Self Credit Repair: Tips and Suggestions

Before you embark on the journey of self credit repair, you will need several things. The most important is education. The best place to start is probably the Federal Trade Commission. They provide consumer information on credit issues and advice on where to go for help. This is probably a good place to mention that self credit repair is not possible until "credit issues" have been resolved. If you are behind on, or having trouble making payments, then you may need credit counseling, but not credit repair. If you have had problems paying your bills in the past and those problems are now behind you, but your credit rating has been damaged, then you may need credit repair, but not credit counseling. The non-profit Consumer Credit Counseling Services available in most cities are the best, most reasonably priced credit and budget counseling services, but they cannot help you repair your credit. There is no non-profit credit repair service, which is why there are so many do it your self credit repair programs and so many credit repair companies.

Credit repair companies simply do the work for you. In some cases, they may be able to achieve better results that you can on your own. A self credit repair program is not particularly costly, but can be time consuming and ineffective. Some credit repair companies can be very costly, but they may save you some time. If you are trying to repair your credit quickly, because you are tired of paying high interest rates or because you have been denied credit, then you may want to consider a credit repair company.

The first thing that you will need for any self credit repair program is copies of your credit reports. There are three major credit bureaus, Experian, Equifax and TransUnion, and a number of smaller credit reporting agencies throughout the country. If you are attempting self credit repair, you may want to start with one of the three majors. You can view and print a copy of your credit report from any of the three major credit bureaus at http://www.annualcreditreport.com/. You are entitled to one free copy per year from each of the bureaus. You must pay for subsequent copies. As you are working your way through self credit repair, you will need several copies.

You will need a yellow highlighter for the first step of your self credit repair program. As you are looking at your credit report, highlight any information that is inaccurate, outdated or questionable. You will need to report any inaccuracies to the credit bureau, either in writing or on-line depending on the bureau. The credit bureau has 30 days to investigate. If they need more information, they will contact you. Once they have the additional information, they have another 30 days to investigate. Which brings us to another self credit repair necessity; patience. You will need patience to write these letters and wait for results. It is at this point that many people give up on credit repair entirely. Some people just give up on self credit repair and turn to a credit repair specialist for help.

Time, copies of your credit reports, a yellow high lighter and patience. These are the only things that you really need to begin a self credit repair program. You do not need expensive "do it your self credit repair software". These software programs mainly consist of copies of form letters for you to send to the credit bureaus and the information that you have just read. If you have decided after reading the self credit repair requirements that there are some things that you do not have (like time and patience, yellow highlighters are pretty easy to come by), then you may want to consider a credit repair company.

The FTC warns consumers to avoid companies that claim to be able to achieve results in very short periods of time. One company advertises that they "may" be able to increase your credit score by "as much as" 100 points in "as little as" fifteen days. That is highly unlikely. It is true that a reputable credit repair company can achieve faster results than self credit repair, but they will be perfectly honest about the "30 days to investigate rule". For more information about self credit repair, visit the Credit Repair Blog.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/206024

How to Raise Your Credit Score 100 Points By Christmas

If you are one of the millions of people who needs to restore their credit score in time for the holidays, this article was written with YOU in mind! According to a recent survey done by one of the major polling companies, no less than 2 out of 3 American consumers now has at least ONE blemish on their credit file. And in most cases, that blemish is big enough, and black enough to cause that consumer to be denied credit, housing, insurance or employment. (if you said OUCH......you are NOT alone!)

In some ways, this is both good news, and bad news alike.

It's bad news, because so many people are struggling and suffering with bad credit, that the whole economy has been brought down as a result.

But, and this is somewhat controversial to say but true none the less.......it's GOOD news because if you are on of the millions who does have a sub par credit score, you are in good company, and most creditors now need to "grade on a curve" as a result. (in other words, with so many people in the same boat, it's impossible to apply the same scoring standards that were common just a few short years ago)

With that being said, here is exactly how I improved my credit score by 100 points in under 45 days, and how you can do the same if you start today, just in time for the holiday season.

What to do FIRST:

- Get copies of your reports. Make sure to get all 3 reports, and scores, from each of the major credit bureaus. (Experian/Equifax and Transunion)

- Evaluate your report by contrasting the information on each report, and look for obvious discrepancies. Dates, amounts and even names of creditors are a really great place to start, as you'll often see glaring differences between how each item is being reported on each file.

