Your credit score will play a decisive role in influencing your eligibility. Secured loans can be nearly impossible to get if you have a poor credit score. Unsecured loans may be available but you will have to pay higher rates of interest. Payday loans and other types of unsecured short term loans are available to those who have average or poor credit history. People with no credit score may also qualify. But the terms will be less favourable. Hence, it is in your interest to improve the credit score.
Credit score cannot be improved in a month. It takes several months and quite a few tactical initiatives. The easiest way to improve credit is to keep repaying loans on time, to avoid default or late payment at all times and to ensure there is no debt. Anyone who has an outstanding debt will fail to retain the credit score, let aside improving it. If you are repaying a loan every month and continue to do so till the end of the term, your credit score will steadily improve. But loans are not the only financial products that affect credit.
One of the most effective financial products in regards to credit history is credit card. All crucial facts about your credit card and its usage will get reported to the credit reporting agencies or bureaus. The information is usually updated once every month. While you should check the annual credit report, it is necessary to keep a tab on the updates from time to time. It is needless to check your credit history or the score once every month but do so if you have to apply for a loan. It is better to prevent a shocking revelation after you apply for a loan. Pay credit card bills on time. Do not keep unused credit cards and other financial products. Close all such accounts that you do not need. Having them lying around will limit your creditworthiness.
You should shield yourself against the potential negative effects of having a financial partner. If you have a joint account or own a debt with someone, their financial mismanagement will have an effect on your creditworthiness. You should separate your finances or ensure the partner does not run into debt. It is not uncommon for the credit score to be unfairly reviewed. Wrong entries or factually incorrect updates can hit your score. Contest these anomalies and have them removed. Also keep a check on the hard enquiries. You should authorise every hard enquiry. Get unauthorised hard enquiries removed from the report.