Chane's Blog

Lexington Law Firm

Chane Steiner (AAA Credit Guide) — Sat, 04 Oct 2008 20:17:09 -0500

Lexington Law Firm is the largest and oldest credit repair company in the nation. It has been in business for over 17 years and continues to enjoy an exceptional reputation for having helped over a half million clients in their efforts to repair their credit reports. Lexington Law works with clients to improve their credit reports legally and affordably. It's simple: improving credit reports improve qualities of life.

Lexington Law Firm is the trusted leader in the credit report repair business for one reason: they ensure the process is easy and effective for each of their clients. Lexington Law is a real law firm. It's responsible for the employment of over 400 attorneys, paralegals and agents - each of whom works to ensure the highest standard of service for its clients. Leveraging your consumer rights to engage the credit bureaus is what they do best. They work on your behalf to assist you with removing questionable and negative items from your credit reports.

Currently on their website, Lexington Law is offering a free book, co-authored with its lead attorney, John Heath. The book is titled "Credit Revolution - Path of the Smart Consumer". All you have to do is fill out the convenient form. The book is usually mailed within seven days. They can also contact you for a free consultation to discuss your current situation.

Lexington Law Firm's reputation represents that of professionalism and courtesy. In addition to the outstanding services its staff provides, they also provide top-notch client support that is second to none. Take a moment to read the testimonials online and you will begin to see how impressed and truly happy their clients are with the services received.

How Do You Repair Bad Credit?

Chane Steiner (AAA Credit Guide) — Wed, 10 Sep 2008 19:57:58 -0500

Repairing bad credit can seem like a slow and time consuming process. Try to be patient and remember that it didn’t get bad overnight. Understanding the credit system and how your credit reports are perceived through the eyes of creditors is crucial to repairing bad credit. Unfortunately, there are millions of Americans who learn how the credit system works too late. They end up paying the price for this lack of knowledge, believe me.

Usually when a consumer asks the question “how do you repair bad credit?” it’s too late. It’s usually once their family has been denied for that perfect house they picked out and wanted to buy. They make enough money and they’re good people. They deserve a shot at credit, but their credit scores are too low. Sometimes it’s on the way back from a car dealership or at a bank after applying for a car loan and finding out that their application has been denied. Either way, it can really be a heart breaker and it can stop you from living the life you want to live.

The good news is that no matter how bad your situation is, there are many ways to repair your credit. The best way to do that by contacting the 3 major credit bureaus – Equifax, Experian and TransUnion and requesting a copy of your credit reports from. You should also get a copy of your FICO scores so you can measure progress.

Once you have your credit reports, you’ll want to make sure all the information is accurate. About 79% of all credit reports have errors on them. These errors can mean the difference of hundreds of thousands of dollars in interest. This is serious stuff.

Look for any negative accounts on your credit report that could be inaccurate. If you are not 100% sure they are accurate - highlight them. If you are unsure of whether an account is inaccurate or not, or if there is any question in your mind that it doesn’t belong there, request an investigation. Include these items in a dispute letter to the credit bureau that is reporting them.

Give the credit bureaus time to conduct their investigation. According to the FTC, 30 days is sufficient time. Once you receive the results of the investigation, check to see which negative items have been removed. If items have been verified, you can send them a procedural request to request the exact methods they used to verify the information. You will want to keep using this process until you have achieved the desired results.

This is just one method of credit repair. There are many more. Learning how to repair bad credit is a must for anyone who suffers from a bad credit rating. Your credit rating is essential to your financial well-being and you should always be willing to fight for it.

To learn about other methods of repairing bad credit and how to repair bad credit visit AAACreditGuide.com the trusted authority on credit report repair.

What is a Credit Report Dispute?

Chane Steiner (AAA Credit Guide) — Wed, 27 Aug 2008 18:26:13 -0500

More people are disputing items on their credit reports then ever before, yet some people still don’t even know that a credit report dispute is even possible. It’s strange that one of the best ways to improve your credit scores is still a secret to so many people. With so many consumers having bad credit nowadays, you would think that these credit dispute methods would be all over the media – but they’re not.

As a consumer advocate and credit repair specialist, I am passionate about teaching people that there are ways to dispute what your creditors and debt collectors are saying about you. Your credit report contains information about all of the places you have lived and how you pay your bills. It even contains information about whether you’ve been sued, arrested, or filed for bankruptcy. The credit bureaus keep this information about you all your life and then they sell it for a profit. You don’t get a dime of that profit.

Over 79% of all credit reports have false information being reported on them. This information affects your livelihood in many different ways and you don’t have to sit back and let them report bogus information about you. In fact, if you request an investigation with a credit bureau, they must investigate the information with the provider and prove to you that the information belongs on your credit report. They have 30 days to provide you with this proof. If they can’t provide the information is must be removed from your credit report immediately.

When making a credit report dispute, remember that the consumer reporting agency (credit bureau) and the information provider are the ones responsible for correcting inaccurate and incomplete information on your report. When making the dispute, tell the credit bureau, in writing, what information you think is inaccurate. You may even want to enclose a copy of your report with the items in question circled so that it’s clear to them which items you are disputing. You don’t have to provide them with a reason for your credit report dispute unless you want to. It’s usually better not to. The less you say the better. The burden of proof is on them.

The credit bureaus must investigate the items in question within 30 days. They also must forward all relevant data that you wish to provide about the inaccuracy to the organization that provided the information. Once the information provider receives the credit report dispute from the credit bureau, it must investigate and report the results back to the credit bureau. If the information provider finds the disputed information to be inaccurate, it must notify all three nationwide credit bureaus so they can correct the information in your file.

Credit Repair: Improve Your Credit Rating Quickly!

