A credit score is your financial behavior, expressed as a number. They typically range from 350-800. The lower the score, the less likely it is that you will repay debt- or at least that’s the story the numbers tell. To banks, you are considered a bigger risk.  These numbers aren’t based on anything personal, like your job is, race, gender, sexual preference, or if you are single or dating many people- to the banks, you’re just a number.

This number is based on data culled from your financial footprint by FICO: what types of credit and debt do you have? Student loans, home mortgages, or credit cards. Then it looks at how often you make payments on time, how many accounts you have in good standing, your debt to available credit ratio, credit limits, length of credit history and other factors.

The most important thing you can do to get a healthy credit score is to pay your bills on time. To help with this, you might want to set up an automatic payment system with your bank, and have checks sent.Having good credit will save you quite a bit of money in the long run, as you will pay lower interest rates.

Buy Here Pay Here auto loans are most often made to subprime borrowers. These are people who have a credit score lower than 579, and are considered a high risk by banks, so they often can’t get bank loans. The good news is, that everyone can raise their credit score. If you take out a Buy Here Pay Here loan on a car, you not only get a vehicle to get you to work, but by making monthly payments on time, you can improve your credit score.