When it comes to financial responsibility, nothing gets you off the right foot in 2019 faster than fixing your credit score, says a Virginia Tech expert. Travis Mountain, an assistant professor in agricultural and applied economics, offers three quick suggestions for repairing less-than-perfect credit.

·         “Reduce your credit card balance. The proportion of your credit card balance to your credit limit represents the second largest component of your credit score.  Reducing this proportion is the quickest way to improve your credit score. This counts as 30 percent of your score.”

·         “Pay at least your minimum payment each and every month. Ideally you would be paying your credit card balance in full every month, but if you are unable to do so, paying the minimum payment counts towards “payment history” which represents the largest portion of your credit score. This counts as 35 percent of your score.”

·         “If you are thinking about taking out a new loan for a large purchase, such as for a home or car, do not apply for other forms of credit, such as a credit card, in the months preceding this new loan. Adding this new line of credit will likely lower your score for two reasons. It will lower your average length of credit and it will count as new credit, which will possibly increase the cost of your home or auto loan.”

Travis Mountain bio page

For more information, contact Bill Foy by email, or by phone at 540-998-0288.

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