Let’s take a look at each category so that you can understand what it means and how your actions can impact it.

Payment History – 35% of Your FICO Score

As the name implies, this category includes information on your payments to various lenders and looks at your payment history for the last seven years.

 

In order to score well in this category, you need to make all of your payments on time and for the amount due.  If you do make a late payment, the amount that is overdue, as well as how many days overdue it is, will impact your score.

However, if you have made late payments in the past, don’t worry – there is hope.  The more recent a late payment is, the more it counts towards lowering your score.

Likewise, if your late payment was a long time ago, it will have a smaller impact to your score. 

Here’s a list of the types of payment and other credit information that can impact this category.  While the most common types of information are included on this list, this list does not contain every type of payment information that could impact your payment history category.

• Credit card payments
• Mortgage payments
• Retail account payments
• Installment loan payments
• Negative public records such as bankruptcy, collection items, and delinquency items