Answer: -Sorry you do not have enough time to up your scores much.For one you do not owe enough on different accounts. second just making your payments on time does not mean you are a good risk. By making only the required payment and no more shows creditors that you possibly are just making enough to pay that amount and no more.When making payments always pay more than the required amount a extra 5 to 50 per month looks great. get a few credit cards put something on them and do not pay off each month yet pay monthly about twice to three times the minimum due each month. this looks very good on your report.Due to my wife's health I filed for bankruptcy lost every thing we had and in 4 years I had built my credit score up to 700. To earn a good score this takes time and planning . As of today my score is 786. -There are three credit score companies which all have different scores for each of us. If you have always paid cash (strangely paying a car loan counts for very little) means that you are an "unknown" quantity, i.e., a potential "bad" credit risk...which is probably why your score is so low. Unfortunately, I doubt that this will change significantly enough to put you above 600 no matter how hard you try...Consider alternative sources for mortgages, or a no-doc (no documentation needed) mortgage...it's going to be a higher rate, but if you take the lowest rate you can find and pay it down over 12 months...you should be able to re-negotiate a lower rate...AND...you'll have a higer score. If you can pay off the car any faster, it won't make any difference...use the extra payment on the mortgage (once you get it).