Applications & Resources

It is recommended that you request your free credit report every year from each of the three main credit reporting agencies. www.AnnualCreditReport.com is the ONLY official site that provides this service as required by the federal government.

Creating a positive credit history is important. A poor credit rating can impact your life in ways you may not realize, such as making it harder to rent an apartment or apply for a job. Whether you've had past credit troubles, have yet to establish any credit, or want to get the best rate possible on a loan, follow these tips to help boost your credit score.

1. Make payments on time. If you're worried about missing a payment, or even just a fan of convenience, setting up automatic payments using C1CU Bill Pay through Online Banking is a great way to ensure you make your payments on time. If you are struggling to make payments, one option is to refinance your car or home loan with us to lower your payments.
2. Reduce debt. This one may be easier said than done, but reducing the amount of debt you have lowers your utilization ratio, which leads to a higher credit score. If swiping your credit card is just too tempting, leave it at home and opt for cash instead.
3. Avoid opening multiple credit accounts in a short period of time.
4. Diversify the types of credit you use. Having both an installment loan and a credit card on your report is favorable. You shouldn't buy a car just to have an installment loan on your credit report, but if you're considering financing a large purchase, know that it could improve your credit score.
5. A person who has a credit card and stays on top of payments is a safer choice than a person who has never had a credit card before. If you don't feel comfortable using a credit card as one of your primary methods of payment, leave it at home. Take it out to make one purchase each month, such as gas or groceries, and pay the bill off in full each month.
6. Don't close credit accounts you seldom use all at once. This will cause your utilization ratio to spike. However, having large balances on a large number of accounts also indicates that you are a high-risk borrower, so try to keep moderately low balances among all of your credit accounts.
7. Use your credit accounts on a regular basis, even if it's just one small purchase a month. This shows lenders that you are a consistently responsible borrower.