by Evan N.
When watching TV you have probably heard commercials talking about credit score, and how important it is to have a good one. But really, what is a credit score and how do I keep it in good shape? Well a credit score is generally a number between 300 and 850, you get your score based on your credit history, things like your levels of debt, payment history and even the number of accounts you have. And this score falls into usually 4 categories: bad, fair, good and excellent. As seen below.
Now that you know what a credit score is, how do you build one and maintain it. First, in order to build credit you’ll need to either get a credit card or take out a loan. But before you can get either of those you need to have some history of credit and you can usually get that just by opening a checking or savings account. A major way to build a credit score is when you make big purchases, you can pay with your credit card but you have to make sure that you can pay it off in a timely manner.
Why should I have a good credit score? Building a credit score now will just be even more beneficial for yourself in the future. First off with better credit you will have better chances of getting approved for loans and credit cards, with sometimes lower interest rates on those loans and credit cards. Next you could get lower rates on car insurance. Lastly, it's much easier to get approved for Rental Houses and Apartments.
Works Cited
Bassett, John. “What Is a Credit Score?” MyFICO, 2019, www.myfico.com/credit-education/credit-scores.
Lake, Rebecca. “Want a Better Credit Score? Here's How to Get It.” Investopedia, Investopedia, 5 Apr. 2021, www.investopedia.com/how-to-improve-your-credit-score-4590097.
O'Shea, Bev. “8 Ways to Build Credit Fast.” NerdWallet, 2 Mar. 2021, www.nerdwallet.com/article/finance/raise-credit-score-fast.
I think credit is an important thing for not only high school students, but just the general population to understand. Credit actually does play a big role in how your life can turn out. With good credit, you have so many more opportunities compared to those who have bad credit. I think you did a good job giving the basics of credit to help students better understand what it is and why it's important.
ReplyDeleteAshley Anderson - Personally, I think that having a good credit score is one of the most important (if not most important) thing that should be taught in school. After doing further research, I found this piece of advice from thebalance.com about having good credit scores: "If you have a good credit score, you'll almost always qualify for the best interest rates, and you'll pay lower finance charges on credit card balances and loans. The less money you pay in interest, the faster you'll pay off the debt and the more money you have for other expenses." Not only does it show the benefits of having good credit, but it also shows that having a good credit score will make you eligible for other things. You did a very good job in your article going into some of these details and why having a good credit score is beneficial overall.
ReplyDelete
ReplyDeleteCredit score is something super important and will affect you for the rest of your life. I agree without building up a good credit score, you will have problems for the rest of your life because you will not qualify for things like; good interest rates and you will have to pay higher charges. We should be taught how to jumpstart our lives once we get out of school and learn how important it is to manage credit cards and build up our credit score because we will need it to buy things, be employed, pay for utilities, and so much more!
This is very helpful because many people, myself included, don't know that much about credit score even though it should be a well known part of someones life. The better someones credit score, the more malleable they are because they won't have the lingering problem of credit card debt.
ReplyDeleteYou did an excellent job on explaining this topic and overall having a well organized writing. It is very important for high schools to learn and be aware of this, so it was very beneficial to read about. If anyways get a credit card sometime through out their life, it is so important to know how to maintain it because if you were to have a bad credit report, many companies when you are hired for a job or other such things will not see you as financially responsible so holding a great credit score is key! Well done.
ReplyDeleteI like how you were able to simplify and explain credit score and how to build it, as finances are important and the audience must understand the basics of finances to delve into different ways of making money and making important financial decisions. I think that a good credit score is important, as it affects your ability to sign up and make payments for different companies (telecommunication, public utilities, etc.). I wonder if the choice of card affects your credit score at all.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you about building your credit score to reap the benefits, and I know that a lot of the time it can be beneficial to start earlier to get a better head start on it. I think that a lot of time people don’t think about credit cards or credit scores, as they can be an intimidating factor of life, but it is great that we're getting a jumpstart on our knowledge as high school students. Why wouldn’t someone want to be paying significantly lower interest rates on a house that they will be paying off for many years to come? Everybody should want those perks, as they can significantly help with your financial situation in the future.
ReplyDeleteHaving knowledge about credit score is important. Especially due to the fact that its going to be an important asset to our lives as we keep getting older. I had some knowledge about credit score and some of that is in your blog. Building your credit score is such an important thing and I'm glad you posted about it. Not many people even know what a credit score is and what it's meant for. This blog was overall very good and very informative.
