Ryan J. Taylor asked:




Credit repair is not just for people who are not credit worthy. Anyone at any credit score can quickly increase their credit rating with just a few easy steps. Those who need to fix bad credit, however, will see the biggest improvement in their score by following these simple steps. As a result, not only will you be able to secure better rates on your loan, but you won’t have to worry about being denied for a rental application, a new job, or your home and auto insurance policy.

Whether you had a string of trouble that damaged your credit, or you just want to polish your credit report before you submit your mortgage application, these steps will help you boost your rating and make your more attractive to creditors and lenders.

1. Pay Your Bill: Obviously, your credit score is a direct reflection of how good you are at paying your bills on time, but it is important to stress exactly how vital this is to having a good credit score. If you have been routinely late in the past, change this behavior now so you can get on good graces with your creditor. Once you’ve established that you have turned a corner, they may be willing to remove the late payment incidents from your credit report, which would instantly increase your score.

2. Use Your Credit Cards: Contrary to popular belief that you should close your credit card accounts as a credit repair strategy, this will actually hurt you for two reasons. Once, your credit score looks at how much available credit you have been extended, and two, lenders want to see a long credit history. By closing your accounts you effectively eliminate both of those cases. Instead, use your credit cards liberally and pay them off in full each month. By doing this you maintain an active credit file that shows you are capable of managing debt, which lenders like to see.

3. Increase Available Credit: Your credit score looks at your available credit to debt ratio. In other words, the more credit you have but have not used, the better. Paying off your debts is an obvious way to do this, but you can also ask your credit card companies to raise your spending limit. A quick phone call can instantly improve your rating, as long as you don’t abuse that limit increase.

4. Pay More than the Minimum: By increasing your payments on your outstanding debt you effectively manage to tackle a number of credit repair strategies. For one, you improve your available credit to debt ratio. You also establish yourself as someone who is a responsible consumer and capable of managing money and debt effectively. All good things in the eyes of a lender.

5. Review Your Credit Report: There is a one in four chance that there are errors on your credit report, and these errors could be unfairly hurting your credit score. You should review your credit report every four months and immediately contact the reporting agency to notify them of any errors. By law they have 30 days to investigate and respond to anything you bring to their attention.

These five things will get you started with your credit repair process, but there are many more quick fixes that can instantly increase your credit score. Take the time to clean up your rating before applying for a loan or asking for credit, and lenders will be begging to do business with you.

Dawn

Conleth Onu asked:




How would you like to clean up your bad credit and rebuild your record? Yes, that’s right. You can fix credit report and repair your credit. You can learn how to repair bad credit yourself.

Good credit is a necessity in our society. It is important that you have a good credit record.

Many people mistakenly believe that once you have bad credit that there is nothing you can do about it. But that is not true. You don’t have to live with a bad record. You can get rid of negative items on your report if you have the right information at your disposal.

Whenever you apply for credit, your credit report will be reviewed. Lenders check your report to determine whether you are a good credit risk. They rely on the information contained in your report to determine your reputation for creditworthiness.

If you have bad credit record it is often difficult to get an apartment, a loan for a car or any form of credit loans at all. Therefore, it is important that your credit rating is secure.

The first step to fixing your record is getting a copy of your credit report. You need to see what’s in your report.

By law, you are allowed to receive a free copy of your credit report once a year from each of the major credit bureaus. Also, if you are denied credit, you have the right to get a free copy of your report if you request it within 60 days of receiving a denial notice. If not, the bureau may charge you a small fee.

Once you have your report, you can now find out if it contains any mistakes. Examine your report for inaccurate dates, amounts, or any other incorrect details. If you find any errors in your credit report, you need to get in touch with the credit agency immediately and dispute the items.

When the credit repair agency receives your dispute letter, they will contact the creditors behind the mistakes and resolve them for you.

In viewing your report, if you find that most of the damaging information in your report is your own fault, you’ll need to take steps to resolve them. For instance, if you have late payments appearing on your record, sign up for an automatic payment plan to avoid the problem.

