Subprime Credit

What Is Subprime Credit?

Subprime credit refers to an individual’s credit score and will be considered when you apply for a car loan. This means that your FICO credit score appears in the fair range between 580 and 669. With a score like this, the loan you take out may come with higher interest rates and fees than that of prime car shoppers who achieve higher FICO credit scores.

If you’re new to the financing game, you may not know what a FICO credit score is. This numbered system—from 300 to 850–shows how likely a borrower is to repay a loan and summarizes your credit history. Your score may impact your ability to get a loan and the interest rate on the loan, which may veer in any direction according to your record.

Reasons for Subprime Credit

Reasons that your credit score may be considered subprime could involve several factors. First off, it basically considers how you manage your current and past debts and how much credit you’ve accrued over time.

If you missed or made late payments on a loan or credit card, have high credit card balances, or delinquent accounts, your score may fall under this category. Also, if you’ve inquired about your credit multiple times or possess little to no credit history, you may be classified as subprime.

Credit analysts who check out your credit to approve you for a loan will see your current and past accounts with this information mentioned. If you’ve been through tough times, it shows a record of other issues such as bankruptcy, home foreclosures, car repossessions, and unpaid credit.

While these and the other mentioned items may make it harder to get a loan, our finance team can target lenders that work with car buyers with less-than-perfect credit.

Can You Improve Your Credit Score?

There’s always room for improvement when it comes to your credit score. You just need to know what tactics to use to elevate your score for future purchases. If you have a copy of your credit history, you’ll be able to evaluate why your credit score may be low and how to rectify it.

To improve your credit score, make sure that you pay your bills on time, even if it’s the minimum credit card payment. If possible, avoid the minimum and pay your bill in full to eliminate accruing unnecessary interest and therefore extra fees.

Do you know how many times you’ve applied for loans or credit cards? Choose wisely when it comes to applying for these items. Any time that you’re approved or denied, your credit score drops five points.