What is a credit score and how does credit get mixed and match with someone else
a credit score is a number showing your performance towards your credit profile
it includes all reports of your credit cards, bills like phone etc, loans, mortgages, or any payments with the due date
so a mixture of all credit reports, credit score is a conclusion.
we will explain the mix and match of credit reports at the end first read this for credit score and cards
why credit score and history is important?
it’s very important because if you have good standing credit history and credit score
you can get any loan approved very easily
if you are walking in the shopping mall you like and phone, laptop etc. even if you like any vehicle and even you do not have any amount of money with you just give them your id and credit card if you have a good credit score and history you will get approved for that loan
and is also very important when you need to get mortgages from a bank to buy a house or start a business
and also if you wish to get an apartment or house on rent or a car on rent or you apply for a job they may also ask you for good standing credit
your record is everything keep it clean and in good standings
how it works
if you are making payments on time or before the due date of payment then you are good
but here also we make mistake if we make full payment
because there is a required minimum payment on the due date if you pay the full amount of credit then it does not report for example these 3 circumstances
you have used $100 from your credit card
and you get a statement balance with the minimum payment of $10 due on day 10 of next month
but you paid $100 even before the due date then it will not affect your credit score even not good or bad
it will not increase or decrease your credit score in the upcoming credit score report
but if you make payments of $20, $50,$90 or any amount which is more than a minimum payment amount and less than the full amount then it will reflect in your credit report in a positive manner
means your credit score will go higher in an upcoming report
if your minimum due payment is $10 but you did not make it or made a late payment or less than due payment then it will affect your Credit score in a negative manner you will see your credit score decreasing
in upcoming report
so what you must not do if you want to build your credit and improve your credit score
must make payments on time more than due and less than the full amount
must not make late payments
must not use more than 70% of the credit limit
it’s very important to check this example
if you have a $1000 credit limit and you used $800, $900 or $1000 and even you make full payment of the used amount the same day your credit score gonna be decrease
so don’t do this mistake
try to use a maximum of 75% of the credit limit not more than that
must get more than 2 credit cards
if you get more than 2 credit cards you can not take care properly to maintain payments on time
if you miss any payment it gonna affect your credit score badly
so try to keep maximum 2 credit cards
you can also get 2 or more cards from just one bank
yes you need you can increase the credit limit on existing cards just contact the card provider
which credit cards you must not apply for
you must not apply for any credits cards from stores for example Walmart, Canadian Tire
because any store credit or master card can spoil your credit score very fast
try to get from just banks
why?
if you missed a payment or you made late payment one or two days
banks usually do not care about it but stores report it
so your credit score again gonna decrease
what kind of cards you should apply for
you can get one visa credit card and one MasterCard because there are many things you can do with only specific cards so you can you these 2 at most of the places
Do not close credit accounts
never close credit accounts until you have a great credit history and great credit score
we recommend you do not close even if you have a good standing credit history
for example
you have 5 credit cards and you closed all
then your credit history not gonna be put god impact in a report
even it will be hard to get a card again
what you can do is just do not use cards if you have more than 2
use only 2 cards and stop using others
it will be helpful
once you have deleted credit accounts its gonna be a problem for your credit report
how to fix a bad credit score
do not do many credit checks
whenever you apply for a credit card or try to get any loan even try to get a device on a monthly instalment basis then also run a credit check if you do these things each time your credit score gonna be 10-20 points within minutes and it can take up to 2 months to add 20 points in your credit score
if you have already any credit card
then use it less than 70% and make payments on time
use credit cards everywhere not debit
only credit cards and bills can improve your credit history and score
if you closed your account or your bank denied issuing you a credit card not to worry you can apply for a secured credit card
what’s a secured credit card?
if your credit history is bad or has a low credit score then the bank can issue secured credit
to get a secured credit card you have to put the upfront amount of credit limit you want basically its your own money you give to the bank and you get a credit card of that amount
it’s only to improve credit score and build a good standing credit history
so you can use it and make payments on time then they will give you an unsecured credit card later on
and once you get it you can get your money back for a secured credit card
from where you can get a secured credit card
from your bank usually, TD bank, Scotia bank etc. provide secured credit card you have to contact your bank for that
or you can get a secured master card from Capital One and you can do it online
follow these steps
for that click here
and click on check now
fill all the details
confirm your loans or credit cards etc to verify yourself
and apply online
then they will send you an email
and again email once it’s approved with your secured credit limit
once you get the email they will ask you to pay an upfront amount of secured credit limit
then once you made payment
you will get an email notification as well and a secured credit card in the mailbox
and pin for that card in a separate mail
once you get a card to activate it and start using it and make payments on time and use less than 70% of your credit limit after a few months your credit score will be going up and they will give you an offer for an unsecured credit limit once you accept it
your credit limit will be increased and you will see a positive change in the credit reports
we wish you all the best to improve your credit score back into good standings
Mix and match Credit
when you go to the bank to apply for a credit card or get a loan etc. sometimes they say you already have a loan under your name and you get shocked even you have no idea what’s they are talking about
it can also happen even when you just came to Canada
why does it happen?
because our names are similar specially Punjabi, Indian and Pakistani names
we are also of Raman, Jaswinder, Aman, Ali, Rahul etc.
and most of us use Singh and Kaur , Khan etc. as the last name on documents
so it makes it more complicated and the date of birth also matches many times
how to fix it
first, get accurate information about this dispute if you are not sure you can also request a copy of your credit report once a year for free from Equifax
If you believe the information on your credit report has been mixed with that of someone else, you should submit a dispute with all of the credit bureaus that have incorrect information on your credit reports.
When submitting your dispute, identify the information that does not belong to you. This may include addresses, other identification information, and credit accounts.
You’ll need to provide documentation to verify your identity. The documents required will depend on the information you are disputing, but required information may include:
- Your full name, including middle name and suffix, such as Jr., Sr., II, III
- Your date of birth
- Your Social Security number
- Your current address, including apartment number if applicable
If you think you know who the incorrect information belongs to, such as a relative, please let the credit bureau know since that may help them resolve your dispute faster.
For more information on how to submit a dispute with the three nationwide credit bureaus, click here.
choose Equifax
and register an account
and
fill all details in the report form and submit a dispute
you will provide all details about what loan you have and what’s dispute is
and they will request you for copies of your documents once you provide then they will fix it
if you do not get a response you can also call or email
once they have provided you claim or case or report number then keep that for your records and you can follow up by providing that number.