Many of us may not know our credit score, some may not even be aware of a credit score, that is until they attempt to apply for credit of some sort, be it a credit card, mortgage or apartment rental. To most, they view our credit score as a one dimensional number, nothing more, hence the reason it is so important for us to become more aware of what our credit score is. People see our credit score as an indication of who we are as people. Frankly, I don?t feel that I should be judged for not having paid a bi during my college years, but unless we become proactive regarding our credit report, that is how it will be.

Let?s consider the elements that make up our credit report and ultimately decided our credit score. The first factor is payment history. Basically do you pay your bills on time. The second factor they look at is your outstanding debt. How much do you owe and to whom do you owe it? The third factor is length of credit history. I feel this category is very biased against young people trying to establish credit. This category leaves them little to no way to get around, they are only so old, therefore could only have a credit history so long, right? We?ll get into that later. Lastly they look at recent inquiries made by different credit companies be it credit cards, mortgages, etc. and what types of credit you have, credit cards, auto loans, fixed or revolving accounts.

Now many of us may look at these categories and think that, for the most part, the factors are out of our control, unable to be manipulated with, but that is untrue! Let?s look more at each element of your credit report. The first thing we mentioned was payment history. Now this is somewhat straight forward, but many times they may have misinformation or information that is all together untrue! This is why you should always be aware of what is on your credit report, so that you can make sure it is a true representation of you. Secondly is your outstanding debt, this factor obviously is something you need to work on yourself to get the debt down, never pay only minimums on your credit cards, if you can help it. Obviously certain circumstances do arise that make this impossible at times, but you need to become more aware of spending in these times. Loan companies like mortgages, and other types of insurance will look at what is known as your debt to income ration, the ideal ratio is 35%. That means your debt should only make up 35% of your total income you bring in.

The third factor is credit history, the somewhat biased factor. Now I said this is something that you can?t get around, but you can lengthen your credit history at least how it appears on you credit report. How? By asking an older person with good great standing and a longer credit history to add you to one of their accounts as a user on their account, It will appear on your credit report as you having that credit card for as long as the older person has had that account open. Pretty tricky huh?

After looking at this information on your credit report you may find some errors, misreported information or negative items on your report and take the initiative to fix your credit report. This may seem like an overwhelming task but it really isn?t. If you try to just contact a credit agency they will most likely give you the run around unless you know what you are doing, the best ways to negotiate with them and probably most importantly, what your rights are. There are many resources out there to help you effectively negotiate with credit agencies and you should take advantage of others experience and expertise in this area. One site, www.creditrepairplan.com helps to take the confusion and overwhelming aspects of this process away. They help give you a calendar to follow, sample letters to get effective responses from creditors and so much more. They show you how to not get your accounts red flagged and cause you an up hill battle to get anything removed.

Your credit report is something that many may not even think about until they need credit. Take the steps now to fix your credit report and in the end, when you really need credit, you will save yourself with lower rates. Good luck and please, look at your credit report today and make it a true representation of you!