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numerous student loans with payments when the borrower   Always make the payment on time, or at least no later than


            may be making only one payment.                     five days after the due date. Even though you have to pay a
                                                                late fee after the due date, you are not considered late for credit

            When payments do resume, I suggest that you keep separate   reporting purposes until the 15th day or later after the due date.

            confirmation of the payment, a receipt for online payment   Avoid late fees and make payments on time.

            or cancelled check if done the old-fashioned way. Millions of
            accounts that have had no activity in three plus years will have   If you are experiencing challenges in making monthly
            payments sent to them on or before October 1.       payments, at the very least make the minimum payment. Don’t
                                                                miss making a $45 minimum credit card payment. Regardless
            If you have any questions about what is in the report, each   of how hard you think it may be during any given month,
            repository gives you their addresses and phone numbers for
            their customer service departments. Use them. Especially if you
            have accounts on the report that you are not familiar with or    BRIAN’S POWER WASH, LLC
            there is information on the report that is not correct.
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            Since the repositories are required by law to provide one free
            credit report every 12 months, I suggest just getting one report       • No Pressure Roof Cleaning
            now instead of getting all three. In this way you can look at your   B  • Residential & Commercial
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                                                                            W
            credit report with one repository now, then in 3- 4 months             • Licensed & Insured
            get one from another repository and 3-4 months later get one                      FREE ESTIMATES!
            from the last repository. This gives you the opportunity to get

            updated throughout the year and address any issues you may                           Brian Bartolomeo
            have.                                                                       brianspowerwash@gmail.com
                                                                  443-786-3439           www.brianspowerwash.com
            Each of the repositories will provide a credit monitoring service
            for a fee, much like Credit Karma or credit card companies.
            If you have concerns about someone tampering with or using
            your credit illegally you can elect to have your credit locked
            in which case no one can access your credit file without your

            express permission. Credit locks are easy to manage as long as
            you remember they need to be unlocked if you are applying
            for credit.
                                                                                 Wishing
            Manage credit card debt actively, which means “pay attention”
            to the following.                                              Caroline County
            To maximize your credit score, keep the outstanding balance    students a great
            on your credit cards at or below 30% of the available credit. Th e
            higher the balance in relation to your credit limit (utilization   school year!
            rate) the lower your credit score. Never exceed your credit
            limit. To do so could result in an immediate drop of 30 to 70
            points in your credit score and to regain what you have lost
            could take 4-6 months or possibly longer.



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