If you are in need of credit and particularly if you are on a low credit rating – otherwise known as FICO in the United States, then there are some things that can help you and are worth knowing about. Credit ratings are based on a scale in the US – the lowest rating is 300 and the highest possible is 850.

If you fall into this category then sadly you will be “labeled” as a bad risk and chances are high that you will denied a loan or credit card if you apply for one.

If however, your score is higher than 620 then you will be perceived as a lower risk candidate and thus will be able to attain the loans and cards that you wish, within reason at least.

Just to shed a little more light on the importance of the credit points system – recently the Consumer Federation of America did some research upon the point system. They found that if everyone in the United States who is at all credit worthy (meaning old enough to attain credit) were to improve their own credit score by a mere 30 points, then the credit card annual bill for the whole of the United States would drop by a rather huge 16 billion dollars!

To put this in a more personal perspective, if you were scoring at around the 620 mark, which is borderline for a poor credit rating, it would not be difficult to raise this up those 30 points to then bring you up to what is now perceived to be very nicely credit worthy. So, let us now take a look at how these ratings are actually balanced out and tallied together.

* the history or your payment such as being on time or otherwise = 35%
* the total amount of money you currently owe on credit = 30%
* total length of your credit history, so if you are older this does tend to be better = 15%
* the recent type of credit you have used = 10%
* the recent credit you have applied for = 10%

So, just by looking at those points above, its fairly obvious where you need to focus the most to get your credit card score on the rise. First off, make sure to pay your bills on time. Secondly, do try to maintain your balance on any credit cards at a manageable level, ideally below 50% of the card allowance. Thirdly, if you have any cards that you do not use, then its best to dispose of them. Each small thing that you do will soon make a difference so its wise to be methodical and plan credit use carefully.

Its untrue that you need a perfect credit rating to get offered the best terms and conditions on a credit card.

Often its the case that if you are above 720 you will get great offers. Thus, if you are on borderline at the 620 mark, you only have to raise your score by 100 points to begin to attain the best offers. Stick to a plan and be fairly rigid in your finances and you will reap the rewards for doing so!

There is more to learn about credit card help and a debt consolidation program to suit your needs.