Before you start boosting your credit score, you need to know the basics.  You need to know what a credit score is, how it is developed, and why it is important to you in your everyday life.  

Because of the way credit scores are calculated, some actions you take will affect your credit score better than others.  In general, paying your bills on time and meeting your financial responsibilities will boost your score the most.  Owing a reasonable amount of money and being able to repay it will show lenders that you take your finances seriously and pose little threat of lost money.  There are a few tips that, more than any other, will boost your credit score the most:

If you have a lower credit score that you would like, odds are that the score is caused by some small financial mistake or oversight you have made in the past. Not every person with bad credit has a low credit score caused by something they did, though. Sometimes, other people’s criminal activity can affect your credit score.  There are a few tips that can keep you and your credit safe form online and financial predators:

It is easy today to apply for a store credit card that you forget all about in three years – but that account will remain on your credit report and affect your credit score as long as it is open.  Having credit lines and credit cards you don’t need makes you seem like a worse credit risk because you run the risk of “overextending” your credit.

If you want to improve your credit score, you need to go right to the source – your credit report.  Your credit report contains the information and data on which your credit score is based.  If you can alter or update the information in your credit report, your credit score will change to reflect the alterations.  For this reason, getting and checking you credit report is one of the first things you should do when you attempt to repair your credit score.  There are a few tips that can help you deal with your credit report so that you can give your credit score a boost:

Big, bad problems can happen to you – bankruptcies, divorces, law suits, non-payment of taxes.  These are big problems that can affect your credit score in as big way.  If you have faced a large problem that has ruined your credit, you need to take action fast and work consistently to boost your FICO score.

Credit repair is big business, and there are many companies that will promise to help you get out of bad credit problems.  There are a number of legitimate resources that can help you in improving your credit score but there are also a number of less than reputable companies out there that will take your money but offer you few (if any) valuable services.  A few basic tips will help you see the difference:

Your credit score in some ways is meant to be a snapshot of your overall financial habits – especially your habits surrounding debts and other financial responsibilities.  Developing some good financial habits can help your credit score by putting you in a good financial position.  

Good financial habits will ensure that you don’t get into too much debt and that you are able to meet your financial duties easily.  There are a few financial habits that are especially credit-friendly:

If you think like a lender, you can see which habits and traits you need to develop in order to be considered a good credit risk.  Thinking like a lender will help you understand how you must manage your money to be appealing to lenders.  There are few tips that can put you into the right mind set.

Staying organized and on-track is very important when you are trying to boost your credit score, because there are so many details to follow up on and so many things to remember. A few basic organization tips can help make sure that you do not overlook anything that can cost you your good credit score.

Loans affect your credit score more than almost any other item on your credit report.  The types of loans you have, how long you have had loans, the amounts you owe and your payment history on your loans has one of the biggest impacts on your credit score.  If you can control your loans, you can boost your credit score.  There are a few tips that can get you well on your way to painlessly managing your loans.

Credit repair is no picnic.  It requires continual work and effort to get a good credit score and to improve a bad one.  In today’s busy life, you stand a much better chance of getting a better credit score if you make it as easy on yourself as possible.  In many cases, people actually have low credit scores not because of carelessness or indifference, but because hectic lifestyles lead to oversights and missed credit payments.  There are several things you can do to make good credit almost automatic.

Students are increasingly worried about credit and credit scores – and for good reason.  Student debts are rising and the numbers of students who leave school with ruined credit scores is rising as well.  Many experts blame larger credit card debts and rising tuition costs (that lead to larger student loans). 

Debt is a major factor in your credit score.  If you have too much of it (or none at all) or if you have trouble repaying your debts on time, your credit score will plummet.  Keeping your debts reasonable and paid, on the other hand, will do more than almost anything else to improve your credit score.  Here are a few tips that can ensure that your debts actually help you boost your credit score.

It is a subject that few people discuss, but more and more therapists are talking about it – the key link between our emotions and our money.  We may think that money is all about our rational selves, but in fact our emotions are often very much invested in our pocket books.  

Before you head off to enjoy your new and improved credit score or to work on boosting your credit score, consider two more tips that may well come in handy as your try to repair your credit score.