Having a good credit score shows that you are financially healthy. After retirement, you can continue to enjoy various credit facilities from banks, such as a personal loan, car loans, and so on. But besides fulfilling other eligibility criteria, you also need to have a sound credit score. Having a good credit score can also help seniors become co-borrowers in a loan with their close relatives. But the question still arises how seniors can improve their credit scores? Well, here are four ways in which Seniors Can Improve Their Credit Scores.

By Avoiding Unnecessary Loan Enquiries

If you need a loan, plan it. Check your eligibility for the loan, such as how much loan you can get, do you have sufficient income to repay the loan, how much tenure you can get to repay the loan, and other important points. It can help you avoid making too many enquiries for loans one after another. Often credit bureau assumes that the person making too many loan enquiries is credit-hungry or not in good financial shape. Therefore, it results in a fall in one’s credit score. You just need to plan your borrowing and you can easily avoid a fall in your credit score.

Also Read: 4 Financial Commitments Every Senior Should Make For 2024

Regularly Using A Credit Card

Usually, it’s not easy to get a new credit card after retirement. However, if you already have one, you just need to use it regularly and repay the outstanding bill before the due date. Timely repayment of credit card bills shows that you are capable of repaying the debt on time, and it improves your credit score in the long-term. While using your credit card, try to keep the utilisation under 30 per cent of the total limit granted under the card. A higher credit utilisation can negatively impact your credit score.

Timely Repaying Your Existing Loans

Some people enter retirement with one or more loans to repay. It can be a home loan, a car loan or a personal loan. If you have one such loan to repay, make sure you repay every remaining equated monthly instalment (EMI) on time. Timely repayment of a loan EMI can help in improving your credit score.

Check the Credit Report For Discrepancies

You must check your credit report regularly. Read it carefully, and if you find any discrepancy, such as a wrong address, phone number, details of the loan, bank account, etc., contact the credit bureau immediately along with all the details, and get it rectified immediately. Wrong information can cause a drop in the credit score. However, you can reinstate it by rectifying the mistake.

By keeping the above-discussed points in mind, you can easily improve your credit score. Even if you don’t have a plan to take a loan in future, a good credit score can still be good because it can make you feel happy to maintain consistent financial discipline and save your creditworthiness even after your retirement!

The author is an Independent Financial Journalist