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Winning Your Disputes With Credit Bureaus
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Obtain A Free Credit Report
Under the laws of the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) each of the three major credit reporting companies are required to give consumers access to obtain free credit report once every 12 months. These reports include various information about you that the government has on file, including where you live, whether you've been sued, your credit score, how you pay your bills and several other things. ... Read credit counseling article
Bad Credit Home Loan To Get You Out Of Debt
A "bad credit home loan" can help you climb your way out of debt and get you started back on the road to upstanding, good credit. There are many lenders who are willing to make bad credit home loans to you - a loan based on your equity in your home even if your credit has slipped or isn't as perfect as it could be. By taking out a bad credit home mortgage or home equity loan, you can consolidate a... Read article
Winning Your Disputes With Credit Bureaus
You see the advertisements in newspapers, on TV, and on the Internet. You hear them on the radio. You get fliers in the mail. You may even get calls from telemarketers offering credit repair services.
They all make the same claims:
* "Credit problems? No problem!"
* "We can erase your bad credit - 100% guaranteed."
* "Create a new credit identity - legally."
* "We can remove bankruptcies, judgments, liens, and bad loans from your credit file forever!"
Do yourself a favor and save some money, too. Don't believe these promises. Only time, a conscious effort, and a personal debt repayment plan will improve your credit report.
The FCRA provides a list of rights and procedures that will assist you in clearing away negative remarks and reestablishing your creditworthiness - regardless of your previous credit history. By understanding your rights and using the law to your advantage, it's possible to remove bankruptcy, judgments, late payments, collection accounts, charge-offs, and other negative information from your files permanently.
The first step is to obtain copies of your credit reports from each of the major credit bureaus. You can find the address of your local credit bureau in the yellow pages under "Credit-Reporting Agencies." If you have been denied credit within the past 60 days, you can obtain a free copy of your report by enclosing a photocopy of the denial letter along with your request. Be sure to include your full name, date of birth, Social Security number, and addresses for the past five years. If you have not been denied credit within the last 60 days, you may purchase a copy of your report from each credit bureau. In California, for example, the cost for a copy of your report is $8 from each of the major bureaus. The cost may vary in other states.
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No one can legally remove accurate and timely negative information from a credit report. The law allows you to ask for an investigation of information in your file that you dispute as inaccurate or incomplete. There is no charge for this. Everything a credit repair clinic can do for you legally, you can do for yourself at little or no cost. According to the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA).
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You also have the right to visit the credit bureau in person to review your file. Simply call the bureau and make an appointment. You will then need to present the proper identification and pay the required fee. The law also allows you to be accompanied by one other person of your choosing.
If you request your credit report by mail, you should receive a copy within three weeks. You will also receive an explanation of the various codes and abbreviations the report contains. According to the FCRA, you have the right to dispute any remark on your report that you "reasonably believe" to be inaccurate or incomplete. The act requires the credit bureau to reinvestigate those disputed items within "a reasonable period of time" - interpreted by the Federal Trade Commission as 30 days. If the bureau finds that the information was incorrect, obsolete, or could no longer be verified, it must correct or delete the information.
If the bureau does not respond to your initial dispute within a "reasonable time," follow up with another letter. This time, demand that the bureau respond to your dispute immediately to prevent your being forced to take legal action. Give them about two weeks to comply and be sure to maintain copies of all correspondence.
If the bureau persists in violating your rights by refusing to reinvestigate your legitimate dispute, send them a final letter demanding action. This time, send copies of your letter, along with the original request, to the Federal Trade Commission and your local office of the attorney general.
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Consumer Credit Counseling - Start Early and Get Good Results
It is important to begin working with a consumer credit counseling service as soon as you realize that you will not be able to manage your debt or are unable to manage to pay even the minimum payments on your credit cards. Don't wait until you are being harassed by debt collectors every day.
Even thought it is important to get financial help as soon as possible, do be careful when choosing a consumer credit counseling service as not all are as they seem. Take a good look at the service you choose.
Most organizations will not charge you an up-front fee at all, but if they do charge a fee right off the bat it should not be more than around $10. Another thing to be wary of is the claim that they can settle your debt for little or not money - these are not legitimate credit counseling services.
You can also check out the organization by finding out if they are registered with either the National Foundation for Credit Counseling or the Association of Independent Consumer Credit Counseling Agency.
After you have chosen a legitimate agency to work with you must be sure to check the monthly statements carefully. One thing to look out for it that the payments you make to the credit counseling agency are transferred to your creditors on a timely basis, as late payments or missing payments can adversely affect your credit rating.
And don't worry too much that using a credit counseling service is ruining your credit rating. Although it will signal to your creditors that you are having trouble meeting your monthly obligations, you will be given credit for proactively working with them to manage your responsibilities, and this should outweigh any negative connotation.
It is also important to know how the credit counseling service is reporting your accounts. Some report you as a credit delinquent to your creditors, while others inform your creditors that you have simply opted to take up credit counseling.
Credit counseling works in most cases and can work well. However, if you are so far into debt that you are near to bankruptcy, this service may be of no use to you. Only you can make that determination. Also, this type of service will not work if you cannot learn to control your spending. Good luck!
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Winning Your Disputes With Credit Bureaus
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