Credit Repair Agencies Only Do What You Could Do Yourself


by Paul Sarwanawadya - Date: 2007-02-04 - Word Count: 557 Share This!

For the many people who are not happy with their credit report, the claims of credit repair companies are tempting. The ads are in newspapers, on signs by the road, on the internet and elsewhere. "Legally fix all of your credit problems." "Erase bad credit-fast and guaranteed." This would be wonderful for all of the people with bad credit and it seems so easy. Just call up the advertised company and all of your credit problems are gone, quickly and legally.

If you are tempted by these claims, it is best to remember the saying, "If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is." Often times credit repair companies are scams. They want you to pay hundreds or thousands of dollars for their services, then they can't do anything to help your credit situation.

Many consumers fall for their ads without understanding that these companies can not deliver on their claims. The truth is, no one can legally remove accurate negative information from your credit report. How can the credit repair companies possibly claim that your credit will be fixed guaranteed? If there is incorrect information on your credit report, that can be fixed, but you do not need to pay a large fee for get this corrected. Many people have reported being scammed by credit repair companies and there is no way to know how many people have been scammed, but have not reported it.

The truth is, there is no easy, quick fix for bad credit. You can improve your credit score, but you have to do it the right way, which involves time and a conscious effort. You can save the hundreds or thousands of dollars that credit repair companies charge and help yourself. Anything a credit repair company can legally do for you, you can do it yourself for free or very low cost.

First, you need to know your legal rights. You have the right to obtain a free copy of your credit report from each of the reporting agencies every year.

You also have the right to request an investigation if you find information on your credit report that is inaccurate. You are entitled to dispute any mistakes or inaccurate information on your credit report for free. The reporting company and whoever provided them with the information on you are under a legal obligation to correct inaccurate information.

To dispute any information on your credit report, notify the credit reporting company in writing that you are disputing information, exactly what you are disputing, and copies of any paperwork you have to support your claims. State the facts involved and request that the information be removed or corrected. Be sure to mail your request via certified mail and request a return receipt so you know that the company received your letter.

The credit bureau must investigate the information, usually within 30 days. Then they must forward all the data you produced about the inaccuracy to the organization that provided the information. After the information provider receives notice of a dispute from the consumer reporting company, it must investigate, review the relevant information, and report the results back to the consumer reporting company. The credit reporting company must notify you of the results of the investigation in writing.

For the cost of certified mail with a return receipt, you can do exactly the same thing that credit repair companies.


Related Tags: self help, business, services, self credit repair, companies, do it yourself, credit repair agencies

Paul Sarwana offers practical credit repair alternatives to help you build confidence in improving your financial situation. He runs an informational website that provides tips on hiring credit repair services, dealing with creditors, increasing credit score, facing bankruptcy, and managing money. Please visit http://www.debtfirms.com/ to get more quality debt management information.

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