Archive for November, 2009
How To Fix A Negative Credit Report In 3 Simple Steps!
Helen Hecker asked:
If you want to get rid of negative credit you can easily take a few steps to completely turn it around and see a significant improvement in your credit score. Thousands of people face the same problems and assume it takes a credit professional or credit repair service to do it for them. These offline and online credit services don’t come cheap and often people spend their hard-earned money trying to fix negative or bad credit.
First of all you may not know what is actually on your credit report today. You may assume you have bad credit based on your payment history in the past or you haven’t had the courage to get a copy of your credit report even though it’s free. Many resist this because of the fear of what they think they may find. However you may be surprised. There may be entries on your credit report that are totally false and can be easily corrected or there may be entries you can easily change with a little documentation.
Really it’s not that difficult to get these corrections taken care of on your credit report. You can actually take care of it pretty fast and it won’t cost you a dime other than a first class stamp. In actuality you can do a better job than any credit repair clinic because you’re in the position to actually add some positive credit marks to your report if you know how to do it and I’ll explain below.
Okay these are the 3 simple steps to repair your credit history.
1. First get a copy of your free credit report if you don’t already have a CURRENT copy. Everyone is entitled to a free credit report every year according to federal government laws. You can get an absolutely free annual credit report online instantly at the approved Web site: type in ‘annualcreditreport’ and then a dot and then com. You’ll be able to print it out as soon as you provide identification.
You can also call 1-877-322-8228. When you call you’ll get an automated service. Know what phone number you’re going to use as that is a requirement in the process. However it will take about 15 days to get the report. You can also write but instant online or calling is easiest. This free service is sponsored by the three credit reporting agencies – Equifax, Experian and TransUnion.
Now you must know that you won’t get your credit rating or score when you get the report. There is an additional charge to get a score. However if you recently applied for credit and were turned down, call the lender and ask what your score is. You can usually find out that way for free.
Once you have your credit report in hand, sit down and note any negative items or anything that doesn’t seem right to you. You may find a few mistakes, sometimes even with your birth date or other personal information. These are easily corrected. There can be some totally false information such as credit information for someone else with the same name or similar name.
2. Write a dispute letter. It’s easy to write a dispute letter. If you’re not sure how to do this, sit down and pretend you’re writing a letter to a friend. It does not have to be fancy and it can be in your own handwriting if legible or typed out. Don’t make it too hard. Make a list of the bad credit marks or wrong information that you want to dispute. Make sure to keep it as short as possible and don’t add any fluff. Get the facts as you know them. If you have any documentation to include to ‘back you up’ then add this or include copies with your dispute letter.
When the credit bureau gets your letter they will do an investigation and will either verify the item in question and remove or fix it – or they will be unable to verify the negative credit information to remove it.
If they notify you that they are unable to verify any negative credit mark thus not removing it, then you can still dispute it by sending another letter asking how they arrived at their decision. This is called a ‘method of verification’ or sometimes ‘procedural request’. If the dispute is regarding a creditor the credit reporting bureau and the creditor must both provide you with adequate proof of their decision. Otherwise they are required by law to remove the negative credit mark from your credit history.
3. How to get positive credit marks on your credit report. This is simple to do over a period of a few months to start building a positive credit history. Get department store and/or gas credit cards and use them. Pay them off on time. Make note that these usually come with higher interest rates so compare rates first. Pay a little more than you owe and pay a little early. Paying online ensures that your payment arrives and is not lost in the mail.
Keep a bill calendar and write on it when payments are due and another notation on the calendar a few days before so that you make the payment online early. If you wait till the last minute, the Web site may be down for maintenance or their may be other network issues. But in any event make sure to make the payment before it’s due. Try to get an installment type of loan or automobile loan through your bank or credit union.
Be aware that if you try to buy a car or other vehicle that the car dealer will contact several lenders to get the best interest rate and EACH one of these will contribute a mark to your credit report. This can affect your credit score, also called FICO. So try to get a pre-approved loan before you head to an auto dealer. If you can do this over a few months you will build up a recent and good credit history fast. No credit repair service will be able to build up this positive history for you.
