Why Do You Need To Keep Checking Your Credit Score Regularly? 

Do you remember when you last checked your credit score or report? Perhaps you don’t. Or was it the last time you applied for a loan or credit card?

Credit scores vary from 300 to 900. An excellent credit score (usually regarded to be above 750) not only boosts your chances of receiving a loan or credit card, but it may also help you secure a reduced interest rate. You should be aware that your credit score will vary between bureaus, with differences ranging from 50 to 100 points.

Given how quickly things change these days, we recommend that you check your credit report frequently, preferably once a month.

Reasons to regularly check your credit score

• Stay Updated on Your Credibility

Having a decent credit score is one thing. Maintaining it is another matter entirely. When you apply for a loan or a credit card, one of the first things lenders do is check your credit score to assess your trustworthiness. Many employers in the financial sector have recently begun to include creditworthiness in their hiring process.

Checking your credit report once a month keeps you up to speed on your credit status, current amounts, and payment history, and it provides credit information that a potential lender can view.

• Make Informed Decisions When Applying for New Credit

When you apply for a loan or credit card, the lender pulls your credit score and report from the bureau. This is known as a hard inquiry, and it impacts your credit score each time it occurs.

If you check your credit report monthly, you will be able to make more educated decisions and focus on increasing your credit score before applying for a new credit product.

• Identify errors

When you apply for a loan or credit card, or even later, the bank or financial institution provides your data with the credit bureau, along with details on the credit product.

If there is an issue with the information provided by the bank, it might hurt your credit score. This could be a spelling issue in your name, an incorrectly reported payment default, or even a loan/credit card that you never applied for!

• Helps to Avoid Identity Theft.

Identity theft occurs when an imposter fraudulently utilizes your Personally Identifiable Information (PII) to undertake financial transactions or obtain financial benefits in your name. Reviewing your credit report once a month will reveal any unexplained hard inquiries or loans/credit cards obtained falsely in your name by stealing your identity. These can be immediately reported to the bureau, financial institutions, and authorities for appropriate action.

• Maintains credit utilization ratio under control

Many people believe that if they have a credit card, they will spend it; after all, why not make the most of their credit limit? While one alternative is to request a credit limit increase, monitoring this ratio on your credit report every month and keeping it low will be far more beneficial.

Did you know that getting your check credit score report does not influence your credit score? That’s right: unlike a lender query, retrieving your own credit report is considered a “soft inquiry,” regardless of how frequently you request it from the agency.