Remember - if each credit agency has a different date of delinquency associated with the same underlying item, or has a different balance due, or different original creditor, etc.....these are SUPER simple signs that the items are NOT 100% accurate, and you are legally within your rights to dispute these delinquencies with vim, vigor and the full force of the law.

- Prioritize all negative items in the order of how severe they are. In general, public record items are MOST severe, and things like inquiries, or older 30 day late's, etc.....are the LEAST harmful to your credit score.

- Send out your disputes, once you have identified the worst offenders on each report. Remember NOT to dispute everything at once, and formulate a plan for not only your first round of letters, but also for your second round as well. (this is especially important if you have many negative items - I don't recommend challenging more than 5 things, per bureau, per dispute)

- Send your letters out by certified mail, so you have a record of when they were received.

- Wait! This is often the hardest part. The good news is, you SHOULD get your first batch of results back in about 30-35 days, and if you did your job right, you SHOULD see a dramatic improvement in your credit score.

The last step? Rinse, wash and repeat. The quantity of challenges you need to file will depend on the volume of negative items you have, and of course, how successful you are with each challenge you send!

The good news is, this is the EXACT strategy I used to improve my own credit score by over 100 points in under 40 days, and it's also the exact system most credit repair professionals employ for their clients as well.

Absorb it, apply it and ENJOY the rapid results!

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/6674687

What Is Accepted As a Good Credit Score?

Many people wonder what is a good credit score, and as many consumers find out, it depends on who you ask, where you bank and sometimes where you shop.

There is no question that good credit opens doors and a good score can be helpful in enduring the ups and downs of the country's economy.

A good credit history can help you secure cheaper mortgage and auto loan rates and even obtain reduced estimates and rates for a variety of types of insurance coverage and credit-based professional services. Consumers with superior credit ratings often receive faster approvals in regard to loans because a good credit rating instantly shows a bank you will be an exceptional client or customer.

The Fair Isaac Corporation's FICO score is the most popular credit evaluation method. The FICO scoring system goes from 300 to 850, with 300 being the minimum possible FICO score and 850 being the highest attainable rating.

The FICO scoring model operates as follows:

A ranking that is 760 or higher is considered a great status. Individuals with ratings in this range have a history above the typical American. Creditors consider these consumers as top-notch applicants. A rating between 725 and 759 is a very good score, and lenders see people with this standing as dependable customers. A FICO score between 660 and 724 is a good score that is near the typical rating of American customers. A rating between 560 and 659 is not a good score, however, some loan companies will still okay lending options for customers with standings in this range. Virtually any score below 560 is an undesirable score and a good number of lenders consider these consumers to be risky customers.

What is an excellent credit rating can vary according to loan provider or the kind of financial loan or credit-based product you apply for. For instance, Fair Isaac Corp. accepts a credit score that falls somewhere between 660 to 724 to be a good rating, but U.S.-based financial company, American Express, usually requires at minimum a 750 credit rating score to be considered for many of their credit and charge cards. Evidently, banks believe the term "good credit" is relative. Many financial institutions usually set their own credit standards.

Additionally, the specific meaning of an excellent credit score can vary as the country's economy fluctuates up or down, and occasionally, certain items on your credit profile can be far more detrimental than the overall credit score itself.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/6679040

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How to Change Bad Credit to Good Credit in 6 Months

Credit cards for bad credit are one of the best methods available to overcome your financial black marks. Having a poor score for whatever reasons can be a serious problem for individuals trying to re-gain financial stability and secure loans for mortgages or other long term financial investments. Hundreds of thousands of people in the UK suffer from negative credit ratings with 6% of the population having to make rent or mortgage payments using these cards in 2010 alone. The average UK adult has over 30 thousand pounds of unpaid debt and more than four million people missed a monthly card payment in 2010. With such dramatic figures it is not surprising that more than 10% of the adult UK population has some form of bad credit rating in their financial history. The good news is that there are credit cards for that are specifically designed to help those with poor credit ratings get back financial stability.

A poor credit history is likely to prevent individuals from getting most unsecured loans, credit cards and also will often prevent an individual from successfully applying for a mortgage. Due to the recession increasing the cost of living, prepay cards for bad credit are becoming increasingly prevalent as a means to repair ratings as they offer a number of advantages in building credit history.

Credit cards for poor scores are the best way to repair credit ratings, provided you keep up with the payments, as they show that individuals have regained control of their finances and are exercising good financial monitoring on a regular basis. There are of course downsides to using cards for bad credit which will become apparent as we discuss the pros and cons of these cards.

