Money Rant

By Maxwell Gould

 steps to credit repair,credit repair,bad credit,credit reports,get out of debt,dispute claims,credit report,credit bureaus,credit repair companies,buidling credit,credit building,credit building repair

In this article, we will discuss why this credit repair is so important and how you can benefit from understanding the steps to repair your credit.

Credit repair is not easy all the time but there are answers offered to help us get out of debt. We all have payments and sometimes those payments are outrageous. Paying bills is constant and there is no break so the best potential answer then is requesting for help and working to pay back your debts.

The changes in law are making it hard for consumers to repair their credit, yet some regulations to the law make it feasible to get all three of your credit reports for free. If you have a credit history of carelessness you want to get copies of your credit reports to ensure no false claims were made against you. If the creditors or bureaus file a false allegation on your credit report you might be entitled to sue the computers.

If there are false claims against you on your report the first phase is to file a dispute against the claims. This can postpone your payments and if you don’t owe the charge, it can free you from the debt once the bureaus find that you are not liable. It is imperative that you get in touch with the bureaus immediately if you become aware of any claims made against you that you deem are not your responsibility. Equifax, TransUnion, and Experian all have a dispute hot-line on hand.

Disputing is a move in the right direction for fixing your credit. Most information on your credit report is from credit card companies, utility providers, banks, judgments, and so on. Your information normally stays on your credit report no less than seven years. Positive results regularly reside on your credit report for about ten years. Tax liens regularly reside on your credit report for approximately 15 years and bankruptcies regularly reside on your credit report for ten years.

In the introduction, you learned a little about how credit repair can be beneficial to you. The article will continue explaining the need to dispute claims that are erroneous on your credit report.

If you have some debts on your credit report that don’t belong to you, it is smart to file a dispute as soon as you can. The bureaus will look into the accusations made against you and if they find it is wrong then they will take away the claims. If the information on your credit report has no resolution then the companies will regularly delete or alter the claims against you. This is why it is imperative to keep track of your credit report.

You can also look at your credit score from the credit reports and obtain facts on how your score is affected. If you see that there are claims against you that is your responsibility and can not appear to come across a solution, it is smart to get informed. If you think credit repair companies that say they can take away items from your credit report and reduce your monthly bills, then you are misled. Nearly all of the companies are regulated by the law. This means the government has cause to think that the companies may deceive their consumers. Thus, most of the companies that say they can get you out of debt in little or no time are regularly waiting to take money from your pocket, while putting you at danger of loosing your assets.

If you want help or assistance with your credit then it is smart to go to sources that present counseling at the National Foundation for Credit Counseling. The representatives are well trained in assisting consumers obtain a solution to take away debt. They will also help get the creditors off your back. It is imperative to know your rights if you are in debt and look for a solution to repair your credit.

Building credit that has been affected is hard in a lot of cases but never impossible. Millions around the world in the past has had some financial modification that affected them negatively. For that reason, you are not by yourself and there are many that are conscious of this fact. The Consumer Response Center is a wonderful source for discovering information about your rights. In some cases, some of us have additional rights than others. Victims of Identity Theft or Military Personnel that have been robbed of their identity have additional rights than people negligent of paying on time. Recognizing what is accessible to you is the first phase to repairing your credit and becoming back on track.

Having the steps for credit repair information handy will help you a great deal the next time you find yourself in need of credit repair.

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Credit Repair Made Easy for You

By Maxwell Gould

 In recent years, more people than ever before have found themselves deeply in debt with no remedy in sight. For many of those people, filing bankruptcy seems the only answer. In the majority of cases, however, this is not the case. With some careful planning, skilled help and patience, people can repair their credit.

The first step toward repairing credit is to find out exactly what is owed and to whom. Current copies of credit reports should be obtained from all the major credit bureaus. Free copies of these reports are available if credit has been denied recently, usually within thirty to sixty days. If any inaccurate information is shown on any of the reports, this information should be disputed. This action may be initiated by telephone but it is better to do this in writing for documentation. Credit bureaus must investigate disputes promptly, normally within thirty days. If this time passes and no correspondence or other communication is received, the credit bureau should be contacted again, both by telephone and in writing.

Often credit bureaus will update files and not notify the individual. If this has happened, request a copy of the updated report. Credit bureaus usually furnish free updated copies. Be persistent until the inaccurate information is removed. It may have a great bearing on future creditworthiness.

After incorrect information has been removed, repeat the process with each credit bureau that carries the inaccurate information. This is necessary since the credit bureaus operate independently and changing records with one will have no bearing on the files at another bureau.

Here are some of the most disputed credit report items:

—outdated information, usually over seven years old

—inaccurate personal information

—credit information that belongs to someone else (This is quite common.)

