Posts Tagged ‘Fico Score’

Can I Fix My Credit Myself? The Straight Skinny on Self Help Credit Repair

Danny Fredricks asked:




In this article we are going to look at whether or not you can fix your credit by yourself. One of the biggest myths about restoring your credit is that it’s something that requires a professional hand or guidance to do – and it’s simply NOT true. Now, that doesn’t mean that someone who is more experienced or well informed about the process MIGHT be able to do a better job than you will on your first try, but it certainly shouldn’t keep ANYONE with a little bit of energy and ambition from getting the job done. Read on as we take a closer look below..:-)

Self Help Credit Repair – What is Involved?

Essentially, the steps to fix your OWN FICO score are no different than if you hired someone to handle it for you. You simply need to find, itemize and challenge ALL of the information on your report that is erroneous, outdated, obsolete or incomplete. The Fair Credit Report Act and all of it’s subsequent amendments and revisions give you TONS of rights as a consumer – the most important one being the right to challenge ANYTHING on your credit file you believe is incorrect!

The Advantages of Filing Your Own Disputes?

Obviously, it’s going to cost a lot less than hiring a pro..:-) You can save many hundreds, if not thousands of dollars by simply undertaking this process for yourself, rather than farming it out to a clinic or expensive attorney. Be forewarned though: You DO need to know what you’re doing…or you’ll find yourself saving a lot of money, but wasting a TON of time instead! I’ve fixed my own credit on several occasions, and can tell you first hand that the price of a little bit of education is FAR less than spinning your wheels for 6 months without easy improvements, only to find out you’ve overlooked the basics and dropped the ball to boot!

Joe
 

How to Raise Your Credit Score – 3 Tricks to Repair Your Credit in a Month

Irena Bocheva asked:




Are you trying to obtain a mortgage or auto loan, but fear being turned down by creditors? Do you want to apply for a business loan, but don’t want to pay thousands of dollars on high interest? Whatever you specific situation is, you are not alone-more than 35 million Americans are struggling with issues related to bad credit score. Getting turned down on your loan, employment or lease application are just some of the side effects of having a low FICO. The growing significance of your FICO makes having a good credit score a necessity.

Here are 3 simple tips that will help you raise your score in less that a month

1 Face your credit problems NOW.

A lot of people postpone solving their bad credit issues until it’s too late. The collection phone calls, the tons of unwanted mail, the fear of applying for loans-deal with the issue NOW. The problem with bad credit is that the more you procrastinate action, the more your credit problem spins out of control. Don’t pretend that the problem doesn’t exist-face it.

2 Approach your credit problem with a clear plan of action.

Order a copy of your credit report and highlight all negative items in it. Which are the most harmful negative accounts in your report? There are various credit repair strategies which are tailored towards each type of negative account (collections, legal judgments, late payments, past due payments, tax liens etc). What works for late payments (pay them in full and send “goodwill’ letter to creditors) does not work with collection accounts (pay only the settlement amount and negotiate for the removal of the negative item). Familiarize yourself with the different credit strategies and start applying them to the most harmful accounts in your report.

3 No proof-no guarantee

There is one simple rule in the world of credit repair-try to keep everything in written form. Always use certified or registered mail, make copies of your correspondence with credit bureaus and collection agencies. Always ask for written verification of every deal you strike with a credit bureau or collection agent. If you don’t keep written proof of your efforts, you might be simply wasting your time.

How raise your credit score fast? The KEY is knowledge about the inner workings of the credit system and the various loopholes in it. Once you start thinking outside the box, you will be surprised to find how easy credit repair actually is.

Gail
 

How to Fix Your FICO Score

Tom Tessin asked:




Everyone knows that if you have a bad FICO score, you’re not going to be able to get a loan for your next home, auto, or even a personal loan. Since most of us can’t just throw down a few hundred thousand for a house, it’s important that we get a mortgage. Now having a bad FICO score doesn’t mean you can’t get a mortgage ever again. There are just some steps you need to take in order to improve your FICO score so that you can get that loan once again.

Get a credit report – If you haven’t received a credit report yet, you should go out and get a copy of your credit report to look it over. Make sure that you get a free report that the government allows you to get every year. When you get a hold your credit report, look it over and see if anything looks wrong or shady. If something looks fishy, you’ll want to fix it as soon as you can. There are many steps you can take; the first step I suggest you take is by calling the credit bureaus and seeing what you can do from there.

