Lenders use your credit score to determine your creditworthiness. It is essentially a grade that tells them how likely you are to pay them back in full and on time. This grade will influence whether you can get approved for mortgages, auto loans, credit cards, rental apartments, and even may affect your employment.
Needless to say, it’s vital to keep up to date with your credit score, but how often can you check it?
How Often do Credit Score Update?
Your credit score updates once every 30-45 days. Credit scores fluctuate as new data is added to your credit report so it may update more frequently. Some factors that influence your score include your balance amount, loans, bill payments, opening new accounts, etc.
This information is sent from your creditors to any of the three main credit bureaus— Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion. If your creditor sends an update to Equifax one week and Experian another, you may find discrepancies between scores.
How Often do Credit Reports Update?
Your credit score is based on your credit report. Creditors typically report to credit bureaus monthly, but they may send this data at different times of the month and to different credit bureaus. The credit bureaus then input the data from your credit report into proprietary formulas that determine a numerical value representing your credit worthiness.
How to Check Your Credit Score for Free
It’s good financial hygiene to habitually check your credit score to make sure they are accurate and you aren’t falling behind. You don’t want to be surprised by a poor score when you need to take out a loan or rent an apartment.
You can check your weekly reports from all three credit bureaus for free until the end of 2022 through AnnualCreditReport.com. CreditKarma and Equifax also offer free credit score checks. These count as soft inquiries, so they don’t affect your credit.
What Influences Your Credit Score?
The two main factors that affect your credit score are payment history and credit utilization. Credit utilization is the amount of your credit limit in use.
For example, imagine you have two credit cards, each with a $500 limit. You owe $250 on each. Your credit utilization is determined by dividing your credit limit ($1000) by what you owe ($500), or 50%. Credit experts recommend trying to keep your credit utilization below 30%.
Other factors that influence your credit score in order from most important to least are the length of your credit history, credit mix, and recent applications.
How to Raise Your Credit Score Quickly
Making more than a minimum payment, keeping a good credit utilization, having a long credit history, and a solid credit mix will keep your credit score healthy over time, but what if you need to take out an auto loan next month and you want to give your score a quick boost? Here are some things you can do:
- Pay down your balance — Pay off the balance on your credit cards to get your credit utilization below 30%.
- Increase your credit limit — You can request a higher credit limit, which will generate a more favorable utilization.
- Search for report errors — Scan your credit reports for missed or late payments that may be inaccurate.
- Ask for a rapid rescore — See if your lender will give you a rapid rescore, which will enable lenders to request the most up-to-date version of your credit report.
How to Manage Your Debt
If you are struggling to manage your debt, consider reaching out to a debt relief company that can help you recover.
Americor has relieved $2 billion dollars in debt over 30 states. They are fully accredited by the Better Business Bureau (BBB), the American Fair Credit Council (AFCC), and the International Association of Professional Debt Arbitrators (IAPDA). With over 400 employees, Americor can tailor the optimal solution to your situation and help you navigate these uncertain financial times.
Determine if you qualify for debt settlement, get a free debt analysis, and receive credit counseling by talking to a certified debt consultant today.
