4 Ways Your Pastimes Can Hurt Your Credit Scores

Everyone needs to relax every now and then. Of course, picking a hobby is imperative that you can engage in regularly makes sense.

However, there are instances in which these hobbies can hurt your credit scores. Here are 4 ways by which your credit scores can be hurt by your pastimes:

#1: Shopping

Getting a new outfit and making the most of it can make you happy. This is easier, thanks to online shopping. However, this will not help your credit score if your credit utilization exceeds above 30 percent.

So, it’s wise to either cut down on your spending or even spread your monthly spending among a number of cards so that your credit utilization remains low.

#2: Traveling

If traveling is one of your favorite hobbies, then it’s easy to forget about life at home. When you’re gone, you might forget to pay a bill or two and this can result in hurting your credit score. Almost 35 percent of your FICO credit score depends on making this your bill payments on time.

#3: Reading

If you read books regularly and are a member of a library, be careful to return your books on time as this will incur extra fees that can accrue over time. In some cases, libraries can notify collection agencies of large feed that you haven’t paid. This, in turn, could affect your credit report and stay for as long as seven years.

#4: Home Improvement

A number of retail credit cards are usually offered for people who might indulge in a little home improvement. One thing that you must certainly not do is open several cards at once. This is for the simple reason that too many credit applications at a time can affect 10% of your FICO credit score negatively.