For years, members have asked our team how certain things would affect their credit score. Our team members who deal with these questions consistently would be able to offer sound advice and examples of how different credit decisions could affect a score. But they didn’t have a crystal ball so the explanations would be educated, generic estimates.
As a part of empowering our members with the latest financial tools, we began offering SavvyMoney last year so that members had access to their credit report, score and recommendations instantly. Credit plays a huge role in financial health.
In a recent release, a new feature gave me the answer to the question I had about how a car loan for my daughter’s first car would affect my credit. The Credit Score Simulator gave me some good news and the damage to my score wasn’t as bad as I expected. It really was like having my own credit crystal ball.
While the simulator can’t guarantee the actual rise or drop in score, it is comforting to be able to get a sense of how decisions related to credit could impact my score. Here are some of the activities you can put into the simulator to see how they could impact your score:
- Adding new loans by type, including Auto, Personal and Mortgage
Example of simulated credit score where one month of payments missed.
- Adding new credit cards and balance transfers
- Increasing balances on cards
- Raising limits on cards
- Paying off credit cards
- Missing monthly payments
- Making on-time payments
After going through each one, I decided that this would be a good tool to show to my soon to be 18 year old who will no doubt begin receiving credit card offers on her birthday. When I showed her what would happen to my score when I missed monthly payments, she gasped at my score dropping more than 100 points. I think it was a good lesson that hopefully she takes to heart.
I encourage you to log in and get started managing your own credit score. It really is like having a crystal ball which can help you make better decisions when it comes to your credit score.
Post author: Jamieson Mackay, CCUFC
The opinions expressed on this page are for informational purposes only and is not intended to provide legal or financial advice. The views expressed are those of the author of the article and may not reflect the views of the credit union.