{"id":1041,"date":"2023-11-18T02:19:47","date_gmt":"2023-11-18T02:19:47","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/localhost\/mrc_blog\/credit-building\/6-reasons-building-your-credit-score-is-one-of-the-smartest-financial-moves-you-can-make\/"},"modified":"2025-02-04T23:03:19","modified_gmt":"2025-02-05T04:03:19","slug":"why-good-credit-matters","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/myratecompass.ca\/blog\/credit-building\/why-good-credit-matters\/","title":{"rendered":"6 reasons building your credit score is one of the smartest financial moves you can make"},"content":{"rendered":"<span class=\"rt-reading-time\" style=\"display: block;\"><span class=\"rt-label rt-prefix\">Reading Time:<\/span> <span class=\"rt-time\">4<\/span> <span class=\"rt-label rt-postfix\">Min<\/span><\/span>\t\t<div data-elementor-type=\"wp-post\" data-elementor-id=\"1041\" class=\"elementor elementor-1041\" data-elementor-post-type=\"post\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-45f6e0ce elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"45f6e0ce\" data-element_type=\"section\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-496abf17\" data-id=\"496abf17\" data-element_type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-6c37e4da elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"6c37e4da\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t<style>\/*! elementor - v3.17.0 - 08-11-2023 *\/\n.elementor-widget-text-editor.elementor-drop-cap-view-stacked .elementor-drop-cap{background-color:#69727d;color:#fff}.elementor-widget-text-editor.elementor-drop-cap-view-framed .elementor-drop-cap{color:#69727d;border:3px solid;background-color:transparent}.elementor-widget-text-editor:not(.elementor-drop-cap-view-default) .elementor-drop-cap{margin-top:8px}.elementor-widget-text-editor:not(.elementor-drop-cap-view-default) .elementor-drop-cap-letter{width:1em;height:1em}.elementor-widget-text-editor .elementor-drop-cap{float:left;text-align:center;line-height:1;font-size:50px}.elementor-widget-text-editor .elementor-drop-cap-letter{display:inline-block}<\/style>\t\t\t\t<p>Your credit score is one of the most important numbers in your financial portfolio. It can have an impact in multiple areas of your life, yet despite the importance of credit scores, it&#8217;s surprising how many Canadians either do not know their credit score, or do not understand how important it is. In fact, in a 2018 survey by Refresh Financial<a href=\"blank\">,<\/a> it was reported that only 62% of Canadians knew how to check their credit score and only 41% knew what their score was.<\/p><p>When you don&#8217;t know your credit score, you don&#8217;t know if it&#8217;s holding you back, and you can&#8217;t take the necessary steps to build it, and improve your financial future.<\/p><p>Here are 6 reasons why building your <a class=\"wpil_keyword_link \" href=\"https:\/\/myratecompass.ca\/blog\/credit-building\/credit-score\/\"  title=\"credit score\" data-wpil-keyword-link=\"linked\">credit score<\/a> is one of the smartest financial moves you can make:<\/p><p>\u00a0<\/p><ol><li><strong>Having a good credit score will save you money<\/strong><\/li><li><strong>\u00a0<\/strong><\/li><\/ol><p>When you need to borrow money, your credit score will be taken into consideration by the lender. Not only will your credit score determine <em>if<\/em> the lender will extend the credit in the first place, but it also determines the interest rate you will be offered. Taking the time to build your credit score can mean saving thousands in interest over the course of a long loan, such as a car loan. Check out this example:<\/p><ul><li>Car Loan Size: $15,000<ul><li>Credit score: <strong>550<\/strong><\/li><li>Interest rate: 15.9%<\/li><li>Monthly Payments: $364<\/li><li>Interest Paid over 5 Years:<strong>$6,838<\/strong><\/li><\/ul><\/li><\/ul><p>\u00a0<\/p><ul><li>Car Loan Size: $15,000<ul><li>Credit score: <strong>650<\/strong><\/li><li>Interest rate: 6.9%<\/li><li>Monthly Payments: $296<\/li><li>Interest Paid over 5 Years:\u00a0<strong>$2,779<\/strong><\/li><\/ul><\/li><\/ul><p><strong>Savings over 5 years: 4,059<\/strong><\/p><p>While these numbers are just estimates, they are <a href=\"blank\">based on actual interest rates<\/a> and credit scores. It just goes to show how much money can be saved in interest with a better credit score \u2013 in this case, an increase of just 100 points.<\/p><p>\u00a0<\/p><ol start=\"2\"><li><strong>Having a good credit score can help you rent a place to live<\/strong><\/li><li><strong>\u00a0<\/strong><\/li><\/ol><p>While it counts only as a soft check (that is, it does not have a negative impact on your credit score), landlords are still able to check your score. They must ask your permission, but if you refuse, they may in turn refuse to rent to you. If you agree, and your score is low, the landlord may decide that you pose too much of a risk as a tenant.<\/p><p>Taking the time to build your credit score will give you more choice when it comes to renting a home in the future.