A lot of companies out there tout the claim that they can “fix your credit report legally” these days. But what does that actually mean? What does it mean to say they can “fix” your credit report “legally”. The phrase almost sounds like it has a a shady connotation to it, doesn’t it? If you pay them money, they promise to improve your credit score and to “clean up” or “repair” your credit report. Should you take them seriously? Well I’ve got some good news and some good news for you. The truth of the matter is, yes, it is legally possible to improve your credit score and to have negative items removed from your credit report. The other good news is that I will tell you how you can do this by yourself, for free, so that you don’t have to go pay some law firm or some credit counseling company money to do this for you.
It is really very simple, actually. There is no secret, hidden legal process. There is no shady “hacking into the credit files and doctoring them”. There is no creation of a new credit report. All of these methods are illegal by the way.)
All you have to do is take advantage of a well-known law that I’m sure most consumers have heard of. But most consumers have no idea what this well-known law really states. It’s called the Fair Credit Reporting Act.
By law, if a consumer sees something suspect on his or her credit report, he or she has the right to dispute it with the credit reporting agency. The credit reporting agency, by law, has thirty days to investigate the dispute and verify the accuracy of the negative entry on your credit report about which you are disputing. If the agency does not receive a response verifying the disputed item from the creditor within thirty days, then the credit reporting agency, by law is required to delete that negative item from your credit report!
This is a very simple process that every American consumer has a right to engage in. Yet it requires putting in some time and effort, and requires some patience. But if you are persistent at it, you can have a much improved credit score in a matter of a few months. Of course, the creditor could reply back and state that the item has been verified as accurate, in which case the item will remain on your credit report. But sometimes this process can work in your favor. If you have a collection item from a collection agency that has been bought and sold many times over to some other collection agency, it can be a mess to try to track down who actually holds your debt. That alone can take over thirty days. Or the creditor can no longer find your account in their system because your account was closed several years ago. That response alone will cause your disputed item to drop from your credit report. Or the creditor’s contact information is no longer up-to-date and they can no longer be contacted.
Or perhaps the company has gone out of business. So how do you dispute a negative credit item? Simple: Write a letter to the credit reporting agency that has listed the disputed item on your credit report, telling them that you dispute the accuracy of the information contained therein. List the creditor, your name, social security number, and a description of which items are in dispute. For example, if you were ninety days late on a payment to ABC Company in July of 2004, write in your letter that you dispute that specific late payment because you believe it to be inaccurate. You do not need to tell them a more detailed reason why, nor do you need to tell them what you really think it should have said. But you should state in your letter that you are writing to them in accordance with the Fair Credit Reporting Act, and that you expect that they will delete this disputed item within thirty days if it goes unverified by the.
So there you have it! That is how you repair your credit. Be sure to write a separate letter for each disputed item to each of the credit reporting agencies. So if you have ten negative items that you are disputing, and all ten of these show up on the three major credit reporting agencies, then you would have to write thirty separate letters.
How quickly will you see results on your credit report and see an improvement in your credit score? You should give it at least two months. With the time it takes to mail correspondence to the agencies and for them to mail it back to you, plus the thirty days in between, that alone can take five to six weeks. And then, the item to be deleted may not be deleted until the following month, since credit reports are updated monthly.
One more thing: The Fair Credit Reporting Act also gives the credit reporting agencies the right to disregard frivolous disputes. In other words, if you are mailing them dispute notices just for the sake of trying to force the thirty-day rule, they have the right to not take your dispute seriously. But of course, the agencies cannot assume that you are doing so, unless they see you trying to dispute the same negative items on your credit report repeatedly over and over again to see if it will be deleted this time! Keep in mind, though, that the intent behind this law is to protect consumers against errors in their credit report.
How To Fix My Credit Report
03-01-2010 by adminDisputing Credit Report Information
01-01-2010 by admin
Information obtained from your credit report enables creditors to gauge the risk factor in lending money to you. Credit report usually provides information on your identity and on how regularly you pay your bills. Credit report is used as the deciding factor by creditors when you apply for credit facility.
Thus, it is vital that you maintain a good credit report consciously. Incorrect information on your report could be damaging in the long term and will affect your buying power drastically. It is therefore necessary to monitor and make sure your information with the credit reporting agencies is updated and accurate.
In case of any discrepancies in your information or rating, you can dispute the credit report information with the help of the Fair Credit Reporting Act or the FCRA.
Review Your Credit Report
The first step in verifying your credit report is to obtain a copy of one. According to Federal law, you are eligible to one copy of credit report from each of the agencies annually. After obtaining your credit report, go through it thoroughly to ensure that the information reported is correct or not. In case of incorrect information, you can dispute the same with the help of the Fair Credit Reporting Act or the FCRA.
File A Credit Report Dispute
Upon finding incorrect information in your credit report the first step should be to alert the credit bureau and the source of your information in writing. Doing this puts you on the path to dispute the wrong information.
