Comment Policy

I wondered how long it would take before I started to get spam comments. The problem is that, as a credit-related blog, there is a big opportunity for "on-topic" spam. I got two comments today that were (obviously) credit-card related but just had that "spammy" feel to them. So, I deleted them. Sorry if your comments were real.

So, the policy from here on out is:

1) No links in your comment: no problem. Comment away. Even somewhat off-topic or simple "nice blog" comments are fine if you're not trying to bump up some site's PageRank.
2) Links in your comment: Please be very specific in your post and reply directly to something that I've written so that I know that your comment isn't generic. Links to blogs are mostly ok, unless they're spam blogs (left to my discretion). Links to "Bad Credit" sites that appear to be scams or domain parking pages are highly indicative of spam. Linking the same site over and over again with different keywords in the link is also highly suspicious.
3) Please try to give yourself an identifier somehow. I've had several "Anonymous" commenters so far, which is fine, but I'd kind of like to know if you're all the same "Anonymous" or if there are multiple people out there. I want to get to know my readers. So please just sign it with a name; it can be made up if you want. Just try to keep it consistent and don't use a name that somebody else is using.

I really appreciate comments and would like to have this site become a place where people can help each other by telling their own credit stories and swapping hints. As I said before, I'm only one person, so my own experience is limited. We can make this info a lot better if more people contribute.

Why I Created This Blog

Quite simply, it's because there's so much cluelessness out there about credit scoring. I started reading Personal Finance blogs a couple of months ago, and many commenters seem to have quite a few misconceptions or wrong ideas about one's credit report and/or credit score, and even credit in general. I found myself making long-winded comments on blogs, which got kind of old. So I decided to try to educate people more generally and create the best online credit score resource available.

I just set up the new e-mail address for this blog. It is

gamingthecreditsystem@yhoo.com (fix the obvious misspelling)

Please feel free to e-mail me with any questions or comments that you don't want to post to the blog comments.

Sorry for the couple of days of "housekeeping" posts. I figured I would get certain things out of the way early on (and so I could add links to the sidebar). The next post will have "real" content again!

About Me and Disclaimer

I am 26 years old with above-average intelligence and a better-than-average job, but a fairly average life. I do not work in the banking or finance industries. I have never managed anybody else's money nor even seen anybody else's credit score. All of my experience in this area comes solely through things that I have read, following my own credit score monthly for the past 3 years, and common sense.

I am going to blog anonymously, although I may have left a few tidbits elsewhere. I will go into detail about my credit situation, including my score, components of my score, credit cards that I have, etc. For obvious reasons, I will not identify myself by name, and other information about myself will necessarily be vague.

I make no guarantees that anything I write about will apply to your own life or credit score. I am not a credit, banking, or personal finance professional, and this blog in no way constitutes an advisor-advisee relationship between me and you. Nothing that I write here should be construed as financial or legal advice. I am not a lawyer (no, really, I'm not). What you do with your own money is your own business and your own responsibility. While I endeavor to make this blog as factual and correct as possible, I have limited experience and will definitely make mistakes. The author of this blog bears no responsibility for any actions you may take based on information presented on this blog.

I am more than happy to hear from readers about their own experiences. The more data points that we have, the better we will be able to understand the credit scoring system. I will have an e-mail address specifically for blog use soon. Until then, please leave comments on the blog.

I will run Google AdWords and possibly various other advertising systems on this blog. I in no way endorse any of the ads presented. In fact, most of them are bound to be snake oil salesmen promoting all kinds of junk related to credit. I usually don't even see the ads myself, as I use Firefox with Adblock, which blocks almost all ads. If I link to a book on Amazon, usually it will be something that I have read or heard good things about.

Future Topics

I have a number of Personal Finance related topics that have been floating in my mind for months. I have been reading a few PF blogs for the past couple of months and have read probably 5 books related to the topic in the past few months as well. This entry will serve as a repository where I can dump quick ideas for future entries. If you have a suggestion or want to see an article on a particular idea, let me know! Whenever I write an article on the topic, I will turn it into a link here.

• The Diamond Scam
• Gaming Your Credit Score:
  • Paying on Time
  • Maintaining Low Balance to Limit Ratio
  • Monthly Timing
  • Establishing Credit NOW
  • Taking Advantage of Parents' Income
  • Using Bank Lines of Credit
• Using credit cards to your advantage
  • Rewards
  • Perks
  • Rebates
  • Avoiding Yearly Fees
• Changing your Eating Out Habit
  • Fast Food
  • Sit-down Restaurants
• Buying a Car
  • Financing a "Good Deal"
  • Never Ever Lease... Except
• Self-Employment and its Benefits
  • As it pertains to loans
  • As it pertains to taxes
• Getting Good Deals
  • Websites
  • Return Policies
  • "Pay less than eBay"
• Maintaining Your Finances
  • Obsession vs. Control
  • It's Not That Hard To Balance Your Checkbook
• Insurance
  • Never a Particularly Good Deal
  • Car Insurance
  • Health Insurance
  • Renter's Insurance
• Exercise
• College Life
  • Student Loans

Welcome to Gaming the Credit System!

This is a personal finance blog with an emphasis on your credit score and how to improve it. Any time that something is scored and the scoring method is known to the participant in the system, the system can be gamed.

By that, I mean that you can utilize your limited resources effectively to maximize your score. If you're playing a "Space Invaders" type video game and you know that shooting the red guys will get you twice the points of shooting the blue guys, you know to shoot the red guys first (assuming your only goal is to maximize your score).

The rules for credit scoring are well known. Therefore, the ways to maximize your credit score are also well known. There are simple and easy things that you can do to bump up your credit score almost immediately.

A little background about me: I am 26 years old and have a FICO score of 772. I will give more details into my life and finances later, as they come up in my posts.