Fix Your Credit Problem And Get Back Control Of Your Finances
Fix Your Credit Problem And Get Back Control Of Your Finances
If you have fallen on hard times like so many other people in this economy, then there is a good chance that your credit has suffered as well. Cleaning it up is going to be very important for moving forward and rebuilding your financial life. This article will show you how you can repair your credit and get back on track.
Repairing your credit score can mean getting a higher credit later. You may not think this is important until you need to finance a large purchase such as a car, and don't have the credit to back it up. Repair your credit score so you have the wiggle room for those unexpected purchases.
Be careful about which collection accounts you pay off. With the current way the credit reporting system is structured, paying off a collection agency may actually lower your score because the date of last activity will be reset. A paid collection has no less of an impact on your score than an open collection. This resetting of the date of last activity also means the seven year reporting clock will restart. If you can wait out a collection agency, do it.
When you inspect your credit report for errors, you will want to check for accounts that you have closed being listed as open, late payments that were actually on time, or any other myriad of things that can be wrong. If you find an error, write a letter to the credit bureau and include any proof that you have such as receipts or letters from the creditor.
If you do not understand why you have bad credit, there might be errors on your report. Consult an expert who will be able to recognize these errors and officially correct your credit history. Make sure to take action as soon as you suspect an error on your report.
Keep track of who you authorize to put an inquiry of your credit report. Inquires do have a negative effect on your report. Review your credit report and dispute any inquiries that you have not authorized. Keeping track of small items like this, can have a large cumulative effect on your credit report.
Credit repair requires that you begin paying your bills. More importantly, you need to start paying your bills in full and on time. When you pay off past due lines of credit your credit score will go up.
Some sound advice to follow, is to be sure to take the time to contact your credit card company and work with them. This will keep you from increasing the amount of debt that you have. You can do this by speaking with them and asking to change the monthly charges or due date.
While there is no magic wand or special process that can ever erase all the negative things on your credit report, there are lots of ways that you can minimize their effects. Start by correcting the incorrect and start putting lots of positives on there. Follow the advice from this article and you will see higher scores and better credit moving forward.