For additional help removing or erasing negative credit you can easily get a good credit repair guide that will help you read and dispute the report and will cost pennies as opposed to a credit repair service which can cost you significantly. And a service can’t do it as well as you can or add positive credit marks to your credit history. Sit down now if you already have the credit report right and do a quick letter before you start dwelling on it. You can do it! And YOU can do the best job. The faster you take action the sooner you’ll see a turnaround.
LOWELL
If you want to get rid of negative credit you can easily take a few steps to completely turn it around and see a significant improvement in your credit score. Thousands of people face the same problems and assume it takes a credit professional or credit repair service to do it for them. These offline and online credit services don’t come cheap and often people spend their hard-earned money trying to fix negative or bad credit.
First of all you may not know what is actually on your credit report today. You may assume you have bad credit based on your payment history in the past or you haven’t had the courage to get a copy of your credit report even though it’s free. Many resist this because of the fear of what they think they may find. However you may be surprised. There may be entries on your credit report that are totally false and can be easily corrected or there may be entries you can easily change with a little documentation.
Really it’s not that difficult to get these corrections taken care of on your credit report. You can actually take care of it pretty fast and it won’t cost you a dime other than a first class stamp. In actuality you can do a better job than any credit repair clinic because you’re in the position to actually add some positive credit marks to your report if you know how to do it and I’ll explain below.
Okay these are the 3 simple steps to repair your credit history.
1. First get a copy of your free credit report if you don’t already have a CURRENT copy. Everyone is entitled to a free credit report every year according to federal government laws. You can get an absolutely free annual credit report online instantly at the approved Web site: type in ‘annualcreditreport’ and then a dot and then com. You’ll be able to print it out as soon as you provide identification.
You can also call 1-877-322-8228. When you call you’ll get an automated service. Know what phone number you’re going to use as that is a requirement in the process. However it will take about 15 days to get the report. You can also write but instant online or calling is easiest. This free service is sponsored by the three credit reporting agencies – Equifax, Experian and TransUnion.
Now you must know that you won’t get your credit rating or score when you get the report. There is an additional charge to get a score. However if you recently applied for credit and were turned down, call the lender and ask what your score is. You can usually find out that way for free.
Once you have your credit report in hand, sit down and note any negative items or anything that doesn’t seem right to you. You may find a few mistakes, sometimes even with your birth date or other personal information. These are easily corrected. There can be some totally false information such as credit information for someone else with the same name or similar name.
2. Write a dispute letter. It’s easy to write a dispute letter. If you’re not sure how to do this, sit down and pretend you’re writing a letter to a friend. It does not have to be fancy and it can be in your own handwriting if legible or typed out. Don’t make it too hard. Make a list of the bad credit marks or wrong information that you want to dispute. Make sure to keep it as short as possible and don’t add any fluff. Get the facts as you know them. If you have any documentation to include to ‘back you up’ then add this or include copies with your dispute letter.
When the credit bureau gets your letter they will do an investigation and will either verify the item in question and remove or fix it – or they will be unable to verify the negative credit information to remove it.
If they notify you that they are unable to verify any negative credit mark thus not removing it, then you can still dispute it by sending another letter asking how they arrived at their decision. This is called a ‘method of verification’ or sometimes ‘procedural request’. If the dispute is regarding a creditor the credit reporting bureau and the creditor must both provide you with adequate proof of their decision. Otherwise they are required by law to remove the negative credit mark from your credit history.
3. How to get positive credit marks on your credit report. This is simple to do over a period of a few months to start building a positive credit history. Get department store and/or gas credit cards and use them. Pay them off on time. Make note that these usually come with higher interest rates so compare rates first. Pay a little more than you owe and pay a little early. Paying online ensures that your payment arrives and is not lost in the mail.
Keep a bill calendar and write on it when payments are due and another notation on the calendar a few days before so that you make the payment online early. If you wait till the last minute, the Web site may be down for maintenance or their may be other network issues. But in any event make sure to make the payment before it’s due. Try to get an installment type of loan or automobile loan through your bank or credit union.