If you have debt that need to be paid, you can try to negotiate debt and interest rates with your creditors.

After you’ve finished getting rid of negative information, it’s time to add positive accounts to your record. There are several ways to establish a good credit history.

This can be accomplished by taking out a small loan backed by funds in your savings account. When you pay back the loan, your security deposit will be released to you.

Another effective way to build good credit is to apply for a secured credit card. This requires you to open and maintain a savings account as security against default. Department store and gas station charge cards can also help you rebuild your credit.

With the right information you can fix credit report. By eliminating the source of negative credit reports and adding positive credit accounts, you will be well on your way to establish a good credit record.

Anita

Chris Kennelly asked:




Unfortunately many of us have gotten used to the lifestyle that is almost dictated by debt, credit cards and loans; sometimes leading to a vicious circle of borrowing from Peter to Paul, as the saying goes. In the event that you have declared bankruptcy, and you are now beginning your process of credit repair, if nothing else consider the lessons that you could have learned from the process that led you to eventually declare bankruptcy.

Don’t fall into the same traps that you originally fell into, in terms of the credit cards, loans and so forth. These instruments are easy to come by and the companies that offer them are obviously there to turn a profit, regardless of whether or not you or other customers can afford to make the repayments or not. They will attempt to offer the greatest rates and best services to entice you into making more debt and getting back into a situation you previously found yourself in, before your credit repair efforts.

Strict discipline, commitment and motivation are all part of the required mindset of your credit repair efforts, as this will not occur overnight, but will take time and patience to get to your goals of cleaning up your credit name. If you have any accounts outstanding, then strict management in terms of repayments must be adhered to, even if it means that you forego some or other luxury item to meet your scheduled account payments. This will surely help you in not getting back into bad habits of late account payments which could well have led to the bankruptcy option.

You will further encounter the fact that due to your credit record being somewhat tarnished, that many lenders will offer you a loan but with a higher interest rate, due to the inherent risk that you pose for these financiers. You should by no means take this personally, after all these people are running a business. A better option for you may be to elect for a secured loan, whereby some sort of security is ceded to the bank or lending institution, which in turn offsets the risk, and they may consider reducing the interest rate.

If you can avoid any of the lending practices during your credit repair and even after that, then this would be ideal. Although as many of us are aware it is not that easy, especially with the rising cost of living, and once you become accustomed to a certain standard of living its difficult to change.

Leroy

Tom Tessin asked:




As a college student, you may find yourself becoming new to the whole credit card, financial world. After all, you’re a college student and a young adult; everyone has to experience something new one in a lifetime. The troubling thing that most students can find themselves getting into is that they ruin their credit at a very young age. As it’s such a shame, there are a few things you can do in order to repair your credit the right way. I’m going to show you the warning signs of scummy credit repair companies. These are the companies you’ll want to avoid.

Companies that want your money ahead of time

When you’re on the hunt to repair your credit, you’ll often lead yourself down the road to finding a company that will help repair your credit. A true warning sign that the company is up too no good is a company that wants to have your money up front before they even start your services. Make sure that you’re looking for a legit company; they will sit you down and talk over your expenses before you even flip a check their way.

Companies that dispute everything on your report

Let’s face it, when you have bad credit, you’re going to have lenders on your butt all the time. Some credit repair companies will want you to dispute everything on your report. If you find a company like this, make sure that you steer clear of something like. You should know what’s right and wrong on your report. Every once in awhile you’ll find something that isn’t right, these are the only things you’ll want to dispute. Other than that, if it’s right, don’t mess with it.

Companies that want to invent something new

In today’s world, people want to get up and change everything completely. If you come across a company that promises to change your identity completely and start you all over, I would highly advise you stay away. IF you find something like this and go through with it, not only will you get yourself into more legal troubles, you could be finding yourself facing a lot of jail time. This type of behavior isn’t acceptable and companies like this should be reported to the authorities immediately.

