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Repairing Your Credit Score and Clearing Derogatory Marks on
Your Credit Report
Raising your credit score can be a fairly simple and
straightforward process unless you have derogatory marks that
need to be disputed (which will be explained below).
The reasons for bad credit can be as follows, high balances,
bankruptcies, late payments, and many others. The most
significant thing you can do to raise your score is to change
your financial habits. Chances are that if you have a bad credit
score, you did something to make it that way. Here are some of
the best ways to quickly raise your credit score:
1. The most obvious: pay off your debt! This doesn't include a
home mortgage, but revolving balances such as credit card debt, a
car loan, etc.
2. Make every payment on time. This is the most important
factor in your credit score rating. If you have had late payments
in the past, it will take some time to see real results from your
on-time payments, but keep it up, sooner or later the credit
bureau will notice the change in your payment habits. Develop the
mentality that no late payment is acceptable!
3. If possible, pay over your minimum amount. This is
especially important with credit card balances, and will reflect
a slight boost in your score.
4. If you have paid off all your debt, and your credit score
seems to be at a stand still, you might want to make small
purchases each month with your credit card and pay them off
immediately. Often times the credit bureaus like to see at least
some kind of activity. Otherwise, they have no way to gauge how
you are doing financially.
5. Be patient! Sometimes repairing credit can be a long and
arduous process. Especially if you have had a bankruptcy. It can
often take the better part of a year or more to see any
significant raises in your score.
Clearing a derogatory mark on your credit report:
This is probably the most difficult in regards to credit
repair. If you have requested a copy of your credit report, and
notice a problem (an example would be a late payment mark), that
shouldn't be there, you need to take action to get the derogatory
mark cleared as soon as possible. It is extremely important to
get your credit score cleared before you attempt to get
prequalified for mortgage.
Here are the steps you should take:
First of all, if you are in contact with a loan officer, you
may want to describe the problem you are having to them. They can
be very helpful when it comes to credit repair, and should know
exactly what to do if you have a bad mark on your credit that is
a mistake. In some cases, they may even call the creditor for you
to address the situation.
Second, you should call your creditor and each credit bureau
to find out which course of action you should take. In most
cases, writing a letter will do. Here is an example letter:
Date 00/00/00
Dear Big Credit Bureau,
This letter is a complaint that you are reporting inaccurate
and/or incomplete credit information on my credit report. I am
displeased that you have included the below information in my
credit profile that includes the following errors. Credit
reporting laws ensure that bureaus report 100% accurate credit
information.
The following information concerning my credit report needs to
be re-investigated. I respectfully request to be provided proof
of this alleged item on my credit report. If this cannot be
provided, the item must be deleted from my report as soon as
possible:
CREDITOR AGENCY, acct. 123-34567-ABC
The listed item is inaccurate and/or incomplete, and is a
serious error in reporting. Please delete this information, and
supply a corrected credit profile to all creditors who have
received a copy within the last 6 months, or the last 2 years for
employment purposes. Also, please provide the name, address, and
telephone number of each credit grantor or other subscriber.
Under federal law, you have 30 days to complete your re-
investigation. Be advised that the description of the procedure
used to determine the accuracy and completeness of the
information is hereby requested as well, to be provided within 15
days of the completion of your re-investigation.
Sincerely,
your signature
Your Name
SSN# 123-45-6789
Unfortunately, you will need to write 3 separate letters to
each of the 3 major credit bureaus. Here are the contact
addresses for each:
Trans Union
P.O. Box 1000
Chester, PA 19022
1-800-888-4213
Equifax
P.O. Box 740241
Atlanta, GA 30374-0241
1-800-997-2493
Experian
P.O. Box 2104
Allen, TX 75013-2104
1-888-397-3742
Justin is the President of the Christian Real Estate Network -
http://www.HisMove.com
MORE RESOURCES:
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