The advantages of credit cards for bad credit
The key advantage of cards that aim to improve your rating is that you can show a financial stability history to future creditors. This allows you to slowly improve your reputation over the course of months, or years, if you have a particularly bad credit rating to begin with. Gaining a good repayment reputation will encourage creditors to trust you with in the future and therefore you are much more likely to receive mortgages and other unsecured loans.

Other advantages of cards aimed at those with poor credit history are that they are essentially the same as those for normal cards. You get the freedom to make payments immediately for purchases and bills, and get to spend money you otherwise wouldn't have. In this respect cards for bad credit work in much the same way to normal credit cards.

The disadvantages of credit cards for poor credit history
Cards for poor credit obviously come with severe disadvantages as the companies providing them must secure debt against the risks of non-payment that bad credit entails. For this reason cards for lower scoring citizens will typically have a very high APR (Annual Percentage Rate). The average rate is typically over 20% so if for any reason you fail to make a payment you need to be prepared for a large additional fee. The other disadvantages are that you typically do not receive any of the benefits that other cards offer which takes away some of the advantages of having a credit card.

So should I use credit cards for bad credit?
Cards for bad credit are one of the easiest ways to absolve yourself of bad credit so should consider applying for one if you are secure in your current finances and will predominantly be using it as a means to improve your credit rating; rather than as a means to support yourself or cover unpaid bills.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/6215994

My Top Tips To Improve Your Credit Score

So let's go through this, step by step, and see what we can do to improve the situation. The first thing to do here, is to get a picture of exactly what your credit score profile looks like. Experian is a very good place to start, and it's a free service. So sign up for an account, and make sure that you give them all the information that they require. Let's try and remember here, that we are trying to get a proper picture, which will help and provide the first step to improve your credit score, so dishonesty, won't help anyone, least of all you.

One you have signed up, you will see, exactly who you owe money to, and exactly what your status is:

-are you just in arrears?

- have you had a default issued against you?

-have you possibly even had a CCJ, or as it's known in the UK, a county court judgment, issued against you?

Once you know the situation, you need to start looking at your debts, which normally are credit cards, unsecured loans, and store cards. Never feel scared about calling up these companies, and explaining to them exactly what the situation is. Dealing with your monthly outgoings and making sure that you can afford them - will all help to improve your credit score. Always remember that some form of a payment is always better than no payment, and a lot of the time you can ask the credit card companies to freeze your interest.

Another big way of improving your credit score - for those of us, who don't have credit cards, is to get one!

Strange as it may seem, if you are looking to improve your credit score, after let's say, years of bad credit, obtaining a credit card, and keeping to your monthly payments, will go a long way to improving your score.

The last of my tips on the above subject is all about tidying up bad accounts. Carefully examine your Experian credit report, and make sure that all the history on your file is legitimate. If there are small and insignificant amounts of debt that you can easily pay off, than do so! Watch out for silly little mistakes, which do occur - for example you might have an old telephone bill, which has gone into default, for pennies. Why - well possibly you moved address or changed contract, and there was an old and very small balance, left on the account.

You forget to pay it, and well you can have a default issued against you - not the thing you want to see when you are looking at ways to improve your credit score.

Credit is something which is very important to your personal profile, and lifestyle, and spending some time, examining and improving it will always be beneficial to you and to your family.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/6199490

My Top Tips To Improve Your Credit Score

So let's go through this, step by step, and see what we can do to improve the situation. The first thing to do here, is to get a picture of exactly what your credit score profile looks like. Experian is a very good place to start, and it's a free service. So sign up for an account, and make sure that you give them all the information that they require. Let's try and remember here, that we are trying to get a proper picture, which will help and provide the first step to improve your credit score, so dishonesty, won't help anyone, least of all you.

One you have signed up, you will see, exactly who you owe money to, and exactly what your status is:

-are you just in arrears?

- have you had a default issued against you?

-have you possibly even had a CCJ, or as it's known in the UK, a county court judgment, issued against you?

Once you know the situation, you need to start looking at your debts, which normally are credit cards, unsecured loans, and store cards. Never feel scared about calling up these companies, and explaining to them exactly what the situation is. Dealing with your monthly outgoings and making sure that you can afford them - will all help to improve your credit score. Always remember that some form of a payment is always better than no payment, and a lot of the time you can ask the credit card companies to freeze your interest.

Another big way of improving your credit score - for those of us, who don't have credit cards, is to get one!

