How Your Credit Score Affects Your Quality of Life
A good or bad credit score can affect the quality of your life including the place you live and your personal and professional relationships. The myth of the American dream is that if you work hard enough, you can make it to the top. The dream is to make a good salary, buy a house, and have time to spend with your family. But this is proving to be too difficult in the present times.
Despite the strong demands, there remains to be a lack of affordable and available starter homes and if you want to secure a mortgage, you would have to have a strong credit score. And this is something that a lot of Americans do not have or understand.
Even with these uncertainties, most people realize that the factor that would be most important in qualifying for certain things such as a loan is their credit score. It will also determine the rate that you will pay for the loan. But it affects you so much more than that.
How Credit Score Affects Jobs
Not all employers will check your credit score before deciding to hire you and most of them will not reject a candidate based on a bad credit score. But it would have an impact on how they perceive you. If the company runs a report and see that you have a checkered financial history, they may think you are not qualified if your task is to handle financial responsibilities in the office.
Fortunately, companies are not always allowed to view your credit score. The credit bureaus do not freely share your credit score with employers. They may still however ask you to see your credit report.
Apartment Rentals
It will also affect housing in more ways than simply influencing the rate of your mortgages. When you seek a place to rent, the landlord will most likely check the prospective tenant’s credit scores before allowing you to move in. If the landlord sees that the person has a history of missing payments or being late, you will not be given priority against those with strong financial backgrounds.
Bills and Payments
How you pay for your utility bills is also affected by your credit score. This is especially true if you move to a new location. If you have a high credit score, you may not be required to pay an upfront deposit when you’re subscribing to utility services for the first time in a new place. But if you have a low credit score, you may be charged more. Utility companies ask for important personal information like your SSN so they can check your credit history. They will particularly look at your payment history. People who have good credit scores find it easier to get services. Those who have poor credit history may have a more difficult time.
Relationships
It can even affect the quality of your relationships. Money and financial issues are often the biggest cause of fights in couples. If your spouse or partner is financially responsible but you have a questionable history, it could lead to big arguments. It could be a determining factor if you are deciding whether or not to buy a house together. Each of your credit score will also impact your joint mortgage rate. It could also help you in deciding if you will be paying off your debt together. Even small money related issues can quickly escalate to bigger problems in relationships.
Improving Your Credit Score
Even if your credit score is not as impressive you would like it to be, there are ways to improve it. the first step is knowing what your credit score is and there are lots of ways to check it for free. Once you know what it is, you can take the steps to improve it along with your quality of life.
First, you need to understand your weak points. Try to think if it is because you’ve accumulated a lot of credit card debt or because you have been missing several payments on your bills. There could be many reasons and once you know them, it’s easier to correct them with better habits.
