How To Get a Perfect Credit Score

How is your FICO score these days? Good? Fair? Near perfect?

Pursuit of excellence is often wise, but does 'perfect score' even exist? Yes, according to Craig Watts, public affairs director for FICO. "Several thousand consumers do in fact have the highest possible FICO score."

While not everyone will reach the perfect credit score apex, you can get close by consistently following three simple guidelines:

1. Pay all bills on time.
2. Keep credit card balances low.
3. Take on new credit only when you really need it.

Don't obsess over small credit score variations. "Lenders decide what score they will accept for their best interest rate product," assures Watts. "They genuinely don't care if your score is 50 or 100 points higher than that."

Clearly, A-plus credit has its advantages, but there is no reason to go overboard. Find a good balance between attentiveness and fixation by understanding what those numbers can do for you and knowing how you can improve them. And remember — credit scores gauge your borrowing history, not your intrinsic value as a person.