<\/p><p>\u00a0<\/p><ol start=\"3\"><li><strong>Having a good credit score makes finding a job easier<\/strong><\/li><li><strong>\u00a0<\/strong><\/li><\/ol><p>Did you know, your employer can check your credit score? Many employers choose to do so as it can give a good overall indication of a potential employee&#8217;s level of responsibility. You may be hard-working, qualified, and reliable, but have a poor credit score because of something out of your control. When faced with two equal candidates, your poor credit score could be the determining factor. It is a controversial practice \u2014 employers see the practice as precautionary, whereas potential hires see it as unfair.<\/p><p>Even you are currently employed, life can change quickly, so prepare yourself sooner rather than later by improving your credit score before you find yourself back in the job market.<\/p><p>\u00a0<\/p><ol start=\"4\"><li><strong>Having a good credit score can help you buy a home<\/strong><\/li><li><strong>\u00a0<\/strong><\/li><\/ol><p>Do you one day hope to own your own home? It might seem like something that is far in the future, but it&#8217;s never too early to work on building your credit score in order to qualify for a mortgage. Interestingly, your <a href=\"\/blog\/personal-finance\/credit-score\">credit score<\/a> does not have to be as high as you might think when it comes to mortgage approval \u2014 usually around 680. While you are probably borrowing the highest sum of money ever in your lifetime, you are buying something that is likely to increase in value. In addition, the lender can seize the home if you fail to make your repayments. It&#8217;s not as high risk to the lender as, for example, a cash loan.<\/p><p>A higher credit score also means better <a href=\"\/mortgages\/5-year\/fixed\">mortgage interest rates<\/a> when you do get approved for home ownership, which can save you thousands! While, as mentioned above, a score of 680 would have lenders considering your mortgage application, it&#8217;s best to wait until your score is 725 or higher, so you can unlock the lowest interest rates and have lower monthly payments.<\/p><p>\u00a0<\/p><ol start=\"5\"><li><strong>Having a good credit score can relieve stress<\/strong><\/li><li><strong>\u00a0<\/strong><\/li><\/ol><p>A low credit score means paying more interest every time you need to borrow money. If your score is poor, you may have to resort to payday loans if no other lender will offer you credit. Paying back loans at incredibly high interest can lead to high stress and anxiety, and this stress has only heightened amid the coronavirus pandemic.<\/p><p>According to 2020 research by <a href=\"blank\">FP Canada<\/a>, 38% or respondents cited money as their greatest cause of stress, which outranked personal health (25%), work (21%) and relationships (16%). Our relationships with our significant others, our children, siblings, parents and other loved ones all become strained under the stress of money.\u00a0 Financial stress is also linked to depression, anxiety and heart attacks.<\/p><p>With a higher credit score, you know if you need a <a href=\"\/loans\">loan<\/a> you will be approved at a low interest rate, which can take off some financial pressures.<\/p><p>\u00a0<\/p><ol start=\"6\"><li><strong>Having a good credit score means you shouldn&#8217;t have to borrow money from family <\/strong><\/li><li><strong>\u00a0<\/strong><\/li><\/ol><p>When we need financial help, the first people we often turn to is family, but this isn&#8217;t always a good idea. Although you may not be accumulating interest on the money you borrow from family, it&#8217;s still a debt that needs to be paid back. While failing to pay it back won&#8217;t impact your credit score, it could have irreversible consequences on your family relationships. Ask yourself, will my relationship with this family member survive if I am unable to pay the debt back?\u00a0If the answer is no, do not borrow money from them. Even with the best intentions, you may struggle to pay the debt back.<\/p><p>With a good credit score, you have more options for borrowing money and won&#8217;t have to take any money from family or friends.<\/p><p>If you were in any doubt as to the importance of your credit score in Canada, these 6 reasons should have you convinced! If you want to own your own home one day, want to save money on interest rates, want to lower your financial stress, and more, building your credit score is one of the most important financial moves you can make. Your financial future can be dramatically altered with strong credit. So why wait? Start building your credit score today!<\/p><p>Refresh Financial offers custom credit building solutions depending on where you are starting from, where you hope to be, and how quickly you want to get there<a href=\"https:\/\/go.myratecompass.ca\/refreshfinancial\" target=\"_blank\">. Learn more about Refresh Financial&#8217;s credit building solutions. <\/a>\u00a0<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-2f1671b elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"2f1671b\" data-element_type=\"section\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-133a7e5\" data-id=\"133a7e5\" data-element_type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-inner-section elementor-element elementor-element-a6ad013 elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"a6ad013\" data-element_type=\"section\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-50 elementor-inner-column elementor-element elementor-element-fef3149\" data-id=\"fef3149\" data-element_type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-4e93162 