Saturday, February 28, 2009

Fixing A Credit Report: What You Can Do

By iFixCreditReport

Fixing a credit report starts with reading it carefully. You can go online and get a free credit report; just search for free credit report to get started. You can request your credit report for free once per year. You can also get a free copy of your credit report if you are denied credit based on the report provided by a particular credit reporting agency, as long as you request this within 30 days of the denial.

One look at your credit report should give you the answers you need on why you were turned down for credit. However, how can you set things right again? Is there items on the report which are inaccurate, or ones which are correct but that you feel to be unfair?

If you want to dispute anything on your credit report, then you can do so in writing to the credit agency. They are required to look into any disputes within 30 days. Be sure to send your dispute by certified mail and include copies of any supporting documentation you may have.

The credit reporting agency then has to contact the source of the disputed item. If the agency does not receive proof that the debt is valid within 14 days, they will remove this item from your credit report. They will send you an updated copy of your credit report and if you request, a copy of this new report will also be furnished to any creditor who has seen your report in the previous si months " remember to ask for this, since the agency will not do this otherwise.

If the item is over a year old or amounts to less than $500, many creditors will see it as not worth their time and will not respond to the credit reporting bureau. Fixing a credit report can be done, even if the items contained are accurate. If you dont manage to have the item removed the first time, you can submit another dispute in 30 days.

If it is impossible to remove an item that you have disputed, you are permitted to add a brief explanation, which will be visible to anyone who pulls your credit report. This explanation can be up to 100 words in length.

If there is a long history of late payments and defaults, fixing a credit report can be a long term project. However, you can correct some of the problems on your report and provide an explanation for others. This will provide some improvement on your report even as you make the effort to get your credit back into good shape.

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