Prime Rate Credit

Another tip, which seems very “common sense”, but is actually key in keeping good credit and building good credit from virtually nothing, is to pay your bills on time, all the time.

Paying your bills in a timely manner is important because some companies report late payments as well as just plain old delinquencies to the credit bureau, who is in charge of your individual credit report.

A system that I’ve found works very well for me is to keep track of them either on a written list, which I keep in my purse with me at all times, usually in my checkbook, so it’s easily accessible, of all of my bills for the month, when they are due, and mark them off when I’ve paid them so I know I don’t need to worry about them.

I then write down the same bills again the next month, and start with a new list, and do it allover again. This way, I know EVERY MONTH I am paying my bills on time. Not only does just doing this one simple and obvious thing help dramatically improve your credit, it also prevents you from having to pay those silly late fees on credit cards and phone bills. Heck, I think even my phone company now charges a nominal late fee in the form of about $.20.

The credit cards are the worst because many of them charge anywhere from $30 to $40 just for being late on one month’s credit payment. This can really set you back, especially if you’re only able to pay the minimums on your cards!

Remember late payments and missed payments are an almost fail safe way to damage your credit, and we all know that repairing our credit takes much longer and takes much more gumption to correct than it does to mess up.

Take care of your bills on time, it will save you a lot of headaches and a lot of wasted money in higher interest on loans that you will need to take out later in life.