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"4e93162\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t<style>\/*! elementor - v3.17.0 - 08-11-2023 *\/\n.elementor-heading-title{padding:0;margin:0;line-height:1}.elementor-widget-heading .elementor-heading-title[class*=elementor-size-]>a{color:inherit;font-size:inherit;line-height:inherit}.elementor-widget-heading .elementor-heading-title.elementor-size-small{font-size:15px}.elementor-widget-heading .elementor-heading-title.elementor-size-medium{font-size:19px}.elementor-widget-heading .elementor-heading-title.elementor-size-large{font-size:29px}.elementor-widget-heading .elementor-heading-title.elementor-size-xl{font-size:39px}.elementor-widget-heading .elementor-heading-title.elementor-size-xxl{font-size:59px}<\/style><h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Neo Secured Credit<\/h2>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-c65d80e elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"c65d80e\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>With <strong>guaranteed approval<\/strong>\u00a0and <strong>no annual fees<\/strong> you can start building your credit and earning unlimited, instant cashback.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-db56b2a elementor-mobile-align-center elementor-widget elementor-widget-button\" data-id=\"db56b2a\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"button.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-button-wrapper\">\n\t\t\t<a class=\"elementor-button elementor-button-link elementor-size-md\" href=\"https:\/\/go.myratecompass.ca\/neosecuredbanner\" target=\"_blank\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"elementor-button-content-wrapper\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"elementor-button-text\">Go to site <\/span>\n\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-50 elementor-inner-column elementor-element elementor-element-692b6ee\" data-id=\"692b6ee\" data-element_type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-8633406 elementor-widget elementor-widget-image\" data-id=\"8633406\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"image.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t<style>\/*! elementor - v3.17.0 - 08-11-2023 *\/\n.elementor-widget-image{text-align:center}.elementor-widget-image a{display:inline-block}.elementor-widget-image a img[src$=\".svg\"]{width:48px}.elementor-widget-image img{vertical-align:middle;display:inline-block}<\/style>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" width=\"406\" height=\"342\" src=\"https:\/\/myratecompass.ca\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/neo-secured.png\" class=\"attachment-large size-large wp-image-11109\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/myratecompass.ca\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/neo-secured.png 406w, https:\/\/myratecompass.ca\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/neo-secured-300x253.png 300w, https:\/\/myratecompass.ca\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/neo-secured-297x250.png 297w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 406px) 100vw, 406px\" style=\"width:100%;height:84.24%;max-width:406px\" title=\"\">\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p><span class=\"rt-reading-time\" style=\"display: block;\"><span class=\"rt-label rt-prefix\">Reading Time:<\/span> <span class=\"rt-time\">4<\/span> <span class=\"rt-label rt-postfix\">Min<\/span><\/span> Your credit score is one of the most important numbers in your financial portfolio. It can have an impact in multiple areas of your life, yet despite the importance of credit scores, it&#8217;s surprising how many Canadians either do not know their credit score, or do not understand how important it is. In fact, in&hellip; <a class=\"more-link\" href=\"https:\/\/myratecompass.ca\/blog\/credit-building\/why-good-credit-matters\/\">Continue reading <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">6 reasons building your credit score is one of the smartest financial moves you can make<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":1118,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[21],"class_list":["post-1041","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-credit-building","tag-blog-post-template-1-main-template-to-use","entry"],"aioseo_notices":[],"featured_image_urls":{"full":["https:\/\/myratecompass.ca\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/07ca680871e3218a24b0b550fab22808-scaled.jpg",924,616,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/myratecompass.ca\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/07ca680871e3218a24b0b550fab22808-150x150.jpg",150,150,true],"medium":["https:\/\/myratecompass.ca\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/07ca680871e3218a24b0b550fab22808-300x200.jpg",300,200,true],"medium_large":["https:\/\/myratecompass.ca\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/07ca680871e3218a24b0b550fab22808-768x512.jpg",750,500,true],"large":["https:\/\/myratecompass.ca\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/07ca680871e3218a24b0b550fab22808-1024x683.jpg",750,500,true],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/myratecompass.ca\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/07ca680871e3218a24b0b550fab22808-1536x1024.jpg",1536,1024,true],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/myratecompass.ca\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/07ca680871e3218a24b0b550fab22808-2048x1365.jpg",2048,1365,true],"post-thumbnail":["https:\/\/myratecompass.ca\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/07ca680871e3218a24b0b550fab22808-1568x1045.jpg",1568,1045,true],"post-image-medium":["https:\/\/myratecompass.ca\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/07ca680871e3218a24b0b550fab22808-375x250.jpg",375,250,true]},"post_excerpt_stackable":"<p>Reading