Chane Steiner (AAA Credit Guide) — Tue, 24 Jun 2008 18:05:51 -0500

In America, you can't even walk down the street without somebody wanting to check your credit. If you suffer from bad credit, then you need to learn techniques to improve your credit rating - and you need to learn them now! The very happiness of your life can depend on it. Let's take a look at some of the most effective ways to do it:

Tip 1: You absolutely have to stay on top of the information game. It is your right to obtain a free credit report once every year from each of three major credit bureaus: TransUnion, Experian and Equifax. If you are really smart about it, you will get one every four months from each one by alternating. Go over these reports very carefully and look for the following:

• Any negative item. You see, every negative item on your credit report can be disputed by you. If the agency cannot verify the negative claim within 30 to 45 days - even if it's true - it must be stricken from your report!

• Outdated negative items. All negative items on your credit report have a statute of limitations. After a given time period, they are supposed to drop off automatically. So, if you notice something that is 10 years old, you probably want to request that it be removed.

• Items that have been paid in full and do not state so.

• Any other item that catches your attention!

Tip 2: Start paying your bills on time. Regardless of your past credit history, it is never too late to start improving your credit rating. Pay on time every time and you will see positive changes begin to occur.

Tip 3: You have to keep your credit cards paid down or paid completely off to improve your credit rating. Max them at 30% of the actual maximum and then pay them in full every month. This is the second most important scoring variable (after making timely payments) that contributes to your credit score.

Tip 4: Break open your wallet and dig out some of those old credit cards. Use them and pay them promptly and in full. Long-standing credit accounts rate you higher than brand new ones. Keep that positive payment information flowing into the major credit reporting agencies to help to improve your credit rating.

There are many more tips and tricks that you can utilize to improve your credit rating quickly. These are the most powerful though. Use these and be diligent. You will begin to see dramatic improvements in your credit rating. Just stick to the plan and keep repeating it. It is very possible to improve your credit rating with a little effort and patience. Soon, you'll be back at the top!

Credit Repair After Bankruptcy

Chane Steiner (AAA Credit Guide) — Sun, 22 Jun 2008 23:35:14 -0500

If you have fallen on some hard financial times, you may be looking into repairing your credit. Sometimes unfortunate circumstances follow that old cliché that "trouble comes in threes" and all three cause you to go under financially. Maybe you were laid off from your job, injured, or got involved in a business that went sour. If you have to declare bankruptcy, it can show up on your credit report for up to 10 years. However, it will bring your outstanding debt balances back to zero, and this may actually help your credit report.

Now that you are recovering financially, you want to know the best strategies for credit repair after bankruptcy. At this point, you need to move forward with new knowledge and new financial habits in order to improve your credit score.

One of the new habits you need to implement for a successful plan for repairing your credit after bankruptcy is to check your credit report every year. You want to make sure that there are no errors or charges on your report that are negatively affecting your score. If you find such problems, you need to follow the procedures to dispute them and get them cleared up. You also want to check to make sure that the good financial moves you are making, like paying your bills on time, are being reported and are reflected in your score.

To recover from a devastating bankruptcy, you need to get in the habit of paying all your bills on time. Whether you pay your bills on time or not is one of the biggest factors that the credit reporting companies take into account when they calculate your score. Use post-it notes, calendars, alarms on your cell phone, whatever it takes to remind yourself of when your bills are due and get the payment sent off at least 3 days before it is due to make sure it arrives on time. This will be a slow process, but if you can stay focused and get really good at making your payments on time, your credit report will reflect your good behavior and your score will start to increase.

To avoid financial disasters in the future, set aside an emergency fund for yourself. Experts recommend having a least 3 months of income set aside so that if you are injured or laid off you will have a cash cushion while you get back on your feet. It will also help you deal with those unexpected expenses like cars breaking down or home appliances failing. If you can successfully create these new, healthy financial habits, you will enjoy financial peace.

Collection Agencies: What Are They and How Do They Work?

Chane Steiner (AAA Credit Guide) — Sun, 15 Jun 2008 23:01:30 -0500

Small businesses and other organizations used third party collection agencies to collect money that is owed to them. The time, energy and human resources necessary to collect overdue account balances distract their workforces from concentrating on core business responsibilities. Of course, collection agencies do not work for free; they charge a percentage of the monies that they successfully collect (normally between 20 and 35 percent). For the businesses that utilize their services, it is believed that paying the collection agency to retrieve overdue funds and paying them a percentage is better than collecting nothing at all.

Debt collectors that are employed by these collection agencies have notoriously bad reputations for being overly aggressive and/or disrespectful to the debtors that they attempt to collect from. As a debtor, you are entitled to fair treatment as outlined in the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA). Debt collectors are regulated as to the methods that they may employ to attempt to collect from a given debtor. Here is a partial list of those regulations:

A debt collector may not:

• call you before 8 am;

• call you after 9 pm;

• call you at your place of employment;

• engage in abusive or deceptive strategies to collect a debt;

• engage in repetitive phone harassment;

• misrepresent their identities;

• falsify credit information about debtors;

• send false documentation to you that appears to be from a court;

• imply that you are guilty of a crime and stand to be arrested;

• collect any amount past what is actually owed;

• claim that legal action is to be taken concerning the debt when it fact it is not;

• fail to inform you that legal action is being taken against you.

If you write a letter to the collection agency that is contacting you stating that you wish for them to cease, they are required to do so. This does not alleviate you from the debt; it simply means that the collection agency must desist from their collection attempts. Likewise, you are fully entitled to dispute any debt that you are being perused for.

If you are going to engage in conversations with representatives from collection agencies, there are some guidelines to keep in mind. Here they are:

• Remember that you are fully entitled to be treated fairly and with dignified respect. Just because you owe a debt doesn't give a debt collector the right to be demeaning to you. Do not hesitate to assert this fact to them.

• Do not offer information that’s not directly relevant to the debt being discussed. Stick to the facts and do not allow yourself to be disarmed by the collection agency representative.

• Remember that a debt collector works for a percentage. They are trying to get you to cough up as much money as possible with no regards to your other responsibilities. They have the power to negotiate or they wouldn't even be calling you. Ask yourself what would truly be a comfortable periodic payment amount, and then offer the half of that.

• Do not discuss your employment, family, banking information or any other aspect of your life besides the debt in question.

• If you strike a "deal" with a debt collector, let them know that you will not honor it until you receive it writing.

