How can we improve our FICO score, when we have no debt?

It’s funny, (or not so funny) but the credit agencies, despite your sterling money-management skills, are penalizing you as if you have never had any credit before, or were applying for your first credit card. You match my mother-in-law’s profile. Retired, she had little mortgage debt, no car debt and always paid her bills on time, but her FICO was just so-so.

To boost your score, I would hate to tell you to go out and buy a car or an investment property, where you would again have to make monthly installment payments to impress the agencies. Who really wants to live with any debt? Rather, a better course to pursue is to slightly increase your credit card usage with two caveats: Don’t exceed 30 percent of any card’s limit, and continue to pay off each card in full. Inactive credit card users may see their FICO score fall, but you should never be penalized for not paying interest charges or paying off your credit card balance each month.