Millions of Americans are forced to declare bankruptcy every year, but even if you’re one of those people, you can begin immediately to rebuild your damaged credit by taking a few relatively easy steps. Here are some ideas to help you get on with your life after bankruptcy:
1. Pay all of your bills on time from now on. Make a pact with yourself never to be late with a payment again. It may require some stricter discipline than you have been used to, but it will go a long way toward reestablishing your creditworthiness in the eyes of potential creditors like banks and credit card companies.
2. Monitor credit applications. Although it will be tempting to do because you’ll be eager to get another credit card, resist the temptation to apply for a lot of new credit. Making a bunch of credit applications all at once actually can lower your credit score and make it harder to secure new lines of credit.
3. Get a Secured credit card. Whether you love them or hate them, credit cards are a necessity in today’s world, even if you don’t actually plan to use them. There are many things you simply can’t do if you don’t have a Visa card or other major credit card, such as rent a car, since rental companies will require you to show them a credit card even if you’re paying cash. Since that’s the reality of the modern world, look into getting a secured credit card.
Secured credit cards require you to put a certain amount of money into an account (typically between $300 and $500), which is then considered as collateral for your purchases using the card. You’re then allowed to charge any amount of money on your card, up to the amount you have in your account, and repay it in monthly installments.
The nice thing about secured cards is that they look no different from any other card, so you can use them as ID or to make purchases (as long as you don’t go over your limit) and they allow you to begin reestablishing your credit by showing that you can make payments in a timely fashion, regardless of your previous history. As you begin to prove your creditworthiness, you may be rewarded with an increase in the amount you can charge that’s above what you have in your account.
A good place to begin your search for your first secured credit card is through your local credit union. They’re often more flexible than banks, and a number of them will actually waive the annual fee that most secured cards charge. If you aren’t a member of a credit union, shop hard for your secured card, because there are wide variations in the terms, fees, interest rates, and requirements. Some companies will even charge you a fee just to apply for a card!
You can begin rebuilding your credit almost immediately following a bankruptcy, but it will take time and a commitment to handle your finances more carefully in the future. It just takes self-control and discipline.
By: Jeanette Joy Fisher About the Author:
Find out how to
repair your credit to buy a home. Free
Credit Tips for Mortgage Financing ebook at
Real Estate Credit Help.
Jeanette Fisher teaches five ways to get the credit you need to buy real estate.
Copyright © 2006 Jeanette J. Fisher
Foreign Exchange
The purpose of a credit repair agency is to help those whose debt burden has gotten out of control to take charge of their financial lives and to improve their credit scores. But even the best credit assistance agencies cannot remove the stigma of years of missed or delayed payments, unless you can prove that the problems were justified.
The only items which are ever permanently removed from a person’s credit history are a personal bankruptcy, which remains for ten years, and any debts which your creditors have written off. But fixing your credit report is definitely doable. There are even some credit fixing agencies which promise that, for enough money, they can reward you with a pristine credit history, but if you had that kind of money, you probably wouldn’t need to have your credit history repaired!
The truth is that while you as an individual can repair errors on your payment history like incorrect payments or personal information like your name, age, address, gender, or marital status, if you supply documentation, no one has the power to eradicate a history of missed or late payments.
If you want to have something personal on your credit history changes, simply write to the reporting agency with your documentation, which they will check. If they have made a mistake, they will repair it and you can see the change the next time you request your credit report.
What A Credit Repair Agency Can And Can’t Do
The only thing a credit help agency can do to repair your credit history is to do the same thing: send your documentation to the credit reporting agency to correct a mistake. If a credit score repair agency leads you to believe they can completely eradicate your poor credit record, they are not being honest. And while some companies will take advantage of a legislative loophole to add good credit to your history of poor credit, that could change at any time.
Do not go looking for a credit repair agency if you want anything more than a mistake in your personal information corrected on your credit history. If you pay for anything more than that you are throwing your money away, and you don’t even need outside agency help to fix most of the inaccurate information on your report. If you review your credit history onece each year, you can correct any inaccuracies yourself.
