10 Steps To Fix Bad Credit
Step 1
Get a copy of all 3of your credit reports from the main credit bureaus. If you find errors, send them to the bureau who is reporting them – in writing. Though some of the credit bureaus will contact your creditors for you, do it yourself as well.
Step 2
If you have damaging information – especially if it’s high unpaid balances or missed payments – take a proactive approach and get those paid and current.
Step 3
If paying off these debts or getting current is a bit too overwhelming for your situation, you may want to contact professionals who can help you consolidate this debt or negotiate lower payments. Credit Counselors and Debt Relief specialists are two of the people that can help you reduce payments, often by significant amounts.
Step 4
Be wary of those who offer you loans to deal with your existing debt. What these places can do is actually put you deeper into the hole. Always double check professional associations and other due diligence.
Step 5
Focus all of your income and efforts on paying off debt. Get rid of high interest credit cards so you are no longer tempted to use them. If you have other assets which are not essential to your lifestyle, sell them to create cash to pay down balances.
Step 6
Make sure you retain or establish stability in your day to day life . This can be reflected on your credit history in form of time at residence and establishing consistent payments over time.
Step 7
Once you are in a position to obtain credit, hopefully you’ve learned the lessons of relying on them too often. You want to have credit available to you but you also want to be responsible. Most people after they go through credit difficulties, never have debt problems related to high interest balances again.
Step 8
Pay your full balance off monthly on new credit card balances.
Step 9
If you still have trouble getting credit cards, the fastest way to re-establish credit may be with secured credit cards. These are secured by a bank balance or other asset. Many companies who extend these cards will remove the secured requirement after you’ve demonstrated your ability to repay – usually in 6 months or so.
Step 10
After you’ve taken the steps to repair your credit history, get another copy of all your reports to make sure that any repairs you’ve made and damaging info has been corrected. This can usually take time since bad information can stay on your record for a while but it’s worth it to stay on top of it. Especially if you’re planning any big purchases that require good credit history.
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