Last week, we discussed what you should NOT do to repair your credit. This week, we will dive into what you should do to get your credit moving in the right direction. The credit repair process can be long, burdensome, and frustrating—not to mention confusing! That is why using Leaf Credit Repair is so valuable. We take the frustration out of credit repair because we do all of the work for you. Give us a call, and we can help you implement some of the strategies as described below.
- DO dispute your credit issues with the proper people in the proper order.
If you do not approach credit repair in a certain way, it will be completely ineffective. In fact, if you bring a legal case later, disputing a credit item out of order or with an improper entity can completely undermine your case. Keep in mind that if you plan to ask a creditor to settle your debt for less, you should do that before you dispute the amount with the credit bureaus. If you want to fight a poor remark on your report, you have to go to credit bureaus first—before fighting it out with your creditor.
- DO keep old accounts open and use them periodically.
In our article last week, we discussed that you should not close your old accounts because this can negatively impact your credit score. What you should do instead is not only keep these accounts open, but also use them! We suggest using them about every six months and then paying them off within at least 2 to 3 months. This keeps the card active and gives you some positive points on your credit.
- DO use certified mail for disputes.
Keep in mind that everything you do in the credit repair process may need to be proven in court later. That means that you should not only document everything, you should also keep records that the credit bureau or your creditor received the information that you provided. This means using certified mail. The Fair Credit Reporting Act (we talk more about that here) requires that the credit bureau, creditor, or collection agency respond to your dispute. This can be a challenge considering the large amount of information that they likely deal with on a regular basis. Keeping a record of when you sent the dispute will help you significantly if you are trying to argue that they did not meet their obligations under the Fair Credit Reporting Act.
- DO request validation first.
The validation process described above is an important first step in disputing an outstanding debt that may be harming your credit. If the creditor or debt collector cannot validate the debt, then you may not have to pay it! Don’t reach for your checkbook before asking them to validate the debt. It could save you hundreds!
- DO keep at it.
Being persistent can be extremely beneficial in the credit repair process. However, it can also be somewhat exhausting. Thankfully, Leaf Credit Repair can do most of the leg work for you when it comes to hounding the credit bureaus or your debt collectors. Find out more by scheduling a consultation today!