If you notice, in reviewing your credit history, that some of your financial transactions are missing, it is nothing to become alarmed about. Not all the companies with which you do business report to the credit agencies, even though their failure to report transactions could make it hard for their customers to establish credit histories. But no agency can persuade them to add transactions to credit reports if it is against their policies to do so.
As long as you use your credit responsibly, and keep on top of your credit history report by reviewing it once a year for errors, you might very well go through life without ever having to think of using a any type of credit score help agency!
By: Wade Robins About the Author:
Insurance Questions
Find Out Your FICO Scores
Your mortgage lender will underwrite your loan application using the middle of your three FICO scores. If you expect to purchase a home or refinance your current mortgage you should know your FICO scores in advance. If there is a problem it is best that you discover it, rather than your mortgage lender. Plan your credit repair strategy today.
Get the Right Scores
The credit scores sold by Experian and TransUnion are their own proprietary scores and can differ from your FICO scores by a significant amount. Equifax sells a true FICO score, but will apply the FICO model only to its own data, and it is not enough to have one FICO score. Your credit repair effort requires reliable information. The only site consumers can purchase their three FICO scores is myfico.com.
Check Your Revolving Balances
Your revolving balances have a dramatic impact on your credit scores. Many people in credit repair programs assume incorrectly that if they make their payments on time their scores will be fine. Later they wonder why their scores are languishing. A high balance on a credit card may cause a drop of over one hundred points your scores. You cannot afford for this to happen. When it comes to your mortgage, every point counts.
Bring Your Balances Down
Plan in advance and bring your balances down as much as possible before your make your mortgage application. The FICO scoring model recognizes five levels of credit card usage: 20, 40, 60, 80, and 100 percent; the lower the balance the higher the score. Here is some great credit repair advice, if you have the ability you should reduce your balance below 20 percent of your credit limit.
Proofread Your Reports
Once you have all three of your credit reports you should take the time to proofread every bit of information. Remember that you may be living with your new mortgage payment for many years to come. Don’t make the mistake of believing that if the information on your report looks familiar it is accurate. Credit repair requires a bit of healthy skepticism. There are many types of errors possible; not all errors are obvious. I suggest that you spend a couple of hours examining your reports. It may be the best investment of time you ever made.
Fix the Derogatory Information
Look carefully at the derogatory information on your reports. Common errors include duplicate accounts and accounts that are reporting beyond the seven year reporting period limit. Keep in mind that the reporting period for a collection starts with the first missed payment in the sequence that led to the collection status. Collectors often reset the clock accidentally, or otherwise, and report well beyond the expiration of the legal limit. You should also know that when a collector sells a debt, or returns it to the original creditor, they are supposed to cease reporting, but rarely do. This is a great credit repair opportunity.
Fix the Positive Information
Many of the errors that can hurt your credit scores are not derogatory and are harder to spot than a thirty day late payment or a collection. A patient credit repair effort will pay off. Some of the errors that commonly go unnoticed include under-reported credit limits and misreported account opening dates. Under-reported credit limits can make it look like your credit card is maxed-out and your score will reflect this. Misreported account opening dates can make it look like your account is newer than it really is and you will lose points.
The Power of a Rapid Rescore
If you find yourself needing to improve your credit score quickly, try a Rapid Rescore. A Rapid Rescore is a tool offered only by mortgage brokers. It allows you to furnish documentation that balances have been paid down, or that derogatory information has been resolved or is reported in error. The mortgage broker provides the documentation to the credit bureaus. They in turn recalculate your score within three days. Instant credit repair. There is a small cost involved, but it can be well worth it.
Hold off on New Purchases
Too many people make the mistake of making large purchases before they apply for a mortgage. The effect is to inflate revolving balances and deflate saving accounts, thereby lowering credit scores and weakening the mortgage application. Wait until you close on your new mortgage before purchasing your new furniture. Hold off on all significant transactions. Save your money and preserve your credit scores.
New Credit and Your Credit Repair Effort
Your credit score is determined by both the negative and positive information on your credit report. If you do not have any open credit your credit score will suffer. Many people in credit repair programs open secured credit cards to start the rebuilding process. That’s a good idea, and very effective. But be careful of the timing. The first month a new account appears on your credit report your score will fall. If you need to build new credit don’t wait until the last minute.
