Level Up with Lee – How to Increase Your Credit Score

Key Takeaways

• Aim for a credit score of at least 700 to get good financing terms; anything between 740-780 is considered exceptional and won't benefit much from pushing to a perfect 850
• Make at least the minimum payment every month to avoid 30+ day late reports that compound your credit damage—payment history is 35% of your credit score formula
• Use a secured credit card (deposit your own money with a bank to borrow against) if you can't qualify for a regular card; after 6-12 months of on-time payments, you'll likely qualify for an unsecured card
• Keep credit card balances below 30% of your credit limit; spread balances across multiple cards rather than maxing one out, even if you owe the same total amount
• Pay your credit card balance multiple times per week instead of waiting until month-end to avoid high reported utilization—Luis uses rewards cards while maintaining under 1% utilization by managing payments actively