This great tip will help you whether you are buying a new house, a new car, a cell phone, or applying for homeowners insurance! With the rapidly changing conditions we've seen in the real estate and mortgage industries, it's critical to keep your credit score as high as possible. Some employers pull credit reports on job applicants, so it will even help there. These quick tips will help increase your overall credit score.

First, never cancel or close a credit card that is more than 2 years old. Having a "seasoned" account, one that is more than 2 years old is a big plus for you. In fact the older the better. Next, increase your maximum allowable credit limit. In other words, if you have a credit card that is close to its maximum balance, call the credit card company and ask them to increase the credit limit. The credit bureaus don't like to see "maxed out" credit. Many times the card companies can consider an increase without pulling another inquiry.

Next, spread out your balances among your cards trying to keep the ratio between card balances and credit limit to 30% or less. For example, let's say you have 3 credit cards and $3,000 in credit card debt. If all the cards have limits of say $4,000, it would be best to put $1,000 on each of the cards than to have just 1 of those cards with the full $3000 balance.

Finally, be sure to pay your bills on time. The number one reason for a low credit score is late payments. And here's a scary fact. Studies show that 79% of all credit reports have errors on them. 79%!!! That's almost 8 out of every 10 reports. That almost sounds criminal, but it's true. If you are even considering buying a new home or refinancing, you need to take a look and see if we need to do some "homework" to build your credit score up to its highest possible point. Since lower scores mean higher interest rates, or even a decline. Even a few lost points on your credit score could cost you tens of thousands of dollars in extra interest payments.

Finally, don't use one of those "free" on line credit report companies. They offer the service free because you agree to allow them to send your personal information to potential creditors. Instead, get your reports directly from the three credit bureaus for free. Visit my site for details on how to get your reports at the Government mandated annualcreditreport.com website.

Follow this link to the site page. http://www.loansa2z.com/YourCreditReport.php

If you are looking for a home loan in Arizona or any of the other 18 states we lend in, contact me at 888-889-9950, or Bert@ LoansA2z.com.

Bert Carpenter, The LoansA2z team of NOVA Home Loans ~ NMLS 40586 ~ AZBK-0902429 www.LoansA2z.com