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Experts say now is the time to "spring clean" your finances

By
Janay Reece
Janay Reece
Janay Reece came back home to Baltimore to join WJZ in August 2023. Before coming back to the Charm City, Janay was a morning anchor and reporter for WDBJ7 in Roanoke, VA. She joined the WDBJ7 morning team after spending a year as a multimedia journalist in the New River Valley for the station.
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Janay Reece

/ CBS Baltimore

Spring cleaning may be at the top of your list right now, but one thing money experts believe shouldn't be left off the checklist is your credit.

"Getting a chance to go within your finances and see what is no longer of use, what you can change, what you can remove as you step into your next season," said Dr. Brittany Greene, a credit expert and the head of

Building better credit 

"It's always a good time to reevaluate where you are in the process of your goals, and especially as it comes to building credit," Greene said. "I think at a time, credit felt like a catch-22 where you needed credit to get credit, but now there are more options to be able to get your foot in the door." 

Greene believes the first thing you can try is knowing your card limits and credit balances.

"Make sure that everything is under 30% and if not, get it there," Greene said.

Experts suggest rotating your payment dates like a seasonal wardrobe.  

"Grouping everything into one or two monthly check-ins, just to make sure that you're paying everything on time so you haven't forgotten about an account that may be connected to something else," Greene said.

Greene explained that it is important to make sure your credit report is on the right track, cut unused subscriptions, and refresh passwords regularly to lower the risk of  fraud.

"You know, taking all those financial pests out of there, so looking for any errors that are on your report, and disputing anything that may be incorrect," said Greene.

You can also try to turn everyday bills into credit-building tools.

"So things like rent, utilities or even cell phone bills are things that we have on a recurring basis, but those are also things that you can help to turn into positive credit history," Greene said.

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