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You Are Here: Home » Credit score » Guaranteed Ways To Lower Your Credit Score – 5 Steps

Guaranteed Ways To Lower Your Credit Score – 5 Steps

Published or updated May 30, 2013 by Glen Craig

We know how important a credit score is these days, don’t we? Yet many people still insist on doing what they can to destroy their score.  Since some want to have a train wreck of a credit score here are five guaranteed ways to lower your score:

1) Pay your bills late. Here’s a good one to lower your score.  Pay your bills late, especially loans and credit cards.  And I’m not talking a few days late, I’m talking 90-plus days late.  Wait until you get a collection notice, why dontcha? (According to Credit.com, accounts 90-days late can damage your score up to 7 years. Bingo!)

2) Max out your credit cards. Get those credit limits used up!  More credit used (more you owe on your cards) the lower your credit score will be.  Aim for a high credit utilization and you will go a long way to lowering your credit score.

3) Apply for more credit. Hey you maxed out your cards in step #2, right?  Now you need more credit!  Apply to as many cards and loans as you can.  Whether you are accepted or not the applications with show up on your credit report.  The more you are looking for credit the less trustworthy you will seem.  What does that mean?  Yup, lower credit score!  (Bonus if you actually get rejected!)

4) Ignore your credit report. Your credit report will show your credit activity and history.  It can even show if there are mistakes or fraud.  You get three chances a year to check your credit report for free but for those wanting a low credit score that’s three too many.  Look, the mistakes and such will sit there and affect your score.  Why bother with them?  Leave them there so your score can stay as low as possible!

5) Jump from card to card. As you apply to new credit cards that suits your fancy, make sure you cancel your old cards.  You don’t want OLD cards do you?  They are all worn out and new is better, isn’t it.  What’s your credit history have to do with anything?  You’re concerned with what credit you have left right now!!

There you go.  These five steps should go a long way to lowering your credit score!

I hope you can see I’m being facetious (don’t worry, I looked up the word too!). You should realize how important a credit score is these days.  Your score can affect things such as loans (mortgage, car), credit card applications and rates, insurance rates, whether you get an apartment, and even if you get a job!  Protect your credit score and make sure you keep it as high as possible.

While there are no guaranteed quick schemes to raise your score, there are steps you can take to improve your credit score such as pay off your credit card balances and make sure you pay your bills on time.  Steps like these can go a long way to raise your score and in the long run save you money.

What other ways can you think of ruining a credit score?

Filed Under: Credit score

About Glen Craig

Glen Craig is married and the father to four children that he spends the day chasing as a stay-at-home-dad. He took an interest in personal finance when he realized most of his paycheck was going toward credit card bills. Since then he's eliminated his credit card debt and started on a journey towards financial freedom.

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Chris Gagner @ SmartPF says

    October 7, 2010 at 9:30 am

    Well, I have to say that I don’t see to many posts showing how to lower your credit score!! Very unique. If you want to raise your score, do the opposite!
    1) Pay on time
    2) Keep your credit balances low
    3) Don’t apply for more credit
    4) Check your credit report
    5) Stick with one or two cards

    • ffb says

      October 10, 2010 at 10:29 pm

      Hopefully it opens a few eyes!

  2. Kris says

    October 7, 2010 at 10:29 am

    Reverse psychology, good idea for an article! Too many people keep doing the same wrong things and expect different results – when it comes to credit it won’t work.

    • ffb says

      October 10, 2010 at 10:41 pm

      I think it’s called crazy when you do the same thing and expect different results.

  3. Jenna says

    October 7, 2010 at 2:52 pm

    Haha! I’m loving (or hating) this list.

    • ffb says

      October 10, 2010 at 10:44 pm

      I guess it depends on whether you are trying to improve or wreck your credit?

  4. Andrea says

    October 8, 2010 at 11:05 am

    Very unique way of doing this!

    Ignorance definitely isn’t bliss if you’re trying to fix your credit rating, that’s for sure!!

    What are your thoughts on closing credit cards you are not using? There’s sme debate on that. Some people seem to think keeping them open is better – while you’re not running up any debt on them, while others think even dormant cards could potentially dsmage your rating if you are not using them.

    What do you think?

    • ffb says

      October 10, 2010 at 10:50 pm

      Keeping your oldest card is probably a good idea. As for closing other cards, it depends on your spending habits and whether you will need credit any time soon. For some, closing out unused cards prevents finding them and using them for the wrong reasons. But for others who may be looking for say, a car loan or home mortgage, you should keep your cards open and concentrate on building up your score.

      My 2 cents at least…

  5. Andrew @ Money Crashers says

    October 9, 2010 at 2:06 pm

    Pretty funny stuff. I think the one most people don’t realize is to keep old credit cards open because it helps with credit history. I don’t think this one is as obvious because it almost seems more responsible to focus on 1 or 2 cards instead of having 20 open…but our credit score system rewards you for having a bunch of cards open as long as you aren’t maxed out or in debt on them.

    • ffb says

      October 10, 2010 at 10:54 pm

      I agree. I think when one tries to pare down their debt it’s almost natural to want to cut down on the amount of cards they have to resist spending again. But credit bureaus have a different take on this and they prefer to see lines of credit open for a long time as if time is an indicator of trust.

      • Andrew @ Money Crashers says

        October 10, 2010 at 11:48 pm

        Yeah, for sure. It’s a weird one but it’s one worth knowing since it seems a little illogical. Thanks for the helpful post!

  6. Khaleef @ KNS Financial says

    October 11, 2010 at 4:25 pm

    I guess another one would be: #6 Cosign for a loan!

    • ffb says

      October 11, 2010 at 11:39 pm

      Cosigning for a loan can definitely hurt you if the other person doesn’t pay but it should be noted that cosigning isn’t always bad and won’t hurt your credit score if it’s paid on time.

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