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Easy Quick Steps for Credit Repair

Nowadays, where credit transactions are every day, bad credit can make your life miserable. Without good credit, you can’t get a good apartment, you can’t qualify for a low interest mortgage, you can’t get an apartment, and you may not get a good job. This article will try to help you keep up whatever credit score you have and even make it better.

“Quick” is a word that is relative to your perspective. For some people, thirty days is quick, but for others, it might mean just a few days. In this case, quick credit repair is normally a few months to a year.

If you credit score is low, you may have suffered from health problems, loss of a job, theft, or other problems that lost you money and/or affected your credit. If you want to change your credit situation, you need to analyze your finances, examine if you have tried to resolve your problems, and ask yourself if you have the determination you need to correct your problems.

If you have the determination you need to correct your problems, there is still hope. Here are some ways to repair your credit and remove negative items on your credit report, to get you better credit:

1. First and most important: pay your bills on time or early from now on. 35% of your credit score is measured by whether you pay your bills late, on time, or even before they’re due. Late payments can lose up to 100 points on your credit scores. Late or early payments can either help or hinder your efforts to repair your credit scores. Bottom line: You need to pay all your bills on time or early.

2. Find out what is in your credit report. You can get free reports at AnnualCreditReport.com, but some allege that these free reports are tied to a technicality that increases time for reinvestigation when there is a dispute.

3. You hope to increase your credit scores, which will accelerate your credit repair process. You can increase your credit scores by making payments early, and cutting down your existing balances and debts.

4. Check your credit reports for inaccurate information. Mistakes can lower your credit scores. When you find inaccuracies, report them to the bureaus in writing ASAP. If the mistake was made by the credit reporting agency, it is his duty to correct such mistakes. If the error was by the creditor itself, then your dispute should trigger an investigation, and should eliminate the problem. Sometimes, you have to dispute an error multiple times, before it gets corrected.

5. You should also dispute entries made by credit bureaus multiple times if necessary, because they often fail to counter your dispute, because old debts aren’t worth verifying. If you try this type of dispute, don’t just replicate dispute letters you find in the internet. It’s much better for you to write your own letter. This show your claim is legitimate, not just parroted.

6. Finally, don;t dispute your open accounts, because these help build your good credit history. Just pay them on time and leave them alone.

Why is Credit Repair so Important

Your credit score is what banks, lenders, landlords, and others use to check whether they want to OK your purchase, loan, apartment rental, or job application. You can be approved or denied based on your credit score, and that’s why your credit repair is so important.

Credit repair is absolutely necessary if your credit score is 600 or below, and still very useful at almost any level. So you can understand how your credit score is calculated, everybody starts with a reasonable score but the instant you are late on a payment or a mortgage, your credit score drops.

This doesn’t necessarily mean you won’t be able to get a loan, but you will probably get an interest rate that is much higher than someone who has a better credit score.

The best way to fix a low credit score is by paying off old debts, contesting errors on your report, and not missing any more payments.

Fixing your low credit score normally can’t be done overnight, but usually takes at least several months or even years.

Bankruptcy shouldn’t normally be an option, unless you have a pending foreclosure or need to stop collection on a judgment, because your bankruptcy record will be kept on file for 10 years.

Of course, you can’t repair your credit unless you know what to repair. That;s why you first need to get a copy of your credit report by obtaining this from one or all of the three credit agencies, which are Equifax, Experian, and Trans-Union. You can get a free credit report from www.AnnualCreditReport.com, but buying a 3-in-1 report can make it easier to see all the reports all in one report.

As soon as you get the credit report, review it for errors. If any issues show on the report that have been resolved, send a letter to that credit agency with evidence of what happened, so your credit report can be corrected.

If you have outstanding balances, you need to make sure your payments are current or early, or pay them off to get a settlement letter which you can supply the credit agency, so they can correct the issue. Be careful not to close too many accounts, especially older ones, because that can also negatively affect your credit.

Meanwhile, you have to make enough money to make your payments on time or early. You can often get better terms by consolidating your debts into one package, which should buy you a little time at lower interest rates.

Some people borrow a little money to make their payments current, while they work on fixing their credit report, because your credit score may improve if you apply for a loan. You don’t need to borrow much because even a small amount like $500 can be enough to start some improvement. Of course, make sure that you make all payments completely when due or earlyl.

Hopefully, you now have a clearer picture of why credit repair is needed. You might have avoided the problem if you had understood how it works earlier, but what’s important now is just to move forward and repair the damage done..

Credit repair can be simple once you understand how to do it, but don’t be afraid to get help from a credit counselor at the beginning. Hopefully, you’ll get your credit back in good standing soon and you can again get a line of credit.

To prevent the need for credit repair again, keep your expenses down and try not to spend beyond your means.

When You Need Credit Repair

You need credit repair especially if your credit score is less than 600 points, because your credit score can make may things impossible, like getting a loan, renting an apartment, getting a job, and many other day-to-day activities.

If your credit score falls really low, don’t panic because you can fix it. Don’t even think of filing for bankruptcy, unless you need to stop a foreclosure or stop enforcement of a judgment, because a bankruptcy will lower your credit score and will be on your record for 10 years.

Credit repair is easy if there are any mistakes on your credit report. You can check your credit reports by getting a copies from one or all of the three credit agencies: Equifax, Experian, and Trans-Union. You can get free reports from all three at www.AnnualCreditReport.com or you can buy a 3-in-1 report that shows all three in one report.

