Tips to Prevent Credit Challenges During the Government Shutdown

If you are one of the 800,000 federal employees impacted by the government shutdown, here are a few tips that you can use to prevent serious credit challenges in the future.

Tip #1: Pull a credit report. During a financial crisis, your credit profile is usually not on the list of priorities when you’re trying to put food on the table. If you can, we recommend pulling a free credit report from annualcreditreport.com as the first step in defending against future credit challenges. If you’ve already pulled a credit report, your credit union or bank may offer free credit reports for free online.

Tip #2: Highlight at-risk accounts. Many people simply turn a blind eye to accounts they know won’t get paid on time. Unfortunately, this isn’t an effective way to protect your credit. Instead, highlight accounts that you may have difficulty paying, and contact your creditors. Banks and credit card companies may have one time options due to the government shutdown to help you save money and avoid derogatory hits to your credit profile.

Tip #3: Stay vigilant. If you’re serious about protecting your credit, be vigilant about communicating with creditors and not being blind-sided by missed payments or new collections. The more communicative you are upfront, the better the outcome.

If you’re looking for a list of banks offering mortgage and rent relief, click here.

If you have questions about protecting your credit, we’d be happy to help. Contact us directly here.