With the holidays fast approaching, your credit could be in jeopardy. The most common mistake made during this time of year is racking up debt to buy gifts. It may seem like a good idea to buy gifts for everyone; however, after the holidays are over and you open your credit card statement, you may find you have serious “buyer’s remorse.” You could also find your credit scores have dropped if you used more than 30% of the available credit on any of your current credit cards. One way to avoid this is to know your credit card limits, then figure out what 30% of your credit limit is on each card, and then make sure you do not charge any more than 30% of the total limit on any given card.
Another common mistake made with all of the hustle and bustle of the holidays is to accidentally forget to pay your bills on time. Make sure this does NOT happen to you. One late pay will stay on your record for 7 years, not to mention the added late fees you most likely will incur from the creditor. I guarantee the creditor does not care that you were busy and that it slipped your mind. They also do not care that this could potentially drop your credit scores between 50 to 100 points.
You can still enjoy your holidays; just do so responsibly. In doing so, you will truly have a Happy New Year!
