
You should freeze your credit. Here’s why
Freezing your credit is powerful protection.
Courtney Mihocik is a senior credit cards editor for Bankrate. She specializes in helping people with limited or no credit understand their options for improving their credit scores. She focuses on the subprime category and provides guidance to people on their credit-building journeys.
Courtney is passionate about creating a space where people can learn more about managing their personal finances, specifically helping her peers achieve their credit card and credit score goals. She believes that public education fails to teach the essentials of personal finance to students and wants to make up for it in her editorial work.
Previously, she led insurance content at Reviews.com and worked as the loans editor at The Simple Dollar, where she produced daily personal finance articles from founder Trent Hamm in addition to student, personal, business and bad credit loan articles. Before entering the digital media space, Courtney worked in hyper-local print journalism, covering arts, culture, food, news and more for publications in Charlotte, North Carolina.
Courtney wants you to know
Courtney graduated college with a 750 credit score, which quickly plummeted to the 500s when she nearly defaulted on her high student loan payments she couldn’t afford. After applying for an income-driven repayment plan and six years of careful budgeting, hustling and responsible credit use, she’s happy to report her credit score is back hovering around 720 and she can qualify for better financial products.
Make your credit cards work for you in your overall financial health. Don’t let them become an interest-generating burden.
— Courtney Mihocik
Packs a solid and simple discount rate for die-hard shoppers, but the perks and APR are weak even for a store card.
Find the best Wells Fargo credit card offers and read reviews at Bankrate.com. Compare credit card rewards, 0% intro APR offers and more to find the right card for you.
Compare all American Express credit card offers available at Bankrate.com. Read advice on top Amex cards and find the one that's right for you.
You can earn additional points through the American AAdvantage dining program.
Compare the Discover it® Secured Credit Card and Capital One Platinum Secured cards here.
A starter card can be a great tool for building credit while practicing good habits, like paying off balances each month.
Here’s how the Capital One Savor compares to the Chase Freedom Unlimited.
Business credit card rewards are considered a rebate on spending and are not taxable