You Need To Ask Yourself These 10 Important Questions

Most of the time, understanding how to build, repair, or maintain a good credit status can be a little confusing. To optimize your credit standing or determine if you require credit repair, you can use these ten critical questions.

1. How can I get a credit score without a credit history?

Consumers who have no prior credit history can still build theirs. You can do this in four ways. One way is to get a secured credit card.

You can also get a co-signed loan, earn a non-traditional credit score, or maybe ask a family member to add you as a credit user.

2. Will my score feel an impact if I close a credit card account?

The simple answer is it depends. Do you have multiple cards? If yes, then closing one shouldn’t cause any harm to your credit. However, if it’s your only credit card, you have to keep it open. You also need to maintain your credit utilization under 30%. If you go over that, pay off your debt. That way, you don’t end up needing credit repair.

3. If I get married, will it affect my credit standing?

No, not usually because your spouse has different files. But if you two decide to have a joint account, and one of you has low credit, this could impact your rates or terms.

4. Can bad credit affect my work opportunities?

Yes. Your application can be affected especially if the job you applied for deals with financial duties, as bad credit can make you look like you have poor skills in handling money.

5. Can an old debt still be collected by collection agencies?

Depending on where you live, some states have a statute of limitations on debt collection. Know that if you pay an expired debt, it restarts the debt. Also, even if it’s not expired, old debts can often be negotiated so that you can repay less than what you originally owed.

6. Does having many cards hurt my credit?

As long as you make payments on time and avoid falling too far into debt that you would need credit repair to resolve it, then no, it wouldn’t hurt your credit score. Besides, it’s not having many cards that cause damage, it’s opening new credit cards at the same time.

7. Can I pay off my loan early?

While most loans allow early repayment, some will still refuse you, so it depends on your lender. Also, if you’re not allowed to pay it off early, it wouldn’t hurt your credit score all that much.

8. If I declare bankruptcy, will it affect my credit for life?

No, declaring bankruptcy will not affect your credit forever but it will stay on your credit report for at least seven years. Fixing the damage it inflicted on your credit can’t be done overnight, so you will need to focus all your efforts on credit repair during this period of time.

9. If my spouse passed away, do I need to pay off their debt?

Generally, the deceased person's spouse is not responsible for the other’s debt unless it’s joint or co-signed by you. On the other hand, community property states that the deceased person's spouse is responsible for it.

10. If I co-sign a loan, will it hurt my credit?

Whether it’s a positive or a negative activity on the loan, your credit will still be affected. You need to understand that co-signing a loan is putting your credit on the line and it can impact your ability to get a loan for yourself.

Maintaining a good credit standing means you need to actively pay attention to everything that has the potential to hurt your credit.

However, if you encounter

things that you cannot resolve on your own, T and T Credit Counseling & Consulting can help you! Check out our packages and see which one suits you the best. Building your score and standing back to a healthy level can be a long journey but over time, you will also achieve financial freedom.