Ten Ways to Improve Your FICOŽ Score
Provided by the credit scoring experts at Fair Isaac Corporation

When you apply for credit, your credit score helps lenders estimate your likelihood of making payments reliably and on time. Fair Isaac Corporation develops the most widely used credit bureau scores. These are known as FICOŽ scores. The higher your score, the more likely you are to be approved for better interest rates, higher credit limits and more types of credit than you would be with a low score.

There are no tricks or quick fixes to getting a good credit score, but you can raise your score over time by demonstrating that you consistently manage your credit responsibly. Here are 10 tips that can help raise your score:

1. Pay your bills on time. Proving that you can pay your bills on time is the best thing you can do to improve your score. And it's never too late to start. Even if you've had serious delinquencies in the past, these will count less over time.
2. Keep credit cards balances low. High outstanding debt can pull your score down.
3. Check your credit report for accuracy. There may be inaccurate information on your credit report that can be easily cleared up. Always contact the original creditor and all three credit bureaus whenever you clear up an error, so that the inaccurate information won't reappear later. Requesting a copy of your credit report won't affect your score if you order it directly from the credit reporting agency or an authorized organization.
4. Pay off debt rather than moving it around. Consolidating your credit card debt on one card or spreading it over multiple cards will not improve your score in the long run. The most effective way to improve your score is by simply paying down the amount you owe.
5. Have credit cards-but manage them responsibly. In general, having credit cards and installment loans which you pay on time will raise your score. Someone who has no credit cards tends to have a lower score than someone who has managed credit cards responsibly.
6. Don't open multiple accounts too quickly - especially if you have a short credit history. This can make you look more risky to a lender because you are taking on a lot of potential debt. New accounts will also lower the average age of your existing accounts, something that your FICOŽ score also considers.
7. Don't close an account to remove it from your record. A closed account will still show up on your credit report and may be considered by the score. In fact, closing accounts can sometimes hurt your score unless you also pay down your debt at the same time.
8. Shop for a loan within a focused period of time. FICOŽ scores distinguish between a search for a single loan and a search for many new credit lines, based in part on the length of time over which recent requests for credit occur.
Don't open credit card accounts you don't need. This approach could backfire and actually lower your score.
10. Contact your creditors or see a legitimate credit counselor if you're having financial difficulties. This won't improve your score immediately, but the sooner you begin managing your credit and making timely payments, the sooner your score will improve.

These tips won't create a dramatic overnight jump in your credit score - developing a solid credit history takes time. A good first step is to order your FICOŽ score through myFICO. When you get your score, you'll also get an explanation of your score, ways you can improve it, and a full credit report from Equifax - one of the three major US credit reporting agencies.