Quickest Way to Raise a Credit Score by 100 Points

Although the common belief is that you cannot raise your credit score quickly and that it requires quite a bit of patience and dedication, there are some ways that you can get to work on raising your credit score that won't hurt your bank account and, more importantly, allow you to get the needed loans you may want in the future. Raising the credit score by 100 points is a great way to get those easy approvals.

Get Your Reports

There are three credit companies that creditors rely on for an evaluation of how safe an investment you are. These three companies---Experian, Equifax, and TansUnion---keep track of everyone's credit, and each has a different report of you. You can go online to get them, or call the companies and ask for your credit report. You want to get your reports so that you can go through and make sure all the information is legitimate. You might find a name discrepancy or, more dangerously, you might find that you have a line of credit listed that you didn't open. In the end, getting your credit scores is the first step in raising your credit, because you have all the facts in front of you.

Pay Down Credit as Much as Possible

It is important to start knocking the credit down as much as possible. You don't have to get rid of it (that will come in time), but if you can get it down so you only owe 30 percent of the total amount you can borrow, you will demonstrate to the credit agencies that you are good. This can easily raise your credit score anywhere from 10 to 100 points. You can get upwards of 250 extra points if you get rid of any odds and ends such as late payments and missed payments.

Negotiate, Negotiate, Negotiate

While it might seem better to just hide away from your credit card companies, it is much better to contact them and discuss your credit with them. Often they can help lower your interest, eliminate any late fees, and increase your repayment period, which makes your payments easier to make. This shows the credit agencies that you are responsible enough to negotiate, which can increase your credit by anywhere from 25 to 100 points.

Pay It All Off

Once you have the creditor's word (on paper) that it will remove any late fees and late payments from your information, or at least make mention in your account that you paid and negotiated, you can get rid of all the debt. Once the credit card company has its money back, it will make that mark in the account, which could raise the credit report anywhere from 10 to 60 points.