Saturday, January 24, 2009

The Best Credit Repair Services Aren't Magic - But They Can Help!

By Leona Allen

The best credit repair services won't set unrealistic expectations, but can take much of the hassle out of fixing your credit score. None of these companies perform magic, but the best credit repair services certainly can help a great deal in improving your credit score.

There are hundreds of companies offering credit repair services, but according to the Federal Trade Commission, most of them qualify as scams. Anyone claiming they can simply erase bad credit, or guarantee to raise your credit score, should be considered suspect.

According to the FTC, it is not possible to legally remove accurate and timely negative information from a credit report. Suggesting that you dispute all negative entries on your credit report, for instance, is illegal.

The best credit repair services don't sell you your own credit reports. The federal Annual Credit Report laws make everyone is entitled to a free copy of their credit report, one from each of the three credit-reporting agencies (TransUnion, Experian, and Equifax), once each year, or in a twelve month period.

Much of what these companies do are things you can do yourself, however they can often help inform those who may not be aware of all their options. Taking on some of these tasks can help lower fees, or you can chose to do the whole thing yourself.

One thing to keep in mind is the difference between credit repair services and "debt consolidators". A debt consolidators will help to get your arms around your outstanding debt; they don't try to fix your credit. In many cases, this might be a preferable alternative, particularly as a first step in improving your credit standing.

Debt consolidators do this by contacting your creditors on your behalf. They will negotiate a 'settlement' agreement, usually just a fraction of the actual amount owed. The debt consolidator will combine these settlements into a single amount. They will give you an amount within your budget to send them each month, and in turn they send a portion to each creditor.

The best credit repair services won't help much if the factors that led to credit problems don't change. Further, they don't provide the kind of "bailout" that erases bad debt like filing bankruptcy will. That being said, what they can do is help you to get your feet back on the ground and help set you on the road to improving your credit score, and in turn your whole financial future.

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