According to an article posted on Yahoo! today, SmartMoney.com reports that the FTC claims that ALL credit repair companies are frauds. According to them, we are frauds because we charge people to do something they can do themselves for a lot less money.
While it is true that credit repair can be done by each person on their own, and yes, I admit, we do charge people money for our services, there are two things I think are important for people to understand.
The first thing that is of supreme importance is that the FTC believes that ALL people who provide services to Americans are frauds. Here is why I believe this is their opinion. The company I work for, Northwest Business Advisors, LLC, provides the service of credit restoration. The average person can also do their own credit restoration. According to the FTC this makes us frauds. But, to follow this logic further, I, as an average person can also repair my car when it breaks down. Mechanics charge me money to do something I can do for myself a lot cheaper. This makes mechanics frauds, too by the FTC definition. When January comes around, I take my taxes to a tax preparation specialist. I, as an average person, am quite capable of preparing my own taxes. Tax preparation specialists charge me lots of money to do something I can do for myself. The FTC must also think they are frauds. When I need money to purchase a house, I go to a mortgage broker to obtain a loan. They charge me money for this service that I am quite capable of performing on my own. Mortgage brokers must be frauds also. I use a realtor to help me find a home. I can find a home on my own. A realtor also gets paid to perform this service. Realtors are also frauds according to the FTC.
Ok, you should get my point by now. But here is one other point that I would like to make. Even though I can do all those things myself, when I use a professional I always have greater success in obtaining my goals. A mechanic knows cars better than I do, so he will have greater success at repairing it. A mortgage broker knows the market better than I do so she can get me a better rate than I could on my own. A realtor understands what I want in a home so he finds just what I am looking for rather than me finding something that I will settle for. The tax preparation specialist knows tax laws better than I do so she can get me a better refund. Credit restoration professionals know credit repair laws better than the average person so they will have greater success at the process.
But, here is something of interest from that article. Consumer Credit Counseling Services called those of us in the credit restoration business, "bad, bad people." Now let's look at this further. The CCCS is a fraudulant organization by the FTC definition of fraud because they charge people to do something the average person can do for themselves. HOWEVER, it should be noted that when the CCCS is finished with you, your credit is even WORSE than when they started with you. Their process works, don't get me wrong, and I support them 100% for all the good they have done for millions of people. However, their process totally devastates a person's credit for a long time. CCCS looks worse on a person's credit report than a bankruptcy.
Now, the allegedly fraudulant service that we "bad, bad people" provide for Americans leaves them with the best possible credit score they can have. They can qualify for mortgages, obtain LOW INTEREST loans to pay off those high interest debts that are causing them problems in the first place, get better interest rates on credit cards, and on, and on. The benefits of our services are incalculable to the client. Gosh, I wish I wasn't such a "bad, bad person."
So I think the FTC can, in the infamous words of Bart Simpson, "Eat my shorts" when it comes to their opinion of my line of work. I take great pride in knowing that I can help a person qualify for a mortgage even though they have been told NO by a broker. I am proud of the fact that just this year alone, I have helped more than a dozen families save their homes from foreclosure because of the service our company provides. I don't go around telling the FTC that they are frauds because they get paid a lot of money to call hard working Americans frauds. I can call a person a fraud for a lot less money. So the FTC must be fraudulent. I mean, after all, they meet their OWN definition of fraud.
By the way, if you want to see a copy of the Credit Repair Organizations Act that is refered to so frequently in the article, it can be found on my website. We are not afraid of the law because we are in complete compliance with the law and ALL FTC regulations regarding the conduct of credit repair firms.
Thank you for taking the time to read this post. I hope you have enjoyed it. Feel free to pass this on to the FTC.
Robert Rowe, S.C.A.
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