March is National Credit Education Month. San Francisco Credit Education

March is National Credit Education Month

San Francisco, CA (March 7, 2023)  

March is National Credit Education Month and a strategic time to pull your credit report, revisit how credit works, and take steps to boost your score. Wealth Management is about more than just investments. It is about paying attention to both sides of the family balance sheet and making sure your financial plan is protected. Monitoring your credit is a vital part of the financial planning process.

To help you and your household do just that, here are a few tried-and-true recommendations, resources, and tips.

  • Know the difference between your credit report and your credit score. A credit report is a statement with information about your credit history and current credit activity, such as loan history and the status of your credit accounts. Your credit score is calculated based on the information in your credit report. The average score in the U.S.? 698.
  • Thanks to federal law, you can receive a free copy of your credit report from the three credit bureaus each year. And while you may think you have one credit report and one credit score, you have several — and they can differ. That’s why it’s important to check all three reports from ExperianEquifax, and TransUnion
  • Your credit score is calculated using five factors:
    • Payment history – 35%
    • Amounts owed – 30%
    • Length of credit history – 15%
    • New credit accounts – 10%
    • Types of credit – 10%
  • Paying your bills on time, remaining conservative in borrowing, and disputing errors on your report are simple ways to raise your score.  

As always let us know if you have questions as you plan for the year ahead. We are here to help however we can from our offices in the Seacoast of NH and the greater San Francisco, CA area.