Copyright
Aug
2
Is using a credit repair agency legal? Yes, but the government and the three credit bureaus like to muddy the water on this issue, and they’re partly correct. There are a tom of companies, people, and websites that say they can repair your credit and MOST of them are scams that will only leave you pockets a little emptier. Before using any credit repair company you should do and exhaustive research about what they are offering, how they are offering it and what (if any) are their guarantees. Be leery if ANY company offering you a new credit file, Perfect credit or some “Pie-in-the-sky” timeframes. Credit repair takes time, but with the right firm, that time can be shortened drastically.
Credit repair agencies are normally (though not always) unable to clean your credit. My initial search on repairing my credit was with one of these agencies. They charged me $29 and said my credit would be perfect within three months. Three months later I was out of $29 dollars and my credit was exactly the same. I was angry and disappointed to say the least. Ohh… and the agency mysteriously disappeared… no website, no number, nothing!
It took a while before I finally stumbled upon a “firm” that looked legitimate. I did extensive research and then waited another year before I actually signed up. The difference with this “firm” is tat they were a real legal firm that had tons of proof to back up their amazing clams. I followed their instructions (though I did so half-assed) and six-months later my score had jumped substantially and I had numerous items on all three of my reports from each bureau deleted. I used them for two more months before it became evident that they had done all they could. While they “cleaned” my credit, that was just the beginning to getting my score to the point it’s at now.
By: Mark Redd About the Author:
Make Money
Jul
30
Credit Repair has become a very hot topic since the US Bankruptcy laws have changed.
Hundreds of credit repair agencies have popped up all over the country and on the Internet. Is this because so many people want to help you?? Can there really be that many who are interested in helping you with credit repair?? What’s a good credit score anyway?? If you had a credit report in front of you, would you know what you’re looking at?
Sadly, financial responsibility is not taught to our children in school. By the time our children reach their late teens they already have offered dozens credit cards. Many take the bait and end up with credit problems before they get married.
This article is designed to help you see that if you’re in need of credit repair, you can do it yourself and save thousands.
A FREE CREDIT REPORT, REALLY??
The very fact that you see lots of commercials on cable TV offering FREE CREDIT REPORTS should tell you something. It’s all about big business folks!! Profits are to be made helping people with their credit repair. Hold the phone!! You can do this yourself and save thousands of dollars.
When you respond to the ads on TV or even online for a FREE CREDIT REPORT you’ll find a few surprises when you get going. Many of them are offer a FREE CREDIT REPORT but you do not get the credit scores. You get a credit history which shows any blemishes etc. on your report. However, they charge you extra for the scores or they want you to sign up for a monthly credit watch service.
You see, it’s a FREE CREDIT REPORT alright, but to get the information you really need, like the scores, you have to pay for them. Then once you get the credit scores what does that mean??
WHAT’S A GOOD CREDIT SCORE ANYWAY?
Your credit score can range from 200 to 850. Lenders will usually give you home loans or car loans with a credit score of 500 and up.
However, the “golden” score is considered to be 720. 720 is the “magic” score for getting any type of credit including nothing-down home loans, loans with no income verification, home loans with an equity line included, etc. Want one of those car loans that have zero percent interest? Have a 720 credit rating.
If you don’t have a 720, try for a 660. 660 means you can get a “no income verification” loan, which is really helpful for self-employed people. You can also get a 5% down loan when purchasing a home with a 660.
If you don’t have a 660, try for a 621. If your “middle score” is 621 or better, you can still get a no-income verification loan, a 10% down home loan, as well as other options.
WHAT ARE CREDIT GRADES?
Credit grades are the way mortgage/lender companies often grade your loan based on certain credit items. These items include payment history, amount of debt payments, bankruptcies, equity position, and your credit score. Here is a guide to help you estimate your credit grade. Remember this is only a guide. Many mortgage/lender companies have exceptions that may affect the outcome. These results may be stricter or more lenient depending on their guidelines.
