Credit scores

Here's a break down of how credit is calcculated

35% is based on your payment history -
Do you have a record of late credit card payments, delinquencies or bankruptcies? The more late payments on record and the more recent they have been, the more negatively they will affect your score.

30% is based on the amounts you owe -
This not only includes how much you owe but how much of your available credit you have used. If you consistently use 75-80% or more of your available credit (for example, keep your credit cards at or near the maximum), your score will be lower than if you are using a small percentage of the credit available to you.

15% is based on the length of your credit history -
How long you have had accounts and credit, factor into your credit score. Credit cards that you have held for a long time give you a higher score than new credit cards.

10% is based on how much new credit you have requested -
If you have requested a lot of new credit in a relatively short period of time, you are considered to be a higher risk than someone who has applied for less credit.

10% is based on the types of credit you use -
This includes mortgages, loans, and credit cards. If more of your debt is high interest credit cards, you may be considered a higher risk than someone whose biggest debt is their mortgage.