Credit Score Basics: A 90-Day Tidy-Up Plan
What a credit score is and what tends to move it, how to read your three reports and dispute mistakes, and a 12-week plan with a utilization tracker and a filled-in example.
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By Whole Life HQ4 parts · about 4,400 words · printable · read online
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OpenWho it's for
Adults who have never looked closely at their credit reports and want to know what a score is, how to find and dispute mistakes, and a 12-week plan, as general education.
What you receive
- 4 written parts, about 4,400 words
- The five things behind most scores, a report-reading checklist and a dispute letter outline
- A filled-in example with a utilization tracker and a dispute log
- A 12-week plan, a goodwill letter template and when to call a nonprofit credit counselor
4 printable pages, in reading order
- Part 1: What a credit score is, and who sees it
- Part 2: Read your reports and fix mistakes
- Part 3: What tends to move a score, and what does not
- Part 4: The 90-day tidy-up plan
See inside
The first 4 pages, as they print.
Look inside
The first page, word for word. 4 printable pages in total.
Part 1: What a credit score is, and who sees it
General money education, not financial advice. This guide explains how credit scores and credit reports work in the United States and gives you a plan to look after your own. It cannot predict what your score will do, and it does not tell you which products to buy. Rules and score models change, so check the official sources named in each part, such as consumerfinance.gov and ftc.gov.
A credit score is a number that lenders use as one input when they decide whether to lend you money and on what terms. It is not a grade on you as a person. It is a summary of how your past borrowing looks on paper. Many adults have never seen theirs, and that is where this guide starts.
How to use this guide. Work through the four parts in order. Part 1 explains the pieces. Part 2 shows you how to read your credit reports and fix mistakes. Part 3 covers what tends to move a score and what does not. Part 4 is a 90-day tidy-up plan with weekly tasks and tracker sheets. Print the sheets or fill them in on screen. Read the worked example in Part 2 first if you like to see a finished page before you start.
What is in each part
- What a credit score is, and who sees it
- Read your reports and fix mistakes
- What tends to move a score, and what does not
- The 90-day tidy-up plan
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Downloads included
4 printable pages: see the list
- Part 1: What a credit score is, and who sees it
- Part 2: Read your reports and fix mistakes
- Part 3: What tends to move a score, and what does not
- Part 4: The 90-day tidy-up plan
They open in your library, and you can print them, once they are yours.
Who wrote it
Written by the Whole Life HQ team.
Not yet reviewed by an outside expert.
We plan to ask a finance educator to review it. Until then it is general information, not professional advice.
General education, not financial, tax or legal advice. For decisions about your own money, talk to a qualified professional.
How you get it
- In your libraryAfter you pay, it is in your library straight away.
- Any devicePhone, tablet or computer. Print it if you like paper.
- Yours to keepIt stays in your account, and you can come back any time.
