Your Credit Report: Make It Shine
Posted at by CreditWiz on category CreditIt is easy to lower your credit, whether it be with shopping sprees or having too many credit cards. The good news is that there are some things that you can do to repair it.
The higher your credit score, the lower the interest rate that you can obtain will be. Lower interest rates make it much easier and quicker to pay off balances. Receiving competitive credit rates and good offers are important in having credit that you can pay off easily, and that will get you a great credit score.
You can work with the credit card companies to start repairing your credit. Talking to them will help keep you from drowning further in debt and making your credit worse. You can do this by speaking with them and asking to change the monthly charges or due date.
If you are looking into a credit counselor, be sure to find out information about them before you choose to use them. Although some can be quite legitimate, others have motives that are less than kind. Also be aware that there are other credit counseling services run by dishonest people. These services are scams and should be avoided at any cost. A savvy consumer will always do his or her research on any credit counseling service to ensure that the agency is legitimate.
Give your credit card company a call and ask them to lower the limit on your credit card. It will help to keep spending under control, and also sends a positive message to potential lenders. This means you might have a better opportunity of obtaining necessary loans in the future.
Find and challenge errors on your credit report using the dispute process offered by each credit reporting agency. Send a letter to all agencies involved. Include the errors you noted along with supporting documents that prove that the information on file is erroneous. Make sure that you ask for a return receipt so that you know your letter makes it to its intended destination.
In order to start repairing your credit, you should close all but one of your credit card accounts. You will want to either transfer your balances onto the one remaining card or set up payment arrangements, but close the account to new charges. By doing this, you can concentrate on a single credit card payment, as opposed to a lot of smaller ones each month.
Look through your credit card statement each month and make sure that it is correct. Should there be any mistakes, contact the company and talk to them to avoid being reported to the credit companies.
You should get all terms and conditions in writing if you choose to deal with a creditor. This way you have documentation of the agreement in case the creditor decides to change their mind or ownership of the company changes. Upon completion of payment, make sure to get the receipt in writing and send it to the credit reporting agencies.
Nursing your credit back to good health is not as hard as it looks at first, especially when you are willing to make a persistent effort and listen to good advice. The advice offered in this article can help to get you back on track to repairing your credit.