ReplyDeleteWow, great topic! I think credit scores are one of the most important things you can learn in high school, in the adult world, without this information you could very quickly put yourself in financial turmoil. So thank you for making such an easy-to-understand, informative post. I loved how you touched on the importance of having a credit card in order to build credit from a young age. Establishing good credit history from a young age can change your life. Thanks for all the great insight.
ReplyDeleteThis was a really informative blog for anyone interested and considering getting a credit card. Having previous knowledge or willing to open up is extremely important when considering getting a credit card. Credit score is the most important factor of a credit card which on each topic you touched based upon you did a good job explaining it. Having a good credit score is extremely important has it decides whether or not you're reliable for loans, lower interest rates, etc. I thought this blog overall was really informative and well formatted. Great job!
ReplyDeleteI really like how you related to what we learned as a class, and went more in depth on some of the topics. I like the simplicity in your essay, it helped the information come across clearly. I did have some knowledge on credit scores, but now I know that building credit score is crucial. Overall, very helpful. Thanks Evan!
ReplyDeleteCredit score is a very important thing to make sure you are being careful with. As you mentioned, good credit scores can help you get things like loans and credit cards. However, if you have a bad credit score, you might be in trouble because it will be difficult to find places willing to give you a loan. Also, it can be easy to ruin your credit score, but can take a while to build back up. So, you have to make sure you don’t accidentally damage your credit score because it could change your financial life drastically.
ReplyDeleteI have never knew that a great credit score can give you a lot of benefits like low interest rates on loans. You did a really good job on it as well, but one thing is what would happen if you have a really bad credit score?
ReplyDeleteThis blog really helped and was very informative. It was written very well. I think that having a good credit score is very important. This part right here is what I think a lot of people should have as a need to know before dealing with finances. Building a credit score now will just be even more beneficial for yourself in the future. First off with better credit you will have better chances of getting approved for loans and credit cards, with sometimes lower interest rates on those loans and credit cards. This is instrumental in finances and making sure that you can get that loan or trying to get lower interest rates. Great piece!
ReplyDeleteIt’s interesting to see how many people don’t realize that having a credit score is very important. Especially when it comes to buying your first car from a dealer and when you want to get your first house. The more you think about it, the more you realize that having a credit score is very important for you in life.
ReplyDeleteI really like how you wrote this blog. Before reading I didn't really know a lot about credit score and how it is calculated but now that I've read this I know a lot more. I found it very interesting how you brought up why it is important to build a good credit because I feel like it is important to be informed on why you are building credit then how to build it. Another thing that I like that you did with this piece was how you started with explaining what credit scores and what credit was to give the reader some background information. Overall, you you did a great job with this piece and a question that I have is, what is your starting credit when you first start building it.
ReplyDeleteI have heard of credit scores and know sort of what they are and that you want a high credit score, but I never knew how exactly to get a good credit score and what it does. I found it interesting that to build a credit score you need to make big purchases, I thought it would be better to make smaller purchases and make sure that you pay everything on time. My question for you is when should you start building your credit score? I feel like it takes time to do so and I wonder if I should start as soon as I can.
ReplyDeleteIm turning 18 very soon and this made me realize that I should get a credit card as soon as I can considering it could take a long time to build my credit score. I didnt realize how important it was for your future to have a good credit score. Its good to know that your credit score can effect taking out loans, and even purchasing a house or apartment. Thank you!
ReplyDeleteI think this was a very good topic for teenagers. Not many teens including myself don't really know about credit scores. I think that maybe getting a credit card would be a good idea, so I could start building my credit.
ReplyDeleteBefore reading this article, I knew that good credit was good for lessening loan rates from banks, but I didn't know that it also had an effect on things like car insurance and the rental of housing and apartments. I thought this was a really helpful article, because younger people don't usually know a whole lot about credit score. This being said, what age do you think would be the best to start paying attention and increasing your credit score?
ReplyDeleteIt’s interesting to see how many people don’t realize that having a credit score is very important. Especially when it comes to buying your first car from a dealer and when you want to get your first house. The more you think about it, the more you realize that having a credit score is very important for you in life.
ReplyDelete