Successfully Fix Your Credit With These Proven Tips

Many people are almost out of high school before learning anything about their credit. Some never learn about their credit - how to protect or repair it. This article can help anyone, whether you never learned, or just need a refresher about credit repair.

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Keep your credit card balances below 50 percent of your credit limit. When your debt is over 50%, credit ratings usually go down. With that said, try to spread out the debt that you have or try paying it off.

 

To have a better credit report, pay your bills as quickly as possible. Create a schedule of your monthly payments and stick to it. Your debt will not keep on growing and your report will not contain any late payments. Late payments is something banks and financing agencies look at when granting you a loan.

 

Any company or credit counselor that claims they can erase all negative reports from your credit history should be viewed with some skepticism. Unfortunately, this negative information stays on your credit record for at least seven years. It is possible, however, to remove errant information.

 

While repairing your credit is a top priority, you need to know that you cannot create another credit file, using a second social security or tax-id number, so steer clear of anyone that suggests this as an option. This practice is illegal and serious penalties are handed out to those who use this process.

 

An important tip to consider when working to repair your credit is to ideally keep your credit card utilization no more than 25 percent of the total credit limit. This is important because your credit card utilization is directly responsible for your credit rating. If your balance is high, aim to bring it down to no more than 70 percent.

 

Paying your bills is something you need to do to repair your credit. More importantly, you need to start paying your bills in full and on time. Your credit rating can improve almost immediately when you pay off past due bills.

 

If you are trying to improve your credit score, keep open your longest-running credit card. The longer your account is open, the more impact it has on your credit score. Being a long-term customer may also give you some negotiating power on aspects of your account such as interest rate.

 

When working to repair your credit, it's important to consider the different ranges that different reporting agencies use. This is important to know, so that you know the meaning of your own score. The main scores used are FICO: 300 - 850, Experian: 330 - 830, Equifax: 300 - 850, and TransUnion: 300 - 850.

 

Know your rights that are protected by the Fair Credit Reporting Act. This will help you with any kind of negotiations and inform you of what you are entitled in the eyes of the law. Knowledge is power and when repairing a credit rating, it is very possibly money in your pocket.

 

So, aren't you glad you took a few minutes to learn or remind yourself about credit repair? Remember it is never too late to apply the suggestions provided to protect or repair your credit.