Pay your bills – No matter what you do with your bills, make sure you always attempt to pay off the minimum at least. If you don’t pay your bills, you’re going to get hit with late payment fees and this will affect your credit score a lot. Make sure that you pay at least the minimum. If you can’t afford to pay the minimum, I suggest you go out and find another ways to get money. There are many part time jobs out there that you can pay you a few extra hundred dollars a week like pizza delivery or working a retail store.

Get rid of your balances – When you’re trying to get out of debt, make your number one focus to pay off your credit card balance. Try and put as much money toward your debt as possible. This means you’ll want to cut back on the leisure expenses and focus on debt. So, instead of eating out for thirty dollars, make a five dollar meal at home and put that twenty five toward the debt.

Close a few accounts – If you have a few accounts laying around that you don’t use anymore, call up the credit card company and close them. Make sure that you know what you’re doing thought because some of your old accounts may be helping you. Credit companies love to see older established accounts. If your report shows nothing but new accounts, the companies will be a little suspicious of this. Make sure that you close a few accounts that aren’t as old as your oldest one.

If you can focus on paying off your debt and making a lot of money, fixing your debt shouldn’t be that hard at all. As long as you’re focused and determined to pay it off, you should have a problem at all.

Louise
 

Is a 24 Hour Credit Fix Possible?

Caden Flynn asked:




Is it possible to build a house in one day? Can your obtain a college degree overnight? Definitely not! It is the same with bad credit – it just cannot be rectified within 24 hours. It takes some time to repair credit that has an unflattering history, despite what those advertisements would have you believe. This article will provide you with some common sense tips on how to increase your credit score as quickly as practicable (but not overnight!).

The two items of information that potential lenders will definitely check prior to offering you a car loan or mortgage are your credit report and your FICO score. The credit report is a compilation of your credit history with any number of financial institutions. Did you miss a payment on the car loan some years ago? That will be included as will late payments on an electricity bill. From this sort of information, the three major credit bureaus will generate a score, sometimes known as a FICO score. A score below 700 will see you having to pay higher interest rates and if it is too low, you may find it difficult to even obtain approval for a loan from the traditional, “safe” lenders.

Repairing a bad credit rating therefore takes time. You can begin by requesting a free copy of your credit report: if you visit annualcreditreport.com you will be able to obtain it online, once a year, free of charge. You can even arrange online for inaccurate information to be removed by completing a form on the same site.

You should make an effort to lower your debt to credit ratio. This is what you owe in comparison to your credit limit. You can do this by paying down the balances on credit cards. It may also be beneficial to open up a new line of credit; just don’t use it too much. If it is not feasible for you to obtain a “traditional” source of credit, consider a sub-prime merchandise card; one that reports to the credit bureaus.

If you are truly in a lot of debt with your credit card, you may be able to negotiate with the credit providers to lower your liability. It is surprising what a phone call can do.

So, you have been incredibly good and you have worked very hard for some weeks in an effort to repair your credit. Will there be any change on your credit report? Unfortunately, not at this stage. The information that the credit bureaus receive from the credit providers also takes time to filter through and the credit bureaus usually will weight the reports from the last 12 to 18 months in order to generate your credit rating Be patient – you will have to wait to be rid of the bad credit rating.

It should be obvious now that it simply is not possible to fix all of this in 24 hours. The expert opinion is that it can take from between 3 to 12 months to achieve. We all know that good things are worth the wait.

Walter
 

Fix My Ugly Credit – Tips to Help You Erase Credit File Errors and Increase Your FICO Score

Darin Sewell asked:




I want to fix my ugly credit is what most people say to themselves when they realize their credit scores are terrible. At this point most of these people realize they have no clue how to repair FICO scores. If you fall into this group the tips listed below will help you start down the road to higher FICO scores.

Self Credit Repair Tips To Help You Erase Credit File Errors

1) Dispute Everything Negative On Your Report

You should dispute any negative item on your credit report, even if it is true. Federal law lets you challenge any item on your report. The best part is that you do not have to prove anything, the creditor has to prove the negative information they are reporting is true.

If they cannot or do not prove the items validity then the item must come off your credit report.So take advantage of the law and use it to your benefit.

