To improve your credit score you must have good marks on a number of individual elements that make up the final rating. A number of these are outlined here including having a mortgage, having a low outstanding balance on credit cards and being old!

1. A big factor in improving your credit score is having a mortgage. The basic idea is that you have already satisfied some lending institution or another that you are a safe investment. It also makes you easier to identify and statistically less likely to default on a loan. Despite horror stories you might hear to the contrary, the majority of people pay their mortgages every month.

2. Another factor that will help you up your score is not having too much outstanding debt. This means having a low percentage of your available credit actually used. You look much more like a competent borrower if you haven't pushed all your credit and store cards to the limit. Somewhere in the region of 20% of your available credit being used will help increase your score. If you are at your limit you look desperate and are a risk in the eyes of a lender (NB. Having a low debt ratio on lots of cards is frowned upon, too. It would be easy for you to get into deep debt very quickly.)

3. And being old helps! The older you are the less risk you pose. Retirees are lenders' favorite customers, reasoning the chances of you doing a runner are slim. But this factor is really out of your control unless you are prepared to wait for that new car.

In short, have a mortgage, don't be reckless with your current limitations and be an old person. Obviously, some of these points are not things you can change very quickly, but don't despair as there are many other ways you can improve your credit score.