How Can I Improve My FICO Scores Right Now?

Your FICO score is a credit score calculated using the formula developed by the Fair Isaac Corporation. Financial institutions report your financial history to credit bureaus, and the credit bureaus calculate your credit score. The three major bureaus in the United States are Experian, Equifax and TransUnion. Having a good credit score will increase your chances of being approved for a loan and getting a low interest rate. Though it takes time to drastically improve your credit score, there are steps you can take to improve your score in the short term.

Instructions

1

Check your credit report to understand the different accounts that are used to calculate your score. According to the Fair Isaac Corporation, you can check your own credit report with no negative consequences for your own credit score.

2

Get any delinquent accounts current as quickly as possible. Current does not mean that you have to have them paid off, just up to date. For example, even if you only make the minimum payment on your credit card, you are still reported as being current on the account.

3

Pay down your balances. According to MSN Money, your credit score will be higher if you are using less than 30 percent of your available credit.

4

Even out your balances on your different credit cards if you cannot pay them down. For example, if you have two credit cards, each with a line of credit of $5,000, instead of carrying a balance of $4,000 on one and $0 on the other, it would be better to have $2,000 on each, according to Bankrate.

5

Challenge any errors you find on your credit report. All three credit bureaus allow you to dispute any incorrect information online through their websites. Even correcting a late payment or two can help improve your FICO score.