Many people seem to be destroying their credit with relative ease in these difficult economic times. It is an unfortunately easy task to perform, and can be done in a variety of ways. The following are top ways to destroy your credit
Declare bankruptcy
By declaring bankruptcy you might be able to get yourself out of a financial abyss. An unfortunate consequence, however, is that your credit will fall into an abyss of its own. A bankruptcy can affect your credit for years to come and can make it more difficult to secure loans for homes, cars and other items as well as to get credit cards. Basically you are showing that you have gotten in so badly that bankruptcy was your best way out and credit agencies will be hesitant to take a chance with you again.
Do not pay off your creditors
Your credit score will be affected if people report that you have not paid them back. Different organizations like credit card companies can report if you are not paying your debts. This will lower your credit score because it may be more likely that you will not pay others back. You should try to keep up with your payments.
Have a lot of debt
A lot of people are swimming in credit card debt. Many people have thousands of dollars, tens of thousands of dollars and even more in credit card debt. Having this much debt can lower your credit score. The worry is that you will just keep piling on the debt and not ever be able to pay it back or end up having to declare bankruptcy. You might want to try to get a handle on your debt to help.
Constantly paying your debts late
A lot of people constantly pay their debts late. For instance, they may always be late on their credit card payments. Besides incurring late charges as well as interest payments, this can affect your credit. Some people may feel that as long as they pay it off eventually it won’t affect their credit, but this is not true. It is important to make timely payments.
Your credit score is very important and has the ability to affect the interest rates you get as well as if you are approved at all for credit. Try to avoid the above problems, which can lower your credit score a significant amount.