Some people are spending hours on the phone every day, speaking to creditors and lawyers and even more lenders, all in an attempt to break free of those bad credit chains that bind us up and keep us from enjoying life. Bad credit can weigh on your shoulders until it’s taken care of, so let’s take the steps to repair that score once and for all.
Repairing your credit can take some time, but you can hasten the process by prioritizing your debts, particularly those that are in arrears. High interest rate accounts should be paid off as quickly as possible to avoid wasting money on interest payments rather than reducing the actual balance of your debt. If you have one or two accounts with a low balance, consider paying them off in a lump sum. Once that’s done, you can have them removed from your credit report.
Perhaps the greatest tip anyone can implement for repairing their credit is to save their money. Reduce spending to the bare minimum and concentrate and saving as much money as possible for improving your credit rating. Get rid of your debt as quickly as possible without taking on any new debt.
When you find errors on your credit report, dispute them to the reporting agency. About 75% of all credit reports contain some sort of error. It may be an item that should have dropped off your report. It may have been an account that was paid in full but is still showing as outstanding. Clear these items off to give your score a boost.
To keep your credit in top notch shape, borrow no more than 30% of the credit available to you. Keeping your debt lower than 30% of your available credit will help you to maintain a strong credit score with the reporting agencies. It also means less owed to lenders and so, less for you to pay back.
An important tip to consider when working to repair your credit is to not have too many installment loans on your report. This is important because credit reporting agencies see structured payment as not showing as much responsibility as a loan that permits you to make your own payments. This may lower your score.
An important tip to consider when working to repair your credit is the benefit it will have with your insurance. This is important because you could potentially save a lot more money on your auto, life, and home insurance. Normally, your insurance rates are based at least partially off of your credit score.
If you’ve hired a credit report company to help you and they insist on a large free upfront, end your relationship. The Federal Credit Repair Organizations Act strictly disallows anyone from asking for fees before a service is actually rendered, so they are breaking the law by even asking for an upfront fee.
Now that you know a thing or two about how to repair that bad credit score, it’s time to put the tips into action and get started on living a bad-credit-free life. Remember to take your time and to examine all the angles. Not every piece of advice you read related to credit will instantly work for you, but you need to keep plugging away at it until it’s resolved.