A General Guide to A, B, C & D Credit Grades
A+ to A- Credit Grade:
Debt Ratio: 28/38
Maximum LTV Ratio: 95%-100%
Additional Requirements: Good/excellent credit grades during last 2 to 5 years. No bankruptcy within the last 2 to 10 years.
Mortgage: Credit Score 670+, 0 times delinquent within the last 24 months.
Installment Loan: Credit Score 660, 0-1 times 30 days delinquent within the last 12 to 24 months.
Revolving Credit: Credit Score 660, 0-1 times 60 days delinquent within the last 12 to 24 months
B+ to B- Credit Grades:
Credit Score: 620
Debt Ratio: 55
Maximum LTV Ratio: 75% to 95%
Additional Requirements: No 60-day mortgage lates. 24 - 48 months since bankruptcy discharge. Higher number of rolling lates may be allowed.
Mortgage: 2-3 times 30 days delinquent within the last 12 months.
Installment Loan: 2-4 times 30 days delinquent within the last 12 months.
Revolving Credit: 0-2 times 30 days delinquent within the last 12 months.
C+ to C- Credit Grades:
Credit Score: 580
Debt Ratio: 55
Maximum LTV Ratio: 75%-90%
Additional Requirements: 12 - 24 months since bankruptcy discharge. High “rolling” lates allowable.
Mortgage: 3-4 times 30 days delinquent within the last 12 months and 0-2 times 60 days delinquent within the last 12 months.
Installment Loan: 4-6 times 30 days delinquent within the last 12 months and 2-4 times 60 days delinquent within the last 12 months.
Revolving Credit: 4-6 times 30 days delinquent within the last 12 months and 2-4 times 60 days delinquent within the last 12 months.
D+ to D- Credit Grades:
Credit Score: 550
Debt Ratio: 50
Maximum LTV Ratio: 65% to 70%
Additional Requirements: Bankruptcy discharge within last 12 months. Judgments to be paid w/loan proceeds. Not in foreclosure.
Mortgage: 2-6 times 60 days delinquent within the last 12 months. Poor payment record with limited 90 day, isolated 120 day.
Installment Loan: 1-2 times 60 days delinquent within the last 12 months. Poor payment record with limited 90 day, isolated 120 day.
Revolving Credit: 1-2 times 60 days delinquent within the last 12 months. Poor payment record with limited 90 day, isolated 120 day.
E Credit Grades:
Credit Score: 520
Debt Ratio: 50
Maximum LTV Ratio: 50% to 65%
Additional Requirements: Possible current bankruptcy, foreclosure, stable current employment.
Mortgage: Poor payment record with a pattern of 30, 60, and 90+ lates.
Installment Loan: Poor payment record with a pattern of 30, 60, and 90+ lates.
Revolving Credit: Poor payment record with a pattern of 30, 60, and 90+ lates.
The figures shown here are estimates. When trying to figure your credit grades, keep in mind the following principles:
Other Things Being Equal
When you have bad credit, all of the other aspects of the loan need to be in order. Equity, stability, income, documentation and assets play a larger role in the approval decision.
Worst Case Scenario
When determining your credit grades, various combinations are allowed, but the worst case will push your grade to a lower credit guide. Late mortgage payments and bankruptcies are the most important.
Going Once, Going Twice
Credit patterns are very important. A high number of recent inquiries and more than a few outstanding loans may signal a problem. A “willingness to pay” is important, thus late payments in the same time period is better than random late payments as they signal an effort to pay even after falling behind.
WHERE DO WE GO FROM HERE??
If your credit scores are 660 and above, you’re in great shape. You should be able to buy a car or house and get the best interest rate. That’s great!!
If you fall into the category where your score is below the 660 mark, well you can buy an auto and a home but you’ll pay a higher interest rate. In the long run this can cost you thousands of dollars. Why should you pay that when you can do your own credit repair and save this money?
One time each year you’re entitled to request a free copy of your credit report, with scores, according to the Fair Credit Reporting Act. Go to http://www.annualcreditreport.com to get this FREE report.
It’s important that people learn how to get this FREE CREDIT REPORT with the scores, then learn to read them. We’re on a mission to help the public with this.
