A hard inquiry, which occurs when you apply for credit and your credit reports are pulled as part of the application process, will remain on your reports for two years. Your credit score may also take a small hit as a result of the hard inquiry, but you shouldn't see a significant downward swing in your overall scores. A drop of more than five points likely means something else has changed in your credit profile.

Unlike mortgages, which are installment loans, the amount of available credit on a home equity line of credit (HELOC) will increase when you pay down the balance. Sounds like a credit card, right? In some ways, yes, and HELOCs are technically considered revolving credit accounts as well.

Everyone's personal financial plan should include a strategy to pay down existing debt. The big question is which debt should be paid down first?

In many households the single largest amount of debt is in the form of a mortgage. But just because it's the biggest and most obvious debt doesn't necessarily mean it should be the first to get paid down with any extra cash at the end of the month. After all, mortgage debt is both low interest and tax deductible.

Credit card users often choose to autopay their monthly credit card bills from a checking or online savings account . While this is a great way to make sure you never miss an on-time payment, it's important to remember that you could run into problems if you change banks, close your old checking account, and fail to remember you still have a recurring payment set up to draw on the account.