Misinformation about credit is everywhere—and believing the wrong advice can cost you time, money, and opportunity. That’s why Austin Hale and David Swinson, the leaders behind Financial Foundations of America, are on a mission to set the record straight. Founded in 2023 as Financial Foundations of Virginia, the organization has grown into a nationwide initiative, making financial education accessible, practical, and empowering for all.
Through hands-on workshops, personalized coaching, and community partnerships, their team of experienced educators is helping people cut through the noise, understand how credit really works, and take confident steps toward a stronger financial future.
Dominique Cravins, Economic Empowerment Coordinator at the LGBT Life Center, sat down with Austin Hale and David Swinson to break it all down.
💳 Credit Basics (What Most People Get Wrong)
Q: Dominique Cravins, Economic Empowerment Coordinator (EEC Cravins): Credit scores can feel confusing to a lot of people. What are the biggest misconceptions people have about how credit scores actually work?
A: Austin Hale and David Swinson, Financial Foundations of America: One of the biggest myths we hear is that checking your own credit score hurts it. It doesn’t. When you check your own score, that’s called a “soft inquiry,” and it has zero effect. Only “hard inquiries,” like when a lender pulls your credit because you’ve applied for a loan or credit card, can have an impact.
Another common misconception is that you have just one credit score. In reality, you have many. Different scoring companies use different formulas. Each of the three major credit bureaus, Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion, may have slightly different information on file. So, your score can vary depending on who’s calculating it and which report they’re using.
People also often think their income directly affects their credit score. It doesn’t. Your score is based on how you manage credit. Things like whether you pay on time, how much of your available credit you’re using, and how long you’ve had your accounts open. Someone earning a modest income who pays their bills consistently can absolutely have a higher credit score than someone earning six figures who misses payments.
Myth: Checking your credit hurts your score
Reality: It doesn’t—it’s a soft inquiry and has zero impact.
🧠 Building Credit the Right Way
Q: EEC Cravins: There’s a lot of advice floating around about credit cards — some of it helpful and some of it not. Another common belief is that carrying a balance on your credit card helps your score. What’s the reality?
A: Hale and Swinson, FFoA: This is one of the most persistent myths out there, and it costs people real money. You do not need to carry a balance to build or maintain a good credit score. What matters to the scoring models is that you’re using credit and paying it back responsibly, not that you’re paying interest.
What actually helps your score is something called your “credit utilization ratio.” That’s just a fancy way of saying: how much of your available credit are you currently using? If you have a credit card with a $1,000 limit and you have a $300 balance when your statement closes, your utilization is 30%. Generally, keeping that number below 30% is good, and below 10% is even better. The best habit is to use your card for regular purchases you were going to make anyway and then pay the full balance each month. You get the benefit of building a strong payment history without paying a dime in interest. Carrying a balance doesn’t help your score, it just puts money in the credit card company’s pocket.
Truth: You do NOT need to carry a balance to build credit
Carrying a balance just costs you money.
Q: EEC Cravins: Many people assume that being in debt is just part of building credit. How true is the idea that you need to be in debt to build good credit?
A: Hale and Swinson, FFoA: You absolutely do not need to be in debt to build good credit. What you need is credit activity, and there’s a big difference. Using a credit card to buy groceries and then paying it off in full before the due date is credit activity, but it’s not debt. You’re showing lenders that you can borrow responsibly and pay it back. That’s what builds your score.
For people who are just getting started, there are some low-risk ways to begin building credit. A secured credit card, where you put down a small deposit, which becomes your credit limit, is a great first step.
You can also ask a family member with good credit to add you as an authorized user on one of their accounts. Building credit is about showing a pattern of responsible use over time. It’s not about how much you owe; it’s about showing that when you do borrow, you pay it back.
⚠️ Credit Repair & Scams
Q: EEC Cravins: “Credit repair” is a term that gets used a lot, but not everyone understands what it really involves. What does credit repair actually mean? Is it something people can do themselves, or does it require professional help?
