Which brings us to today’s topic – how can you boost your credit score overnight? The fact of the matter is that this is impossible to do, but it can be done relatively quickly, and with little effort on your part.
In most cases, your credit score is a reflection of how well you handle your bills and other financial obligations. If you pay all of your bills on time each month, that’s typically great for your credit score. If you tend to be late on payments or don’t pay certain bills at all, that’s usually bad for your credit score. You can improve your credit score by paying all of your bills as soon as they arrive; it will likely take a few months before any changes show up in your credit report—but doing so will help ensure you have a positive impact. It also makes sense to check in with your credit report provider once every few months; lenders might make small mistakes when recording payments, which can potentially cause issues with what creditors see when considering lending options.
Lenders often provide monthly billing statements these days, but if yours doesn’t provide them automatically (or do not appear online), track them down directly from creditors or through annual mailing lists sent by third-party companies.
Skipping payments is one of the easiest ways to hurt your credit score. If you absolutely can’t make a payment, notify your lender. Missed payments get reported to credit bureaus and can end up lowering your credit score by as much as 100 points. Paying on time improves your rating. Late or missed payments don’t. Even a single late payment can drop your score significantly, so if you want to improve your credit standing then don’t even think about missing a deadline! To raise it immediately after making poor choices with loans or cards, focus on paying down what you owe—fast!
The quicker you pay off balances (and only balances) that are reported on your credit report—the better chances you have of improving that number fast! Be sure to check back in on things regularly by pulling your free annual credit reports. Use our free annual credit report. You won’t find an easier way to stay on top of things! If there’s negative information on your account that isn’t correct, reach out to fix it right away – but only dispute errors made by lenders or merchants/merchants.