If credit repair is what you need to do, then you need a plan to follow. This article would be 20-30 pages if I outlined it here.
If you need a plan, feel free to click on the credit repair link below for additional information.
By: Jeffrey Ragan
About the Author:
Mr. Ragan has been helping people become
first time home buyers for several years. Using
credit repair has become an important part of this.
Together with his wife, they are working to help more people realize their dreams of home ownership.
Cancer Mesothelioma
Jul
28
With personal debt at an all-time high, a number of individuals have found that they have overextended themselves and have become immersed in debt. As their debt grows, they can’t help but get more and more behind and their credit score pays the price. If you are one of the many who have had problems with your credit in the past (or still have problems with it), you may be considering credit repair as a way to get back on track.
Before you sign up for a credit repair plan, you should make sure that you understand exactly what is involved in repairing your credit score… while there are a lot of repair agencies that are legitimate, there are also some that seek to prey on those who need help and perform services that are both immoral and illegal.
What Is It?
Obviously, the goal of credit repair is to improve your credit score and get you back on track financially after past credit problems. A variety of services exist, providing everything from credit counselling and debt negotiation to debt consolidation loans and budgeting advice. When used properly, they can not only help you to get caught up with your bills and on the path to a better credit score but they can help you to avoid bankruptcy and set you up to avoid credit problems in the future.
Credit repair takes time, however, and should never be viewed as a “quick fix” for your credit. If an offer claims that they can instantly grant you new credit, then it’s likely not only bogus but can also get you into legal trouble if you accept it.
Common Types
As mentioned above, credit repair can take several different forms. Credit counselling services provide assistance with the budgeting and repayment of your debts, and offer advice on simple ways to improve your credit without additional loans. They also often provide debt negotiation, which is the working out of a settlement with your creditors so that you only have to repay a portion of your original debt within a certain timeframe.
Debt consolidation loans are also used for the purposes of credit repair, allowing you to take out a loan in order to pay off outstanding debts and leaving you with a single monthly loan payment instead of several different payments. Budgeting assistance services are also available to help you get control of your spending and personal finances.
Avoiding Scams
Unfortunately, there will always be unsavory individuals who seek to make money off of those who are in need of assistance.
Any credit repair service that promises instant results or that offers to simply create a new credit report for you should be avoided… what they’re really creating is a business tax identification number, and any individual who uses one is in danger of being charged with fraud and possibly other charges. If an offer sounds too good to be true, then it likely is.
Repairing Your Own Credit
Of course, by paying off old debts and establishing and maintaining new lines of credit you can begin the process of credit repair yourself. Request a copy of your credit report and check it for errors, and then focus on clearing the debts that appear as negative reports.
It may take years for all of the negative reports to expire, but by preventing new ones while increasing your positive reports your credit score will slowly rise on its own.
By: Paul Rogers About the Author:
Get a Mortgage
Jul
28
Undoubtedly, if you have somehow ended up with a less than great credit rating or credit score you have felt the possible effects that this may have on your life. A negative rating will affect your ability to apply for and be approved for loans, credit cards and accounts, which will affect the way in which you shop for and buy items that may well be seen as necessities. Unfortunately though many people only realize this when it is too late, and hence the need to improve credit ratings arises.
Once the realization has been made with regards to having to improve credit ratings and scores or profiles, the next step is asking where should one begin. General consensus indicates that obtaining a full credit report is the most logical place to begin, but this should also be done in conjunction with actually determining what your credit situation really is like. This is easily accomplished by sitting down and listing all accounts and outstanding debts, regardless of size or nature thereof.
This will serve as a great basis for you to get back on to the so called straight and narrow when it comes to your financial affairs and is absolutely necessary for you to improve credit and the overall situation within which you find yourself. And although there may be companies that are out there to help improve credit, there are also those that may possibly be what is often referred to as scam artists, and like any industry these unsavoury characters exist within this sector too. There are also those companies that are indeed valid and can help you improve credit ratings.