A: Hale and Swinson, FFoA: At its core, credit repair means reviewing your credit reports, identifying errors or inaccuracies, and disputing them with the credit bureaus to get them corrected or removed. And here’s the important part: this is absolutely something you can do yourself, for free. Under federal law, specifically the Fair Credit Reporting Act, you have the right to dispute any information on your credit report that you believe is inaccurate. You can do this directly with each of the three credit bureaus, and they’re required to investigate. You can submit disputes online, by mail, or by phone. It doesn’t cost anything. There are companies that offer to do this for you, and some of them are legitimate. But be cautious. No company can legally do anything you can’t do yourself, and some charge hundreds or even thousands of dollars for services that are free when you do them on your own.
Q: EEC Cravins: When people start reviewing their credit reports, they’re often surprised by what’s on them. What kinds of things can legitimately be removed from a credit report, and what can’t?
A: Hale and Swinson, FFoA: Great question, because there’s an important distinction here. You can dispute and potentially have removed anything that is inaccurate, incomplete, or unverifiable. That includes things like accounts that don’t belong to you, incorrect balances or payment statuses, wrong dates, or accounts that have been mixed up with someone who has a similar name. You can also have information removed that is outdated. Most negative items such as late payments, collections, or charge-offs, can only stay on your report for seven years. Bankruptcies can remain for up to ten years. Once that time has passed, they should fall off automatically, but sometimes they don’t, and you have the right to dispute them. What you generally cannot have removed is accurate negative information that is still within its reporting timeframe. If you did miss a payment two years ago and it was reported correctly, that’s going to stay on your report until the seven-year clock runs out. No one can force a credit bureau to remove accurate information before that time. The first step is knowing what’s on your reports. Everyone is entitled to free credit reports from all three bureaus through AnnualCreditReport.com.
We always encourage people to start there. Pull your reports, review them carefully, and if something doesn’t look right, dispute it.
Q: EEC Cravins: Improving credit can feel overwhelming, especially if someone expects quick results. How long does it realistically take to repair damaged credit?
A: Hale and Swinson, FFoA: We completely understand that feeling, and we want people to know that it’s okay to start small. Credit doesn’t get built or rebuilt overnight. It’s a gradual process, and that’s perfectly normal. The most important thing you can do is focus on what you can control right now. Make your payments on time, even if it’s just the minimum. If you have credit card balances, try to pay down the ones with the highest utilization first. Check your credit reports for errors. That’s a quick win that can sometimes make a meaningful difference. We tell people to think about it like getting in shape. You’re not going to run a marathon next week, but if you start walking every day, you’ll be amazed at where you are in six months. Credit works the same way. Small, consistent steps add up. And every step you take is a step in the right direction.
The most encouraging thing we can share is that we’ve seen people make real, meaningful progress in their credit just by understanding how the system works and making a few intentional changes. That’s exactly why we do what we do, to make sure everyone has access to that knowledge.
Q: EEC Cravins: Unfortunately, the credit repair industry has its share of bad actors. Are there warning signs that a credit repair company might be a scam?
A: Hale and Swinson, FFoA: Absolutely, and knowing these red flags can save people a lot of money and heartache. The biggest warning sign is any company that asks you to pay upfront before they’ve done any work. Under federal law, the Credit Repair Organizations Act, credit repair companies cannot charge you until they’ve actually performed the services they promised. Other red flags include companies that guarantee a specific credit score increase or promise to remove accurate negative information from your report. No one can guarantee results, and legitimate negative items that are accurate and timely generally can’t be removed no matter what anyone promises. If a company tells you to dispute everything on your report regardless of whether it’s accurate, walk away.
Also, be cautious of any company that tells you not to contact the credit bureaus yourself. You always have the right to dispute errors on your own, for free, directly with the bureaus. A trustworthy company will be transparent about what they can and can’t do.
Q: EEC Cravins: For someone who feels stuck with poor credit, the first steps can make a big difference. If someone has poor credit today, what are the first three steps they should take to start improving it?
