 TITLE: 6 Ways to Build Credit Before College CONTENT: 1\\. Understand How Financing Impacts Your Life\n----------------------------------------------\nKnowing how financing and credit work will help you make good money decisions as soon as you're faced with them. Many consumers spend time bouncing back from issues like high credit card debt, bankruptcy and skipped loan payments. By starting to think about your credit at a young age, you have the opportunity to avoid these concerns in the first place. Here are the basics to know:\n*   **Your credit history is a record of your behavior as a consumer.** It shows all the loans and credit cards you've applied for, how much you've spent and whether you repaid them on time. Lenders, and even landlords, will take a look at your overall financial conduct and decide whether to lend money or rent an apartment to you. Your credit report also yields a three-digit credit score, which creditors look at closely to determine your creditworthiness.\n*   **Lenders use your credit report and score to determine the interest rate you'll get on loans and credit cards.** Lenders charge interest on top of the original loan amount in exchange for the opportunity to pay off the loan over time. A good credit report and score will lead to a lower interest rate, since it will show lenders you will most likely keep up with your payments. You may also be required to pay fewer fees or have the chance to repay the loan over a shorter period of time.\nFor instance, when applying for a car loan, your credit affects the interest rate and length of the loan term you're quoted. In the fourth quarter of 2018, borrowers with the highest credit scores got the shortest loan terms on new car loans—62.82 months on average. Those with the lowest credit scores received average terms of nearly 10 more months.\nPlus, the average monthly new car payment was $544 for those with the lowest scores, compared with $517 for those with the highest scores. That means having a low credit score would add more than $6,500 to the cost of financing a new car. END