If a large number of credit inquiries appear in the file, request that the credit bureau merge multiple inquiries from the same source. This will help future credit ratings since an excessive number of inquiries is seen as derogatory.

Always keep credit information current by obtaining copies of credit records at least once yearly after resolving problems. This will also act as an alert to any credit fraud that may be occurring.

After obtaining a credit file and starting the dispute process, evaluate your financial situation. If you find that you are unable to make at least the minimum payment on outstanding accounts, immediately contact creditors. Many will appreciate your willingness to pay and will attempt to help set up plans for payment. Do not make promises which cannot be kept. A small payment is preferable to a large payment that never arrives. Sometimes this contact can be enough to reduce payments and forestall more severe measures. If not, a more serious step must be taken.

This next step is to consult a credit-counseling agency. These organizations are invaluable in solving financial problems. They are staffed with trained individuals experienced in the credit field. Do not confuse these agencies with the commercial “credit repair” companies who claim that, for a fee, they will wipe your credit slate clean. Don’t be fooled. There is no legal way to do this. Any procedures they might use are available to you free of charge.

A counselor at a credit counseling agency will take all the information concerning your financial situation, evaluate it and decide the best strategy to use in solving your problem. You will be asked to abide by certain rules while receiving services. These rules may include closing charge accounts and canceling credit cards or paying your bills through the agency. It is to your advantage to abide by the rules, as these agencies are perfectly safe. They are non-profit and will not ask you to pay for their services. Although the repayment period may be long, do not accept offers of credit while receiving services from these organizations since this will only delay the process and could possibly result in you being refused further services.

Here are some suggestions for maintaining good credit after the credit repair period is over:

—Live within your means. Do not return to the bad financial habits that resulted in credit problems the first time.

—Create a budget. Know where all your money is going. Small purchases can add up and make it difficult to meet important obligations. Keep records of all money spent for one month. This detailed record will show where spending cuts need to be made. It will also alert you to any spending problems.

—Plan for financial emergencies by depositing a fixed amount of income to a special “emergency” account. Do this as if paying another monthly bill. This money will insure that emergencies such as illness or loss of job do not catch you totally unprepared. Try to accumulate enough in the fund to pay bills for at least six months.

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Credit Cards knowing this can save you when selecting one

By Maxwell Gould

 When it comes to credit cards there are so many choices out there it can be really confusing when trying to determine which credit card is the best choice. We are all different with different likes and different habits and credit card companies know this, and have created card fee structures that differ according to peoples habits and circumstances. While a specific card might be perfect for one person, it might not be as desirable for another, and might even hurt that person financially because there habits or circumstances are such that they are incurring fee’s that they wouldn’t be incurring had they selected a different card. In consideration of the last sentence we really need to identify these habits and circumstances, and then take an honest evaluation of ourselves to see which habits or circumstances we practice or have. At this point we will be able to better identify the credit card that makes the most sense. In adition to this we will be able to see that different use strategies are appropriate for different habits and circumstances. While there are many habits to examine there are two primary habits that need to be examined first because they the have the most impact on how we should choose, after that we will examine other habits and circumstances.

An outline of habits and circumstances as they relate to credit card holders

Habit #1 Carrying a balance on your credit card.

This can be a good thing for building and maintaining high credit scores as long as the balance does not exceed 50% of the total available credit. If the balance is substantial than an important card feature for this person should be the annual percentage rate or APR. If this person exceeds 50% of there available credit they should either pay it down or get another card and spread the balance out as this can improve their credit. typically you should only use between 30% and 50% of your available credit. The following is a definition of APR. APR stands for annual percentage rate and is the interest that the issuing bank will charge you. Some banks will advertise an introductory APR. Introductory APR’s will generally last anywhere from 6 months to 15 months and then your APR will go to a higher APR. Another type of APR is called a variable rate. This type of APR generally fluctuates according to an index such as the prime rate or the 1-, 3- or 6-month treasury bill rate or the federal reserve discount rate or the federal funds rate. You can find these indexes listed online. An important note is not which index your issuing bank chooses but rather the formula they use to determine your rate. These formulas usually look something like this, index + margin = rate or index x multiple = rate or index + margin x multiple = rate. The margin and multiple can be any #. These formulas can make a huge difference in how much money you pay so be sure to read the fine print so that you can determine how your APR will look over the course of you holding the credit card. These are the two most common types of APR but there are others, So by reading the fine print you can be informed.

Habit # 2 Paying our balance in full every month.

