What is a Credit Score?

Your credit score is a three digit number that is generated based on your bill-paying history, debt profile, and statistical information. It is based on certain credit behaviors such as paying your bills on time, not having excess debt (ie. too many credit cards.)

Your credit score has a direct impact on the interest rates you will pay to borrow money. Typically, the higher your credit score the lower your interest rates will go. It's always good to know your credit score before meeting with a lender; it gives you some negotiating power to get the best interest rates.

In recent years, credit scores have started effecting much more than just interest rates and loans. Certain insurance companies have started to look into a credit reports and scores as a way of judging who might make more claims on their policy. Obviously, having a good credit score will drive your insurance rate down if your insurance companies is one of that group.