Are you looking for a quick way to boost your credit score to get better deals on loans and save money?
Then you might want to know what Experian Boost is all about and how it can be of help to you.
Your credit score has the potential to affect almost every aspect of your life. Hence, if your credit score is bad, it’s beneficial to find a way to improve it before it gives you grief.
There are several tried-and-tested methods of improving credit, including paying down your debts, paying your bills on time, and maintaining low credit balances.
There are also credit-builder loans, where individuals can prove to lenders they can handle their debt responsibly.
Unfortunately, these methods take considerable time to deliver tangible results, and some can be very expensive.
There’s no need to panic, though. Experian Boost can help you improve your credit in a matter of minutes.
What is Experian Boost?
Experian Boost is a free, opt-in product designed to help individuals struggling with building credit.
Get Started with Experian Boost.
Consumers can use the tool to add more information to their credit history in order to potentially generate a higher credit score. It is a product of Experian, one of the three major credit reference companies in the United States.
You will need to authorize Experian to access your online bank account and recurring bill payment records, including any telecom and utility payments.
Experian will then use the information to determine your creditworthiness. You will need to confirm the information and agree to include it in your credit file.
Once the information has been included in your credit history, Experian generates a new FICO score for you immediately.
According to an Experian study, 75 percent of consumers with FICO Scores below 680 had an improved credit score after using Experian Boost.
Likewise, 10 percent of consumers who previously didn’t have enough credit history became scoreable after using Experian Boost.
How Does Experian Boost Work?
If you have been paying your utility and cable bills on time, Experian Boost will allow you to include those payments in your credit files to potentially boost your credit score.
With traditional methods, your credit score is primarily determined by how responsible you are when it comes to paying debts.
However, Experian Boost adds another criterion to how customers’ credit scores are determined. This is geared toward helping individuals with thin credit histories or low credit scores. This platform is designed to assess your cable and utility payments when determining your score.
You will need to grant Experian permission to access your online bank account to find utility and cable payments.
Then, you will verify the information and confirm you want it to be added to your Experian credit file. You’ll then receive an updated FICO Score in real time.
While the traditional methods of building credit can take several months to deliver results, Experian Boost takes only about five minutes.
The platform allows you to choose how many qualifying cable or utility bill payments you want to be added to your Experian credit file. You can also turn off the service whenever you want.
An initial test by Experian showed how Experian Boost would help 5 to 15 percent of consumers move into a better score category.
However, there is a catch.
There are several things to note when it comes to improving your score with Experian Boost.
You may end up achieving negative results if you are not careful:
- Experian Boost may not help you with some lenders: Lenders use different credit scores to determine credit eligibility. If your lender uses a different credit score from the FICO Score 8 model, which Experian Boost uses, then you may not benefit from this tool. If your lender uses credit reports from Equifax or TransUnion, Experian Boost won’t help you either.
- Missing utility or cable payments can hurt your credit score: Experian Boost is designed only to improve your score if you pay utility and cable bills on time. If you fail to pay your bills for three consecutive months, the affected accounts will be removed from your credit report. This can impact the effectiveness of Experian when it comes to boosting your credit score.
- Experian must have access to your online bank account: To use Experian Boost, you must give Experian access to your bank account information. You also have to accept an agreement allowing Experian to access your online bank account to identify qualifying bill payments.
This is something to keep in mind if you are concerned about data breaches, something that has become more prevalent in recent years.
However, data security is a major priority for Experian, and any customers using Experian Boost need not worry about the safety of their personal data.
Can You Benefit from Experian Boost?
If you have a low or unfavorable credit history, there’s a strong chance Experian Boost will help you out.
You can boost your credit score by having utility and cable payment records factored into how your credit score is calculated. The tool is designed to help individuals who have credit scores between 580 and 699.
In its initial testing, Experian Boost helped increase the score of 75 percent of customers with a credit score below 680.
It was also found that about 14 percent of customers in the poor credit category were able to move to a fair category. Consumers in the poor category are those with a credit score below 579.
The fair category encompasses consumers with credit scores between 580 and 699. Improving your credit score can make a huge difference when it comes to accessing loans.
Statistics show that borrowers who have unfavorable credit scores can pay up to $200,000 more than prime borrowers during their lifetime. The major reason for this huge disparity is the difference in credit score.
By boosting your credit with Experian Boost, you can find better deals on loans, as lenders use your score to determine how much interest you will pay.
Consequently, you will save a lot of money over time, pay your debts quickly, and attain your financial goals more readily.
The Bottom Line
Many consumers look for ways to boost their credit score to avoid being ripped off by lenders. There are several techniques that have proven quite useful throughout the years.
These include paying off debts, disputing inaccuracies on your report, getting short-term installment loans, becoming an authorized user on a relative’s credit card, or enlisting the services of a credit repair professional, among others.
Unfortunately, most of these techniques take time to deliver tangible results and may even cost you thousands of dollars in the long run.
Experian Boost, however, will boost your credit in less than five minutes at absolutely no cost to you.
It is especially ideal for those who have credit scores between 580 and 699, since Experian Boost uses your positive payment history to increase your score.
Therefore, if you have poor or limited credit, you don’t have to pay hundreds or thousands of dollars to achieve a better score. Simply open an Experian account today so you can gain access to Experian Boost.
With an improved credit score, you will be able to qualify for loans and get decent interest rates. Taking advantage of Experian Boost can save you a great deal of money in the long run, and that’s certainly worth smiling about.
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jen says
My Credit score is good but if theres a way to raise it why not? Problem is, I Pay bills by Credit Card (to earn points, etc.), not through a bank account. So giving my bank login information would show no information pertaining to bill Payments.