I notice a lot of questions on how to raise your credit score so I thought I would share my journey from a 580 to a 780, and tips that help me arrive at this new score that opens up all types of possibilities but is not without it's set of challenges.
- I started out low, although I had a long standing credit history I was never educated on how to pay my bills on time or prioritize my debts, so I always found my score fluctuating between 600-660 and couldn't break from there.
- I went to a community credit counselor who taught me about credit scoring. He also helped me identify zombie debts, lates that were on my credit past 7-years, how to dispute things as small as inquiries, bad addresses and misspellings in my name which showed up on my report. With him, I was able to remove 3 accounts and a set of 90-day lates from student loans which had been reporting past 7-years.
- I took out a secured card with Wells Fargo for $300 until I could get my own credit card.
- Had a family member add me to an open card and was able to get some credit worthiness, but that wasn't the fix…
The fix was to pay my bills on time. I know it sounds cliche, but I made sure to pay my bills before I bought groceries. It's that extreme. You must pay your bills and be patient. This process took me over 5 years. It seems like a long time, but it isn't because in the process you'll learn how to earn and allocate money toward your commitments.
Tips:
Don't pay your bills late.
If you're going to be late ask for a waiver of fees.
Keep your credit card debt lower than 30%. Try to pay a bill like cell phone or internet with your card and pay it off each month.
Keep your cards below the limit, try not to go over it.
Dispute anything you can on your report.
Pay collections but negotiate a lower rate and make sure you have them agree to remove them (This is a big score booster)
Don't close cards, just don't use them if their at a 0 balance. Open credit you don't use helps you.
If you want to buy a house, wait to buy a new car.
Ask me anything.
Way to go! Thanks for sharing
It's so worth it! Congrats!
Great job & Congratulations!!
I remember numbers like that, before I got sick in America and ended up on SSDI.
Those are some rich tips. I can't wait to say the same sentence and beyond: "My credit score hit 780+…"
@Nneka H., congratulations on your achievement, and thanks for sharing these tips. I was wondering if you could share your experience with credit report disputes. I recently had a hard inquiry from Verizon that I did not initiate. I submitted a dispute with the credit reporting bureaus and worked with Verizon, who agreed that I did not initiate the inquiry. Despite all that, the hard inquiry remains on my credit reports.
Congratulations! Thank you for the advice.
Well done.
An additional tip is to put a balance (one that you have no problem paying off immediately) on a credit card and allow the billing cycle to come and have that balance posted. For example, put 100 bucks on your Visa and then allow it to cycle so that you receive your bill with the 100 dollar balance on it. Immediately pay the entire balance (not just the minimum payment). You still will not pay any interest but this will get logged on your credit report. If you pay off that 100 bucks before it cycles it never gets reported so it does your credit no good. Do this every other month on all your cards, it is a huge credit boost.
Yo estoy haciendo lo mismo , ya me falta muy poco para terminar de pagar todas mis tarjetas !!!!
I just got the word today that my debt has been removed my my credit score :D Happy Day
I just got the word today that my debt has been removed my my credit score :D Happy Day
Being debt-free is such a relief. Congrats!
This is great advice! Congratulations 🥳
What did they say to do about old late payments? I have 5 late payments on my student loans from a long time ago and I've disputed and it still has not been removed?
Hello! I am also trying to increase my credit score. I currently have a 585 due to high balances on my credit cards and some late payments. I plan to have them all paid off by 2023. Increasing your credit score is definitely a long process but worth it in the end, great read! 
By getting a variety of credit cards and paying them on time you can increase your credit score.