A: Hale and Swinson, FFoA: First, pull your credit reports from all three bureaus. You can do this for free at AnnualCreditReport.com. Go through them carefully and look for errors. Mistakes are more common than people think: wrong account balances, accounts that aren’t yours, or payments marked late that you actually made on time. If you find errors, dispute them directly with the bureau. Correcting mistakes can sometimes give your score an immediate lift.
Second, focus on making every payment on time going forward. Payment history is the single biggest factor in your credit score. If you’re struggling to keep track, set up autopay for at least the minimum payment on every account. Even one missed payment can set you back significantly.
Third, work on bringing down your credit card balances. Try to get your credit utilization, the percentage of your available credit that you’re using, below 30 percent. If you can get it under 10 percent, even better. If paying down balances feels overwhelming, start with the card that has the smallest balance. Small progress still counts.
📈 Building Strong Credit Over Time
Q: EEC Cravins: People with excellent credit often follow certain patterns without even realizing it. What habits do people with strong credit typically practice that others could adopt?
A: Hale and Swinson, FFoA: The number one habit is consistency with on-time payments. People with strong credit rarely miss a due date, and many of them have autopay set up so they don’t even have to think about it. It’s not glamorous, but it’s the foundation everything else is built on. They also tend to keep their credit card balances low relative to their limits. They might use their cards regularly, but they pay them off, or close to it, every month. That keeps their utilization low, which is a big factor in a strong score.
Another pattern is that they keep old accounts open, even if they don’t use them much. The length of your credit history matters, so that old credit card you opened ten years ago is actually helping your score just by existing. People with strong credit also tend to be selective about applying for new credit. They’re not opening store cards at every checkout counter, because each application creates a hard inquiry.
Finally, they check their credit reports periodically. Not obsessively, but enough to catch errors or signs of identity theft early.
Q: EEC Cravins: Small actions can sometimes have a surprisingly big impact over time. What’s one simple thing readers could do this month that would have a positive impact on their credit over time?
A: Hale and Swinson, FFoA: Set up autopay for the minimum payment on every single account you have; credit cards, loans, everything. You can always pay more than the minimum manually, but having autopay as your safety net means you’ll never accidentally miss a payment. Since payment history makes up the largest portion of your credit score, this one small step protects you from the most damaging thing that can happen to your score: a missed payment. It takes about fifteen minutes to set up, and it works for you every single month after that.
Q: EEC Cravins: If you could debunk just one credit myth that causes people the most harm, what would it be and why?
A: Hale and Swinson, FFoA: The myth that carrying a balance on your credit card helps your credit score. This one causes real financial harm because people end up paying interest they don’t need to pay, believing it’s somehow helping them. It’s not. Your credit score doesn’t care whether you carry a balance or pay in full every month. What it cares about is that you make your payments on time and that your utilization stays low. Paying your balance in full actually gives you the best of both worlds. You show responsible usage, you keep your utilization low, and you pay zero interest. There’s no bonus for paying interest, ever. This myth persists partly because people confuse “using credit” with “carrying debt.” You absolutely need to use your credit cards to build a credit history but using them and paying them off is the ideal approach. Carrying a balance just costs you money.
Myth: You need to be in debt to build credit
Truth: You don’t
Reality: Using credit and paying it off responsibly builds your score—not carrying debt
You can learn more about Financial Foundations of America at financialfoundationsofamerica.org.
🔑 Quick Takeaways
Understanding credit doesn’t have to be overwhelming.
With the right information and a few consistent habits, real progress is possible—and it starts with small steps.
- You don’t need debt to build credit
- Payment history matters most
- Keep utilization below 30% (ideally 10%)
If you have questions or want to learn more, we’re here to help. Email us at info@lgbtlifecenter.org and our Economic Empowerment Coordinator will connect with you!
Connect with us!
Tiktok.com/@lgbtlifecenter
Facebook.com/LGBTLifeCenter
Instagram.com/LGBTLifeCenter
Sign up for our monthly newsletter by clicking here.
Leave a Reply