Dealing with collection agencies is unpleasant by nature. However, if you find yourself in the position that you must, there are ways to make it a beneficial situation. Always arm yourself with knowledge and forethought before engaging in deliberations with a debt collection agency.

Learn more about dealing with collection agencies and how you can get them removed from your credit report at the credit repair authority site.

Charge Offs: Understanding How Charge Offs Affect Your Credit

Chane Steiner (AAA Credit Guide) — Thu, 12 Jun 2008 19:07:32 -0500

You see the words "charge off" a lot these days. The society is heavily credit dependent and millions of people find themselves in difficult situations concerning their debt. In fact, a full one percent of credit card debts end up being recorded as charge offs today. Let's examine what a charge off actually is and learn how it affects your credit rating.

A charge off has been initiated when an account is removed from the issuer of a credit card. The issuer must absorb the debt as a loss. This normally happens with accounts that been delinquent for a minimum of 180 days. So, in essence, a charge off is simply an entry made in the credit card issuer's accounting books. The lender is taking the loss, and the debtor is going to get a credit rating smackdown as a result.

The debtor stills owes the lender who has written the debt off. Just because the lender charges the account off, it doesn't mean that the debt was not legitimate. Many times, the lender will sell debts that have been charged off to third party collection agencies. The collection agencies then owns the debts, and they look upon them as an assets to their company. They will initiate measures to collect the debt. Many times, it would have been far getter, and easier, to deal directly with the lender before they sold the debt to the collection agency.

Although collection agencies are regulated by the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA), they often will result to questionable tactics to attempt to collect the debt. Some of these tactics involve:

• Threatening or abusive language;

• Telephone harassment at your home and/or workplace;

• Harassment of your family, friends and even coworkers;

• Threatening the debtor with illegitimate incarceration;

• Claiming to be lawyers or representatives of the court;

• and many more.

There are over one and a half million people that file for bankruptcy each year in the US and 50% of charge offs are results of these filings. Of course, when a bankruptcy s granted, the debts are alleviated and not able to sold to third party collection agencies.

Charge offs have a negative impact on your credit score as well. You see, roughly 35% of your credit score is based on payment history. It is one of the most valued elements for lenders to look at to determine a particular credit candidate's risk factor. Having a charge off recorded against you shows that you have failed to make payments due on an account. The result is a lower credit rating and higher future interest rates for you.

Even if you have had a perfect payment history, the charge off will still result in higher interest rates for you. The logic is that creditors can make up for the losses that they incur as a result of charge offs by charging more interest to all those who have charge offs recorded on the credit reports.

You can attempt to negotiate with the lender who issued a charge off to your account. You may be able to have the charge off reclassified as "Paid as Agreed" which will clear the issue from your report. If you do enter into such an agreement with the lender, protect yourself by always getting it in writing.

Charge offs are happening in record numbers as the economy continues to decline quarter after quarter. Understanding what charge offs are and how they can affect you can go a long way to keeping your credit report in great shape!

3 Tips to Rebuild Your Credit

Chane Steiner (AAA Credit Guide) — Fri, 06 Jun 2008 14:57:25 -0500

Never before has building up your credit score been as important as it is today. It isn't just about buying homes and fancy cars; it takes good credit just to get through the days and provide the necessities of life. Without a decent credit score, you stand very little chance to advance in our capitalistic society. It’s easy to mess up your credit score too. Millions of people are stunned when their credit score drops as much as one hundred points for a single missed or late payment! Fear not - there are ways to build your credit score back up again.

You can begin the credit repair process by obtaining a free credit report from each of the major credit reporting bureaus: Equifax, Experian and TransUnion. You need to have fresh information if you want to be able to accurately monitor your efforts to build your credit score back up.

Tip 1: Start off by establishing a checking and a savings account if you don’t have them. Potential lenders see bank accounts that are kept in good standing as signs of stability. Don't let your balances go negative.

Tip 2: Make your payments for loans, credit cards, rent and even utility bills on time - every time. Even if you have had poor records in the past, you can begin to build your credit score back up by establishing timely payment habits. Be assured that when you apply for credit, these things will be considered.

Tip 3: Realize the two most important factors that determine your credit score. They are: (1) the timeliness with which you make your payments due, and (2) the amount of credit that you have that you actually use. When you have credit cards, lenders like to see that you do not always use what is available to you. This shows restraint on your part. This helps to build your credit score back up.

Building your credit score back up to a desirable level is not an insurmountable endeavor; you can do it! Be patient and exercise responsibility. Put yourself in the position of a lender and ask yourself whether you would loan money or extend credit to you. When you do have credit extended to you, protect it and be responsible with it. Your credit rating has a lot to do with the amount of happiness and freedom that will be granted to you in life.

If you have negative items on your credit report, find a credit repair service to help you get them removed.

Credit Repair: How to Restore Your Credit Rating

Chane Steiner (AAA Credit Guide) — Fri, 09 May 2008 16:35:25 -0500

It's no secret that we live in a credit society. If you have a credit rating of sufficient rank, you can live a very nice life as long as you maintain responsible payment habits. There are vast numbers of Americans that have seen their credit ratings fall to levels that disallow them from acquiring the things that they want out of life - including some of the basic necessities like housing and transportation. If you are one of those people, there is still hope! You can take steps to improve your credit rating. You can restore it to levels where you can breathe again and start enjoying your life. Let's examine some of these steps now:

• You need to see just what kind of shape your credit is in. It may not be as bad as you think - it may be worse. Check it at least once every year. You are entitled to a free copy of your credit report from each of the three major credit bureaus. You are also entitled to a free copy any and every time that you are turned down for a credit card or auto loan. By checking your credit score regularly, you will be better able to identify and rectify problem areas.

• Once you know what the problems are, start fixing them. The first item to check for is erroneous information. There could be clerical errors and the like living on your credit reports and destroying your credit reputation. By immediately notifying the reporting agencies about errors, you have taken the first important step to credit restoration.

