Why is my score so low?
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How can I find out why is my score so low? I’m almost 19 and have had a credit card for almost a year now. Although I’ve never missed a payment and I always pay more than the minimum, my score is around 600. Why is it so low?
It’s called “thin credit file”
To start with, a 600 score is not so low for a credit newbie. Your score is around 600 because you’ve had one card for ONLY one year. It’s not bad credit, its limited history.
Credit scores (especially Fico) are sensitive to the amount of information that’s on your credit report. If you have only one credit card for a year with no other credit lines such as student loan, car loan etc then this explains your score.
You need at least 24 months off consistent, on time payment history to see a decent score, and YEARS to see a really good credit score. Even then you probably will be turned down for new credit (car loan or mortgage) due to the limited history. What shows on your credit report is more important than score.
Another reason for the low score could be a derogatory account that appears on your credit report. An unpaid medical bill, cell phone or utility bill that was sent to collection can adversely impact your credit score. Also, someone else may have taken credit in your name w/o you knowing it. Often, the first indication for Identity Theft is low credit score.
If you haven’t done so yet, you may want to check your credit report to see if there are derogatory accounts on it. See free-annual-credit-score.html for more information.
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