2) Send In Your Credit Dispute Letters Slowly

The shotgun approach of sending in all your disputes at once will more then likely throw up a red flag with the credit bureaus. They will view your disputes as frivolous and ignore them. Instead send them in one or two at a time and only send new disputes in when you receive a letter telling you the status of your old disputes.

3) Buy a Credit Repair Kit

Self credit repair while not difficult can be a long road to go down if yo have no knowledge of the process. A good book or kit can help guide you and also give you some great tools and tips to make the process much faster. You can down load some great kits online and have them right on your PC for easy reference.

Glenda
 

Improve Credit Rating – How to Raise You Score More Than 100 Points

Irena Bocheva asked:




Are you trying to improve credit rating? Do you want to increase your chances of getting approved for a mortgage or an auto loan? Are you hoping to get a favorable business loan, but fear your credit score won’t qualify you? Creditors, employers, insurers, landlords and many more are pulling up your credit report when evaluating your application. Because of the growing significance of your FICO score, a good credit score is no longer a luxury. It’s a necessity.

Here are 3 simple tips that will help you understand how fast credit repair works:

1 Evaluate your situation.

Do you need to raise your score with 5,10,50,100, 200 points? What are the specific requirements of creditors for a mortgage or auto loan in your area? In order to come up with a winning credit strategy, you have to know where you stand (current FICO) and where you need to be (desired FICO).

2 Winnow the chaff away from the grain.

Not all debt is created equal. Certain items in your credit report affect your score more adversely that others. The typical order of adverse items is bankruptcies, foreclosures, repossessions, loan default, collections, past due payments, late payments, declined credit, credit inquiries. Take a careful look at your report and highlight the items that affect your score most adversely. Also keep in mind that more recent accounts have bigger impact on your FICO than older accounts. Once you identify the most problematic accounts, start working on them.

3 Different strokes for different blokes.

Credit bureaus, collection agencies and original creditors can help you raise your score fast if you know how to approach them. Different strategies should be used for different agencies. For example, if you want to get a creditor to remove a one time late payment from your account, you have to be diplomatic and polite. Explain the sob story surrounding the one time late payment and promise to be a good customer in the future. When dealing with collection agencies, however, you can use more aggressive strategies. Ask for validation of debt-you’ll be surprised to find that most collection agencies don’t have the proper paperwork.

Always hassle till you reach a settlement amount that satisfies you. Keep in mind that collection agencies still make a handsome profit out of you even if you pay them 25% or less from what you actually owe. Also promise to pay ONLY if they agree to remove the negative item from your credit report. In a nutshell-use different strategies with different agencies if you want to achieve maximum results. There are different ways to improve credit rating. Knowledge about the credit system and the various loopholes in it, however, seems like the fastest route. Once you start thinking outside the credit box, you’ll be surprised to find how easy credit repair actually

Jeremy
 

Legal Free Credit Repair – Are There No Cost Options to Boost My Score?

Ian Hollander asked:




When most folks start considering fixing their credit
reports, the very first consideration usually is the cost,
and legality of the credit repair process. Cost is an
important variable for an obvious reason, these are
typically people like you and I who have had some form of
financial difficulty in the past ( or even while trying to
fix your credit) and you certainly do not want to compound
the problem by taking on another financial obligation you
cannot afford.

The other consideration should be the legality of the repair
process you are considering. Now, let me first make one
thing very clear. For the most part, by and large, most
mainstream credit repair techniques are totally and
completely legal. There are very specific and definitive
laws which not only give you the right to dispute items on
your financial file that you feel are incorrect, but also
lay out a very consumer friendly ( this is good for us! )
process by which the credit bureaus must follow in
accommodating your challenge. There is no inherent cost for
this, ( other than time and materials ) and can be done by
ANYONE regardless of education, background or means.

So if credit repair can be done legally, and for free, why
is there such controversy about the process and costs
involved?

This is a great question. Unfortunately, what happens is
that once people recognize an opportunity to profiteer from
the pain of others, and can work in some savvy marketing
materials into the mix, you end up with all of these
expensive, exotic credit repair processes that are
confusing, shrouded in questionable ethics and
effectiveness, and at worst, potentially illegal and will
put you in a much hotter kettle of water than a bad fico
score.

