Jean Chatzky
Do one thing: Review your credit reports every few months. This is one way to ensure there are no errors in the reports that could drag your score down. You can check your report with SavvyMoney through online or mobile banking or at annualcreditreport.com.
Millions Seeking Higher Credit Scores
When building a better credit score, the task can feel insurmountable at times, especially when progress may take months to achieve.
It may help to know you’re not alone.
Right now, there are millions of Americans working to improve their credit scores – that three-digit number that spans from 300 to 850. One recent poll put the number of U.S. adults working on bumping up their scores at nearly 80% – which is almost 4 in 5 people.
When Does My Credit Score Update?
While it’s difficult to pinpoint precisely when your credit score is updated, there is some general information available that can be used to inform the process. Credit reports are typically updated when credit card issuers and other lenders send in new information to credit reporting agencies. The largest national credit reporting agencies are Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion.
Those agencies usually receive new credit information every 30-45 days from lenders, according to TransUnion. So it’s reasonable to assume your credit score could change each time your reports are updated. And because many people have more than one type of credit line, your credit report can potentially be updated multiple times in a month (by various loan issuers), which can cause your score to fluctuate up or down as new information rolls in.
Why Do I Have Different Scores?
Because lenders aren’t required to send your credit information to all of the credit reporting agencies, you could have slightly different scores depending on the agency that fulfills a request for the score.
Where to Find Your Credit Score
While credit reports are used to determine your credit scores, the credit reports you can get for free every week typically don’t include a score.
Here are some places to get your credit scores:
- On your monthly credit card or loan statement
- From a nonprofit credit counselor or agency
- Through a credit score service.
Pro tip: Those who use the SavvyMoney tool have access to their TransUnion credit score 24/7 through online and mobile banking.
Checking in on Your Credit Reports
As we mentioned earlier, your credit report is different from your score. Since the pandemic, a lot has changed when it comes to the ability to take a look at our credit reports. Now, anyone can view their reports once per week. You can check your reports at annualcreditreport.com.
Smart Financial Habits to Build (and Maintain) Your Credit Score
To make sure you are on the right track to boosting your credit score, follow these financially healthy habits.
- Spread out how often you apply for new credit. Unless you are shopping for a mortgage or car loan, it’s a good idea to only apply for a new card every six months or so – and truly only when it’s needed. If you have too many hard pulls on your credit it can lower your score.
- Pay all of your bills on time every month. This money rule to live by really can’t be stressed enough. Why? Because even one late payment (for someone with a higher score) can mean a drop of 90-100 points.
- Hang on to older accounts and credit cards. Part of your credit score is your credit history. Lenders want to see that you can handle your finances successfully over time.
- Automate loan payments and other bills. Do this to avoid late fees and dings to your credit score. After all, you don’t want to let forgetfulness become the reason you are late with a payment and a drop in your score.
- Create a monthly spending plan. When you live on a budget, you are in essence telling your money where it needs to go every month. Having more control of your finances means you can direct more money to paying certain bills, saving for the future, and even planning for retirement — in other words, meeting all your goals.
With reporting by Casandra Andrews
Chris O'Shea
