Empowering Single Moms: Mastering Credit to Unlock Financial Freedom After Toxic Relationships

Attention single moms: Are you tired of feeling financially trapped and overwhelmed by credit card balances? Imagine the freedom of having excellent credit, opening doors to better opportunities for you and your family. In this post, I’ll share with you the key to unlocking better credit and reducing stress in your life.

I love talking about money so much, I became and AFC (Accredited Financial Counselor). I love to find ways to successfully manage personal finances especially for single moms who have endured toxic relationships. My goal and mission is to help you heal from those toxic relationships and help you manage your finances successfully.  I recently had someone ask me how do I get a better credit score? When you are a single mom and have good credit, it can relieve anxious feelings, decrease stress and give you the opportunity to purchase a car, rent an apartment and sometimes get a job (depending on the state you live in).

Credit Card Debt

The person I was working with had a balance on her credit card of $120 and the credit limit on her Mastercard was $200. I had to point out that the high balance is negatively affecting her credit score because she is using more than 30% of her credit card limit. When you use more than 30% of your credit limit or $60 it lowers your credit score because it looks like you are desperate for money and using a lot of credit. It’s important to realize credit reports don’t recognize if you have a $200 credit limit or a $10,000 credit limit. It only realizes a percentage of your credit being used. Ultimately, I encouraged her to pay the balance off as soon as she could and then proceed to building credit.

The strategy

In order to build excellent credit, you have to use credit. So, I encouraged her to make a $5 or $10 purchase each month on that credit card. A good rule of thumb is to make sure you can pay off the balance when you are making the payments. When I first started doing this, I would make a purchase and then pay it off right away. Literally, I would get home, and sit down at my computer (now we have laptops) and get online and pay it in full. I knew I had the money to pay it off at that moment. Using this system also relieves the surprise of a credit card bill in the mail or by email. Another option is to set up automatic payments to ensure you are never late. Having a late payment is going negatively affect your credit score and to lower it.

Building Excellent Credit

When you have excellent credit, it opens up a whole new world for you. You are no longer declined for a credit card, car loan, or home loan. Yes, you could even buy your own home! I didn’t think it was possible and I did! In addition, when you have excellent credit, you are paying the least amount in interest, therefore making your monthly payment lower. I have helped people from being stressed out and declined for credit cards and car loans to helping them build excellent credit to buy a home.

One Last Thing…

Building excellent credit will save you money, heartache, frustration, and stress in the future. As a single mom, you want to instill good financial skills for you kids also. If you are wanting to learn more about how to manage your personal finances successfully, join me in the private Facebook group where we can continue the conversation.

💜Renee