Things you need to avoid? File segregation services, new ID
numbers, anything that sounds like murky, muddy advice –
probably is! Anything that promises to fix your credit using
a “computer overnight” is also worth ignoring. Again, as we
have said over and over, if it sounds too good to be true,
it is!

Can you fix your credit using legal, easy, and ethical
means? Absolutely. Can it be done quickly and for a very low
cost. Yes, it most definitely can. You are guaranteed the
right to have an accurate credit report. Congress has
mandated this for all of us. It is the backbone of a fair
and balanced economic system for all Americans. If there are
items on your report that need to be challenged, you can do
this LEGALLY and for FREE!

So if your credit is problematic, no more excuses! You are
standing on the threshold of a new financial future. Take
that next step to make it a good one.

Lillian
 

How to Raise Your Credit Score – 3 Ways to Raise Credit by More Than 100 Points

Irena Bocheva asked:




More than 35 million Americans are asking themselves the same question. Your FICO mirrors your ability to manage finances successfully. It determines whether you’ll get approved for a loan and whether you’ll have to pay thousands of dollars on high interest rates. However, the importance of your FICO goes beyond shopping. Employers, insurers and landlords are also pulling your credit report in order to evaluate applicants. The growing significance of your credit score makes having a good credit a simple necessity.

Here are 3 simple rules that will help you understand how fast credit repair works.

1 You can’t win a game if you don’t know the rules.

Most credit repair services charge exorbitant fees for things you can do yourself IF you had the slightest knowledge about the inner workings of the credit system and the various loopholes in it. Do you know your rights under FCRA (the Fair Credit Reporting Act) and FDCPA( Fair Debt Collection Practices Act)? Do you know that you can dispute any erroneous, incomplete, incorrect, questionable, unverifiable item on your report? And not only that-you can dispute the same item with different credit bureaus, collection agencies and creditors. Do you know that all types of credit agencies are required by law to provide you with proof of claims(debt validation) if you ask them to do so? Do you know that 2 factors in your credit score formula constitute more than 70 % of your final FICO score? The more you know about how the system works, the better your chances to raise credit fast.

2 No immediate action – no victory.

Negative items stay on your report for a certain period of time. For example, a chapter 7 bankruptcy stays for 10 years. A chapter 13 bankruptcy – 7 years. Legal judgments stay for 7 years or for the duration of the statue (whichever is longer). Other types of negative info (collection, late payments, past due payment) stay for 7 years. Credit inquiries usually disappear from your report after 2 years. A lot of people simply wait patiently until these items fall off from their record. However, if you are looking for a fast credit repair or if you want to apply for a mortgage or auto loan soon, you have to take action NOW. Order a copy of your credit report, analyze it, dispute various items, negotiate with collection agencies, request proof of debt, do a balance transfer on your cards, piggyback someone else’s credit etc. In a nutshell-use all possible strategies and take immediate action.

3 Perseverance is vital for success.

The path to a better credit is not necessarily smooth. Credit bureaus might dismiss some of your disputes as “frivolous”. Collection agencies will probably be able to validate most of your debt. You won’t easily find friends/relatives that will let you piggyback their credit. Setbacks are a normal part of the process. Summon your energy and keep trying.

How to raise your credit score fast. The answer is simple. All you need is knowledge about the inner workings of the system and the various loopholes in it. Once you start thinking outside the box, you’ll be surprised to find how easy credit repair actually is.

Rick
 

Clear Credit History – How to Raise Your Credit Score With More Than 150 Points

Irena Bocheva asked:




Do you want to clear credit history? Are you about to make a major house or luxury car purchase but fear being turned down by creditors? Do you worry that thousands of dollars in interest hinge on 10, 5 and even 1 point in your credit score? Are you being harassed by non-stop collection agency calls? No matter what your case is, a clear credit history will lift a heavy load off you shoulders and will open many doors in front of you. There is no bad debt fairy dust that will solve your credit problems overnight. However, there are a lot of things you can do that will boost your credit in no time.

1 Your most powerful weapon-credit knowledge.

Credit consolidation agencies will charge you an arm and a leg for things you can do yourself if you had the CREDIT KNOWLEDGE. How is your FICO score calculated?What’s the difference between installment credit and revolving credit? Which matters more to creditors? Is credit time sensitive? Why does paying off an old collection can actually hurt your credit score? How to make your credit history longer? How to delete collections, late payments, liens and judgments from your report? What is the perfect balance/limit ratio on your credit cards? How to piggyback someone else’s credit?The more you know about the inner workings of the credit system, the better your chances to raise you score fast.