Before you even start your credit repair search, you’re going to want to a do a few things before doing so. The first thing you’ll want to do is grab a hold of your credit report. You’ll want to skim over all the information on the report and put a check next to something that doesn’t look right. When you sit down with a company that wants to help repair, make sure you point out these things.

Remember, when you’re on your hunt, make sure that you keep these warning signs in mind. There are a lot of people and places out there that want to take your money. Just because they look legit, doesn’t mean they are.

Stephen

Ian Webber asked:


Credit Repair and Credit Scores

Credit repair is on everyone’s mind these days. And credit scores are for sale everywhere. There is only one problem. None of these advertised credit scores are the same as the credit scores that lenders use when making credit decisions. Whoa. That’s right. People spend huge amounts of money to buy credit scores which they mistakenly believe are relevant to their life. What the heck is the story? You want to know? Okay. I’ll tell you!

Lenders Use FICO Scores

Lenders use a type of credit score called the FICO score. FICO stands for Fair Isaac Corporation, the creator of this important score. The credit bureaus gather consumer credit data and run their data through the FICO credit score software to produce the scores that lenders use to make decisions.

Avoid Knockoff Scores

If you are starting a credit repair project or plan to get a loan in the near future and want to know where you stand you should purchase your FICO scores. But if you buy your scores from one of the credit bureaus websites you will get the bureaus own proprietary scores. And you will be no wiser than you were before because these knockoff scores can easily be 100 points different from your FICO scores; deceptive for your loan information, and useless for benchmarking your credit repair.

It’s About Money Honey

Alas, the credit bureaus realized they could make more money by creating their own version of a credit score and selling it to the public. If they sold genuine FICO scores to consumers they would have to pay fees to Fair Isaac. Lenders demand FICO scores; it’s a simple fact, they would never settle for less. Consumers on the other hand seem to be clueless. But there is a reason that consumers are clueless, the credit bureaus don’t offer any transparency, just a sales pitch.

Credit Repair and the Right Stuff

It’s all about your FICO scores. If you are going to benchmark your credit repair effort or plan to get a loan these are the only scores that matter. And you can get them online at the website for Fair Isaac Corporation, MyFico.com. The cost is about $50 for all three scores. Now are your ready to hear how these important scores work? Here is a mixture of the information published by Fair Isaac and some practical credit repair tips from yours truly, and I do know a bit about this, so listen up.

Major Credit Repair Weight

Fair Isaac is happy to tell you that the major part of your credit score is based on two categories. These are your payment history, weighing in at a hefty 35% of your score, and your account balances, tipping the scale at 30% of your total score. This is a bare bones fact, and much useful credit repair info is left unsaid, so I guess I’ll say it. If you care about your credit scores you need to focus on your revolving balances.

Revolving Account Bombs

Revolving balances are the lynchpin of your credit scores, and hence your credit repair effort. You can have a decade of perfect credit under your belt. You may have paid off a dozen cars and made every payment on time, but if you run up your credit card balances to the max and then check your credit scores you are in for a rude awakening. Maxed out credit cards will devastate your scores. Do you want some numbers? Okay.  A maxed out card can erase 100 points from your score. An over-limit card can knock 150 points off; it’s a credit repair disaster. But wait, there is more.

Credit Repair Leverage

I don’t want you to feel like this is all bad news. Revolving debt is conversely the most powerful credit repair tool you have at your disposal for pumping up your scores. FICO recognizes 5 different balance tiers: 20, 40, 60, 80, and 100 percent usage. If you are getting a loan in the near future and have the resources to pay your balances under 20% of the limit your scores will be shining.

The Rest of the Story

The other ingredients relevant to your credit repair task include the age of your accounts, coming in at 15% of your score, new credit and inquiries at 10%, and the type, or mix of credit at the final 10%. These remaining ingredients are minor and for most people will take care of themselves as life goes on. I should, however, add that it is valuable credit repair advice to avoid opening new accounts before applying for a major loan, and to keep those inquiries to a minimum. Cheers!

Copyright © 2008 Ian Webber. All Content. All Rights Reserved.