Time: 4 Min Your credit score is one of the most important numbers in your financial portfolio. It can have an impact in multiple areas of your life, yet despite the importance of credit scores, it&#8217;s surprising how many Canadians either do not know their credit score, or do not understand how important it is. In fact, in a 2018 survey by Refresh Financial, it was reported that only 62% of Canadians knew how to check their credit score and only 41% knew what their score was.When you don&#8217;t know your credit score, you don&#8217;t know if it&#8217;s holding&hellip;<\/p>\n","category_list":"<a href=\"https:\/\/myratecompass.ca\/blog\/.\/credit-building\/\" rel=\"category tag\">Credit Building<\/a>","author_info":{"name":"Mohamed Konate","url":"https:\/\/myratecompass.ca\/blog\/author\/mohamedkonate\/"},"comments_num":"0 comments","featured_image_urls_v2":{"full":["https:\/\/myratecompass.ca\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/07ca680871e3218a24b0b550fab22808-scaled.jpg",924,616,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/myratecompass.ca\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/07ca680871e3218a24b0b550fab22808-150x150.jpg",150,150,true],"medium":["https:\/\/myratecompass.ca\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/07ca680871e3218a24b0b550fab22808-300x200.jpg",300,200,true],"medium_large":["https:\/\/myratecompass.ca\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/07ca680871e3218a24b0b550fab22808-768x512.jpg",750,500,true],"large":["https:\/\/myratecompass.ca\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/07ca680871e3218a24b0b550fab22808-1024x683.jpg",750,500,true],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/myratecompass.ca\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/07ca680871e3218a24b0b550fab22808-1536x1024.jpg",1536,1024,true],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/myratecompass.ca\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/07ca680871e3218a24b0b550fab22808-2048x1365.jpg",2048,1365,true],"post-thumbnail":["https:\/\/myratecompass.ca\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/07ca680871e3218a24b0b550fab22808-1568x1045.jpg",1568,1045,true],"post-image-medium":["https:\/\/myratecompass.ca\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/07ca680871e3218a24b0b550fab22808-375x250.jpg",375,250,true]},"post_excerpt_stackable_v2":"<p>Reading Time: 4 Min Your credit score is one of the most important numbers in your financial portfolio. It can have an impact in multiple areas of your life, yet despite the importance of credit scores, it&#8217;s surprising how many Canadians either do not know their credit score, or do not understand how important it is. In fact, in a 2018 survey by Refresh Financial, it was reported that only 62% of Canadians knew how to check their credit score and only 41% knew what their score was.When you don&#8217;t know your credit score, you don&#8217;t know if it&#8217;s holding&hellip;<\/p>\n","category_list_v2":"<a href=\"https:\/\/myratecompass.ca\/blog\/.\/credit-building\/\" rel=\"category tag\">Credit Building<\/a>","author_info_v2":{"name":"Mohamed Konate","url":"https:\/\/myratecompass.ca\/blog\/author\/mohamedkonate\/"},"comments_num_v2":"0 comments","jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/myratecompass.ca\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/07ca680871e3218a24b0b550fab22808-scaled.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/myratecompass.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1041","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/myratecompass.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/myratecompass.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/myratecompass.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/myratecompass.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1041"}],"version-history":[{"count":17,"href":"https:\/\/myratecompass.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1041\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":11121,"href":"https:\/\/myratecompass.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1041\/revisions\/11121"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/myratecompass.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1118"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/myratecompass.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1041"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/myratecompass.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1041"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/myratecompass.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1041"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}