Business

How to repair your credit

Your credit is your financial identity, your financial DNA, your financial resume. Your credit is one of the most important aspects of your life and it can help or hurt you throughout your life. Credit affects many aspects of your life, such as applying for a job, applying for a house or apartment, or applying for a personal loan or credit. Don’t be discouraged if you have bad credit. You can restore your credit and still achieve your financial goals.

The first step in repairing credit damage is requesting a copy of your credit report from the three major credit bureaus, Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion. Review your credit reports with a fine tooth comb and verify that the following information is accurate: name, address, phone number, SSN, date of birth, current and previous addresses, accounts, account numbers, open and closed dates, account status, debt amount and payment history.

Once you’ve reviewed your credit report, determine if you have past due accounts. If you have bad credit due to job loss, health problems, family problems, or a disability, report it to the creditor immediately. Call the creditor to set up a payment plan to pay off all debts owed. Determine the monthly amount you can pay, do not let the creditor determine the amount for you. If the creditor offers a settlement request, the credit indicates the account status as “paid” or “paid in full” rather than “settled” or “settled for less than full.” If your account is listed as “cleared”, this will lower your credit score, even though the account was paid.

If you are currently unable to pay your debts due to unemployment and financial problems, file for a financial hardship and request a reduced monthly payment and reduced interest rate for a period of one year. During this time, you will not be charged late fees and you will be able to carry on your credit until your financial situation improves.

If you find errors on your credit report, write a letter to the credit bureau reporting the error or request a dispute investigation online by visiting the credit bureau’s website. Provide any supporting documentation to prove your claim. The credit bureau will respond to your letter within 30 days from the date it was received. Keep copies of all correspondence sent and received in case you need to refer to it in the future. If you do not receive a response, send a letter to the credit bureau to verify that the updates were made. Request another copy of your credit report after 45 to 60 days have passed to verify that the updates were made.

If you dispute an error and the credit bureau or company that listed the error refuses to update the information on your credit report, you can write to the credit bureau to report the error and request that a statement of one hundred be added. words to your credit report for that account. . This helps increase your chances of approval in the future.

If you have an account that has a history of late payments, you can request that the company re-age the account once you have made consecutive payments on time for a period of 9 to 12 months. The past due (negative) history will be removed from your credit report, increasing your credit score.

Other ways to repair your credit damage are: keep your balances at 50% or below the credit limit, do not open more than 1 new account in a 6 month period, do not do business with “bad credit, no problem “For businesses, order your credit report every year, avoid foreclosures and bankruptcies, consolidate your debts with caution, consult a professional, don’t ignore overdue bills, and set up automatic bill pay to ensure bills are paid on time.

Protect your credit like you would your life, take good care of it. “Money can generate wealth or generate debt, you choose.”

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