To get back to doing things by yourself, once you have established the exact position that you find yourself in, the next best step is to approach your creditors and discuss the payment terms and the current situation you find yourself in. This may be somewhat of a humbling experience and will require definite and focussed persistence. However by entering into negotiations with your creditors you will be taking a valuable step to improve credit ratings and standing, as these people are the ones who may or may not provide negative comments and ratings within your credit report.
If you make any arrangements or agreements with any of your creditors make sure that you stick to these agreements, especially considering the fact that they might be slightly more lenient on repayments, assuming you did negotiate a better payment structure. If you renege from these agreements you may find that your creditors will certainly not be as accommodating as they were the first time around.
Before looking to improve credit ratings and your report consider the various options that are available, this in turn can help you do this yourself. In the event that you may be too busy then considering a legitimate company that can assist you may well be the best option for you.
By: Chris Kennelly About the Author:
When you decide to
improve credit ratings and scores, you should consider all available options. Visit
Credit Repair Me for some great resources, ideas and tips.
Dog Pet Supplies
Jul
25
Credit is one of your most valuable assets. Unfortunately far too many people do not realize this until their credit has been brought into question and once it has been tarnished it is hard to regain. In some cases good credit is lost because of abuse of credit and in other cases it is lost as of a result of an error on the credit bureaus part or because of identity theft. No matter what the cause when a person wants go straighten their credit out, a credit repair letter is in order and should be one of the first steps taken. A good start is looking at credit repair sample letters to see how others have done it.
When your credit has been listed as in arrears or bad, everyone assumes that the report is right unless you take some action to correct the situation. It is up to you to contact the credit company and initiate the first step in this procedure. For this reason it is important that you request and review your free credit report each year to be sure that there are no errors in it. When an error is found you will want to immediately prepare and send a letter asking for an explanation of the bad rating. If you do not know how to do this follow the example of one or more credit repair letters to get started.
Free credit repair letters are available online and can be found at such places as CreditInfoCenter.com, debt-n-credit-letters.com, or ftc.gov. Remember that the credit repair letters found there are samples and should be used as such. Do not cut and paste a credit repair letter because they are probably not personalized for you. For one thing you will want to be sure that the information that you use in it all refers to you and your account. In most cases you will want to personalize the wording so that, while the idea is there, the words come from you and deal with your issues with the charge(s).
Some of the credit repair sample letters you may find when searching on your own will be very confrontational. While you may be tempted to go in fighting, it is best to start with a simple letter of inquiry. Let them know that you dispute the charges and that you know your rights concerning your credit. Ask them for the information they have to support their claim and let them know that you are willing to work with them to straighten out the problem.
By: Louis Z. About the Author:
Hosting for SEO
Jul
24
If you are concerned about your credit reports then it is a good idea to check them regularly. One source has reported that up to seventy percent of all credit reports have errors on them. These errors could mean that you do not get the credit cards or loans that you apply for. A bad credit report can even affect your employment prospects as many employers check them now. And even if your credit report is not affected enough for you to be turned down for a loan, it can mean that you are offered a loan for a much higher interest rate than you would otherwise have been.
You do have the right to see your credit reports and the company must send them to you if you ask for them. It is essential to check them regularly so you can make sure that the information on it is correct. If there are errors on your report and you do not check it then you will not know. Many in the industry recommend that you check your credit report at least every six months. It is not always the fault of the credit report companies. The financial companies sometimes give them incorrect information.
It is also possible that the errors were caused by payments that you have made being shown as coming from someone else’s account, mistakes in spelling or numbers, reading information incorrectly even bills that are posted to an old address. There are any number of reasons that you can have bad credit report, but you need to know that it has happened and how to fix it. One way is to employ a credit repair consultant. They know the system really well and will help you to sort out what has gone wrong if you do not have the time to. A credit repair consultant will also know the best way to get the company to act quickly so that your credit is not affected for too long.
If you do not have the time to do the work yourself, then employing a credit repair consultant can be a very good way to make sure that everything is ok. Although it will cost you extra to employ a credit repair consultant if it is important that your credit history is good then it might be worth the extra cost so that you know that it is all right.
