For multiple reasons, Ohio consumers may stop using credit for several years. Maybe their houses and cars are paid off, and they don’t use credit cards. Not engaging in credit activity for an extended period of time won’t necessarily give you bad credit. However, it may make you unscorable. This means that lenders might turn you down for a loan because they cannot gauge your current creditworthiness. Of course, this is a frustrating situation for any Ohio applicant who had a good credit score in the past. Luckily, you can rebuild your credit score pretty easily, but it will take some patience, discipline, and time.
If the only credit issue you have is lack of recent activity, you are much better off than someone with bad credit. Negative items can stay on credit reports for seven to ten years, bringing down your credit score. Therefore, rebuilding good credit is much easier if you are essentially working with a blank slate.
The Best Way for Ohio Consumers to Rebuild a Good Credit Score
The first thing you should do is get a credit card. If possible, Pennsylvania consumers with inactive credit files should apply for credit cards at their banks or credit unions. After all, you have an established relationship with your banking institution. So, it should matter less that your credit history drops off at a certain point.
Once you have your credit card, the real work to rebuild your good credit score begins. Many Pennsylvanians in the process of rebuilding credit may think that just getting the credit card, or using it once is enough. Yet, those who have gone through the process know that it takes more to achieve desired results.
First, keep your balance at or below 30% of your spending limit. Your credit utilization rate matters in the calculation of your credit score. Therefore, using too much of your available credit at any given time brings your credit score down. Keeping your utilization rate in check is easier if you pick one necessary expense and only use your credit card to pay for that. For example, charge your gas, groceries, or a utility bill. Next, pay your bill off at least every month. As an alternative, making weekly or biweekly payments is even better because it helps you keep your credit utilization rate down.
Now, repeat this process for several months, while periodically checking your credit score to monitor progress. During this time, it is also a good idea to request and check your credit reports.
How Checking their Credit Reports Can Help Ohio Consumers Improve their Credit Scores
Once Ohio consumers start using credit again after a period of inactivity, they should check their credit reports from TransUnion, Equifax, and Experian. This will allow them to look for possible signs of identity theft. Sadly, the 2017 Equifax data breach as left most consumers in Ohio and across the country more vulnerable to identity thieves.
It is also a good idea to check your credit reports for errors. Surprisingly, about 80% of consumer credit reports contain inaccuracies of some time, many of which are harmful to credit scores. Naturally, you don’t want to work so hard to rebuild your good credit score only to have it drop because either a creditor or credit reporting agency messed up your information.
The easiest way to request all three credit reports at the same time – and for free – is to visit www.annualcreditreport.com. For future reference, the Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act allows you to do this once every twelve months.
While going through your credit reports, if you spot suspicious items or obvious errors, call the Law Offices of Gary D. Nitzkin, P.C. Whether you are dealing with credit report inaccuracies caused by identity theft or the mishandling of your data, we can help. Once you contact our firm, an experienced credit attorney will clean up your credit reports for free. Even if you’re not sure about whether or not your credit reports are flawed, give us a call. One of our credit pros will go over your credit reports with you. This, like all of our services to Ohio consumers, costs nothing out of pocket.
The Free and Legal way to Get Better Credit
Don’t let fraudulent accounts and charges, or errors on your credit reports bring your credit score down. At the Law Offices of Gary D. Nitzkin, P.C., we’ve been cleaning up credit reports for consumers since 2008 for free. How do we do it? The law allows us to collect our fees and costs from the defendants in any successful action. This is why our clients pay nothing for the work we do.
Let’s start the conversation about what we can do for your credit. Set up your free consultation today by calling Attorney Gary Nitzkin at (216) 358-0591 or sending him a message through our contact page.
For more information about Free Credit Repair, please visit https://creditrepairlawyersam.com/ohio/credit-repair/.