• Obviously, one of the biggest credit rating destroyers is not paying your bills on time - so start doing it! Your credit rating is a number that others use to gain insight as to your dependability. Regardless of the reasons that your credit is damaged or broken, today is the day to begin repairing it. Make every payment on time - every time.

• Don't buy things on credit unless you are absolutely positive that you will be able to pay for them on time. If you even have a little doubt, put the purchase off until a later time.

• Make some small sacrifices here and there and pay your credit cards down. Stop paying that minimum payment each month. After late payments, high credit card balances are the most damaging aspect of your credit rating. If you want to restore your credit rating to desirable levels, pay those cards down and then quit using them so much.

• You can obtain a secured credit card to begin generating the proof that you need to show potential creditors that you can handle responsibility. Most issuers of secured credit cards guarantee reporting your payments every month.

Having bad credit isn't an end-all situation. With a little time and effort, you can begin to restore your credit rating to the levels that you need and desire. Life goes a lot smoother for you when you have good credit. Start today to restore your credit rating!

How to Raise a Bad Credit Score

Chane Steiner (AAA Credit Guide) — Wed, 30 Apr 2008 23:00:20 -0500

Most people do not understand that are many ways to be proactive and raise their credit scores. It's not about just sitting back and hoping for the best. You can do more than just not messing up; you can actually follow these tips to raise your credit score.

Firstly, you need to be aware of your rights and what exactly your credit report states. There normally are several bogus items on any given credit report that can be dealt with simply. Request a free yearly copy from the three major credit bureaus. You are entitled to one copy every year from each of them. They are Equifax, Experian and TransUnion. If you make a request to each one, alternating between them every 4 months, then you will always have a fresh report to monitor your progress in raising your bad credit score.

The most effective way to raise a bad credit score is to get rid of the negative items on your credit report. You are entitled to dispute any and every negative item on your report. Even if you know the item to be based on fact, it is still your legal right to dispute it.

Once you have disputed a given item, the agency must either verify that item with a reasonable time or remove it from the report. That time period is usually between 30 and 45 days from the date of dispute submittal. The credit bureau must contact the creditor that placed the negative item and get it verified by them. If someone is lazy, doesn't find the time, makes clerical errors or otherwise messes up, you are entitled to request that the item be stricken.

This legal credit repair technique is the most powerful method to raise a bad credit score. Statistics show that 40% of the items disputed do not get verified and are therefore able to be stricken. This is exactly what credit repair agencies and attorneys charge thousands of dollars to do for you. Remember to choose the busiest business times of the year to file your disputes. You want for them to not get verified! Always send in your dispute forms via certified mail and request receipts. Keep meticulous records and you are on your way to raising your bad credit score already!

Now, you need to start making sure that you make every payment that you are responsible for on time and every time. Late payments and missed payments are the single largest contributors to the development of bad credit scores.

Keep your credit cards at roughly 30% of their maximum limit and pay them off in full every month. The second most important variable in the credit score algorithm is the amount of gap between your maximum credit card limits and the amount that is actually being utilized. If you charge them up and then just pay the interest charges, it looks bad.

You have just learned some simple, yet very powerful techniques concerning how to raise a bad credit score! Now, you just need to be patient, diligent and responsible from here on out and you will begin to see those negative items dropping off and your bad credit score beginning to rise.

Credit Repair: 5 Hot Tips to Improve Your Credit Score

Chane Steiner (AAA Credit Guide) — Tue, 29 Apr 2008 00:33:13 -0500

To improve your credit score is to give yourself a new lease on some of the most important aspects of living. We all need good credit in order to obtain desirable housing, automobiles and any of the other things in life that we wish for. If you are like millions and millions of Americans, you have a few issues on your credit report that may need dealing with in order to improve your credit score to where you need it to be. Here are some tips for you to follow in order to do that:

Tip 1: It is highly advisable to do a little research and get to know your rights. You are protected by laws concerning your credit. You need to become familiar with them in order to improve your credit score. There are regulations that dictate everything from the reasons that you can be rejected for credit to how collection agencies are entitled to pursue payments from you. Unless you are aware of these laws and regulations, you are bound to be stuck in land of credit-based confusion.

Tip 2: Get free copies of your credit report from each of the three major credit bureaus (Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion). Each bureau must provide you a free copy once every year at your request. Be smart and stagger your request every 4 months - one from each. This way, you can stay on top of changes and monitor the progress of your attempts to improve your credit score.

Tip 3: Go over these credit reports with a very fine toothed comb and file a dispute for any and every negative item on them. You see, any disputed item must be investigated by the reporting agency and either verified by the creditor within 30 to 45 days or removed from your report. Many times, the creditors will not verify the information for any number of reasons. That's great news for you! The negative items must be removed by law if they are not verified in reasonable time.

Tip 4: Send every dispute form via certified mail (it only costs a few bucks) and request a reception receipt. Keep your records meticulously and always get everything in writing. You want dates. You want times. You want names. You want to cause delays and be a big pain - as big as possible. You want for just one person in the chain of verification to mess up or get lazy. You want the negative items on your credit report stricken so that you can improve your credit score!

Tip 5: Wait for 30 - 45 days and then get another copy of your report - even if you have to pay for it this time. Review it thoroughly and inquire as to why any unverified disputed item that has had sufficient time has not been removed from your credit report. And then dispute them again. Repeat this process and you will be pleasantly rewarded with an improved credit score rapidly!

To improve your credit score is not a difficult task. It is as easy as being intentionally attentive and thorough. Get the reports. File the dispute forms. Wait and repeat. Your credit score will improve and you will be a happier person because of it!

Legal Credit Repair Techniques

Chane Steiner (AAA Credit Guide) — Mon, 21 Apr 2008 07:17:02 -0500

There are techniques of legal credit repair that you can use to raise your credit report score. In the US, there aren't very many things that you can do without it having something to do with your credit score. Even to obtain suitable housing and transportation, you need to be in good standing with the credit reporting agencies. If you are one of the millions of Americans that has bad or bruised credit, you can engage in the following methods of legal credit repair to get back where you need to be.

