There are many factors that affect your credit score. Some factors affect it in a positive way and some, of course, will have a negative impact. When it comes to your age, it can go either way. Because credit scores are based partly on the length of time you have been establishing a credit history, your age certainly can be a deciding factor when it comes to your credit score. The length of time you have established a credit history accounts for 15% of your credit score.

Age is More Than a Number
The younger you are, the lower your credit score may be simply because you haven't had a lot of time to establish your history. Typically, if you are under the age of 29, chances are good that your average score will hover around 650 solely because you are still building your credit history. You can be between the ages of 18 and 29, pay your bills faithfully and not accumulate too much debt, and still not be able to reach the maximum heights of a credit score. It appears that within each 9 year age group (ie: 30-39, 40-49 and so on), your credit score can rise between 10 and 20 points, depending on the other credit factors.

Educating The Young
This is one of the reasons why young people need to have a basic education in credit. Establishing a credit history as a young person is important but it is even more important that youth understand what it takes to keep a good credit history report in order to have the highest score possible. Younger kids and college student tend to apply for credit and credit cards without a full understanding of what it is all about and how credit actually works. They need to know what the consequences are if they do not practice smart money and smart credit management. College students especially need to understand how credit works and be careful with how they use and accumulate credit during their college years. After graduation, a credit score will begin to mean more to them as they try to find a place to live, buy a car, or even to get a good job.

Credit and money management is essential at any age. Because age is just one factor that determines your credit score, people of every age need to really watch how they use their credit and be very aware of how much debt they are accumulating.