A common question, as credit is often the difference between getting a good loan, a bad loan, or sometimes no loan at all.

Your credit is determined by many things, how exactly each Credit Bureau (TransUnion, Equifax, and Experian) measure the importance of the several factors that determine your credit score is a closely kept secret. However, we do know that all of the following play a role:

-Delinquent Payments

-Balances in Relation to Available Credit

-Number of Open Accounts (also known as tradelines)

-Collections

-Bankruptcy

While some items you simply have no control over, other items, with a little effort, can be quickly corrected. One in particular is paying down your credit card balances.

Pay Down Your Balances

For example, let’s say you have a Sears Card with a credit limit of $2000. Your Balance is $1800. This means have used 90% of you Available Credit. Even if you have been making your minimum monthly payment, your high balances are negatively affecting your credit. How much? Again, since we don't have access to the Bureau's algorithms we can only guess. Paying your balance down from 90% of your credit limit to, say, 30% can give you as much as a 10 point difference.

If you simply pay your balance down and wait, you could be looking at upwards of 2 months before you see a change in your score. However, if you have whoever pulled your credit request a rescore and provide the Credit Bureau with proof of the lower balance, your score can be raised in a matter of days.

Dispute Collections