For decades those in positions of authority have intimidated mere mortals by saying the less than stellar choices would end up on their “permanent record.” Unfortunately, they were right and if consumers are sloppy with their credit, they can get a red mark that negatively affects their credit for a period of ten years.
Behaviors deemed bad by the Fair Isaac Corporation (the developers of the FICO score) would negatively impact your rating. Making late payments, having your debts sent in for collections and finally having your delinquencies called “bad debt” and the creditors washing their hands of you can cause severe damage to your credit score.
If at all possible, avoiding any of the aforementioned scenarios is the key to building a strong credit history. If however you have an inkling that you may soon be missing a payment and that trouble is a brewing, be proactive and contact your credit provider or try obtaining a consolidating loan to nip the downward slide in the bud.
Like cutting science class in high school, faking a stomachache to visit the school nurse, being disruptive in class and daydreaming, showing carelessness with your charge accounts will go on your permanent record. Unfortunately for the latter, only time can help clear up a tarnished past so the best thing to do is to be as diligent with your credit accounts as possible and keep your history as clean as possible.