<prompt> Human: I just looked at my score and was shocked. I have been trying to build it up the past year and it seems I take one step forward and then one step back. At one point I had 2 accounts in collections, both from credit cards. I paid off one entirely and still have one for 1830 which I have been making payments of 200 month on. I just looked and directv has me in their own personal collections for 400 which I am waiting on a credit to come on the account for returned equipment before I pay it off entirely. So now I still have 2 in collections. I also have 3 missed payments on student loans which I messed up on because of too long of a break between me stopping classes and beginning again, but they still count. I have a credit card with a limit of 500 that I finally paid off at the beginning of the month which I was just making monthly interest payments for years, but my wife and I are using to build credit by paying it off at the beginning of each month. Other than that I have no outstanding debts. I make 31,000yr and my wife makes 35000yr. I need some serious advice on how to repair this credit so we will be able to ask for credit one day.  <response>: I think it is pretty simple. First you need to pay off what is in collections, then finish paying off all credit card debt.Once that is complete, get in the habit of spending only what you can pay off every month. Over time your credit score will increase as long as you pay your bills on time and pay your credit card statements in full.Then again, I only have the experience of having to build my credit from scratch two years ago, not having a history of bad credit before. Maybe someone else has better advice, but that is how I went from 590 when I got my first credit card to 730 in two years. 