If you have a credit card in your wallet, you have a credit history. If you have a loan or have borrowed money for a large purchase, you have a credit history. When it comes to financial dealings, it’s good to know your history. You don’t need to know every little detail though, and that’s where a credit report comes in.

Your credit report plays an important role when it comes to financial milestones like purchasing a home or buying a car. It tells the story of your credit history by letting potential lenders know if you pay your bills on time and how much debt, if any, you are carrying. You will want to ensure that it demonstrates your responsibility in terms of finances so it’s a good idea to review it on a regular basis.

Thankfully, under federal law, you have the right to get one free report each year from the three national credit bureaus (Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion). To make things easy, you can request your reports online from a single website: AnnualCreditReport.com.

By providing some identifying information like your name, places you have lived, Social Security number and your birthday, you will be able to get a detailed report that outlines all of your credit related data.

Be proactive and check this report at least three times each year or before you apply for a loan, insurance, or credit. Not only is it a good way to identify signs of potential identity theft, it’s also important to make sure there are no mistakes or errors that would cause you to miss out on lower interest rates.

Since you can get one free report from each bureau annually, consider spacing them out over the span of a year and get one every four months. This way, you can catch any discrepancies early to reduce any negative impact it may have. You have worked hard to build a good credit report so make sure to check it often.

You’re certainly not the first adult to ruin your credit. For some of you, this has happened, not once but twice. In fact, 68% of Americans destroy their credit by the age of 30. The good thing is, it can be fixed. The bad thing is, the longer it takes to fix it, the more it will continue to have a negative impact on your life. While many of us received our first credit card as a teenager, a great percentage of us have never received the proper education and consulting necessary to go with it. Because of this, we have been more prone to ruin our credit, way before we understand the smart way to utilize it.

So, your credit is bad, now what?

The first thing you should do is find out how bad is Bad.

When calculating your credit score, a number of factors weigh-in, to determine your creditworthiness. The two most popular scoring companies for rating credit scores in the United States are FICO and VantageScore. While both companies may utilize different approaches when it comes to calculating credit scores, they meet in the middle on those factors that matter the most. Such factors include:

Your Payment History

The sum of all charges you have made via your account in general, including debit, credit and savings accounts.

Credit Utilization

The amount of revolving credit you’re currently using divided by the total amount of revolving credit you have available. In other words, it’s how much you currently owe divided by your credit limit.

Credit Mix

The types of accounts that make up a consumer’s credit report. The credit mix determines 10% of a consumer’s FICO score.

Credit Inquiries

A soft credit inquiry refers to all credit inquiries where your credit is not being reviewed by a potential lender. A hard inquiry occurs when a financial institution, such as a lender or credit card issuer, checks your credit when making a lending decision. They commonly take place when you apply for a mortgage, loan or credit card, and you typically have to authorize them.

Total Debt and Balances

The sum of all short- and long-term debt. Net debt is calculated by subtracting all cash and cash equivalents from the total of short- and long-term debt. Short-term debt adds all categories of debt due in less than 12 months.

Payment history for FICO, accounts for 35% of your score, meanwhile, credit utilization accounts for another 30%. There are other major factors to consider still. Do you have negative remarks on your credit report, such as bankruptcies, or even collections?

Negative information can stay on your credit report for over seven years from the date of the last activity and up to ten years for bankruptcies. With these factors dragging your score down, lenders will either avoid you or hit you with unrealistic interest rates, leaving you with little to no money left in your pocket each month.

As bad as all of this sounds, there’s hope. No matter what negative items are reporting on your credit account right now, you can have them removed and start rebuilding your credit within the next thirty days. That’s right—repossessions, evictions, late payments, etc. But you have to start now.

Your next move should be to consult with a professional credit repair specialist.

Make the move today that will change your life tomorrow. Speak with a professional now.

If student loan debt is causing you headaches, an income share agreement may be able to get you out of your student loan debt. Defynance has a product that will let you refinance your student loan debt using a debt-free income share agreement.  It’s best to explore all available options when dealing with your credit! 

This article was written by at the forefront of her Entrepreneurial professions, Leslie T Mitchell has taken the world of business by storm. Most recently, her hosting of “Woman on Assignment”, a television show that focuses on an accelerated approach towards empowerment, through teaching the modalities of establishing a solid financial infrastructure. Has reached and impacted thousands through her following and present community. We would like to present a blog that she has worked tirelessly on, as a non-profit life aid tool for the public.

Avoid unnecessary credit inquiries to keep a good credit score

A factor, although a tiny one, is the number of inquiries you have on your credit report. Once you see that you got a great credit score, you may be attempted to apply for many new lines of credit. This could end up hurting you and your credit score. Each time you apply to a new line of credit, an inquiry will show up on your account and stay there for two years. Even though it plays a minor role, this can still hurt your new credit score and affect access to credit.

Don’t open too many accounts too quickly

One of the largest factors in your credit score is the average age of your credit. Opening too many accounts in a short period of time could tank your average credit age, especially if you don’t have many credit lines. While also adding new inquiries, your credit score would lower until you hold the credit for a longer period of time.

In a similar vein, closing any open accounts that you have will also affect your average age of credit. If you’ve had a credit card for a few years and decide to close it because you got a new one, you would only be hurting your score further. Having both the cards would be beneficial for the length of credit and also your debt utilization. If you keep the old card, you will have a higher total credit limit to utilize. 

Keep making payments on time to keep a good credit score

This one should be a no-brainer. You made payments on time to get your credit score and now you have to continue to do so to keep your good credit score. Remember that late payments will stay on a credit report for up to seven years, so they’re not easy to get rid of. Just keep making your payments on time and avoid using too much credit that would stretch your income.

Don’t use too much of your credit

Another large factor in your credit score is your credit utilization. You generally want to keep the amount of credit you use across all your credit cards to below 30% of your total credit limit. Of course, the lower you can keep it the better. One way to do this is to just pay off your credit card in full at the end of each month, if possible. This way you never have to worry if you are using too much of your credit and tank your credit score.

Remember that credit isn’t free money and just because you have access to more credit, doesn’t mean that you should use it. It can be easy to go crazy and start spending, but this could end up hurting you and your credit score in the long run. Also, always track your credit score using a tool like ​Credit Karma​. These tools can show you how your credit score is progressing and also give you tips to keep your score high or even improve it. 

If student loans are giving you and your credit score headaches, you could try refinancing them. ​Defynance​ offers a refinancing solution that uses ​income share agreements​, instead of a traditional loan. This helps ensure that your payments are always affordable, so even if you’re in a cash crunch, it can be one less debt payment to worry about.