You won’t need to wait too long before your credit-building efforts pay off. Most likely, you probably had your first credit score around six months after getting your first credit card or loan. That said, building good credit takes a bit longer, because you need to allow time for your account age to grow.
If you’re wondering how long it takes to repair credit, The Phenix Group has got you covered. It takes nine months on average to recover from a late payment, three months to recover from maxing out a credit card, and five to ten years to make a comeback after filing for bankruptcy. If you haven’t had the best financial habits, you’re not doomed for life–we can help, and the benefits of credit repair from a reputable company easily outweigh any credit repair prices.
There are a few different ways to build credit to establish a positive credit score. Keep in mind that the strategies discussed here work best when done together–not doing one can still negatively impact your score and prolong the credit repair process.
Credit repair takes a different amount of time for everyone, but following these guidelines will help get your credit back on track as swiftly as possible:
Make On-Time Payments
Paying your loans and credit cards on time will have a positive impact on your credit score. On the other hand, paying them late (or skipping payments) will cause that number to drop drastically.
Limit Hard Inquiries
Hard inquiries occur when lenders view your credit score to determine whether or not you’ll be approved for their loans. These inquiries can lower your credit score for up to two years.
While you need to allow lenders to make some hard inquiries to build credit, you shouldn’t do too often. If you go shopping for a new credit card every few months, the credit bureaus will notice, and this will affect your credit score.
Have a Healthy Mix of Debt
Do you have a new car, student loans, and a credit card? If so, you’re actually in a good position for building credit. Your credit score is affected by how many different types of debt you have. The more diverse your debt portfolio is, the better you look to the credit bureaus, and the better your credit score will be.
Keep Your Accounts Open
It may be tempting to close credit card accounts to stop incurring debt. However, this will lower your credit score because the bureaus like to see that you have accounts open for a long time. The longer you’ve had debt, the higher your score will be as a result.
Costs to Repair Poor Credit History
Credit repair services at The Phenix Group do not have set prices. We understand that every situation is different, and we offer individualized programs that are presented to customers on a case-by-case basis. To help you get started, we offer a free consultation–reach out today, and we’ll work to get your credit back on track!
Wondering if Afterpay affects credit or what average credit repair costs are? We’ve got you covered–check out our latest posts.