Page 37 - increase your credit score

On top of that, some of these agencies violate federal law by asking you to pay up-front

for their services. By law, credit agencies can only accept payment after their services have
been completed.

Myth 2: Buying Alcohol and Cigarettes Brings Down Your Score

This one comes to us via a YouTube video from a personal finance “expert” who claimed

that grocery stores send itemized receipts to credit reporting agencies who consider the
purchase of booze and smokes a red flag.

Why? Well, according to this expert, those purchases indicate high-risk behaviors that

bring down your credit score.

Thankfully, this myth is just that: a myth. Grocery stores don’t send your itemized receipts
to credit bureaus.

Myth 3: Carrying a Balance is Good for Your Credit

This one often gets mixed up with the idea that making monthly payments helps your

credit. While the latter is true – consistent, on-time payments increase your score – the
former is false.

Balances, when they get high enough, actually make your credit scores worse and you’ll be

paying interest charges on that balance.

Carrying a balance is the classic slippery slope, as 41% of Americans with credit cards
carry balances that average $16,000, ValuePenguin estimates. A small balance today, the

odds say, will most likely be a much bigger one down the road.

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