When it comes to credit repair, there are many professional organizations out there who are willing to help you with this monumental endeavor. It takes a lot to make repair to bad credit and it can be overwhelming when you try to do it on your own. That’s why these professional organizations were formed and they can invaluable for you.
Debt Consolidation and Debt Management Company
A debt consolidation company can help you repair your credit by obtaining a lower-interest loan that will pay off your creditors and allow you to make just one payment to one company instead of several payments to several companies. They can also contact your creditors to get a lower payoff amount so that the final amount of the debt consolidation loan you’ll need to repair your credit could be lower.
A debt management company does much the same as a debt consolidation company when it comes to credit repair. They also obtain a loan to help consolidate your debts, but they also provide counseling services that will help you manage your debt and get you well on your way towards repairing your credit.
What a debt consolidation and debt management company will do is walk you through the credit repair process step by step and take some of the pressure off of you when it gets to be too much for you to handle. They will charge a fee for their services, but it is usually quite reasonable, and they will often work with you to make that payment over a period of time if you are in severe financial trouble.
Credit Repair Program
What exactly is a credit repair program? Actually, you can look at a credit repair program in a couple of different ways.
First, there are credit repair programs that exist in the form of a class or seminar. These are usually held by credit counseling companies hoping to secure your business, but they are also offered by many local community colleges or universities and even as public relations offerings by your local government.
These seminars cover how to find out your credit score, read your credit report, and take steps to repair any credit problems you might be having. They are usually day long classes and will give you tools to use when it comes to obtaining, using, and monitoring your credit. They will help you repair your credit with an easy program and stay out of debt permanently.
A new phenomenon when it comes to a credit repair program involves the computer industry – of course! Most of these credit repair software programs are very reasonably priced and will work with any operating system platform.
A good credit repair software program will come with a money-back guarantee after a certain point and even a free trial so that you can see if it will meet your particular needs. They will fully outline what the program should be able to do and provide step-by-step instructions so that even the novice computer user can easily navigate the program with little to no experience.
Credit Repair Counselor
Credit repair counselors are everywhere these days. It’s big business since many Americans are finding themselves deeper and deeper in debt. In fact, over 90 million citizens carry an average debt of about $20,000 not including mortgages. That’s a lot! Most of it is credit card debt and it can balloon out of control before most people even realize they’re in trouble.
A credit repair counselor will help you work with your creditors to make payment arrangements or even obtain a debt consolidation loan to help pay them off. That means setting up a budget and then learning ways to stick to that budget. You will likely have monthly meetings with the credit repair counselor initially to address any issues that might arise in your financial dealings. They will give you tools to help you stick to your budget and stay out of trouble.
When looking for a credit repair counselor, do your homework before you sign on the dotted line. Check out their reputation with the Better Business Bureau and even your local Chamber of Commerce if they are local. Ask questions and pay close attention to the paperwork they are supposed to present you with.
A reputable credit repair counselor will advise you of your rights as a consumer, disclose the fees for their services in writing, and outline what will be happening during the time they will be working for you. If they seem to be making outlandish promises that seem too good to be true, don’t hire them and keep looking. A good credit repair counselor can be a great help toward making you more financially solvent and less stressed about your debts.
Credit Repair Kit
There are hundreds of products on the market right now calling themselves the ultimate credit repair kit. They come in book form, computer software form, and even DVD/CD-ROM form. Actually, when it comes to credit repair, these kits can actually help people who are facing problems with their credit reports and credit scores.
One great product we found is a book written by John Ventura called The Credit Repair Kit. It is available on Amazon for anywhere from $1 used to $15 new. This book has gotten rave reviews as the ultimate credit repair guide for anyone who needs to take steps toward a better credit rating. This book contains extensive information about the credit reporting bureaus, credit report basics, how to read your credit report, and how to correct credit problems.
There are numerous e-books available on the Internet as well that can be considered credit repair kits. The best part about e-books is that they are downloaded directly to your computer and are available to buy any time of the day or night. They contain a lot of the same information as a paper book, but offer a lot more convenience.
What should you look for in a credit repair kit? Here are a few topics you’ll want to look for:
* An explanation of how credit reporting agencies gather and evaluate the information on your credit report.
* How to read your credit report.
* How to find out what your credit score is.
* What to do if there are errors on your credit report.
* How to handle identity theft
* Ways to rebuild your credit and raise your credit score
* Tools to make long-term goals that will keep you out of credit problems once you have repaired your credit.
Credit Repair Self Help
When it comes to credit repair when you have found yourself in a bad credit situation, self-help might be the a route for you to go. All you need to do is start by pulling a copy of your credit report from all three credit reporting bureaus: Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion.
After you get your credit reports, the next self help step is to go through those reports and check to see that the information is accurate. Most of the time, there are going to be errors of some type. If you find errors, you need to contact the credit reporting agency both by phone and in writing. You’ll be asked to provide proof of the error and then they, in turn are required to notify you in writing of their decision to either remove it from your credit report or leave it due to insufficient proof. Be diligent in this endeavor. An accomplished self help credit repair program entails being aggressive when it comes to your information and the accuracy of that information.
Another part of a self help credit repair program includes the development of a long-term plan that will help you keep your credit use under control and a plan for not getting into credit problems again. Do a little research and you’ll find that there is plenty of information available on the Internet as well as software programs that can help you with your self help credit repair program.
