Whether you got your credit cards on your college campus, got carried away on one too many shopping sprees or got hit hard by the recent economic downturn, you’ve probably damaged your credit.The good news is that there are some things that you take steps to begin to repair your credit.
If you want to boost your credit score and earn a decent living, open an installment account. All installment accounts must stay above the set monthly minimum, so only open one if you can afford it. If these accounts are properly managed, they can provide a quick boost to your credit score.
If you have credit cards with a utilization level over 50%, pay these down right away.
Interest Rates
Make sure you research a credit counselor before you visit them. The industry is rife with fraud and people with ulterior motives, so finding a legitimate credit counselor can be challenging. Some credit services are nothing more than fly-by-night scams. If you’re smart, you’ll make sure the credit counselor is not a phony first.
You can dispute inflated interest rates.Creditors are skirting a fine line of law when they hit you with high interest rates. You did sign a contract saying that agrees you would pay off all interests as well as the debt. You need to be able to prove the interest rate charged exceeded your lenders.
Do not get mixed up in illegal activities. There are scams all over the web that will show you how to make a brand new credit profile. Do things like this because it’s illegal; you into big trouble with the law. You could end up in jail time.
If you find inaccuracies on your credit report, make sure to dispute them. Gather your support documents, make a list of the errors, and compose a letter to pertinent agencies. When you mail your dispute package, be sure to make arrangements for confirmation of receipt. In this way, you will have documentation that your information has been received.
Contact your creditors to request a reduction in your overall credit line. Not only will this prevent you from owing more, but it can also imply that you are responsible to those companies and to any future companies.
Some methods will be less damaging than others, so make sure you are achieving the best outcome for you before you sign anything.Creditors just want their money that you owe them and really aren’t interested on how it will affect your credit score.
If you work out a payment plan with a creditor, you should make sure to get the plan in writing. Any plan that you agree on should be put in writing and signed by both parties to protect you in the future. Once you make the final payment, get a statement that verifies that the debt has been satisfied and send it to the various credit reporting agencies.
Even if a charge held against you is legitimate, finding an error in the amount, such as an inaccurate date or amount, could make the entire entry invalid and eligible for removal.
Single Account
This is one of the quickest way to create and maintain a credible financial record. Each late payment that you make shows on your personal credit report and can hurt you when the time comes to take out a loan.
If you are having problems retaining control of your charge habits, have your credit cards merged into one single account.You should arrange to make payments or make a balance transfer balances to your remaining account. This allows you focus on paying off a single account rather than many smaller ones.
If you and your creditor decided to set up a payment plan, make sure the agreement is committed to paper. If you have finished paying it off, make sure you receive proper documentation as proof to send to credit reporting agencies.
When lenders are looking at your credit, an explanation that goes with the report generally will not even be looked at. It can even draw more attention to the bad spots, so don’t do it.
Pay off any balances on all credit cards as soon as you can to start the credit score improvement process. Pay off accounts with the highest interest and largest balances first.This will show the credit card companies that you are trying to pay your bills and be responsible.
Make sure that the credit score improvement agency you are working with is legitimate. There are many scams that happen in the industry of disreputable credit improvement agencies out there. There are many people who have been the victim of a credit score improvement scams.
Each time you get a new credit card can negatively effect your credit score. It may be tempting to get a new account when there are bonuses offered at the check out, but you should stop and think about it first. As soon as you open a new credit account, your credit score drops immediately.
With some hard work and guidance, you can easily fix your damaged credit and help receive the rating that you deserve. Apply the knowledge from this article in order to assist you in repairing your credit score.