Legal Credit Repair Technique 1: Get a free copy of your credit report from any of the three major credit reporting agencies and dispute any negative item that you find on it. Send the letters to the agency via certified mail and always keep good records. At that point, it becomes the responsibility of the agency to verify the negative item with the creditor that placed it there or remove it from your report. This has to be completed in a reasonable time frame - between 30 and 45 days normally. If for any reason the item is not verified in that time frame, it must be stricken from your credit report. The statistics show that roughly 40% of items will not be verified and therefore removed!

Legal Credit Repair Technique 2: Pay off or at least pay down your credit cards. Your credit score is primarily based on two aspects. The first is the timeliness with which you make your payments due. The second is how much of the credit that has been extended to you is actually being used. When you keep your charges on your credit cards at about 30% of the available limit, it shows restraint and responsibility. This is a great way to increase your credit score.

Legal Credit Repair Technique 3: Use some of your older credit cards that you haven't used in a while. The older that an account is and the longer that it is kept in good standing, the better it makes your credit report score. Use those old cards once in a while to keep them fresh and reporting quality information to the credit bureaus. There sitting there in your wallet anyway - give them a little usage and then pay off the full monthly balances to legally repair your credit score.

You have to use what you've got to get what you need. Legal credit repair is your right and you should definitely take advantage of it!

How to Remove a Negative Credit Rating

Chane Steiner (AAA Credit Guide) — Fri, 18 Apr 2008 06:00:33 -0500

To remove a negative credit rating from your credit report, it must first be inaccurate or unverifiable. How often do consumers have inaccurate information on their credit reports? How often are creditors not able to verify the information that they place on your credit reports? You may be surprised.

A study released by the U.S. Public Interest Research Group in June 2004 found that 79% of the consumer credit reports surveyed contained some kind of error or mistake. Even worse, more than 25% of credit reports have errors serious enough to result in the denial of credit or increase rates. Credit bureau’s errors can cost you literally thousands of dollars.

You may even be more surprised to learn that credit bureaus are private companies whose sole purpose is to collect your information to sell it to pretty much anyone who will pay for it...including yourself. You are allowed one free report per year, but if you want to know your scores or want other reports, you must pay for that information.

The Fair Credit Reporting Act allows consumers to dispute any account that they believe may be inaccurate. The burden of proof is on the creditor and the credit bureaus to prove that the information is accurate. Many of times, they have tossed your records, they are incomplete or inaccurate. Once you send the credit bureaus a dispute letter, they have approximately 30 days to verify that all the information they are reporting is 100% accurate. If not, they must update it or remove the account from your report. If they no longer have your file, they can’t update it, so they must remove it. That is how consumers remove negative credit ratings from their reports.

There are many other ways to do it, like sending debt validation letters to debt collectors or pay for delete letters to creditors, but your best shot and first try should be with a dispute letter. Many times credit bureaus don’t even investigate accounts; they just check records on their e-Oscar system. Unfortunately, they don’t care too much whether your reports are accurate or not. They don’t spend much time reading your dispute, it is all automated. It’s just not profitable, so you may want to keep disputing until they do. Just remember to wait for 30 days, even if you get the results back faster.

Learn how to remove bad credit from your credit reports at the credit repair authority site!

Don’t have time? Let the professionals at Lexington Law Firm do the work for you!

Credit Repair Myths Exposed

Chane Steiner (AAA Credit Guide) — Wed, 16 Apr 2008 03:27:15 -0500

As a credit repair specialist, I frequently get asked these questions about cleaning up your credit report. It's important to know the answers to these questions before you start repairing your credit.

Even if I get a negative item removed from my credit report, it will come back – won’t it?

It’s actually quite uncommon to get an item removed from your credit report only to have it come back. The credit bureaus will sometimes temporarily delete a negative listing if they haven't heard from the credit grantor after the 30 day time frame. If the creditor reports it later, the credit bureau will sometimes reinsert the negative listing back on the credit report. This is called a "soft delete."

Under the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA), the credit bureaus must follow strict guidelines to notify you if they decide to re-report an entry on your credit report, which they hardly ever do. The new FCRA guidelines have reduced the frequency of the negative items being re-reported on your credit report. The guidelines have also increased the risk of lawsuit for the credit bureaus when they violate them.

Bankruptcies and foreclosures are impossible to remove from my credit report, right?

Wrong. Any type of listing on your credit report can be removed, even public records such as bankruptcies and foreclosures. Nothing is set in stone. Tax liens, judgments and repossessions also get removed from consumers credit reports on a daily basis! All negative information that is incorrect, erroneous or even questionable should be disputed.

Public records and unpaid debts can be more difficult to work with; that much is true, but they can be removed if you know what you’re doing. Having this kind of negative information is crucial to your credit scores and your ability to obtain loans at low interest rates.

Having your credit repaired correctly is imperative and that’s why I highly suggest spending a good deal of time learning about credit repair so that you don’t mess it up. I don’t say this to scare you into signing up with a credit repair service or buying a credit repair e-book…I say this because your financial future depends on it.

I’ve seen too many people try to fix their credit on their own first. After they’ve had little to no success, THEN they contact a credit repair service. But, at that time it’s usually too late – the damage has been done. You basically have one shot to get this right. It’s not something that you should try go skim on.

Hire a good credit repair service or put in your time learning about credit repair. Remember, your financial future depends on it.

Credit Restoration

Chane Steiner (AAA Credit Guide) — Mon, 07 Apr 2008 05:17:17 -0500

It seems like more and more credit restoration services are popping up by the minute. You can spot the advertisements for them online, on television and on the radio almost everyday. While I believe the awareness of credit repair and the help available to consumers is a good thing, it can also be very confusing on who to turn to.

When choosing a credit restoration service, one should always research the company’s reputation. Many of the new services that are popping up mean well, but they are not as advanced as some of the credit restoration services that have been around for awhile. I would recommend sticking with a service that has been around for at least a couple years. The more you can find out about them, the better.