Strange as it may seem, if you are looking to improve your credit score, after let's say, years of bad credit, obtaining a credit card, and keeping to your monthly payments, will go a long way to improving your score.

The last of my tips on the above subject is all about tidying up bad accounts. Carefully examine your Experian credit report, and make sure that all the history on your file is legitimate. If there are small and insignificant amounts of debt that you can easily pay off, than do so! Watch out for silly little mistakes, which do occur - for example you might have an old telephone bill, which has gone into default, for pennies. Why - well possibly you moved address or changed contract, and there was an old and very small balance, left on the account.

You forget to pay it, and well you can have a default issued against you - not the thing you want to see when you are looking at ways to improve your credit score.

Credit is something which is very important to your personal profile, and lifestyle, and spending some time, examining and improving it will always be beneficial to you and to your family.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/6199490

You and Your Credit Report

Why are credit reports important? Obviously if you want to buy a house or a car and you wish to finance you want a good credit rating. Lower interest rates and better terms accompany good ratings. Despite the importance of these files it is estimated that about 70% of these files contain inaccurate information or errors.

They may be so inaccurate that a consumer may be denied for a loan or employment.

Regular reviewing of your credit report information is essential to ensure information that is reported is accurate.

Not All Reports Are the Same

There are two types of reports. A "Personal Credit Report" and a "Credit Report".

A Personal Report contains all information that a credit agency accumulates about a consumer as well as a record of all credit inquiries contained in the report that, for creditors who are granting loans, utilize for credit worthiness.

A Credit Report does not have all the information that a credit bureau maintains on the consumer. Because Credit Companies generally take a dim view on a high number of credit inquiries, this report does not include that information. They also exclude any medical information or any other personal information that isn't needed to determine credit viability. Prospective employers and Landlords can access a "Limited Credit Report" that shows overall general credit history but does not include account numbers for the persons privacy.

Accessing your Credit Report

FACTA ( Fair and Accurate Credit Transaction Act ) legislation gave the consumer access to their credit report for free from the credit reporting agencies so there is no reason that you cannot check your credit report. You should review your report from each agency at least once a year ( every 4 months if you get a report from the big 3 agencies, Equifax, transunion and Experian ) and look it over for any discrepancies. Surprisingly the 3 agencies do not have identical information which is why credit scores vary. If you do find a discrepancy the FCRA ( Fair Credit Reporting Act ) establishes processes where you can remove fraudulent, incorrect or outdated information. Any discrepancies in your report can be addressed to the agency reporting the inaccurate data. If the inaccurate information being reported is a result of Identity Theft the written request should also include an Identity Theft Report and/or FTC Identity Theft Affidavit, Copy of Government issued Identification, additional supporting documents and it is recommended that you also file and include a police report.

I hope this information is informative and useful. If we are to reduce our exposure to this crime we must be aware of as many aspects of our identity and know how to combat any inaccuracies.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/6225356

Credit Management Solutions

So you have a copy of your credit report, now what?

It is not enough to simply be aware of your credit score if you wish to improve it. Rather, you need to have some credit management solutions that work to manage your score and improve it. One simple management technique that is very easy to do, yet few people pay attention to it, is to manage the use of your credit cards.

This may sound like common sense, but when we discuss managing the use of credit cards, it is not about not using them, but rather about how often you use your cards. Everyone knows that maxing out your credit cards is not good (in fact, you really want to keep your balances on cards below fifty percent - lower is even better). Instead of managing the balance, however, let's look at simply using your cards in a rotation to keep more of the beneficial accounts active and reporting.

The longer you have an account open for, the more beneficial that account will be (if it is in good standing of course). It does not do much good, however, to have a long standing account that you don't use. After a period of time where a card has been inactive, the credit card holder will often simply stop reporting to the credit bureaus. If that account is in good standing, you want them to report each and every month.

A good rule of thumb is to use each of your credit cards at least once every six months. Even if you simply use a card to buy gas, then pay it off in full when you get your bill, this activity keeps the company reporting to the bureaus. More importantly, if the account is in good standing and has been open for a long period of time, it keeps the company reporting a positive account to the bureaus.

If you have cards that are old and you have not used in years, pull them out, dust them off and be sure to use them a couple times a year. In addition, if you have cards you have not used for a while, do not cancel them! Not using your credit cards, or worse yet, canceling them, negates all the years of beneficial reporting they can bring you.

This simple tip is easy to put to use. Be sure to use this together as a complete credit management solution with the additional tips presented below.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/5883038