These credit companies should be the most regulated companies in the history of commerce. Instead they are allowed to screw people for profit .

I have the upper hand here... I'm poor and have no plans to borrow for anything and I'll have to move again but I have that covered so I don't need them and their credit rating. The last dealings I had with an outfit of that kind was them telling me they were hacked and I was vulnerable.

I’m 54 and hopefully I’ll pay off the house by 60. I don’t care if the credit score goes to zero after that

If my health permits.

Hopefully by 70, I won’t need credit.

5-1/2 years to go, just started a new career, new challenges

Every year they reduce my credit.....oh well...

reduced. LOL

Paid off our mortgage and credit rating dropped 20 points.....

I am retired, 74 years old, still paying a mortgage. My credit score is 817. What am I doing wrong?

Okay, so I don't have ongoing credit card debt, as I pay off my credit card each and every month.

You’re not doing anything wrong.

the OP here. Paying your bills is A Good Thing.

Low or No verifiable income, and lender may feel they won’t live long enough to pay off the debt.

that's what is carrying you, making payments.

your mortgage paid off to retire is actually bad advice.

After a divorce at age 60 I moved to another part of the country and bought a home. 30 year mortgage. The payment is just about exactly 25% of my income. So highly affordable. Yeah, it's nice if you buy a home when you're 25 or 30, and so it's paid off by retirement, but not everyone's life works out that way.

That our economy, for we little people, requires that you maintain debt of some sort for which you make regular payments in order to be in good standing (in the game). You are no longer considered a participant worth taking "risk" on if you don't have a regular obligation to someone or some agreement to which you part from your money on a schedule.

and use them to shop online or charge groceries to them or restaurant meals out.Don't overdo it, keep your spending the same, just put it on one of the cards. Pay you bills on time every montn and your score with stay the same.

That's what I've been doing since retiring. I refi-ed my mortgage a couple of years ago and reduced my mortgage $2400 to $1568 (fair credit but a bunch of equity in the house), then the credit when up after paying everything on time for a year, in the 760 range.

I personally don't use a debit card (I have one, but only use it to take cash from my checking account for spending money each week) but you might prefer to use one. However, I've noticed that those who use debit cards often wind up spending a lot more money than they should. Personally, I don't use a debit card (other than to take cash for my spending money each week, as already stated). I've noticed that young people who use debit cards to pay for almost everything simply don't have money left in their accounts. Hmmm. Think about it.

I'm of the opinion that debit cards are a Very Bad Idea.

I just use the card for my spending. I'm no youngster and have discipline to keep my spending at the same level as if I was paying for it with cash.

It's easy for me and it's keeps my credit rating high as I pay my bill on time every month.

How's your rating since you don't use your card but for withdrawals? Bet it would be higher if you put your spending on the card and paid your bill on time every montn. That way the credit rating companies have a record of you paying on time every month, which keeps your rating high.

water, electricity, etc, are also paid on time. My credit score is 817, so it essentially couldn't go higher.

And I suspect a debit card doesn't affect credit scores much, since that's taking money directly from the checking account.

I also think it's a mistake to never carry any cash, as sometimes a place doesn't accept cards. Or there's a minimum charge, so you are spending more than intended.

I’ve been retired for 18 years. I’ve just checked my credit score. No complaints at all.

It all depends on what kind of lifestyle you want in your later years.

Heck, everything hurts renters.

As we near retirement, we will need a cheaper place and renting a new place is a pain these days, let me tell you. They check everything and charge you for it. Retirement terrifies me.

So, I'm in my 70s with no debt. I do have 2 credit cards I pay in full each month. My credit score has been over 800 for years.