If this is your habit then you want a card that has #1 A grace period that says in essence if you pay your balance in full every month that you will not incur a finance charge. #2 No annual fee. #3 Rewards of some type. After all there are a lot of card issuers competing for your business you might as well be getting rewarded for using their card, and being a good customer. This person should also be aware of a specific use strategy that is outlined in another article I wrote which can be found in the resource section under Credit Card Articles at my web site which is referenced in the author section following this article. The article is entitled “Credit cards the secrets on how they affect your credit” if this is your habit, seriously, read this, it could mean the difference between good credit and bad credit.

Habit/Circumstance # 3 Traveling

Many people travel often and and don’t have a rewards card that rewards them with free air travel. If this is you consider a program that offers compensation for things put on the card in the way of air travel, some of these programs can be generous and offer securities for the traveler. A friend of mine received enough air miles from his normal card usage to take his family of 5 on a vacation to Hawaii from california and he didn’t pay a dime on airfare. A few things to remember about these cards is #1 They often have an annual fee generally ranging from $25 to $75 but if you use your card enough and travel enough this is not a factor. #2 Some of them have a slightly higher annual percentage rate but they may also have a grace period so if you pay your balance in full every month than this is not a factor. #3 As in the case with applying with any credit card, please , read the fine print. I just got off the phone with a friend of mine that told me a story that I have heard so many times before, when he was young he got a credit card and didn’t read the fine print. Well as you can imagine he used his card in such a way that he incurred fees that he was not able to pay off in a timely manner. Credit cards need to be used properly, when this is done good credit results and thus a position of financial leverage can be attained, when they are used inappropriately bad credit results along with regrets and financially challenging circumstances.

Habit # 4 We shop at specific places over and over again.

If we get gas at the same gas station every week or we drink starbucks every day or we go to disneyland every month

or we buy books from boarders books every… and the list goes on. If this is us we should try and find a credit card that givesn us in the ball park of %1 to %10 percent back toward purchases at our store of interest, others will give1% to 5% cash back on our card for purchases at select stores. Right now the buzz is all about cards that give %1 to %10 back toward gas purchases. With the way gas prices have been rising this is not a bad idea. Some of these cards will also have other great features like no annual fee. and possibly a low introductory APR.

Habit #5 We are sometimes late on our bills.

Many of the credit card issuing banks will raise your APR sharply if you are late on even one payment.

Some times the due date for payment will not only have a day but also a time such as 1:00 pm. If your 1 minute late your rate is going up as if you had power over when the mail is delivered. If this is you be careful. Just a note, this can happen to anyone after all, unforeseen occurrences happen every day. If this does happen to you its not the end of the world. Usually issuing banks will not report to the credit bureau’s for thirty days after the due date so as long as you pay before then you will be OK. You may have a higher APR but your credit won’t be hurt and that’s the thing you really don’t want to happen. On this last point don’t take my word for it, find out from the issuing bank what their policy is regarding reporting and select a card accordingly. Trust me this is an important feature to know about

Circumstance #6 Challenged Credit or no credit or never had a credit card before.

If this is you consider a credit card for rebuilding credit such as a secured card. With this type of card you deposit money into an account and then you are given a card that is equal to your deposit, in this way you can not exceed your limit, and just about anyone can qualify for this type of credit card, as well as this you have an opportunity to build credit history, and if you use your card appropriately and pay on time, often times the issuing bank will turn this secured card into an unsecured card. This can be a very affective way to reestablish credit or attain a credit card for the first time.

Circumstance #7 we have an existing balance on a credit card

Maybe we have balance of $9,000 on a credit card, and we made one late payment on it, and the interest went through the roof however we still have good credit, and we are a good customer overall other than that one late payment. We might consider a balance transfer credit card. Things we want to look for are #1 if there is a fee for transferring a balance to the new card and how much #2 is the balance transfers’ APR fixed for the life of the balance or will it go up after 6 months to a year, even if it does go up after 6 months this might be a good strategy if we plan to pay it off before then or if we plan to transfer it again, and sometimes these APR’s that go up after 6 months to a year can be 0%. This could make sense even if our APR was low on our previous credit card because you just can’t beat 0%.

Circumstance #8 We have excellent credit

Then we should be able to find a credit card that has all the features we can reasonably expect at rates that are extremely competitive.

Circumstance #10 we are a student.

Students should consider student credit cards because if they have never had a credit card before they will have a better chance of attaining a student credit card as the issuers give students more leeway. Studies have found that students are often more responsible with credit cards than other youths and are more likely to pay what they owe.

Hopefully this article was helpful. I know that this article did not and could not address every concern facing us when considering how to choose a credit card but these are some of the most asked about topics when it comes to the subject. There are many cards out there that are hybrids and will encompass many habits and circumstances, So then we may not be isolated to one circumstance or habit. If you need more information regarding credit cards credit scores rebuilding credit ext.. Please visit my web sites resource center , You can find the web site address in the author box bellow.

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