Repairing Your Credit
You may need to repair your credit for two reasons: 1) your past
spending habits have resulted in poor credit; or 2) there is an
error on your credit file at one or more credit bureau. If you see
an error in your report, report it directly to the credit bureaus.
The three major bureaus in the U.S. all have procedures for
correcting errors promptly. Call them directly for more
information:
Equifax (1-800-685-1111)
TransUnion (1-800-916-8800)
Experian (1-888-397-3742)
Alternatively, contact us. We can help you correct this problem
as well.
If you have a poor credit rating due to financial problems in the
past, there are concrete steps you can take. While it is difficult to
increase your score over the short run, here are some tips to
increase your score over a period of time.
- Pay your bills on time. Late payments and collections can have
a serious impact on your score.
- Do not apply for credit frequently. Having a large number of
inquiries on your credit report can worsen your score.
- Reduce your credit-card balances. If you are "maxed" out on
your credit cards, this will affect your credit score negatively.
- If you have limited credit, you might want to consider obtaining additional credit...but not using it. Having available
credit that you are not using can increase your credit score.
Please also visit our pages on FICO Scores,
and how to request your credit report.
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