20% of your Vantage Score and 15% of your FICO Score is tied to your credit age.
- The older your age the better your score.
- Credit Age is a very basic math formula.
- Less than 2 Years NOT GOOD, 2–5 Years OKAY, 5–7 Years PRETTY GOOD, 8+ Years EXCELLENT.
- Add up the age of each open account and divide the total by the number of accounts.
How to Get and Keep a Good Credit Age
- If you are a renter, consider adding your rent to your credit report all the way back to when you moved in!
- Do NOT open more than 1 new account in a year — this will quickly drop your Credit Age and your credit score.
- Ask an older family member or friend to add you as an authorized user to a very old credit card they have with a zero balance.
- You will inherit the credit age from that card. It can make a big impact and keep you away from predatory lenders.
The Dirty Little Secrets
- When you pay off a car loan, all that age and payment history is marked as paid and closed.
- Instead of being rewarded for paying off a car loan, you are actually penalized.
- This will cause your credit score to drop, losing all the points you had gained.
Oops, I Opened Too Many New Accounts! What's Next?
- Call each company and close the new accounts.
- If you have a credit builder account, CANCEL it and get your money back.
Why Is Rent Reporting a Big Help?
- Because you are reporting all of your past history and it is not a new account!
- Rent is the fastest way to improve your credit score, and it reports in days not months.