are such great habits to get into at any stage in your life! Having one account or 50 you need to stay on top of things!

How do you ensure your credit is good?