The Motley Fool - 1. Pay your bills on time. More than one-third of your credit score -- the most popular being Fair Isaac's FICO score -- is based on your bill-paying habits. Late payments can have brutal consequences, particularly those that are 90 days or more past due. While recent changes to the FICO calculations make isolated incidents a bit less damaging, 90-day late payments can be just as troubling for picky lenders as a bankruptcy filing, a tax lien, a collection, a judgment, or a repossession.

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