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how to fix credit score fast

How to Fix Bad Credit Fast

by Wendy Black Polisi on May 6, 2010

If you are like me, you don’t have a lot of patience.  I want what I want and I want it now!

My husband is always saying that it isn’t that things don’t always go my way, they just don’t always happen in my time frame! :)

Sound familiar? If so, here is how to fix bad credit fast!

1. Review your credit file and dispute anything inaccurate

Did you know that an estimated 87% of credit reports contain errors?  (In fact, some estimates are higher!)  One of the easiest strategies for those wanting to know how to  fix credit fast is to get a current copy of your credit report and clean up any errors.  Once you have your report, review it carefully line by line.  Key things to look for are:

  • Credit Card Limits Reporting Too Low
  • Inaccurate Late Payments
  • Accounts Reporting that are more than 7 years from the date of last activity
  • Paid Collection accounts reporting as unpaid

All of these things can drag your credit score down. If you want fast credit repair this step is a MUST!

2.  Piggyback

The quickest way to get establish a long and positive credit history is to get a spouse or parent to add you as an authorized user to one of their existing accounts.  Pick the oldest account that you can and make sure that it has a perfect payment history and low balance.  Once the credit report updates, you will benefit from the full history of this account!  You will be suprised at how just one perfectly reporting credit card that dates back to 1987 can help your credit score.

3.  Pay down debt

I am sure you already knew this, but no list about fast credit repair would be complete without including it.  The simple truth is that 30% of your credit score is derived from what is called your utilization ratio.  This is the realationship between how much you owe and your credit lines.  Charging your credit cards up to near their balance is a sign of finanical stress and the credit scoring module takes this into account.  If your carry high credit card balances, there are few things that you can do that will have a greater impact on your credit score than paying off your debt.

4.  Pay for Delete

The number one rookie mistake when it comes to credit repair is simply paying off collection accounts.  If you haven’t heard me say it before, I will repeat myself:  NEVER, EVER PAY OFF A COLLECTION ACCOUNT!  Doing so renews the date of last activity and may actually lower your credit score. Simply paying off the debt will NOT fix credit report issues!

What you want to do is contact the lender and arrange a pay for delete.  This is a win-win for both you and the lender.  They get all the money that you owe them and you get the item completely removed from your credit file. This is a great strategy to fix credit fast!

5.  Dispute Negatives…Even if they are accurate!

Ok – here’s the deal.  No one can promise you that they can get accurate items removed from your credit file.  Anyone who tells you that they can do this is quite simply lying.  That being said, you may get lucky and get items that are accurate removed from your credit file. The key is knowing which items are worth taking your time on.

What you want to focus on is negative accounts that are between two and five years old.  Anything newer and the creditor is likely going to have easy access to their records and highly motivated to respond.  (And anything older is probably not impacting you all that much)  Items that you will probably have the most luck getting removed are collection accounts that are paid and accounts that were once past due that are now current.

Still want to know more about  how to repair credit fast?  Stay tuned and we will talk more about how to fix credit score issues!

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The Truth about How to Fix Credit Fast!

by Wendy Black Polisi on December 15, 2009

There are many credit repair companies out there that say they can repair your credit extremely quickly, however more often than not these are scams. Realistically, there is only so much you can do to legitimately repair your credit and while there are ways of doing these things faster, it will take time. Those companies that claim they can repair your credit instantly or within a few months are basing this claim on one of two strategies. The first of these is creating a new identity and the second of these involves abusing the dispute process and neither of these are good ideas.

With respect to creating a new identity, the most common way of doing this is telling clients to get an Employer Identification Number (EIN) from the IRS and then use this as an alternative to the Social Security Number which is tied to the person with bad credit. Technically this method can work for a while, but EINs are distinctive, so chances are very good that eventually you will be caught. For the record, this is patently illegal and if you do this, it is you – not the credit repair company – that will be held responsible and may be facing prison time. In an information based economy, identity fraud is taken very seriously because it undermines the entire system, so when you get caught you can expect little mercy from the police or the courts.

The second method used to work quite well before information technology was fully implemented into the record keeping process of most creditors, but mostly does not work today. A person has a right to dispute any item on their credit report and once the dispute is recognized, the credit reporting agency has thirty day to investigate the matter and determine whether or not the debt is valid. If the original creditor cannot prove the validity of the debt or fails to do so within the prescribed thirty days, the item is removed from the credit report. The credit repair companies would take advantage of this by disputing everything, valid or otherwise, and usually over and over again frequently resulting in many items being removed from the credit report.

However, this tactic became too popular and the industry can now handle the matter fairly easily. First, the credit reporting agency does not have to accept all the disputes at the same time, instead it can ask for more information, extending the time deadline. Secondly, most of the creditors or collection agencies have all the validation information in digital form today, meaning that validating a debt just involves printing off some documents, so it is very quick and easy. Further, even if an item is removed, it may only be temporary. Most major creditors now automatically resubmit negative credit information every month or quarter, meaning that the only way to get the item fully removed is by dealing with the creditor.

Basically, valid negative entries remain on your credit report for the full seven years unless you file for bankruptcy, so be wary of promises claiming they can teach you how to fix your credit fast. Credit report repair takes time!  The good news is that with time and some work you CAN fix bad credit!

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