Many people do not understand the importance of checking their credit history and keeping their credit score as high as possible. Your credit profile has the ability to affect many different areas of your life and people that have poor credit scores find the going much harder than people that have credit scores in the good or excellent range. While some hiccups in the credit world are unavoidable, you should do everything that you can to keep your credit in good standing. Here are some good reasons why it is important to pay attention to your credit.
Renting Housing
If you are not prepared to buy a home, renting a place to stay may be your only option. Most rental companies and private landlords conduct a credit check on potential tenants to see the likelihood of them paying their rent on time each month. People that have poor credit scores may be denied the opportunity to rent the home or apartment that they desire or have to pay a much higher security deposit for the home. In order to keep your housing options open, you will need to have a decent credit score.
Emergency Funding
Having good credit means that you should be able to get emergency funding when it is needed. Whether you need to apply for an additional credit card, obtain credit from a furniture store to replace ruined possessions, or secure a loan for a new car, having a decent credit score will make the process much easier and reduce the risk that your request will be denied. If you don’t have access to affordable credit when an emergency strikes, then the only alternative is expensive credit, like payday loans or title loans.
Transactions That Require A Credit Card
There are a number of transactions conducted regularly that require the use of a credit card. If you would like to take a vacation, you will need a credit card to reserve a hotel room, rent a car, or buy plane or train tickets online. In some cases, getting a video rental membership or a gym membership requires having credit card information on file with the company. Some people choose to use debit cards for these types of transactions, but the amount of money put on hold on a debit card to cover expected charges could be many times more than you will actually spend for the transaction.