Flight 850

Few tricks for accelerating credit score growth over my years of studying credit reports and scores. Depending on your situation, you may be able to replicate some or all of them:

1. Became an authorized user: To kick-start your credit profile, ask a family member to add you to the oldest credit card as an authorized user. By doing so, your scores benefited from that person's positive history with the credit card.

2. Get your own card: After gaining points, appIy for your own credit card.

3. Annual limit increases: Request credit limit increases on your credit cards at least once a year. You can accomplish this directly through your creditors' website and apps to avoid a hard inquiry that would lower your scores. When your limits are increased, it helps lower your credit utilization ratio and usually increases your scores.

4. Make bi-weekly payment: Switch from paying your credit card balances once a month to paying them off bi-weekly, which keeps your credit utilization low. This change helps gain a few more points.

According to FICO, "high achievers" — or people with credit scores of 795 and higher — have these traits in common:

• No missed debt payments on their credit reports

• Credit card balances stay under 5% of their credit limits

• Oldest average debt account is 30 years old

Though credit problems can feel stressful, daunting and insurmountable, it’s crucial to remember that these issues are fixable. Time can help soften the impact of your financial mistakes and strengthening your credit management skills can be helpful to avoid trouble in the future.