By: Tim Gorman About the Author:
Forex Trading
Jul
21
The burden of financial debt and bad credit can make life really stressful at times. Creditors are getting more and more strict about credit score requirements. More than 30 % of employers are running pre-employment credit checks as a part of the hiring process. Certain landlords also want a copy of your credit report before signing a lease with you. Now more than ever bad credit can act as an obstacle to getting a house, a loan, even a job. If you are in that type of dire situation, don’t despair. More than 30 million Americans have credit that is far from perfect. However only a few of them know that fixing your credit is not that hard. If you need help fix credit, you should keep three things in mind:
1 Steer clear of late payments and always pay on time. That golden rule does not refer only to credit cards and mortgages. Even utility bills, parking tickets and stuff that seems unrelated to credit. Your three digit FICO score is a function of different factors including payment history, credit car balances and the types of loans you obtained. Among these factors paying on time ranks first. A single 90 day late payment can drop your credit score by almost 100 points. If you want to fix credit fast, you have to take care of all late payments.
2 Keep a reasonable balance/limit ratio on your credit cards. Racking up big balances (regardless of whether you pay them in full at the end of the month )works against your credit score. Ideally you balance should be kept below 30% of your card limit. If you balance gets too high, you can try increasing your credit limit. This will bring the balance/limit ratio to less dangerous zones
3 Negotiate your way out of debt. Try to contact all collection agencies. Most of the time you’ll be able to negotiate settlement for less that you actually owe. Contact creditor and negotiate a better payment plan. Also request that paid collections and late payment are deleted from your credit report. If you have been a good customer, most creditors will do the favor and delete your late payments. The key to success here is persistence and diplomacy. If customer service members don’t want to cooperate, call the next day and try again.
There are a lot of proven methods that can help you rack up credit points . If you need help fix credit fast, then don’t hesitate. Take advantage of credit tricks that have proven to work.
By: Irena Bocheva About the Author:
Teen Children
Jul
20
Establishing a good FICO credit score isn’t all that difficult; all you have to do is pay your bills on time. But if you have a bad credit score from a history of not paying your bills promptly, repairing your score and building it up to a level where you can get competitive loan rates can take time. It can take several years of paying your bills on time to build up your score and it can take seven years to wipe out a judgment or a bankruptcy from your credit report. Most consumers, understandably, would rather not wait that long and there is not shortage of companies that promise to repair credit quickly.
Several companies are offering dramatic increases in credit scores of up to 200 points in as little as 60 days using something known as “seasoned credit.” The concept is simple - if you are added to the credit account of someone with good credit as a cosigner, that good credit will add to your own credit score. What these companies do, for fees ranging up to $5000, is arrange to add your name as a cosigner to the accounts of willing participants who have good credit of their own.
Adding a cosigner to an account isn’t illegal; husbands and wives add each other to their own accounts all the time. What is illegal about this scheme is that it is a deliberate effort to manipulate credit reports and credit scores. If it is done for purposes of qualifying for a loan for which the borrower otherwise wouldn’t qualify, such as for a mortgage, it constitutes fraud.
In addition to the questionable legality of the practice, there are some other reasons why this sort of credit “repair” should not be attempted. The idea of having someone else’s credit rub off on you works both ways. Customers of these companies have no idea whose accounts their names are being attached to, and if those customers stop paying their bills, then their credit score will go down along with yours. None of this is under your control; you are stuck with whomever they stick you with. Since these companies advertise that once your score increases, you can become part of their “good credit network”, it only stands to reason that you may have your name attached to that of a person who only recently had a bad payment history, too.
Increasing your credit score by 200 or more points in 60 days’ time sounds like a great idea. But the risks of paying someone thousands of dollars to do it for you are great. It is better to build your credit the old fashioned way. Take your time.
By: Charles Essmeier About the Author:
©Copyright 2006 by Retro Marketing. Charles Essmeier is the owner of Retro Marketing, a firm devoted to informational Websites, including End-Your-Debt.com, a site devoted to
debt consolidation, personal bankruptcy, establishing credit and credit counseling and HomeEquityHelp.net, a site devoted to information regarding
mortgages and home equity loans.
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