Why I Stopped Worrying About My Credit Score

It is more a measure of your borrowing than of your overall financial health

- Holly Johnson​​​​​​​holly Johnson​​​​​​​​

IF YOU BELIEVED everything you read about your credit score, you’d think it was the most important component of your financial health. Without a good credit score and history, the experts say, it’s more difficult to qualify for a mortgage or a car loan—and more expensive if you’re approved for a loan, too, because you won’t get the best interest rates. In many states, bad credit can even raise your insurance premiums, cost you a rental apartment, or make it harder to get hired.

While all of that is true, it doesn’t tell the whole story.