"I'm here to tell you that you can have anything from a 30-day missed payment to a bankruptcy on your report and still have a really good score," says Paperno.

The most recent information on credit reports is weighted more heavily than older data, Paperno says. So, if you have a bankruptcy from five years ago, but have had good credit performance since, it's possible to have a 700 FICO score.

To build better credit, Paperno preaches consistent good payment behavior instead of a quick fix. The advice is simple: Pay the minimum payment every month at least, if not the full balance. Diversify your account types and keep balances low. The result will be a higher credit score.