Be aware that if you try to buy a car or other vehicle that the car dealer will contact several lenders to get the best interest rate and EACH one of these will contribute a mark to your credit report. This can affect your credit score, also called FICO. So try to get a pre-approved loan before you head to an auto dealer. If you can do this over a few months you will build up a recent and good credit history fast. No credit repair service will be able to build up this positive history for you.
For additional help removing or erasing negative credit you can easily get a good credit repair guide that will help you read and dispute the report and will cost pennies as opposed to a credit repair service which can cost you significantly. And a service can’t do it as well as you can or add positive credit marks to your credit history. Sit down now if you already have the credit report right and do a quick letter before you start dwelling on it. You can do it! And YOU can do the best job. The faster you take action the sooner you’ll see a turnaround.
LOWELL
Where to Get Your Free Annual Credit Report
Tisha Kulak asked:
All consumers are entitled to a free credit report every 12 months. Some states, including Colorado, Georgia, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, and Vermont have state laws that make residents eligible for a free credit report under state law. Additionally, all consumers who have been denied credit have a right to request a copy of their credit report for further review. Credit reports can also be requested with a credit score rating at any time for a fee from the 2 major credit reporting agencies, Equifax and TranUnion. Recently, the third agency, Experian, has stopped providing consumers with access to their reports.
When To Get A Free Report
Consumers are entitled to receive one free credit report for each agency every year. It might be wise to order one, work to improve your credit and then order the subsequent reports a few months later to see what has changed. You can also order all reports at the same time to compare, since neither report will show the exact same information.
How To Get A Free Report
There are many places, including directly from the credit reporting agencies, where you can order your credit report but the central location where you can request your free report is through the website Annual Credit Report. There you can request your report via email, regular mail, or by phone.
Why Get A Free Report?
It is widely suggested that you take advantage of the free credit report each year, if only for monitoring purposes. Reviewing your credit report often will help alert you to incidents of credit fraud and potentially false information that can dramatically reduce your credit rating. Any errors should be reported immediately to the credit reporting agency from where the report was published. If you are denied credit for any reason, you should request a copy of your report to review and see what you can do to improve the score before completing other applications for credit.
Keep in mind that your credit report will not contain a credit score. That type of report can be obtained for a fee by contacting the respective credit reporting agencies. Your credit score, created by Fair Issac complies your credit history information into a mathematical equation which lenders use to assess your creditworthiness.
Fixing Your Credit Report
When you do get and review your credit report and find that it may not be as good as it could or should be, know that you can make the improvements to your credit yourself. You can start by making sure your payments are on time each month and you control your spending on credit. Beware of the companies that claim they can repair your credit for you. Many times these companies are scams or in the very least, they charge you for services you can do on your own for free.
Visit Annual Credit Report website today and request your free credit report today to make sure you know where you stand financially. If you plan to make big purchase in the next few months, such as a house, car, or apply for a personal loan, it is in your best interest to work on improving your credit report before applying in order to get the best rates and have the most options available to you.
LES
All consumers are entitled to a free credit report every 12 months. Some states, including Colorado, Georgia, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, and Vermont have state laws that make residents eligible for a free credit report under state law. Additionally, all consumers who have been denied credit have a right to request a copy of their credit report for further review. Credit reports can also be requested with a credit score rating at any time for a fee from the 2 major credit reporting agencies, Equifax and TranUnion. Recently, the third agency, Experian, has stopped providing consumers with access to their reports.
When To Get A Free Report
Consumers are entitled to receive one free credit report for each agency every year. It might be wise to order one, work to improve your credit and then order the subsequent reports a few months later to see what has changed. You can also order all reports at the same time to compare, since neither report will show the exact same information.
How To Get A Free Report
There are many places, including directly from the credit reporting agencies, where you can order your credit report but the central location where you can request your free report is through the website Annual Credit Report. There you can request your report via email, regular mail, or by phone.
Why Get A Free Report?
It is widely suggested that you take advantage of the free credit report each year, if only for monitoring purposes. Reviewing your credit report often will help alert you to incidents of credit fraud and potentially false information that can dramatically reduce your credit rating. Any errors should be reported immediately to the credit reporting agency from where the report was published. If you are denied credit for any reason, you should request a copy of your report to review and see what you can do to improve the score before completing other applications for credit.
Keep in mind that your credit report will not contain a credit score. That type of report can be obtained for a fee by contacting the respective credit reporting agencies. Your credit score, created by Fair Issac complies your credit history information into a mathematical equation which lenders use to assess your creditworthiness.
Fixing Your Credit Report
When you do get and review your credit report and find that it may not be as good as it could or should be, know that you can make the improvements to your credit yourself. You can start by making sure your payments are on time each month and you control your spending on credit. Beware of the companies that claim they can repair your credit for you. Many times these companies are scams or in the very least, they charge you for services you can do on your own for free.
Visit Annual Credit Report website today and request your free credit report today to make sure you know where you stand financially. If you plan to make big purchase in the next few months, such as a house, car, or apply for a personal loan, it is in your best interest to work on improving your credit report before applying in order to get the best rates and have the most options available to you.
LES
What to do if landlord is up to fraudulent behavior using the personal information of others?
Posted by admin in Renting & Real Estate on November 7, 2009
lighthouse41 asked:
I recently applied for an apartment for rent by private owner. I provided my personal information when filling out the rental application. I now feel the woman never had plans to rent the place, and is using an “apartment for rent” as a front to obtain the personal information of others to commit fraud.
I recently applied for an apartment for rent by private owner. I provided my personal information when filling out the rental application. I now feel the woman never had plans to rent the place, and is using an “apartment for rent” as a front to obtain the personal information of others to commit fraud.
It turns out, my co-worker happens to know this woman personally, and says she recently filed bankruptcy, does not own the property, and was renting it from a relative.
What should I do? If the above is true, she’ll deny we met. This woman has my social security number, personal information, and more. Is there any way to tell when someone pulls your credit to apply for an apartment? I don’t think those type of credit inquiries appear on credit reports.
What should I do to prevent fraudulent behavior? There are Michigan laws protecting landlords, what about those for tenants?
MAYNARD
Ways To Resolve A Credit Report Dispute
Sandra Stammberger asked:
Under the Fair Credit Reporting Act the reporting company and the information provider are responsible for correcting any credit report disputes. However, they must first be made aware that you have credit report disputes. A person can report and correct errors in their credit report by following two easy steps.
Step one is to report your error to the consumer reporting company in writing and make them aware that you have a credit report dispute. Make sure you include all your personal information like your name, address, and a list of each credit report dispute that have. Remember to send your letter by certified mail to prove that you have initiated a credit report dispute. The consumer reporting company will then investigate your credit report disputes and respond in 30 days. If they find there is an error and the credit report dispute can be resolved by correcting it then they will forward the information to the other credit bureaus and your credit report will be revised.
After reviewing your credit report dispute the consumer reporting company may decide that they disagree with the items raised in your credit report dispute and decline to pursue the matter any further. They will send you all of the evidence that they have and the reasons for not pursuing your credit report dispute, along with a copy of your credit report.
Another way to handle a credit report dispute is to contact the particular creditor directly. Again, send the creditor a list of your credit report disputes in writing. Be sure to call your creditor and ask for the specific address of where credit report dispute issues need to be sent to ensure that there is no unnecessary delay in the credit report dispute being investigated. Many companies have a separate address for handling credit report disputes and it can take time for it to be forwarded to the correct address if you do not send it there initially. If you are correct in your credit report dispute and there is an error they will report the error to the credit bureaus and send you notification of the change.
Below is a sample credit report dispute letter :
Date
Your Name
Your Address, City, State, Zip Code
Complaint Department
Name of Company
Address
City, State, Zip Code
Dear Sir or Madam:
I am writing to dispute the following information in my file. I have circled the items I dispute on the attached copy of the report I received.
This item (identify item(s) disputed by name of source, such as creditors or tax court, and identify type of item, such as credit account, judgment, etc.) is (inaccurate or incomplete) because (describe what is inaccurate or incomplete and why). I am requesting that the item be removed (or request another specific change) to correct the information.
Enclosed are copies of (use this sentence if applicable and describe any enclosed documentation, such as payment records, court documents) supporting my position. Please reinvestigate this (these) matter(s) and (delete or correct) the disputed item(s) as soon as possible.
Sincerely,
Your name
Enclosures: (List what you are enclosing.)
MERVIN
Under the Fair Credit Reporting Act the reporting company and the information provider are responsible for correcting any credit report disputes. However, they must first be made aware that you have credit report disputes. A person can report and correct errors in their credit report by following two easy steps.
Step one is to report your error to the consumer reporting company in writing and make them aware that you have a credit report dispute. Make sure you include all your personal information like your name, address, and a list of each credit report dispute that have. Remember to send your letter by certified mail to prove that you have initiated a credit report dispute. The consumer reporting company will then investigate your credit report disputes and respond in 30 days. If they find there is an error and the credit report dispute can be resolved by correcting it then they will forward the information to the other credit bureaus and your credit report will be revised.
After reviewing your credit report dispute the consumer reporting company may decide that they disagree with the items raised in your credit report dispute and decline to pursue the matter any further. They will send you all of the evidence that they have and the reasons for not pursuing your credit report dispute, along with a copy of your credit report.
Another way to handle a credit report dispute is to contact the particular creditor directly. Again, send the creditor a list of your credit report disputes in writing. Be sure to call your creditor and ask for the specific address of where credit report dispute issues need to be sent to ensure that there is no unnecessary delay in the credit report dispute being investigated. Many companies have a separate address for handling credit report disputes and it can take time for it to be forwarded to the correct address if you do not send it there initially. If you are correct in your credit report dispute and there is an error they will report the error to the credit bureaus and send you notification of the change.
Below is a sample credit report dispute letter :
Date
Your Name
Your Address, City, State, Zip Code
Complaint Department
Name of Company
Address
City, State, Zip Code
Dear Sir or Madam:
I am writing to dispute the following information in my file. I have circled the items I dispute on the attached copy of the report I received.
This item (identify item(s) disputed by name of source, such as creditors or tax court, and identify type of item, such as credit account, judgment, etc.) is (inaccurate or incomplete) because (describe what is inaccurate or incomplete and why). I am requesting that the item be removed (or request another specific change) to correct the information.
Enclosed are copies of (use this sentence if applicable and describe any enclosed documentation, such as payment records, court documents) supporting my position. Please reinvestigate this (these) matter(s) and (delete or correct) the disputed item(s) as soon as possible.
Sincerely,
Your name
Enclosures: (List what you are enclosing.)
MERVIN
How do I take care of this identity theft problem on my credit report?
livi asked:
Somebody got a hold of all my personal info. and applied for American Express on line and was approved for $3000, I found out about it when the collection agency contacted me. It’s been on my record for more than a year now and I dont know how to take care of it, now its up to $4150. I notified American Express of this fraud and asked them to investigate it, but all I got from them was an offer to settle the account for less, and also had a lawyer contact me. I filed a police report. I informed the lawyer of the fraud but he didn’t get back to me yet. Shoud I sue American Express for being negligent upon aproving credit in my name or send the police report to one of the national credit agency and see if they will take it off my record?
COREY
Somebody got a hold of all my personal info. and applied for American Express on line and was approved for $3000, I found out about it when the collection agency contacted me. It’s been on my record for more than a year now and I dont know how to take care of it, now its up to $4150. I notified American Express of this fraud and asked them to investigate it, but all I got from them was an offer to settle the account for less, and also had a lawyer contact me. I filed a police report. I informed the lawyer of the fraud but he didn’t get back to me yet. Shoud I sue American Express for being negligent upon aproving credit in my name or send the police report to one of the national credit agency and see if they will take it off my record?
COREY