Do-it-yourself credit repair is another wise way to mend your credit history and can be a little less expensive. I say "can be" because if you are able to get the same results as a credit restoration service, you are obviously going to save yourself some money. However, if you are not able to get the same or better results as a credit repair service, it may end up costing you hundreds and even thousands of dollars in the long run. I’m not saying that to scare you, but you should take caution when trying to attempt repairing your credit on your own.

Most websites are eager to tell you that credit restoration should be done individually by the consumer. I agree that it should be as well, but encouraging consumers to just jump right in to it without warning them of the horrible consequences that could happen is just very bad advice. The way I look at it is this: Either way you are going to spend time and/or money if you have bad credit, either by paying higher interest rates, spending the time to learn credit repair, or paying for a credit repair service to fix it for you. It’s your choice, but let it be known that sometimes when you try to skimp on things this important it can end up biting you in the end.

Remove Judgments

Chane Steiner (AAA Credit Guide) — Fri, 07 Mar 2008 02:09:15 -0600

How to Remove a Judgment from Your Credit Report

Being sued by a debt collector can be very intimidating. If you are being sued, never let a default judgment be entered. You have nothing to lose by disputing the validity of the judgment or even settling it out of court to avoid that nasty record landing on your credit reports.

The statute of limitations (SOL) on judgments is very long; usually 12 to 20 years. More and more collection agencies are starting to seek litigation simply for the fact that judgments are renewable. Once they get a judgment, it may be renewed if the creditor files a new suit seeking to renew the judgment prior to the expiration of the original judgment) therefore, technically, a judgment could follow you around for life.

Even if you pay a judgment you will be stuck with a 'satisfied judgment" for 7 years from date satisfied not filed! This can be a hopeless situation so avoid being sued at all costs!

However, if you already have a judgments reporting on your credit report, there are ways to have them removed. There are many strategies and options one could use to remove a judgment from their credit report. You have more rights and are protected by more federal and states laws than I could ever write about in one article. The most common is disputing it with the credit bureaus. Another way is simple to negotiate with the creditor. Many people use “pay for delete” letters when negotiating. It’s always important to get the agreement between you and the creditor in writing as once you have paid; they have no other motivation to remove it from your credit report.

Learn more about removing judgments and other negative listings from your credit reports at the credit repair authority site!

Credit Repair - Understanding Charge Offs

Chane Steiner (AAA Credit Guide) — Mon, 03 Mar 2008 11:07:14 -0600

"Charge off" is an accounting term that creditors use when they assume after a period of delinquency that they are not able to collect on a debt that is owed to them. Creditors write that debt off as a loss against their income taxes. Just because a debt is charged off (or written off) does not mean the debt is forgiven. The money is still owed. The creditor will usually sell or assign the debt to a collection agency or a lawyer to effect collection.

Some companies continue to charge interest, but most don't. If they do decide to keep charging interest, they have to continue to report it as income. Most companies would rather just write it off and be done with it.

Having charge offs on your credit report usually results in the consumer being denied credit by other lenders. Even worse, it can also affect the interest rate that other lenders charge on current debts even if those lenders were not impacted by the charge off themselves.

If you find yourself late on your payments, you should always try to contact the lender and let them know you are having problems meeting your financial obligations. Ignoring the situation and letting it get to charge off status always makes it worse. You can usually avoid your account being charged off by at least letting them know you intend to pay and by at least making small payments as often as you can.

If you already have charge offs on your credit report, it is possible to have them removed. You can try to contact the original creditor and arrange a payment plan in exchange for them removing the charge off once it is paid. It doesn’t hurt to ask them how it can be resolved or removed. You can also dispute it with the credit bureaus.

It’s much easier to get a paid charge off removed from your credit report than it is an unpaid charge off. When you dispute the charge off with the credit bureaus, they have 30 days to verify the account with the creditor. If the account is paid, many times the creditor will just ignore the verification request. They really only report charge off so that they can damage your credit hoping that it will turn make you want to pay them off. It’s highly unlikely that they would ever ignore a dispute if you still owe them money.

Learn more about removing charge offs from your credit report at the credit repair authority site.

NCO Financial

Chane Steiner (AAA Credit Guide) — Sun, 02 Mar 2008 13:18:31 -0600

NCO Financial seems to be one of the largest collection agencies in the world. It’s definitely one of the most searched for terms on the internet as far as debt collectors go. Many consumers want to know how to remove NCO Financial from their credit reports, so I have decided to write an article on the subject.

Collection accounts like NCO Financial are removed from credit reports by the thousands everyday. You may have seen or heard ads on television or on the radio about services offering to remove bad credit from your credit reports and wonder if they are legitimate or not. I bet you’d be surprised to know that most of them are.

If you have searched the internet for collection agencies like NCO Financial Services, you will see that they have plenty of complaints about them. You will see that the tactics they use to collect debts are not always so honest and their employees have very little integrity. You will also find that having a collection account reporting on your credit report can hurt your credit scores pretty bad and prevent you from obtaining the loans you need to live a decent life.

There are a few ways you can remove collections from your credit report. The most popular and probably the most effective way is to dispute the account with the credit bureaus. By law you are permitted to dispute any item on your credit report that is “questionable”. If you are not sure that the details of an account are being reported correctly or if you are completely unfamiliar with the account at all, then you can dispute it with the credit bureaus.

Writing debt validation and pay for delete letters are a couple other techniques used by credit repair services and consumers trying to repair their credit. While they are not as popular, these techniques and other credit repair techniques are very effective in getting those nasty collection accounts removed from your credit report.

Repair Your Credit Score

Chane Steiner (AAA Credit Guide) — Sat, 23 Feb 2008 13:38:01 -0600

In today’s world, it's crucial that you understand how your credit reports and credit scores affect your financial situation. Credit scores determine whether you can obtain credit and what you pay for credit cards, auto loans, mortgages and other kinds of credit. They can also be used in deciding whether you get accepted into an apartment community and whether you get a job.

So, where do you start if you have low credit scores? How can you repair your credit score? First, you need to start by grabbing a copy of all 3 of your credit reports. You need to know exactly what is being reported about you and exactly what your scores are. After you get your reports, you need to find out which items are lowering your scores.

