How Late Can You Be on a Car Payment, Mortgage or Other Bill?

It’s always frustrating to come across a bill and realize it was due yesterday—or last week. If you’re late on a payment or if you miss it completely, you could end up paying late fees and taking a hit on your credit score. It can be especially difficult if you want to apply for a loan or credit and are about to make a big purchase like a house or a vehicle.

If you’re a reliable customer and have only missed this one payment, it likely shouldn’t be a big problem, and you can probably avoid a late fee. But if you wait too long, it might not be possible.

Either way, we’re going to help answer some of your biggest questions:

• How late can you be on a car payment before it affects your credit?
• Is there a late car payment grace period?
• What about for rent?
• What happens if you miss a payment completely?
• Who should you notify?
• How will it impact your credit score?

Read on to learn how late a credit card or car payment can be before it affects your credit score and what to do if it does.

How Late Can a Credit Card Payment Be?

People often wonder how late a payment has to be before their creditors report it to the credit bureaus. A credit card payment is considered late if it’s received after the cutoff time in your credit card agreement or if the payment submitted is less than the minimum amount due.

Missed credit card payments are generally added to your credit report when the payment is more than 30 days late. This same entry is updated if your payment is 60 days late, and then 90 days. It is important to know what your specific credit card issuer’s policies are, so you can know what to expect.

Keep in mind that one late payment among years of on-time payments is far less serious than a late payment and limited credit history.

When Is a Credit Card Payment Considered Late?

As far as credit card companies are concerned, the payment is considered late if it’s submitted after the cutoff period, which varies depending on the lender. Sometimes it’s 5 p.m. on a business day while for others it’s 8 p.m. or 11:59 p.m. Also be aware of when a late fee will be charged. Generally speaking, a late fee is issued if payment is received after the credit card issuer’s cutoff time.

30 Days Past Due

Late credit card payments usually aren’t reported to the credit bureau until after 30 days. In other words, if you make a payment after the due date but within this initial 30-day period, it won’t show up on your credit report, but you may have to pay a late fee.

60 Days Past Due

If your payment is more than 60 days late, the 30-day entry on your credit report is updated and your card’s interest rate could increase. If it increases and by how much depends on your card’s terms.

How Late Can You Be on a Car Payment?

Typically, the grace period on auto loans is 10 days, but this depends on the lender. The grace period your lender allows should be listed under the terms and conditions of your loan. This is where you’ll also find the details of the loan, including your loan balance, your interest rate, the term of the loan and the fees associated with a late or missed payment.

If you can afford to pay but simply forgot, you’ll want to pay it as soon as possible. But if you feel you can’t afford the car payment, you should get in touch with your lender and see if they would be willing to renegotiate the terms of the loan.

Deferring Car Payments

You can also look into deferring your car payment if you don’t have the funds now but you expect to later. A deferment essentially means you’re changing your due date by postponing the date of your next payment. Deferments usually don’t negatively affect your credit score.

What If I’m Late on Paying My Rent or Mortgage?

If you’re a few days late paying your rent, usually you shouldn’t have to worry about this affecting your credit score. If you know your landlord, chances are they’ll say something if you continue to submit late payments. If you’re paying a property management company, they likely won’t be as lenient on late payments. Our best advice is to pay your rent within the week it’s due.

Mortgage lenders typically report late payments to credit bureaus and usually have different grace periods. Paying within seven days should help you avoid decreasing credit scores.

One of the best ways to stay on top of your mortgage or rent payment is to set up a monthly reminder for a few days before the first of the month or, if possible, set up an automatic payment. Because your rent or mortgage payment is the same each month, it should be easy to calculate it into your personal finances.

Can a Late Credit Card Payment Made Under 30 Days Still Affect My Score?

If you make a credit card payment within the 30-day period, it generally should not be reported negatively or have any effect on your credit score. Beyond that time, however, there is a possibility your credit score could be affected. Make sure you know the terms of your credit card however, terms can vary and you don’t want any surprises.

If it turns out your late payment has been reported, know that its impact on your score generally diminishes with time, especially if it’s an isolated event. Other on-time payments can help counter the negative effects of late payments. And, as with almost any other mistake, the sooner you realize you’ve made it and try to fix it, the less likely it is to turn into a big problem.

Late Fees vs. Overdue Payments

Late fees are essentially fees charged by lenders to borrowers if a payment is received after its due date. So, if your payment is sent late—or is not the minimum payment or above—you could be charged a late fee.

Most credit card payments are due within a minimum of 21 days after the billing cycle ends, but remember, the grace period is usually only 30 days, so you’ll want to pay them off as soon as possible. Credit card late fees vary depending on your lender and requirements under the CFPB, but the late fee amount can’t be more than the minimum payment. For example, if your minimum payment is $35, your late fee won’t be higher than that.

An overdue payment, however, is a payment that was not paid by the due date. If you miss a due date, you will see the minimum balance plus the overdue payment on your next billing cycle. The overdue payment may be the full amount or a partial amount, such as if you paid part of your minimum but not all of it.

Removing Late Payments From Your Credit History

If there’s an error on your credit history, such as if a car payment is marked late but it actually wasn’t and you have proof, you can challenge it with the lender. The process involves explaining exactly what happened and asking that the error be fixed. Technically, the lender or servicer has 30 business days to respond to the error. If you don’t hear from them within about 45 days, follow up with them.

If a late payment ding on your credit report is accurate, you can still contact the lender and dispute it, especially if you’ve been diligent about paying your bills on time. The lender can provide what’s called a goodwill adjustment, which is when the lender essentially forgives your late fee.

As part of this process, you may be asked to explain the circumstances surrounding the reasons for your payment being submitted late. For example, maybe you went on vacation and forgot or you had to pay a large unexpected cost, such as medical fees, and you couldn’t afford the payment that month.

The lender may offer you a chance to enroll in automatic payments to lessen the chances of a late payment happening again.

How Long Does It Take for a Missed Payment to Come Off My Credit Report?

Unfortunately, if there’s a missed payment or a negative item on your credit history and you’re not able to have it removed, it can stay on there for seven years.

Keep in mind that if the incident occurred five years ago and you’re applying for a loan, it will have less effect than if it occurred last week. The more time that passes after the missed payment occurs, the better. Why? Because credit scores are based on recent financial behavior, so if you only miss one payment and not multiples, eventually your credit score takes your frequent on-time payments into account.

How to Prevent Late Payments in the Future

It’s hard to keep track of everything—grocery lists, kids’ schedules, work to-do lists and, of course, bill due dates—but there are ways to manage your personal finances better to ensure you never miss a payment.

• Go paperless. Going paperless may increase the likelihood you notice when a bill comes through each month instead of being lost in piles of other mail.
• Set up reminders. Banks sometimes offer text and email reminders that tell you when a bill, such as a car payment or credit card payment, is coming up. You can also set these up yourself to recur each month on your personal digital calendar.
• Enroll in automatic payments. Automatic payments ensure your car payment or other loan payment is made on time. Just make sure the funds are available in your account on the day it’s due to be withdrawn to avoid potential overdraw fees.

Keep an eye on your credit report and past late payments when you sign up for Credit.com’s Credit Report Card. It gives you a letter grade in each of the five key factors of your credit.