2. You have just made it through your last semester of school. Classes were challenging, so you had to cut back on the number of hours at your part-time job. As a result, you were not able to keep up with your bills for the last two months prior to graduation. To help ease the situation, you applied for a new credit card and transferred the balance of your existing two cards, avoiding the necessity to make a payment for either of those cards that month. The following month, you were short on grocery and gas money, but your new card was at its limit so you ended up using both of your old cards you had initially planned to cancel. You also incurred a number of expenses while getting ready to move following graduation. Additionally, you needed a whole new professional wardrobe and took advantage of a department store’s discount offer by opening an account. You are now ready to start your first post-graduation job in a new town. You are horrified to learn that your application to rent a condo in the ideal location has been turned down due to your credit report.

a. What things did you do in the last three months that hurt your credit score? (LO 6-3)

b. What actions can you take to improve your credit report? (LO 6-4)