3 Credit Bureau Report – Free Score

Irena Bocheva asked:




Is it possible to raise credit fast? The mainstream credit advisers will tell you that fixing credit takes time, dedication and careful budget planning. Contrary to that popular myth, there are faster and easier ways to raise credit score. The only requirement for fast credit success-knowledge about the inner workings of the system and the various loopholes in it.

Here are 3 simple tips that will help you understand how fast credit repair works:

1 Don’t let collection agencies intimidate you-they are more bark than bite.

Collection agencies sound threatening-they will flood you with unwanted phone calls and mail, they will warn your that your wage will be garnished, your property seized and you will be sent to court. In reality, when resorting to such harassing measures, collection agencies are actually in violation of the law. Under The Fair Credit Protection Act debt collectors are not allowed to make harassing phone calls and use threatening and abusive language, to give false information about themselves, the amount of the debt, the possible consequences of non payment. And the collection agencies know that. However, they pray on the huge crowd of misinformed people with bad credit. Another thing you should know is that collection agencies pay literally pennies for every dollar that you owe(usually 5 cents per dollar if the account is recent, 1-2 cents if the account is more than 2 years old, less than a penny if it is old or out-of -state account). In other words-they still make a considerable profit even if you settle for 25 % or less of the amount that you owe. Knowing these facts will help you choose the right strategy when dealing with collection agencies- never pay the debt in full, aim for the lowest settlement amount possible and promise to pay only if they remove the item from your credit record. If they try to harass or threaten, remind them that you know your legal rights.

2 Credit Bureaus-learn how to make them play by your rules.

Under the Fair Credit Reporting Act you have the right to dispute any inaccurate, incomplete, outdated, ambiguous or unverifiable item in your credit report. Credit bureaus have 30 days (45 if you used the service of annualreport.com) to conduct investigation and come up with a decision on your case. Statistics shows that 25 % of all disputes filed with credit bureaus end up with success. If the credit bureau doesn’t finish the investigation in a timely manner (a month), they are in violation of FCRA, sec 611. You can also use the debt validation strategy-ask the three major credit bureaus to provide proper documentation that the debt is your. If they fail to find the documentation( which happen in many cases), they are required to remove the item from your record.

3 Open you eyes for the loopholes in the system.

The case with the collection agencies and the credit bureaus are just examples of the various option you have if you want to pursue fast credit repair. There are many little known credit secrets that will take you to the desired destination faster than you think. The key is to look at your credit situation and find out which are the strategies that work for your specific case.

There are many ways to raise credit fast. Once you start thinking outside the credit box, you’ll be surprised to find how easy credit repair actually is.

Sally

Art Turner asked:




Never been harassed by a credit agency? Lucky you! It could mean that you have never had any financial problems. That’s quite a feat considering all that could get out of whack. But sometimes issues of our life make it impossible to keep up with our monthly payments. After you get about 90 days past due, your creditor is likely to hire a debt collector. Collectors may be real people, firms or even lawyers.

Recent legislation has specified some basic rules for the ways that you can be contacted. Collection agencies can contact you by mail, in person, by phone, via fax or even by telegram. But when and where they get in touch is limited. They may not contact you before 8 A.M. or after 9 P.M. local time. They are also not allowed to contact you at your place of employment.

Certain unfair practices have now been removed from debt collectors’ tool chests. Collection agencies can’t take more than you owe. If you send them a post-dated check, they are prohibited from depositing the check early. Contacting you by postcard, which could be really embarrassing, is no longer allowed. It’s not open season on your property either, so don’t give in to their threats.

Behavior that could be categorized as harassment, oppression or abuse is just not allowed. For example, persistent phone calls specifically planned to bother a debtor are prohibited by law. Any type of violent threats are clearly out of bounds. Even the use of profane or obscene language is off limits for collectors. If they threaten to publish your name on a list, don’t worry. They aren’t allowed to do anything like that. The only people they can tell is the credit reporting agency.

Has a debt collector ever stated something that sounded untrue? They are not allowed to collect a debt by using misleading or false statements. If they aren’t attorneys, they cannot claim to be. Nor can they claim to be from the government. The credit bureau will not call you directly, so don’t believe anyone who says they are. Collectors are also not permitted to confuse you about papers they send–for example calling them legal documents when they really are not. They must be completely truthful about how much debt you actually owe.

Threats of arrest or imprisonment are strictly prohibited. Seizures of property or garnishment of your wages will not happen without the due process of a lawsuit (student loans have special rules, though, so watch out with those). Threatening you with legal proceedings is against the rules if they don’t really intend to take you to court. Sending out false information or official-looking documents (when they are not) could also get the collectors into trouble.

Work with the collection agency as much as possible, even if it is difficult or distasteful. You may not be able to send the total amount you owe, but try to send something to indicate good faith. If you think the collector has done something in opposition to the law, then take you complaint up through the company’s management structure. If you don’t get an acceptable response from the company, your state Attorney General and the U.S. Federal Trade Commission are the next steps. In most cases, however, the fact that collectors broke the law will not alter the fact that you owe a debt. You are still responsible for paying what you owe. The laws are in place to make sure that you are treated with fairness and respect.

Andrea