There are plenty of credit repair companies out there, promising to remove all negative items from your credit report. Many of them do a fantastic job and can help your credit immensely. What they won’t tell you is that you don’t have to spend hundreds of dollars fixing your credit. You can do it yourself with just a little work and time.
The first step is getting a copy of your credit report from all three credit bureaus, Equifax, Trans Union, and Experian. You can find them in the yellow pages or search for their contact information online. Contact each of the bureaus and request they send you a copy of your report. You will likely have to pay a small fee for each of them, but since you can’t fix your credit without them it’s a necessary expense.
When you get the report look on the back, this is where they will explain all the codes that you will find in the report. Make sure you understand all of these codes so that you know which items are having the most negative impact on your credit and need to be worked on first. The biggest ticket item is charge-offs. Charge-offs mean the creditor has stopped trying to collect the debt and written it off as a loss. Contacts charged off creditors and ask for a re-instatement, explaining the situation. If they refuse then ask for a settlement amount, a settled account will look better than a charge-off.
Late payments are usually the easiest to clear up. Just contact the creditor and make them a deal. Ask that if you make a certain number of payments on time, they will remove the late payments from your credit report. Most companies will accommodate this request. Judgments need to be removed but are usually harder since you will have to pay off these loans in full. Contact the lender for a payment arrangement and an agreement in writing to remove the judgment once you’ve paid off the amount.
These steps will greatly improve your credit and are easy to do yourself. If you see any items on your credit report that don’t belong to you contact the credit bureau and they can advise you on the dispute process.