It’s fairly easy to see which items are damaging your reports. Most reports are divided into sections which make it fairly easy to tell which accounts are considered negative, but not all reports are. So, it’s important to go through and highlight all of the account hurting your scores. Once you have this information listed, you can start to make a plan on how to eliminate or improve these accounts.

Some accounts won’t be able to be improved. They will need to be removed. But, other items, like accounts with a late payment history can be updated to make the account positive. You can contact the lenders directly to see what it will take to get them repaired. If the creditors are not willing to work with you (unfortunately most of them aren’t) then you will have to dispute the accounts directly with the credit bureaus.

Under the Fair Credit Reporting Act, you have the right to dispute any information on your credit report. This is simply done by writing a dispute letter to the credit reporting agencies. Once they have received your letter, they’re required to verify the information with the information provider. They have 30 days to do so. If the information cannot be verified, it must be deleted.

After you've cleaned up your credit report, the next step is to get positive information reporting. Acquiring new positive accounts is just as important as deleting negative accounts. One of the best ways to do that is by getting a secured credit card or an unsecured card from a local credit union. The interest rates are usually pretty high on secured cards and the credit limits pretty low, but that’s ok because you are strictly using these cards to build credit. Keep your balances at 30% of your credit limits or below.

Get more free credit repair tips at AAACreditGuide.com.

Credit Repair Help

Chane Steiner (AAA Credit Guide) — Thu, 21 Feb 2008 07:19:09 -0600

The best way to go about finding credit repair help is to know exactly what is hurting your credit scores. There are many factors that can cause your scores to be low. You need to analyze your exact situation. Once you are able to identify the exact problem, you can begin doing research to come up with a solution.

There are many organizations offering help to consumers such as credit repair services, credit counseling services, debt consolidation, etc. But, which one, if any, is right for you? Once again, that all depends on your unique situation. Some financial services out there such as credit counseling, may help you reduce your debt, but at the same time hurt your credit.

Utilizing over 30% of your available credit can be a big factor in low scores. For some people, all they need to do to fix their credit is pay down some debt. The best way to go about paying off debt is setting up a budget and living below your means and maybe even finding a second job. Try to avoid playing high interest fees late payment fees on your loans. Transferring higher interest rate cards to lower interest rate cards can help you pay them down faster as well.

If you have negative items reporting on your credit reports, your best option may be credit report repair. Credit report repair consists of disputing negative accounts with the credit bureaus in hopes of getting them removed. After sending the credit bureau a dispute letter, they have 30 days to conduct an investigation and contact your creditors to verify the information they are reporting is valid. You can also dispute public records such as judgments, bankruptcies, foreclosures, tax liens and repossessions.

After writing a dispute letter to the credit bureaus, it’s also wise to send a debt validation letter to the creditors of any debt that you owe. The request must be done in writing and the creditors have also have 30 days to reply. If the creditors fail to reply or can not supply sufficient proof of your debt, they are required by law to delete the account in question from your credit history.

If they are able to properly validate the debt and the credit bureaus don’t remove it from your reports, the only options you may have left are to negotiate with the creditors. Try to get them to delete the account from your report in exchange for paying off the account. It’s always smart to know where you stand before applying for a loan. If you apply for a loan knowing that your chances are slim of getting it, you’re foolish wasting an inquiry which will hurt your scores even more. Sign up for an online credit monitoring service. Stay on top of your credit report and always know what is being reported about you.

Chane Steiner is a credit repair expert and founder of AAACreditGuide.com, the credit repair help site. His site has helped many people repair their credit and get back on their feet. Chane has reviewed and recommends the following credit repair services.

Credit Repair Forums

Chane Steiner (AAA Credit Guide) — Mon, 18 Feb 2008 21:26:57 -0600

Most people that register at credit repair forums are looking to improve their credit. Improving your credit score can save you thousands of dollars annually in interest alone. If you visit a credit repair forum you will see what real people have accomplished on their own or with the help of a credit repair lawyer. It’s very inspiring!

Information posted at credit repair forums can be interesting, helpful and sometimes amusing. If you are interested in discussing credit repair issues with other people who are also plagued by bad credit, visit a credit repair forum. You will also be able to chat with people who have already begun repairing their credit as well as many experts who have years of experience with credit repair.

A credit repair forum that is worth mentioning is AAACreditGuide.com. They have information on a range of topics including credit repair, mortgages, auto financing, collection agencies, bankruptcy, student loans and money management. They also have a special section just for beginners.

Credit repair forums are a great beginning point for anyone who is interested in credit repair. You will be surprised at how many state and federal laws are in place to protect you as a consumer. At these discussion boards, you can read other people’s experiences and possibly decide which actions may be in your best interest.

If you are new to credit repair, you must be very careful before attempting to repair your credit. Make sure you read everything before jumping into it. Some people end up hurting their credit even worse.

You will also want to make sure you have searched the forum for an answer before asking a question by using the search feature. Chances are someone has already asked that question. However, don’t be afraid to ask questions at the discussion boards, that is what they’re there for!

Credit Bureaus Exposed!

Chane Steiner (AAA Credit Guide) — Mon, 18 Feb 2008 03:29:33 -0600

The credit bureaus love the fact that the average consumer knows very little about them. All consumers really know is that credit bureaus have major power and control over their financial lives. Would you agree that this is true? If so, why don’t we know more about them?

I don’t know about you, but when I went to apply for my first loan, I didn’t know anything about them. But, I quickly found out that they were the ones I needed to contact when I got declined. I was told by the bank to contact them to see why I was declined. Like so many other consumers, I just figured it was a government agency that kept private records of everyone’s financial information.

Years later, I found out that wasn’t the case at all. Credit bureaus (also known as consumer reporting agencies and credit reporting agencies) are for profit, private companies. How do they profit? They sell your private information. Do you remember giving them permission to sell your private information? I don’t either.

