Bad Credit Repair – Understand Your Credit Report

admin — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 06:31:16 +0000

Due to changes made to the Fair Credit Reporting Act as of December 2003, the three credit bureaus TransUnion, Experian and Equifax are now required, at your request, to provide you with an official credit report, at no cost. This is allowed once every 12 months. You are encouraged to take advantage of this, and make sure that what is getting revealed to lenders and potential employers is totally accurate information.

With identity theft at an all time high (40 million Americans had their identities stolen a few weeks ago in the biggest case of identity theft in American history), it is very important to ensure that your credit report is correct. There are millions of people in need of bad credit repair that may not even know it because their credit reports have been compromised by identity thieves.

Before you can understand your credit report, you must obtain it. It is very simple to obtain a free copy of your credit report. You can use three different methods:

1. You may contact each of the three credit reporting bureaus directly either by phone or in writing:

Equifax

P.O. Box 740241

Atlanta, GA 30374

1-800-685-1111

Experian

P.O. Box 2002

Allen, TX 75013

1-888-397-3742

TransUnion

P.O. Box 1000

Chester, PA 19022

1-800-888-4213

2. You may use AnnualCreditReport.com and make your inquiry online.

3. You can call the toll-free Annual Report number at 877-322-8228 for more information.

Once you have your credit report in hand, how do you read it? There is a lot of information in these reports and it can be confusing. To begin your bad credit repair, you must be able to understand your credit report, right? Here is an outline of the information it contains:

The I.D. Section. This is where any information regarding your name, home address, social security number, date of birth, and spousal information (if applicable) is located. You will want to make sure this information is correct, because these are the components that define you.

Credit History. This is the main part of your report. You will want to examine this very closely and take your time. Any information that is incorrect should be disputed immediately. It will have a complete list of your open and paid credit accounts. Any late payments made will also be listed here. For each account, the following will be listed:

1. Company name

2. Account number

3. Your responsibility on the account i.e. individual, joint, co-signer, etc.

4. Date the account was opened

5. Number of months the account history has been reported

6. Last activity which will be your last payment or last charge

7. High limit – the highest amount your account has reached

8. Terms – if this is a car loans, the length of your loan may be included

9. Balance due on account

10. Past due amount at the time of the report

11. The type of account it is – revolving (like a credit card), installment (like a car or home loan) or open (like a line of credit)

12. Date reported – the last time your account information was updated on the account by the creditor

Collections Accounts. If any of your accounts have gone to collections in the past seven years, they will be listed here. If there is something that looks unfamiliar to you, it is important to dispute this immediately.

Courthouse Records. This is also known as public records. If there have been any judgments on any of your accounts i.e. bankruptcy records, child support settlements or any court-decided accounts, they may show up in this section. Again, inaccuracies should be disputed immediately.

Inquiries. This section will contain information on companies that have checked your credit in the last 24 months. Again if a company or inquiry looks unfamiliar, you will want to investigate this and see why this company is checking your credit. Multiple inquiries can decrease your credit score.

If you have been denied a loan, credit, or employment because of your credit score, do not be afraid to ask for information about it from whomever denied you. It is important to know what is being seen by potential lenders and employers, because what they see results in the approval or denial you will get.

If any portion of your credit report is inaccurate, or if you have outstanding debts, you should immediately begin the process of bad credit repair Higher credit scores will lead to more loan, credit card, and employment approvals along the ability to qualify for lower interest rates and money-saving promotions (such as cash-back, 0% APR, and travel rewards). Your credit report is very powerful and can impact your quality of life. Understand your credit report and take control.

-Ken S

© 2008

By: Ken S

Credit Repair Made Easy

admin — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 06:34:19 +0000

Did you know that credit repair could be accomplished without outside help? Your local library may contain the books you would need to help you rebuild or repair your credit score.

To get started, you need to learn what your credit report says about you. You can gain this information by writing to each of the credit bureaus and asking for a copy of your own credit report. You can do this online by visiting http://www.annualcreditreport.com or by writing to one of the three major credit bureaus.

Credit Report Bureaus to Contact

The following are credit bureaus. They hold on to reports of your credit history. Write to each for information on how to get your credit report.

Equifax Credit Information Services, Inc.

P.O. Box 740241

Atlanta, GA. 30374

Call Equifax at 1-(800) 685-1111 to order a credit report by phone. To place a fraud alert on your credit report with Equifax, call 1(888) 766-0008

Website address is http://www.Equifax.com

Trans Union LLC

Consumer Disclosure Center

P.O. Box 1000

Chester, PA 19022

Website address is http://www.Transunion.com

Call Transunion at 1 (800) 888-4213 to only order free credit reports

Experian

National Consumer Assistance Center

P.O. Box 949

Allen, TX 75013

Call 1 (888) EXPERIAN to order credit reports or place a fraud alert on your credit report.

Website address is http://www.Experian.com

How To Review Your Credit Report

Be sure to read up on the directions for correcting your report. For example, if you find information that does not fit your true history, you simply need to write and contact the credit bureaus. Each of them has prepared instructions for reporting errors. If you find information that is not entirely correct, you can report this as directed and explain how it is incorrect.

If there is something that you are not familiar with, ask the credit bureau to give you the name, address and number of the institution that may be giving a false report. You may be able to sort it out and fix your credit further.

After all this information has been corrected, submit it to the designated credit bureaus. Be sure to keep a copy of this information for yourself as well for your own records. If anything should get lost in the mail, you’ll be able to make a quick copy and submit it.

You Don’t Have To Repair Your Credit Alone

That’s how easy it is to actually repair your credit report, though even this process may be overwhelming. If you find that you are nervous about going through the process of credit repair alone, you may ask for assistance. Credit repair companies are available and for a small fee they can assist you with your credit repair.

If you choose to try a credit repair company, do be sure to check out the company before forwarding any money. Check to see if your credit repair company is registered and bonded as a credit service organization. You can check with the secretary of state’s office to be sure. Always check that a credit service is registered before getting involved with or paying any company.

No one should have to suffer with a poor credit score, when it is simple to get back on track with a few easy repairs. You don’t even have to go at it alone. There is always help available when you need it.

By: Lee Harrison

Credit Repair services » Chester Pa

Bad Credit Repair – Understand Your Credit Report

Credit Repair Made Easy