How important is your credit score in Canada?

How important is your credit score in Canada? In truth, it's very important.

If you are someone who likes to use cash to make your purchases, or you don’t anticipate ever buying a house, you might think your credit score doesn't matter at all, but you would be wrong.

What does your credit score in Canada matter anyway?

Your credit score or creditworthiness, which is reflected in your credit score, affects more than just the ability to borrow money or buy something on credit. It can affect whether a landlord will rent to you, how you pay for insurance, how much you will pay to buy a car, and even whether you can land a job or not. That’s right - employers, now more than ever, have started to check your credit to determine your level of responsibility.

• Newcomers won't have an established credit score in Canada, therefore have to build their credit history from scratch before they will be offered any credit cards or a mortgage.
• People with a poor credit score due to non-payment of debts, or over utilization of existing credit will struggle to get approved for credit products, and even if they do, it will come with sky-high interest rates.

If you were in any doubt as to the importance of your credit score in Canada, ask yourself this. Do I want to own my own home one day? Would I like to be able to get a low-interest personal loan any time I need it? Would I like to one day be offered zero-percent financing on a vehicle? If the answer is YES, you will need to take steps to improve your credit score, or risk always paying high interest rates.

Check your score

Once you realize how much your credit affects in your life, it may feel daunting to check your score, especially if you have never done it before. But whether or not you have a positive or a negative credit score, never let fear stop you from checking it. There are lots of ways to improve your score, but the first step is realizing how important it is and finding out what your score is at right now. Check your credit score here for free!

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Did you know, Refresh has solutions to help you build your credit score at a pace that works for you, within your budget.