Saturday, November 1, 2008

Tips To Repair Your Credit

Want to try and want to know how? How to repair your credit?

When someone applies for a loan, a credit card, life insurance, an apartment, or to even apply for a job, your credit report is checked. Your credit report is a blue print for your financial behavior. It contains a history of how one pays their bills and how responsible that person is when handling finances. Not all persons can check your credit history; only a legitimate business like a bank, a retailer, a landlord, the IRS, the court, licensing agencies, or an employer can do so.

If someone has a lousy credit report, it can keep him/her from getting a job or even a promotion. If you have a bad credit history, clean it up. Prove that you have taken care. People will want to do business with you. Here are few tips to clean up your credit history:

* Understand the Fair Credit Reporting Act: This Act gives you the right to see what is in your credit report and dispute any inaccuracies. If you see inaccuracies, it must be investigated and corrected if they are wrong. One can write a statement up to 100 words to explain your case.

* Reporting to Credit Bureaus: The three credit bureaus hold reports for more than 150 million people and one can contact them individually for their personal credit report. The phone numbers and websites are given below:

Equifax 1-800-685-1111 www.equifax.com
Experian 1-888-397-3742 www.experion.com
TransUnion 1-800-916-8800 www.transunion.com

* Correct Errors: When you get a report and find that there is an error such as an account that’s not yours, a payment that was never received, or a typo. The credit report has a complete set of instructions as to how to report the error. It is between the bureau and the creditor who reported the data to correct the error when it is wrong. You will get a written reply within four weeks.

* Validate Your Case: Validate your case by providing reasons for falling behind on your payments, such as a job loss, serious illness, divorce, death in family, stolen identity, natural disaster, or any other compelling reason that you may have. You can also insert a 100 words statement in the report to substantiate your case. The bureau can help you write this statement. The bankers and creditors will know that you are not a reckless person and that you do care.

* Seek Help: If you owe a huge some of money to different credit cards or loans and if you are unable to manage your finances, contact a debt settlement company such as www.debtfreeafterall.com, who are pioneers in debt settlement, debt reduction, and debt negotiations. They can reduce and settle your debt by 30-80% depending upon the type of card or loan you have.

Article Written by Naz