The next step involves attaching proof supporting your claim. This includes statements or checks which have been canceled. Along with this it is a good idea to include your personal details like name, current postal address, and information on dispute and explanation on why the information is incorrect. To provide a clear picture, you could include a copy of the credit report highlighting the disputed information.
These documents have to be then dispatched through certified mail requesting for a return receipt. This will make sure you have proof your mail has been received by the credit bureau. It is very important to keep a copy of all the documents you send them.
The Credit Bureau Responds To Your Dispute
The credit bureau usually takes about thirty days to respond to your claim after checking all the necessary information and facts. Credit bureau sends the disputed facts to the information provider which in turn investigates the same and reports back to the bureau.
Upon completion of the investigation, the credit bureau provides you with the results. In case the dispute has been accepted and facts altered, the bureau provides you with a free copy of the changed report. Credit bureau can also be requested to send the correction to any other company which may have accessed your credit report in the past six months.
After all this, it is a good idea to check the other credit bureaus as well and set right the information.
Credit Management Or Credit Repair – You Choose
26-12-2009 by admin
The issue of credit management is often overlooked, or conducted in a haphazard or half-hearted way often times resulting in situation that requires credit repair. Why? Because people tend to lose control and focus of their credit accounts and debts, as they get caught up in living and day to day tasks, always thinking that they will get around to paying this bill or contacting that creditor, sound familiar?
An approach of proactive credit management is required, in both business as well as our personal lives, and granted we all want special things, clothes or whatever, but we have to start asking ourselves is that really necessary, or will it end up in the closet like most of the other purchases. This conscious approach to purchases will make the difference of spending on that credit card or not spending on the card and therefore not acquiring any additional credit that becomes payable. The use of a credit card can in fact represent a very sound credit management practice, provided of course the card managed correctly, and that does mean meeting the regular required, which although important, many people are not aware that the credit available on a credit card is often times interest free for a short period. If you can pay off all expenditure on the card within that period then no interest becomes due. It is these sorts of conscious and aware practices that make for a sound credit management program.
In addition to the more conscious approach within one’s spending habits, the active management of existing accounts is vital to ensure that one will not have to engage in any credit repair process. This process involves having up to date account statements at your disposal in a well organized system, thereby being fully aware of your current situation. This will help in avoiding any possible oversights in terms of credit repayments that are due, and will therefore not catch you by surprise or unawares when the creditor contacts you, you know how embarrassing that can be.
Credit management may well seem like a chore or even an arduous task to say the least, however once you have established a sound credit management system as well as the ongoing habit of doing this it will be easier than trying to repair your credit after it all goes South. There are legitimate or unfortunate events within which the individual may well end up in a mess in terms of their credit history and rating, in this instance you should take some time off to establish exactly the position and the severity of the situation. By negotiating with your creditors and remaining true to any commitments that you have made you will be able to address these credit management problems, just do not ignore any credit related issues as that will only add fuel to the fire.
Advice On How To Remove Credit History After Seven Years – How To Remove Bad Credit History
24-11-2009 by admin
Credit history is only one of a number of factors used to rate your ability to get a loan. It is also one of several factors used to arrive at the best rate possible. Other reasons that factor in the determination of your credit score can include; length of time since credit problems, amount of loan you are asking for, the level of risk the lender is willing to take for the loan (higher risk means higher interest), and your down payment are some of the other factors.
If you have a poor credit record, then determining just how to remove credit history after seven years from your credit files is usually based on time, and usually is seven years depending on the nature of the mark against you (marks such as “judgments” can take longer) and the laws of the state you live in.
There are three main credit reporting agencies that lenders and other companies subscribe to, they are: Equifax, TransUnion and Experian.
When determining how to remove credit history after seven years, that is, the record of all that happens in your financial situation throughout the years, is a matter of deleting everything that reduces your “credit number”. Credit Scoring is a system based on all that happens to your accounts: late payments, bill paying history, number and type of accounts, outstanding debts and more. The history of your credit is the reflection of ones sincerity in repaying his debts. This makes it a main feature for lenders to look for when deciding if they should make a loan to someone.
Credit records is based on information retrieved from sources including public records such as electoral roll information, court judgments and bankruptcies; and Information provided by financial institutions and other lenders such as banks that provide credit accounts and lending facilities.
Removing bad marks on your credit file can be done and the reporting agencies can best tell you how to remove credit history after seven years if that is the length of time for the particular bad credit mark and complies with your state laws governing loans and credit history.
In order to calculate the potential risk in providing loans to the person, most lenders use independent credit reference agencies to gather and assemble this information since they are permitted by law to review a mortgagee’s credit report before granting approval.
Bad credit history is like the “black sheep” in the life of everyone. If your financial record or credit history is not good then availing the loan is a Herculean task for you. Bad credit is hard to get clear off unless you understand how to remove credit history after seven years.