What Does Your Credit Score Affect? 5 Things You Might Not Expect

Your credit affects more than loans and credit cards. It can also decide whether you pay a deposit for a cell phone plan or your utilities, whether you get a job offer, and what a refinance costs you.

Most people have learned either the easy way or the hard way that a credit score matters when you buy a car or a house. These five are the ones that slip under the radar.

1. Cell Phones

Cell phones have become more of a necessity than a luxury, since you use them to work, pay bills and a lot more. The last thing you want is your credit getting in the way of a new phone.

Cell phone providers will run a credit check to see if you can handle the monthly payment. Based on what they find, they can ask for a down payment or deposit before they'll finance a phone, or turn you down for financing altogether. The way around it? Buy the phone outright or go with a prepaid plan.

2. Utilities

Utility companies bill you after you use the service, so they treat it like credit. That means they can look at your credit history when you sign up.

If you're a new customer or have a poor payment history, the company may ask for a deposit, or for a letter from someone who agrees to pay if you don't.

A utility can even deny you service, though in most situations you have the right to know why.

When you're moving, that hurts. First month's rent, a security deposit and a utility deposit all land before you've even gotten a chance to move in.

3. Employment

If you are looking for a new job, your credit history could come up. Employment background reports often include credit checks.

Did you know an employer has to get your written permission before running one?

And if they decide not to hire you because of what's in the report, they have to give you a copy of it.

Some states also have laws that limit how employers can use credit information. It matters most when the job deals with money or the company is in a financial field.

4. Refinancing

You may already be a homeowner and have been diligently paying down your mortgage since you bought your house. But if the chance to refinance comes up because interest rates are going down, your credit scores could get in the way.

A lower score means fewer options and a higher rate. Over the life of a mortgage, that difference can be thousands of dollars. Home loans aren't the only ones. Refinancing your student loans can save you money as well, and the best rates there go to people with better credit. It's the same with personal loan rates.

5. Relationships

Believe it or not, your credit can affect your love life as well. A partner isn't going to have access to your credit information. But big and small money decisions get made together in a long-term relationship, and your credit is part of those.

Apply for a mortgage together and the lender looks at both of you. Our first-time home buying guide covers what lenders check. Joint accounts and co-signed loans show up on both of your reports, too, so one person's missed payment lands on the other.

It's not hopeless, though.

A partner knowing how you plan to handle your finances and turn things around can be a good thing.

How To Turn Your Credit Around

The problem with credit issues is that they feed themselves. If your costs go up because of past mistakes, money gets tighter, and it's easier to miss a payment again.

So start with the two things that count the most. Payment history is 35% of a FICO Score and amounts owed is 30%. That's 65% of your score, and both are things you can act on right now: pay on time, and pay balances down.

Time helps as well.

Most negative information can stay on your credit report for seven years, and a bankruptcy for up to ten.

Don't know your number? Here's how to get your credit score for free. Then keep going with more smart money moves.