Once you have your credit report(s), check them for errors and conflicts. Sometimes one agency will report some things differently than the others. That should be easy to correct.

If you are sure that an issue has been resolved, ask the agency to change it with a letter and evidence to prove your point, and they usually will correct the error.

But what do you do if the credit report is accurate, yet negative? You can still contest old debts, you can start making payments on time or early, and you can pay off some debts, if possible. If you need help, talk to a credit counselor who can even act as a negotiator and may be able to consolidate your debt at lower interest and easier payments.

Any debt consolidation package must in writing because it is a legal contract between you and the creditor. . The contract can avoid problems in the future, like if the creditor decides to cancel the agreement.

Once you consolidate your debt, you need to come up with the money to make the payments on time or early, and that usually means cutting your expenses and/or increasing your income.

If you can’t cut expenses enough or increase income, you may need to sell off some of your valuables or find a friend or family member can temporarily lend you the money.

Whenever you pay off a debt, make sure you get a settlement letter from the creditor and send a copy of it to all 3 credit bureaus so they can update your credit report.

There are several lessons to learn after you have repaired your credit.

First, keep your expenses down. When you get credit, don’t max it out, because it’s hard to pay it back.

Second, pay more than the minimum, to get the balance down.

Third, if you can’t do it alone, ask for help, because there are lots of credit counselors ready to help, some may be free.

Fourth, pay your bills on time or early and in full.

Credit repair wouldn’t have been needed if you had been more careful. So work to fix your credit, then keep it up.

Counseling: Credit Repair Advice

If you have bad credit, you should repair your credit, and the fastest way to repair your credit is to consult with a credit repair counselor. A credit repair counselor know the ins and outs of handling credit and finances; he can help you get understand your credit report and your credit standing. And a counselor can also show you the areas to focus on to get a better credit rating.

Nowadays, credit transactions have grown very complex, so many people ask credit repair counselors and professionals to help them control their debt and credit situation. In the US, more than 90 million people now have debts amounting to 20 thousand or more, aside from mortgages. A lot of this is from improper credit card usage.

A credit repair counselor can work with your creditors to try to lessen your debt and arrange for an easier payoff. Often, they can arrange for a debt consolidation loan from a debt management company, so your payments and interest are lower, which makes it easier to pay them down. A counselor will work to try to lessen the amount that you are paying off and get you better interest. They often try to form a bond with your creditors to coax them to get you better terms for payment.

You need to visit with your counselor monthly to discuss all matters relating to your finances, from reducing expenses to managing bill payments to increasing income somehow . Even after you have paid off your debts, your counselor can stay with you guide you as you continue to put your finances in order.

Your credit counselor will try to guide you to make sure that you stay within your budget, and don’t get back into the rut you were in. He can help you put together a comprehensive financial plan for you, which involves reducing expenses, paying down debts, possibly raising income, and finally creating a budget that you can live with.

Choose your counselor carefully before you sign any contracts. Check the local Chamber of Commerce and the Better Business Bureau, and search online, just to check the reputation of the debt counselor that you are thinking of working with.

You can also check a counselor’s references to help you evaluate the counselor, to see how capable he is to help you with your credit repair. A good counselor will tell you their fees up front and they should give you an idea of what you can expect from their efforts.

It’s also very important to go with a counselor that you feel comfortable with, and feel you can trust.

Credit Repair On Your Own

You can manage to do your own credit repair. All that Do It Yourself Credit Repair requires is the proper knowledge of how to repair credit. Getting that information to know how to do it is the key. There is lots of information on the internet on how to do it, and of course books in the library. The more you learn about credit repair and financial management, the easier it will be for you to repair your credit and stabilize your credit life.

First, you need to get all your credit reports and study them. You can get a Free Credit Report from all 3 agencies from www.AnnualCreditReport.com or you can pay to get a 3-in-1 Report with all 3 agencies’ report side by side for easier comparison. After studying the credit reports, write to the 3 Credit Bureaus to correct whatever entries that you think are questionable or incorrect, and give evidence wherever possible.

Right at the start, you can correct and clarify entries on your reports, such as dates, credit limits, and the actual amount owed. When you find any inconsistencies, write a letter to the credit bureaus to show that the entries in your report are wrong. The bureau will usually inform the creditor and ask the creditor to either correct the information or confirm its correctness.

When you analyze your credit report, especially look at the last 12 months. Most of your credit score is calculated from the last 12 months in your credit history. The better you have been at making on-time payments, the better your credit score. Try not to default on any account – always make your payment on time or early. If you miss a payment, make a doable payment plan, but even one missed payment will lower your credit score some. If you have any accounts that were given to a collection agency, you can either dispute the debt, or try to work to pay it off. You might want to get touch with the original creditor instead of just dealing with the collection company to make sure that your payment records are straight.

After you get the credit reports and have worked to correct any errors, you can then proceed to other ways to repair your credit. Your credit score is key to getting a new loan, getting a good interest rate on a mortgage, finding an apartment, getting a good job, and many other aspects of your life. Even some simple purchases can be affected by your credit status.

Your credit rating affects your life in many ways. Your credit score can determine whether you can get a low interest rates and a longer term to pay it off. Even basic utilities, landlords, and employers now look at your credit rating.

To repair your credit score, make sure that you pay your bills on time or even early. Loans and credit card payments are the most important. Creditors examine closely how well you pay off other creditors, so make sure that you don’t miss even one payment, and pay early if possible. Even one missed payment can lower your credit rating.

If you are diligent, you can repair your own credit, even without a credit counselor.