NEW YORK (AP) — A low credit score can hurt your ability to take out a loan, secure a good interest rate, or increase a credit card spending limit. Some reasons for a low score are out of your control — such as unexpected medical debt or a lack of credit history. But credit agencies are working to improve access to credit by giving people more time to pay medical bills before the debt appears in reports, and by removing other debt completely. They’re also making it easier to count rent, utility payments, and other recurring bills — a boon for those who need credit the most.
How credit scores are evolving to improve access to credit
AP2009
Elaine Thompson/ASSOCIATED PRESS
FILE - In this Nov. 2, 2009 file photo, a customer swipes a MasterCard debit card through a machine while checking-out at a shop in Seattle. Congress may be poised to tighten restrictions on the fees that businesses pay when customers make debit card payments. It's part of a broader financial overhaul that could be a victory for merchants, and caused credit card company stocks to drop on Friday. (AP Photo/Elaine Thompson, file)
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