How To Fix Your Credit Report - Fix Your Credit Report In 3 Easy Steps

By Bessie D. Burton


If you've been denied for a mortgage loan because of your credit, it's not the end of the world. Millions of Americans have credit scores lower than they'd like, and typically anything under 620 can cause you to be denied for loans.Granted, your credit score can't be fixed overnight, but there are some steps -- both short-term and long-term -- that you can take to improve your score. If follow these guidelines, you can repair your credit over time and hopefully get approved the next time you meet with a lender!Check your credit report.You are allowed to check your credit report from all three major credit bureaus (Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion) for free, once a year.

The first thing you will need to do is get a copy of your current credit report. It is a good idea to go ahead and pay for your score, because that is the only way you are going to truly understand how far you have to go.Once you have your credit report, review it very carefully. The first step of credit repair is cleaning up any errors that are dragging your score down. You can also dispute legitimate negative accounts, as there are methods that you will want to use later that will require you to have done this. You will need to dispute these accounts immediately with the credit bureaus. It is best to do this via certified mail, return receipt requested. One important thing to note is that you do not want to dispute too many accounts at one time. Stick to no more than four accounts.

It is a common misconception that closing old accounts will help to improve a person's credit score. In fact, old accounts are your ally in obtaining a good credit rating. Keep your old accounts active, even if you only keep a small balance on each of them. The age of accounts in your credit report along with the payment history on those accounts are large factors in how credit reporting agencies calculate your credit score.

If these methods are not successful in getting a negative account removed from your credit report, you will want to do a pay for delete. This is where the creditor agrees to remove an account from your credit file in exchange for you paying the account in full.While you are working on credit repair, don't forget that paying down revolving debt is one of the best ways to improve your credit score.You can improve your credit score yourself by disputing the personal information that has been compiled in your credit reports from the Big 3 Credit Bureaus -- Experian, Equifax and TransUnion.Your first order of business is ordering your free credit report online at annualcreditreport.com. There is no charge for this service.

Next, be aware of your financial limitations and do your best to pay your creditors on time. While following the first two steps in this article, it is imperative that you continue to pay your debts in a timely manner to fix your credit report. If you have had trouble paying your bills on time in the past, consider using a dedicated calendar in your home just for paying bills. In addition to using a calendar to track your due dates and payments, you should also consider using any of the free automatic bill pay options that many creditors offer. Having your payments made automatically for you is a great way to ensure that you are paying your bills on time every month.

By charging to both cards -- and paying off both cards -- it shows credit bureaus that you have two accounts to which you are making on-time payments.You are looking for ways to fix your credit. The number one thing to do is to be sure that your monthly bills are paid in full by the due date. If you need assistance remembering when to remit payments, you can set up some sort of payment reminder. You can find various methods that will assist you in doing so. With the information age upon us, the possibilities are endless. There are many computer programs available to help with reminders, and now since phones have become mini computers, you can set up payment reminders on your phone. Which ever way works best for you.

It is always important for people to get a good understanding of what they are dealing with before they start attempting to raise their scores. This requires people to request copies of their reports from each one of the three major reporting agencies. These should all be fairly identical to one another, however, you may note some marked differences.Studying each of these documents and the differences that you are able to spot could help you to identify glaring reporting errors. For instance, sometimes companies report charges to the wrong consumer report. This is because the names of the two individuals might be very similar or even identical. This tends to happen a lot to people who have very common names, such as John Smith.

Obviously, steer clear of any tactic that may get you in trouble, or arrested. Such too-good-to-be-true scams are all over the World Wide Web. Usually they pitch that they can cause your bad credit history disappear to be replaced with a brand new shiny one. Don't fall for this scam. It is illegal, and you will find yourself in deep trouble. Simply paying for court defense will end up costing you a lot more than you would save, and you probably will go to jail.

Your real key to repairing your credit is to write an effective letter to the CRA (that is, the "Consumer Reporting Agency") pointing out specific information you have identified which is inaccurate. When sending this type of letter, attach copies (not the originals) of all important, relevant documents supporting your case.You must provide the CRA with your complete name, your address, plus contact information. Moreover, your credit dispute letter needs to clearly identify each item in your report you dispute. Simply state the facts and explain why you are now disputing the information. Be clear that you demand deletion and removal of this information. You can easily follow the template of a sample credit repair letter to craft your own dispute letter.

Consumers must also work hard to develop positive lines of credit. If you want to know how to fix your score in a major way, you will find that spending money will actually help to increase an individual's purchasing power. You do not need to make a major purchase in order to do this. In fact, many people establish positive lines of credit by simply signing up for secured credit cards or by letting a business finance an in-store furniture purchase. These accounts are easy to manage and pay down and will help you to show yourself as being worthy of larger amounts of funding.




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