Apr 21, 2008

Do-It-Yourself Credit Repair

Having bad credit in the US is a nightmare. There are do-it-yourself credit repair tips that can help to restore your credit rating to a level that you can be proud of. Our journeys through life sometimes lead us into difficult times. It is not very hard to get behind. Once that happens and your credit rating drops, it will take some time and effort to get it back up. Don’t let it get to you though, you can do it. Here are some do-it-yourself credit repair tips to help you along:

Tip #1: Know what you’re dealing with. If you want to restore your credit to a given level, you have to know where to start from. You are entitled to a free copy of your credit report once every year from each of the 3 major credit reporting agencies, but if you’re looking to do some credit repair, you should purchase them from each credit bureau separately.

Tip #2: Once you know what you are dealing with, you can begin your credit repair efforts. Do-it-yourself credit repair is all about having negative items removed or updated to a positive account. Even if the accounts are “really yours”, they must be removed if they are not verified within a reasonable amount of time – normally 30 to 45 days.

It’s important to go through your report and dispute negative items in the correct order. Your first letter should be disputing any contact information that is not current. In your second letter, you can start disputing the negative accounts. It’s not wise to dispute more than 5 accounts at the same time.

It’s up to the credit reporting agency to investigate the information at this point. They do so by contacting the originator of the negative complaint. If that individual or organization does not respond and verify the item in time, the law states that it is to be immediately stricken from your report. Additionally, there is a statute of limitations on almost all credit report items. They are automatically to fall off after a given time period. Check for them and inform the CRAs of any discrepancies.

Tip #3: You need to keep good records. You want to always be a thorn in the side of these reporting agencies. Clerical errors, human laziness, company mergers and bad record keeping are but a few of the reasons why your negative items may not be verified in a timely fashion. This is what you want to happen! Also, send in your dispute forms at the busiest times of the year like major holidays and the peak of tax season.

Tip #4: After you send in the dispute letters, go about your business and make sure that you are not creating any more negative issues concerning your credit. Make your payments on time – every time. After 30 days, the credit bureaus should have sent you another copy of your credit report. They don’t always do this. If not, you may need to call them or write them and request it. Go over it again and check to see if every dispute that you filed has either been removed or verified. The statistics say that around 40% will have disappeared. That’s great! Sometimes, it’s a lot higher.

Do-it-yourself credit repair is a simplistic endeavor. It only requires organization and a plan. With some attention to detail and patience, your do-it-yourself credit repair efforts will save you thousands of dollars as compared to hiring the services to be done for you. Your credit rating will be enhanced and your life will begin to flow smoother. When it comes to repairing your credit, do it yourself!

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Apr 18, 2008

How to Stop Collection Agencies

You can stop collection agencies from contacting you in a number of ways. There is a federal law called the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) and you can use what it states to cease any efforts of collection agencies to collect any monies from you. It’s true! Remember, this applies only to collection agencies – not creditors who may employ them. If you feel that you are being harassed, then you should definitely utilize any or all of the following methods:

Method 1: The prevention of delinquency.

Creditors will either turn over delinquent accounts to a collection agency or they will have an in-house collection department. Either way, they will not simply forget about the debt. The best way to avoid collection attempts is to not become delinquent in your payment responsibilities. A lot of misplaced anger results from people who would have no problems were they just to pay on time and protect their credit to begin with.

Method 2: Write a cease letter.

Federal law requires collection agencies to stop their attempts to collect a given debt if they receive a written cease letter. There are many online to use as samples. Basically, they simply state that you wish for their organization to stop any type of attempts to collect from you. You further state that you will deal only with the creditor that you owe the debt to.

Method 3: Attorney cease letters.

If your personally written cease letter fails to be effective in stopping a collection agency’s attempts to settle debts with you, a letter written from an attorney will normally do the trick. Federal law requires collection agencies to cease contact with any consumer when that consumer is known to be represented by an attorney.

Method 4: You can work out an agreement to pay with the collection agency.

You can certainly stop a collection agency from calling you by agreeing to pay. That’s what they’re really after anyway. Aggressive debt collectors are paid based on what they collect in a given time period. They become more zealous about their endeavors to collect when they believe that you are simply ignoring them. If you talk with them in a professional manner and come to terms for repayment, they will be much more polite. Remember, if you strike a deal with a debt collector; tell them you will not pay anything until you receive the deal in writing.

Method 5: Bankruptcy.

There is an automatic stay on collection attempts that goes into effect when you file for personal bankruptcy. In order for any debt collector to further attempt debt collection, he or she must obtain specific permission from a bankruptcy court. This is a rare occurrence. Also, bankruptcy courts will never grant this permission to anyone attempting to collect unsecured debts from you. As you know, bankruptcy is a most serious act. It should be reserved for use only in cases of severe financial turmoil.

You do not have to suffer the harassment of collection agencies anymore. You can stop collection agencies from contacting you and disturbing your quietude. Utilize the above methods to stop collection agencies today!

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