What is Your Best Credit Score? | McCarthy Law PLC
September 3, 2013

What is Your Best Credit Score?

According to the Huffington Post, “the highest credit score is not the score you should be shooting for.” We tend to agree at McCarthy Law, as “the whole point of a credit score is to get you the best rates and credit limits when you are applying for loans and credits.”  Sometimes you can have an extremely high credit score, but be leveraged up to the gills and not be able to qualify for a re-finance. In this position, your high credit score means nothing. A credit score only has value if it can help you obtain more credit.

FICO says that the best rates and highest credit limits will be obtained if you have a credit score of 760 or above. According to the Huffington Post, here are some basics about getting the optimal credit score with commentary by McCarthy Law:

1. Keep paying things on time. – YES! Definitely.

2. Don’t cancel any of your credit cards. – Canceling a credit card is different than closing a credit card during a negotiated settlement. You should not cancel a credit card if you are not swamped in credit card debt. If you are paying off your credit cards every month, then cancelling a card will hurt your credit score. But if you are only making minimum payments, closing your credit cards and negotiating a settlement with your creditors will help improve your credit score and your access to credit in the long run.

3. Open the lines of communication with your credit card lenders. – This can be positive, but it is best not to negotiate with your creditors on your own. This is not only extremely stressful, but you are also unaware of what a reasonable settlement might be for that particular creditor, how to assert factual and legal defenses to the debt, what violations can occur under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act and the Fair Credit Reporting Act, etc. Contact a professional who does this for a living and can protect your rights.

4. Sign up for a secured credit card. – This is okay and can improve a credit score.

5. Make sure there are no mistakes on your credit report. – Yes! Check your free annual credit report and be an active consumer.

Read the full article here: https://www.huffingtonpost.com/simple-thrifty-living/what-is-the-optimal-credi_b_3845664.html

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