Kristin

Ian Webber asked:


Credit Repair Done Right

If you want your credit repair effort to succeed you need the right credit scores and credit reports. The wrong approach can put you on the path to lower credit scores and frustration. The information you are about to read may shock and amaze you. But if you do it right you will have a great advantage and avoid some serious frustration.

The Scores You Need

Do you know what your credit scores are? Are you sure? If you are going to begin a credit repair effort and want to benchmark your starting point you should do it right. Here’s the problem. The credit scores sold by the credit bureaus are not the same scores lenders use. Huh? That’s right; the credit bureaus created their own credit scores to cash in on the market opportunity. If you muddle through the fine print at the credit bureau websites you will discover the disclaimer.

Avoid Those Imitation Scores

This unfortunate fact applies to the army of credit resellers on the web as well. There is another problem with bureau scores. You may think that even an imitation score will serve your credit repair purposes, believing that your progress should be reflected in some way. I’m sorry to say that these scores do not behave the same as your real lender scores and are almost sure to result in disappointment.

MyFICO, the Right Score for Credit Repair



If you want your real scores you have to go to MyFICO.com the website of Fair Isaac Corp, the creator of the FICO score. The current cost of scores is about $50 for all three combined. A bit pricy, but it’s the only game in town. And for those intrepid credit repair warriors that want more detail, Equifax does in fact sell a FICO score. Unfortunately, they only make it available for your Equifax report, and you definitely want all three scores for your credit repair effort. Also, they use an older release of the formula, so the results will vary.

But Nix on their Credit Reports



So, head on over to MyFICO and get your scores right from the source. It’s the right credit repair choice. But there is another twist. Although MyFICO is the only way to get your scores, the credit reports they provide are the pits. For some strange reason MyFICO blocks out virtually all of the account numbers and offers only about half of the information that your credit repair effort will need. So get your wallet out again because you will have to buy your reports elsewhere. It takes few bucks to get your credit repair underway, but it’s worth doing it right.

The Right Reports



Although the credit bureaus peddle poor credit score products, they offer excellent tri-merged reports, full of all of the detail you need for your credit repair project, and when it comes to credit repair every detail matters. I’ve taken you down a twisty road so far, and I’m sorry to say that there is one more twist on this journey before we arrive at our goal.

Credit Repair and the Right Deal



Here is the final twist. The credit bureaus want to sign you up for monthly membership, hence the offers of free credit reports in exchange for joining this or that service. If you are not careful your free credit report will end up costing you hundreds of dollars. If you want to join a monthly service, that’s another story. There are benefits. But if you just want to get your credit repair underway and want a good cheap tri-merged report you have to look very carefully.

Hiding in Plain Sight

TrueCredit.com offers the best cheap one shot tri-merged report on the web. But it’s not easy to find, so don’t just run off to TrueCredit and think you’re going to find it clearly advertised. In fact, it’s about the last thing that they want you to buy. But it’s there, hiding in plain sight. Well, almost. Scroll down the home page. Look under the main picture for small print in light gray that says that coverage is not available for residents of New York.

Credit Repair Treasure Hunt Success

Right under that line you will find another line that says that you can also get your 3-bureau credit report without the free score. Click on the words, without the free score. It’s a credit repair treasure hunt. How hard can they make it? Wow. Make sure to uncheck the two boxes where they try to sell you two other ridiculous items that have no use for your life, not to mention your credit repair efforts. Now you have the tools you need to get started. Good luck!

Copyright © 2008 Ian Webber. All Content. All Rights Reserved.



Minnie

Dewey Kearney asked:


There’s a lot of bad credit repair offers on the web today making bold claims to “increase your credit score by 100 points in 30 days! Guaranteed!” Or something like that. But beware! These bad credit repair systems can end up making your credit worse in the long run.

So what do you do if you’re faced with extreme errors? For instance, a mortgage or car company that keeps reporting your payments as late, even though you’ve caught up (this happened to a friend of mine). These types of dings on your credit can keep you from getting good interest rates, and may even cause you to be turned down flat by lenders! It is estimated that 79% of all credit reports contain errors. That’s a lot of errors and these errors cost Americans millions of dollars in interest every year.

