Free Credit Repair Advice – Learn How To Restore Your Credit Score For Free (or close to it!)
Is free credit repair possible…..or do you need to spend hundreds, or thousands of dollars to restore your credit score? Why do some credit repair clinics charge so much money for improving your credit file……while others promise “FREE” credit repair, or promise you that you can do everything THEY can do without paying a free? What gives?
The truth is, improving your credit file should NOT technically cost you a thing.
Or at least, nothing outside of the adminstrative costs you’ll incur for doing the work – i.e. – sending out certified letters, the time it takes you to research the law, and learning what and how to say exactly what is neccessary, pursuant to your own specific set of circumstances.
A professional credit repair clinic will essentially CHARGE you for doing all of the above……and in some cases, and for some people, it’s actually a pretty good investment. (similar to hiring a lawyer to represent you on a small legal matter….one which you could certainly handle by representing yourself as well)
You can ALSO of course, repair your OWN credit, simply by sending out disputes and challenges predicated on the information that is in your report that is weighing down your score.
Need some help figuring out what to do next?
Check out the short article below from the FTC’s website on consumer credit, and learn how and where to get your credit files, and what to do with them once you have them in hand. But DO BE WARNED: While the government does do a good job in sharing the facts, they also do NOT accurately represent the many ways that bad information CAN come off your credit file….EVEN if that information is essentially “true”. (and there are literally MILLIONS of negative items that are deleted each year from consumer credit reports that were really “true” – but just NOT verified as the law requires if you dispute them..:-)
Your Rights Regarding Credit Repair
The law allows you to ask for an investigation of information in your file that you dispute as inaccurate or incomplete. There is no charge for this. Some people hire a company to investigate on their behalf, but anything a credit repair clinic can do legally, you can do for yourself at little or no cost.
According to the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA): *
You’re entitled to a free report if a company takes “adverse action” against you, like denying your application for credit, insurance, or employment. You have to ask for your report within 60 days of receiving notice of the action. The notice will give you the name, address, and phone number of the consumer reporting company. You’re also entitled to one free report a year if you’re unemployed and plan to look for a job within 60 days; if you’re on welfare; or if your report is inaccurate because of fraud, including identity theft. * Each of the nationwide consumer reporting companies — Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion — is required to provide you with a free copy of your credit report once every 12 months, if you ask for it.
The three companies have a central website, a toll-free telephone number, and a mailing address for consumers to order the free annual credit reports the government entitles them to. To order, click on annualcreditreport.com, call 1-877-322-8228, or complete the Annual Credit Report Request Form and mail it to: Annual Credit Report Request Service P.O. Box 105281 Atlanta, GA 30348-5281