2 Learn to think outside the box.

According to the mainstream credit advisers fixing credit takes time, determination, financial effort, careful budget planning and patience. This formula has proven to increase credit score over time. However, most of us want that fantastic house, brand new car, personal or business loan NOW. Time is a luxury we can’t afford. And this is where credit tricks and little known secrets come into play. Why try to rebuild your credit gradually when you can focus on the negative items in your report that have the biggest impact om your score? Why pay everything in full when you can negotiate settlement for a fraction of the debt? Why getting delinquent accounts “deleted” from your report is much more beneficial that simply paying them off? Learn more about the loopholes in the system and find the shortcuts to a better credit score

3 Leverage

You do have leverage with your creditors, collection agencies and credit bureaus. For example you can dispute items on your credit report and the credit bureaus are required by law to conduct investigation in a timely manner. You can negotiate “settlement” with collection agencies that are just a fraction of the amount you owe. You can also ask creditors to delete a one time late payment due to unusual circumstances. Keep in mind that you do have leverage and make the most of it.

There are many ways to clear credit history. Just like with everything else in life there is the hard way and the smart way to do it. Once you start thinking outside the box, fixing credit should be fairly easy.

Tommy
 

Raising Credit Score – 3 Tricks That Helped Others to Clean Up Credit in Less That a Month

Irena Bocheva asked:




Raising credit score is not hard once you start thinking outside the credit box. Most of the 35 million Americans with less than stellar credit have embarked on the traditional way of fixing credit score-financial discipline, careful budget planning, patience and dedication. A small percent of Americans, however, hove found there are a lot easier and faster ways to fix FICO score. The only thing required is knowledge about the credit system and various loopholes in it.

Here are 3 simple tips that will help you understand how fast credit repair works:

1 The collection agency strategy.

Contrary to what you think, paying off an old collection can actually lower your credit score. Why? Because it will upgrade the account status to “current”. The bad debt (although now paid) will continue to impact your score adversely and will stay on your report for additional 7 years. If you want to fix collection accounts, you have to approach collection agencies in a different ways. There are two things you have to keep in mind. 1 Collection agencies usually pay pennies for each dollar that you owe and still make a profit even if you settle for 20 % or less.2 A paid off collection account is still considered a negative item. A deleted collection account, on the other hand, will bring an instant increase in your credit score. These two facts will help you understand which are the two main priorities when dealing with collection agencies-get collection agencies to agree on a very low settlement amount and convince them to delete the item once you pay the settlement. There are various strategies you can use in order to achieve these 2 objectives.

2 The 623 Dispute strategy

Dispute 623 allows you to dispute a listing with the original creditor. In such cases you are not disputing the validity of the whole account (the debt is not mine), but the validity of a specific item within the listing ( wrong account balance, wrong account limit, I didn’t pay late that moth etc).Contrary to what you might think, there are very few original creditors who keep decent records. Most credit card and mortgage landing companies only keep records for a 13-18 months. Why?Because it takes a lot of money to preserve various data in your files as well as to transport data from one system to another ( in case of acquisition). So if you debt dates back to more than a year and a half ago, the original creditors might not be able to prove that you are wrong. If the collection agencies have no record to prove that the specific listing is correct, they are required to remove the negative items from your record

3 The lawsuit strategy.

Stop thinking about yourself as the victim in the credit game. You have more rights than you think. For example, under the Fair Credit Reporting Act you are allowed to dispute any inaccurate, outdated, incomplete, questionable and ambiguous item on your record. If credit bureaus fail to come up with a decision on your case within 30 days, they are in violation of FCRA. Collection agencies are also breaking the law if they don’t validate the debt( upon your request), but keep it in your credit file; if they still call you after you send them a cease and desist letter; if they claim to garnish your wages, seize property or have you arrested. In such cases, you are entitled to sue the respective agency. When it comes to credit repair, you have numerous rights. The more you know about these rights, the better your chances to raise credit score fast.

Raising credit score is not hard. There are various tricks and little known secrets that will help you boost your score in no time. Once you start thinking outside the box, you’ll be surprised to find how easy credit repair actually is.

Kelly