The truth is most Americans are completely unaware of their rights when it comes to their credit reports and what is being sold, who it’s being sold to and what can and can’t be reported…and that’s EXACTLY how the credit bureaus like it. Let me tell you why.

When you dispute information on your credit reports, by law, the credit bureaus must respond within 30 days. That means that they must hire employees to deal with such disputes. The more disputes they get, the more employees they must hire. Since it is free to dispute accounts, this cuts into their profits. That doesn’t make them very happy at all.

They would prefer that you just accept what is reported and go on with your life paying high interest rates and getting denied credit. In fact, when you do try to dispute, they make it as difficult as possible. They use every technique within the law (and many times outside of the law) to stall, confuse and discourage you from ever contacting them.

Statistics show that over 79% of consumer credit reports contained errors or mistakes. Can you imagine if even half of them took advantage of their federal rights and disputed items on their credit report? That would cost the credit bureaus a lot of money. But, best of all and even more important, it would save consumers millions of dollars. As you can see, the banks would prefer that you weren’t aware of these rights either. Smart consumers pay low interest rates and that’s just not profitable for lenders or consumer reporting agencies.

Learn how to repair your credit and raise your credit scores by beating the credit bureaus at their own game.

How to Repair Bad Credit

Chane Steiner (AAA Credit Guide) — Fri, 15 Feb 2008 03:15:57 -0600

No matter how bad your credit is, there are always steps you can take to make it better. Everyone’s situation is unique, so what might be the best thing for you right now, may not be the best thing for someone else. To repair bad credit, you must find a starting point. The best way to do that is to obtain a copy of your credit reports from the 3 major consumer reporting agencies, also known as credit bureaus. You will also want to know what your FICO scores are.

Once you have your reports, you’ll want to make sure all the information is accurate. There are mistakes in about 75% of all credit reports. If you find an inaccuracy or any negative accounts that you are unsure of, dispute it with the credit bureaus. It’s important to note that whether the account is actually yours or not makes no difference on their responsibility to verify it. If the account can’t be verified, it must be deleted.

Many of times the credit bureaus, who get thousands of disputes each day, don’t do a very thorough job of investigating items you’ve disputed. So, it may take a few rounds of letters until the credit bureaus remove the account. Be patient and wait at least 30-35 days before sending another round.

Another thing you should do is pay off the most recent past due accounts. Be careful making payments on accounts that are more than a few years old as paying them can bring your scores down even further because it makes the negative account current. You will also want to try to get an agreement with the creditor to update it to “paid as agreed” or remove the account BEFORE you pay it. It’s much harder to get it updated or removed after you pay it because you don’t have much leverage.

Another important part of raising your credit scores is to keep your existing balances below 40% of your credit limit. You’ll also want to minimize the number of inquiries you make by not applying for credit unless absolutely necessary.

How to Remove a Bankruptcy from Your Credit Report

Chane Steiner (AAA Credit Guide) — Tue, 12 Feb 2008 23:50:20 -0600

A bankruptcy can have a devastating effect on your credit score. A bankruptcy listing on your credit reports to many lenders is the only thing they need to see to determine you are completely unworthy of credit.

Many people will tell you that it is impossible to remove a bankruptcy from your credit reports. The truth is that you can dispute a bankruptcy the same as you can any other type of derogatory account on your credit report.

Note that whether the account is "really" yours or not has no bearing on the credit bureaus responsibility to verify it. If it cannot be verified, it must be deleted. Period. According to the Fair Credit Reporting Act, the burden of proof is on the credit bureau.

Please let it be clear that it's never ever wise to be dishonest when communicating with credit reporting agencies, plus it is totally unnecessary. There are many ways to dispute the bankruptcy without lying.

Did you know that the credit bureaus don’t even investigate public records? The courts will only verify such records in person. The credit bureaus will claim that they have a system to verify such records, but when it comes down to it, they don’t. They also know that if a consumer were to seek litigation and financial damages in a court of law, they would be in big trouble.

I had my bankruptcy removed from 2 out of 3 of my credit reports. The one that would not remove the bankruptcy claimed that they verified it electronically and that it’s public record. It is indeed public record; they were right about that part. But, I asked them who they verified it with and they said they verified with my local courthouse. That’s impossible since the local courthouse confirmed that they only verify public records in person – not electronically, not through the mail, and not over the phone.

This particular credit bureau is much harder to work with than the others. They are very adamant about keeping items on your credit report whether they are accurate or not. This credit bureau has also been sued the most. And as long as they refuse to properly investigate accounts according to federal law, I'm sure that trend will continue.

Check out AAACreditGuide.com for more free credit repair tips.

How to Remove Charge-offs from Your Credit Report

Chane Steiner (AAA Credit Guide) — Tue, 12 Feb 2008 01:20:56 -0600

Creditors typically write off or charge off a debt if there has been no payment on the account for more than 180 days (6 months). This does not, however, mean that the person no longer owes the debt. A charge-off is an accounting procedure for tax purposes used by the creditor where an uncollectible debt or charge-off is reported as a loss for the creditor.

If you have any charge-offs on your credit reports, your ability to obtain credit will be seriously impaired and you must actively work to restore your credit. Charge-offs stay on your credit report for 7 years from the date of the initial missed payment that led to the charge-off (the original delinquency date), even if payments are later made on the charged-off account.

Paying an old charge-off will not remove it from your credit reports. It will simply be updated to a "paid charge-off," which, while slightly better, is still a seriously derogatory item. To qualify for some loans, including a mortgage loan, you must take care of any charge-offs that appear on your credit report.

To remove a charge-off from your credit report, you must dispute the account with the credit bureaus. If after numerous disputes the credit bureaus verify the account, you must contact the collector. All negotiations should be in writing. You will likely need to begin on the phone to determine the correct person with whom you should be negotiating. However, once you know who that person is, send everything in writing and request they do likewise.

Negotiate with the collection agency to remove their listing entirely from your report. A charge-off is a negative, whether it is paid or not. Make sure you get this agreement in writing as well.

Learn how to remove charge-offs and other negative listings from your credit reports at the credit report repair authority site!