There are many reasons to maintain a clean credit record, more than one might suspect. Aside of being able to borrow money on a whim at reasonable interest rates, you may also be asked to provide a copy of your credit bureau report when seeking employment, renting a home or applying for insurance. As we continue to heavily rely on credit in our everyday activities, recent credit records can be a good indicator of how well things are being taken care of. If you are at all credit active, it’s recommended to request a copy of your credit bureau report at least once a year to ensure all records are up-to-date and none are affecting your credit score improvement.

Although you may hear that all scores over 600 are ‘good enough’, it’s worth noting that only clients with credit scores of 650+ will be able to qualify for CMHC insurance on their next high-ratio mortgage.

Aside of looking at your score alone, landlords and insurance companies will also often look for recent bad patterns in your payment history as chasing payments and excessive administration can significantly slow down their operation. When it comes down to employment, there are certain bonded professions and designations to whom insolvency isn’t an option. For those individuals, it’s imperative to catch bad debt early on and eliminate it within available means before it’s’ too late. In other words, just like your driving record, your credit record requires attention. Keep your record clean and you’ll find that even when life throws another curve ball at you, you have enough of a buffer to bounce right back in.