But going head on with a mortgage or auto lender is like the proverbial “tilting at windmills.” Once they ding your credit – they won’t write a letter to the credit bureau retracting it! That would open them up to all kinds of liability issues. This is when you need to seek credit repair legal advice.

But before you seek bad credit repair advice (from an attorney or any other company) we wanted to give you some helpful information so that you can make a more informed decision about what to do.

What Exactly is Credit Repair?

Credit repair is the term that refers to challenging inaccurate, misleading, or unverifiable information on credit reports to improve the credit score.

Is Credit Repair Legal?

Yes, but there are illegal credit repair programs you should be aware of! For example, while it is legal to challenge negative items on your credit reports that you believe to be inaccurate, misleading or unverifiable, the accurate information is supposed to remain on your credit report.

It is also entirely illegal to create a “new” identity by applying for an Employer Identification Number (EIN) to use instead of your own Social Security Number. An EIN number is the number that the IRS gives to a corporation for tax purposes. To use this for credit repair is called file segregation – in order to escape responsibility by hiding one’s credit history. The use of File Segregation is a crime and can result in fines or serious jail time. This is a road you don’t want to go down.

Why Should I See A Credit Repair Law Firm And Not Just Get One Of Those “Do It Yourself” Credit Repair Systems?

First off – major errors are very hard to remove on your own.

A TRUE STORY: I have a friend who filed for bankruptcy in New York. She paid off all her debts and the bankruptcy was discharged. About 6 months later a SECOND bankruptcy filing appeared on her credit, along with a discharge. Then a THIRD one! This made her look like someone who abuses the system (filing for bankruptcy to stop collections, then canceling it without paying her bills). Needless to say her score was absolutely tanked! It took her over 18 months to get just ONE of the mistaken bankruptcies removed. She’s still working on the second one today.

Secondly – these supposed “sure-fire” credit repair systems might ruin your credit! Many of them encourage you to (or claim they will do it for you) challenge everything on your credit (good AND bad). Unfortunately this can result in removing the “good stuff” also. And as any lender will tell you, NO credit history is often times worse than BAD credit history!

A TRUE STORY: I sell cars in Phoenix Arizona and imagine my surprise when I pulled a 52-year old customers credit one day and all that was there was his name! ZERO credit score, ZERO open loans (or closed loans for that matter). He might as well been born yesterday. The thing was, he had an open car loan! So the banks knew he had “washed” his credit, which made him look suspicious. Unfortunately no bank would touch him at any rate of interest so he went home without a new vehicle that day.You may think I made this up because you have been told it wasn’t possible, well, it is possible. I saw it with my own eyes.

This type of credit repair is illegal! If an item is old and questionable, that can be challenged and removed. A good credit attorney will know the difference and keep you out of trouble and get these items removed, thus improving your credit score.

Aren’t There Laws Regulating The Credit Repair Industry?

There are indeed. The most prominent one is theCredit Repair Organizations Act (CROA). This became law in 1996 to protect the public from unfair and deceptive advertising practices in the credit repair industry. Additionally, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) investigates complaints about credit repair organizations and takes appropriate legal action. Unfortunately it takes them a long time to operate and you could have your credit damaged further by using one of these companies.

Here Is How You Can Avoid Becoming A Victim Of Unscrupulous Credit Repair Companies.

· Avoid any credit repair company that will not tell you your legal rights and what you can do yourself for free.

· Avoid any credit repair company that tells you to relax and let them do it all. In other words, don’t contact the credit bureaus yourself.

· Avoid any credit repair company that tells you they will dispute everything (good, bad or ugly).

Avoid any credit company that suggests creating a “new” credit identity – and then get a new credit report by applying for an Employer Identification Number (EIN) to use instead of your Social Security Number. Remember – This is illegal and can have serious consequences.

Talk to a real credit repair agency. We have an excellent credit law firm on our site that specializes on LEGAL credit repair! I would invite you to go there and see for yourself how they can help solve your problems.



Neil