We’d all love to have credit scores over eight hundred. We’d also love to have beautiful houses, no credit credit cards, and no debt, but that’s not how life works. Thus, here are 3 credit score tips to show you how to raise your credit score. These are based on the 3 credit score criteria that are used in each company’s formulas used to determine creditworthiness.

The most important thing you need to do to raise your credit score is to always pay your bills on time. Over one third of your credit score is based on paying your bills in a timely fashion. It is extremely important to pay bills when they are due or earlier. Nothing else can ruin your credit as fast as repeated late payments. Lenders will be able to see your history and if it is full of late payments, they will charge you a higher interest rate or maybe even decide not to loan you money at all.

Secondly, don’t over-use your credit. About 30% of your credit score is determined by how much of your available credit is being used. A good guide is to use less than 50%. So if you have $60,000 of credit, try not to use more than $30,000 at a time. That way you can avoid being flagged by your creditors. If your utilization is too close to your limit, creditors will often lower credit limits or raise APRs. If your limit is lowered, that can then cause your utilization rate to be higher, which then gets you stuck in vicious cycle.

Third you should work to build up a credit history, diversify your debt, and don’t apply for more credit than is prudent. The other 35% of the score is based on these factors, with each contributing 10-15%. Like most things in the world of finance, the credit system rewards seniority and longevity. If you’ve been a good customer with a credit card for 15 years, creditors will be willing to loan you more money at a lower APR than, say, a 21-year-old with no credit credit cards.

There is good debt and bad debt. If you have a lot of credit card debt, this is bad debt. Having a mortgage on a home and paying on time every month is good debt because you are building equity and creating a reliable credit history. Credit card debt is simply high spending habits. Also, applying for a lot of credit cards lowers your score by a few points every time you apply.

So unless you never plan to borrow money for a big purchase like a house, consider following these tips to raise your credit score and keep it high. Just manage your lines of credit wisely by borrowing only when necessary and only what you can repay, and over time your credit score will go up. Unfortunately, it’s almost impossible to raise your credit score with no credit credit cards in wallet. But the whole point of the score in the first place is to help you get access to cheaper credit.

Read how to raise your credit score based on 3 credit score items that companies use to determine your creditworthiness. Payment history plays a major role in increasing your credit score and thereby, creditworthiness. So pay your bills in time. No credit credit cards do not help much in increasing your credit score. Borrow only when necessary. Ideally, never use more than 50% of your available credit limit at any given point of time. High utilization, leads to higher interest rates or lower credit limits, thereby increasing utilization again. Diversify your debt. So unless you have huge credit requirements, follow these tips to keep a high credit score.

- Daniel Lesser