1. Challenge Your Collectors
If you are receiving collection letters, be sure to open them right away. You will be amazed to now that up to half of all of active collections are for accounts that were already paid, belong to other people, or are, for some other reason, not valid. Under the Fair Debt Collections Practices Act you have the right to confirm a debt within 30 days of getting the letter that says you owe a balance unpaid. It is your right to ask for proof they own the debt and that they provide documentation of the balance claimed.
2. Dispute Incorrect Records
Patience is a virtue here. The Fair Credit Reporting Act requires the credit bureaus to process consumer disputes about credit report accuracy. Put your legal rights to work and dispute every questionable item that you find in your credit report. If you encounter resistance, and some of the time you will, or if the credit bureau doesn’t respond to your credit repair inquiry in your favor, do not give up. Write them back and demand that they have the creditor research the damaging report properly.
3. Examine Your Credit Reports (All 3 Major Reporting Agencies)
Credit repair is vital for millions of people just like you. The credit reporting system involves the credit bureaus, creditors, collectors, local and national court houses, and all the interconnectivity that ties the whole credit system together. Errors do happen. They happen everyday. Credit repair is the just about the only answer. You cannot hope or wish that reporting mistakes will correct themselves. You must examine your credit report and look for ANY questionable entries.
