Quote Originally Posted by Scogin View Post
One of the biggest factors for credit score is average length of credit. If you open a new card or two it is going to shorten the average and bring down your credit score.

Another major factor is your percentage of credit utilization. What is the percent of money you owe versus your total credit limit?

Do you have any collection accounts or negatives on your credit report?

I just learned all about this as I was cleaning up my credit score.

^This is good advice. Your income vs debt is a factor when you get ready to buy a house. If you have debt, pay it off quickly by starting with the lowest balance and paying minimums on everything else. Once the lowest one is paid off, apply everything extra to the next lowest balance. Repeat until it's all gone. (Thanks, Dave Ramsey)

As stated above, any new credit accounts you open are going to hurt your score. In fact, your score takes a hit every time someone checks your credit. If you keep these accounts open for a long time, with a low balance, and in good standing, your score will eventually go back up, but it takes some time.

FWIW the wife and I have several credit cards and we pay them off every month to keep from paying interest on any of them. This does build credit, but only because we are keeping accounts in good standing for a long period of time. Get something with a rewards program so you're getting something extra out of it (cash back, airline miles).