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Clean Bad Credit, Do It On Your Own.

February 10th, 2010 No comments

It is easy to clean bad credit. In this article I will show you how.

If you have bad credit you may very well be turned down for that mortgage, auto loan, credit card or other credit you are thinking or trying to obtain. By planning ahead you can clean bad credit and not only get that credit you are seeking. But you will save money through lower interest and payments.

* Late payments are detrimental to your credit. Payment history will do the most damage to your credit. It is very important for you to make payments on time to clean bad credit.

* Secondly pay down the balances. Begin with the more recent ones as the older ones will not affect your credit as much.

* Avoid applying for new credit, as this will drive down your score if you have recent bad credit on your report.

* Your creditors can change the report wording. Call or send letters to them asking them to do this. “Seriously Late” could be replaced with “Slow Payment” and so on. If you work with your creditors and stay in good terms with them they are more willing to work with you and help you clean bad credit.

If you follow the above steps and are persistent you can improve and clean bad credit report scores. It will take a little time but it will be well worth it in saving money on interest rates and payments in the near future. Also there are often errors on your credit report. Now let’s take a look at the actions needed to get these off of your credit report which also will clean bad credit.

* An erroneous entry to your credit happens often and can hurt your scores. If you notice any errors you need to make a copy of the report and highlight these. Send this with explanations to the credit agencies and to the account creditors. Send by registered or certified mail. They have forty five days to reply. If they do not, send them a letter and refer to section 602,4b of the Fair Credit Reporting Act. Simply sending some letters can clean bad credit scores.

* A lot are intimidated by the creditors thinking the have complete records and can rebut their claim quickly. Actually a lot fail to keep good records. They are only kept for 13-18 months for a lot of the credit card institutes. And with all of the bank consolidations in past years, many of these companies failed to get the accounts from these companies. There is good opportunity to clean bad credit by mailing these.

* Section 611d states you are entitled a free corrected report from the credit bureau. If you do not receive one then send a letter.

Also you are allowed to add a one hundred word statement to your credit file. This would be a good way to explain why there are problem areas in your report, layoff, illness, etc. This is easy and free.

Take care of current credit, be proactive on late payments, pay down balances and dispute errors on your report and you will improve your credit scores. It will take time and perseverance, but you CAN clean bad credit.

Alex Nebwalz lost his job, his car, and his home; but he fought back to repair his credit and regain his life. He writes about his experience at his website cleaningupcredit.net where he discusses how to find your credit score, how to get your three credit report, get your free business credit report, fix your credit report, and clean bad credit.

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What To Know About Private Student Loans

February 10th, 2010 No comments

When looking for a student loan the first thing that you want to do is to go to the Free Application for Federal Student Aid website and fill out the application. This application will tell you if you qualify for any grants or government sponsored student loans. If you need more information about how to apply, you can contact your college’s financial aid office or you can visit the website and browse through the frequently asked questions section.

Once you have gotten a response back you will be able to determine if those loans are going to be enough to cover all of your educational costs. If they are, the last thing that you want to do is apply for any private student loans. If you still need some extra money, such as to help cover the expense of your books or to cover the rest of your tuition, then you will want to apply for private student loans. When applying for private student loans bad credit is something that you need to be aware of, but not overly concerned about.

Similar to bad credit auto loans, private student loans for people with bad credit are still available, but the interest rates are going to be a lot different. If you have bad credit, you can still apply for private student loans and qualify for a private student loan as long as your credit score is above 580, chances are good that you can be approved without a co-signer. If it is below 580 you can still be approved, but you will need to have a co-signer who has good credit.

When looking for private student loans you want to be careful because there are plenty of bad credit student loan scams out there. You want to look carefully and do your research on each company before applying for a private student loan.

Christian Debt Counseling Services: Aid or Trap?

February 10th, 2010 No comments

If you have considered Christian debt counseling services as the answer to your financial woes, you may have done so specifically because of the assumption that a so-called “Christian” company will automatically offer lower, or no, fees, be fair, and be legitimate.

Unfortunately, this is frequently not the case. In fact, many companies that have set out to scam consumers and take advantage of their vulnerability strategically use the word “Christian” in their title in hopes that you will make just such an assumption. They prey on your faith and your desperate financial situation, and their sole intent is to squeeze as much money out of you as possible.

Some companies make promises and don’t deliver because they are just plain bad companies. They have lazy staff, they don’t communicate well, etc. However, some companies are illegal scamming companies. The debt relief industry seems to attract these scammers because of the high emotional toll being deeply in debt plays on people. It is so hard to have bills that you just can’t pay, have people calling you up all hours of the day and telling they’re going to sue you if you don’t pay them and you’re just trying to figure out how to keep the lights on and buy groceries. Just be aware that these kinds of companies are out there and you can avoid them.

Because any body can promise anything, there are a few good way to protect yourself when you are looking for a good debt settlement company. First, I would get references, as many as you can. If you know someone who has successfully negotiated their debt, find out who they used. Second, look the companies up in the Better Business Bureau. Third, once you do hire a company understand that you are still ultimately responsible for your debt and nobody is going to work as hard as you to fix you. Do not pay large sums of money up front, don’t sign any long term contracts with them, and don’t give them electronic access to your bank account so you can quit quickly & easily if they are one of those bad companies.

In the end, just protect yourself. Be aware, and put the things in place so that you don’t end up a victim, but can choose a great debt settlement company and become debt free in a few years.

C. Arnold is an professional in budgeting and debt management. To learn more about Christian Debt Counseling.