Credit score 101 for uni students
Are you a fresh faced uni student ready to tackle to world’s problems? Well, one thing they don’t teach you in the classroom is how to manage your credit. What’s a credit score? What’s a credit report? The Credit Savvy Team break down the basics right here.
What is a credit score?
A credit score is a number that indicates your creditworthiness and helps lenders decide whether to lend you money, how much they’ll lend you, and what interest rate they’ll charge.
Your credit score is calculated based on the information in your credit report. You can read more about how credit scores are calculated in the following articles:
How are credit scores calculated?
What is a credit report?
A credit report contains information about your credit history. Credit reporting bodies in Australia collect information about your credit history from credit providers and publicly available sources.
Each credit reporting body has their own set of data, so your credit report at each of these bodies will be different. It’s important to request a copy of your credit report from each one and if there are mistakes, you’ll need to contact each one individually to have it corrected.
You can read more about credit reports and how to fix an error in the following articles:
How do I fix an error on my credit report?
Why does my credit score matter?
In an increasingly cash-less society, credit is becoming more and more important. Credit can help you achieve your goals, both big and small, from using a credit card to pay for your everyday expenses to buying your first home. Lenders want to be sure that you’re going to make your repayments before they lend you money. Some lenders even reward borrowers with a great credit history with lower interest rates. That’s why it’s important to establish a good credit history from the start.
How do I check my credit score?
You can check your Experian credit score for free right now at Credit Savvy. We’ll also provide you with free monthly score updates, a summary of the important elements of your Experian credit report, and alerts when anything on your report changes.
Keen to learn more? We have a great range of articles in our Learning Hub! Here are a few to get you started:
