Fix Your Bad Credit With These Tips
Fix Your Bad Credit With These Tips
Fortunately for some people credit does not always remain in a fixed state. Credit can be built or lost depending on the actions that one takes. Reading this article will help those who are not sure what to do to repair their credit and provide valuable insight for one to follow.
You should repair your credit score because it increases your chances of getting a new job. Many employers use your credit score as a way to determine the trustworthiness of a new employee, or as a determining factor when picking between two choices for a promotion. This is especially true if you work in a government contracted company or in the financial industry.
Use a process of disputing and documenting your efforts in repairing your credit file. Erroneous reports can be the most difficult to remove from your history without following the proper steps. It is important to dispute a bad report, however, it is just as important to make a documented log on your contact and dispute efforts.
When attempting to access new credit, be aware of regulations involving denials. If you have a negative report on your file and a new creditor uses this information as a reason to deny your approval, they have an obligation to inform you that this was the deciding factor in the denial. This allows you to target your repair efforts.
To build up a good credit score, keep your oldest credit card active. Having a payment history that goes back a few years will definitely improve your score. Work with this institution to establish a good interest rate. Apply for new cards if you need to, but make sure you keep using your oldest card.
When you find errors on your credit report, dispute them to the reporting agency. About 75% of all credit reports contain some sort of error. It may be an item that should have dropped off your report. It may have been an account that was paid in full but is still showing as outstanding. Clear these items off to give your score a boost.
Keep using cards that you've had for a while for small amounts here and there to keep it active and on your credit report. The longer that you have had a card the better the effect it has on your FICO score. If you have cards with better rates or limits, keep the older ones open by using them for small incidental purchases.
Do not add on additional debt if you are working on repairing your credit. Opening a new account when you have missed payments and late accounts on file sends up a red flag to possible lenders. Fix the credit problems you have before opening up any new credit cards.
Fixing one's credit can be done provided the individual knows what they need to achieve first. After learning what can be done to maintain or repair credit an individual can have hope again. All they need to do after learning is follow through, and take the steps that are needed.