Understanding Your Credit Score with Help From Health IQ

Knowing more about how your credit score works is essential for keeping it as high as possible. There are two major types of credit scores: the FICO Score and the VantageScore. On the FICO scale, good credit starts at 670 points, very good credit starts at 740 points, and exceptional credit is anything over 800. The VantageScore scale is slightly different, with good starting at 700 and excellent starting at 750. Throughout your life, your score may go up or down depending on how you manage your finances. To improve your score, you’ll need to know what affects it.

Some important factors include the amount of debt you’re in, the type and number of accounts you have, and how many late payments you’ve made. At any given time, you should be using no more than 30 percent of the credit available to you. Any more or less, and your score will start to drop. If your scores do drop, there’s no reason or excuse you can give to bring them back up. Unemployment or a death in the family won’t nullify the penalties from late payments, and these black marks stay on your record for up to seven years.

Various agencies may run your credit report to check up on your score. For example, if you’re applying for a student loan from a private lender, they’ll run your report to see just how trustworthy a candidate you are. Employers might also use it to verify your credit and debt history. With good credit, you can save money on services from Health IQ.