3 Tactics To Get A Collection Removed From Your Credit Report

I wrote a post awhile back on how to remove late payments from your credit report and it was insanely popular. There are also some great tactics for getting a collection removed that I wanted to share with you.

Get a copy of your current credit report and vigorously verify that all the information is being reported correctly. You should be checking every little piece of data. More than likely, you’ll find a mistake somewhere, and when you do, you can dispute the collection and write a letter to the credit agencies requesting that they remove the collection. Now, this doesn’t mean that they will –they might simply correct the inaccuracy. However, if they can’t verify or obtain the correct data, they might just delete the collection altogether.

You should check the following things:

Account numberBalanceDate openedAccount status (e.g., Closed)Payment status (e.g., Collection)High BalanceCredit LimitAnything else that appears to be inaccurate

I can’t speak from personal experience on this one, but several people have told me they’ve had success contacting the original creditor. Most of the time when a debt goes into collections, the debt is actually sold to the collection agency (or they get some kind of bounty for getting you to pay). However, some creditors have internal collection departments –they are usually under a different company name so you’d never know.

By contacting the original creditor, you will probably need to offer the pay the full amount due to make any headway. Even then, many will simply say, “Sorry, it’s already gone to collections”. However, if the collection agency is actually an internal dept. of the creditor, they may agree to have the collection removed if you pay in full.

Try it and let me know how it works.

It’s no secret that collection agencies can’t be trusted. An article published by Kiplinger entitled, Confessions of a Debt Collector, attests to this. You don’t know what kind of silly fees they are adding to your original balance. Are the fees even legit? Who knows…

Luckily, you have the right to demand that they validate the debt under section 809 of The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act. If they can’t validate it, they have to stop contacting you and remove the entry from your credit report. The only downside to this is that you have to request validation within 30 days of their initial contact. Don’t put this off –if you get a collection letter in the mail, sit down and write a short, stern letter stating that you are requesting debt validation. If you don’t hear back from them, you can probably assume they couldn’t fulfill your request.

If you guys have any tactics you’ve been successful with that I didn’t list here, please share! I’m sure other readers would love to hear them.

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How To Build Credit (Even When You Don’t Have Any)

There is a lot of outdated crap on the internet about how to build credit when you don’t have any and I’m tired of hearing the same stuff over and over. I’m going to tell you the best way to build credit. It’s actually pretty easy if you follow these steps. These techniques also work if you’re trying to rebuild credit.

Back in the day you used to be able to build credit by becoming an authorized user on your parent’s credit card or having them co-sign on a car for you. While you can still do this, it’s not going to help build your credit much. Your credit score is no longer affected very much by this. Nonetheless, you still hear countless people tell you that’s the first thing you should do. They aren’t lying to you, their info is just outdated. That’s OK This happened fairly recently… a couple of years ago.

Chances are, if you don’t have any credit history, you’re not going to be accepted for a major credit card like American Express, Discover, Chase, Citi, etc. The thing is, when you apply, however, you’ll suddenly have credit history –history showing that you applied for a credit card. This is called an “inquiry” and multiple inquiries lower your credit score.

Now, sometimes one of the major credit card companies will send you a pre-approval offer even if you don’t have any credit, and the truth is, you might get accepted. However, I wouldn’t recommend going this route. There are a few reasons why that I’ll get into in a sec. Main point: hold off on applying for that shiny new American Express card.

Think of a secured card as a debit card that builds credit history. In other words, you aren’t actually getting a line of credit –you have to “secure” the card, you have to deposit the money like a debit card. However, unlike a debit card, every month it gets reported to the credit bureaus. There are several reasons why this is a great way to build credit. First, you can’t get yourself in too much trouble. When you have an American Express card with a $5k credit limit on it, you have to be really careful and responsible with it. That’s why they don’t just hand them out to anyone. You have to prove yourself. I know it’s easy to say, “Oh I’d be responsible with it, I’m not an idiot.”, and I’m not saying you are, but it’s very easy to get into trouble unless you have experience with credit.

Another reason why a secured card is great for building (and rebuilding) credit is that you can get one with a relatively small deposit minimum. Many secured cards have deposit minimums as low as $200. I personally recommend a Capital Bank VISA® Secured Credit Card . I got one of these several years ago when I was rebuilding credit and it worked out very well for me.

Lastly, it should be noted that most of these cards have an annual fee. That’s just something you’re going to have to deal with for a year or so. It’s a small price to pay for good credit. Trust me, because not having any credit can cost you thousands in the long run.

Once you get your secured card, make sure you pay it every month. Don’t mess this up! Also, don’t make the mistake of not using the card. You need to use the card in order to show that you can responsibly use credit. Remember, that’s the goal here. With that said, you don’t have to use it for every purchase you make. You can simply use it a few times every month. For example, using your secured card for gas purchases is a great way to go about this.

You will need to build your credit history with this card for about 6 months to a year. So, unfortunately it does take awhile to build credit, but there is no way around this. Don’t believe people/websites that claim you can do it faster –you can’t. These people aren’t smarter than the folks at FICO. They are liars and crooks.

Now that you’ve had your secured card for a year or so and it has perfect payment history, you’re ready to apply for a major credit card. You have many options but don’t expect to receive a huge credit limit. That’s OK! You’ve made progress and you should be proud of yourself. Having a major credit card on your credit report is great for your credit score (unless you pay late). In other words, major credit cards are “worth” more than charge cards or secured cards when it comes to your credit score.

So which major credit card should you apply for? Like I said, you have a lot of options. Discover Open Road Card is a great card.

You’ve got some great experience handling credit with your secured card over the past year so pass those good behaviors over to your new major credit card. Credit cards can be great if you use them wisely. That’s one of the reason why I said I don’t recommend getting a major credit card in the beginning. You need to slowly move towards it. Then you’ll “get it”, and everything will be great.

I wish you all the best luck and let me know how it works out!

Also, if any of you want to share your experiences, please do so below!

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On Dave Ramsey and Why You Shouldn’t Cut Up All Your Credit Cards

First of all, this isn’t a “bash Dave Ramsey” post. Rather, I greatly admire Dave Ramsey and his overall philosophy on personal finance.

I’m sure most of you have heard of Dave Ramsey (he seems to be everywhere these days), but for those of you who haven’t, Dave Ramsey is a popular financial guru –he has a radio show as well as a TV program on the Fox Business channel.

Dave teaches what he calls “The Baby Steps“. The Baby Steps comprise of 7 steps that Dave believes anyone can take to achieve wealth (or as he calls it, “financial peace”). Dave outlines these steps in great detail in his book, The Total Money Makeover.

I first read his book about a year ago and I have been listening to his free podcast on iTunes for about 4 months. I definitely recommend this book to anyone who is just starting to get a handle on their personal finances.

The process Dave uses in The Total Money Makeover is to take the reader through a journey as though they are completing each baby step during the read. Before discussing the particulars of each step and the subsequent reward, Dave methodically strives to hammer one idea into the reader’s head: Your money problems are your fault and it’s only through self-decipline in handling money matters that you can achieve financial peace. Basically he says that his steps will only work if you change your behavior in regards to money. I couldn’t agree more.

I am not going to review each one of Dave’s baby steps in this post (you can get them from his website), but I want to touch on the first two and express what I believe to be inconsistent (and potentially unhelpful) advice. I’d also like to open the discussion up so please comment or email me with your thoughts.

Dave’s first baby step is to save $1000 in an emergency fund –that is, money that should only be used if you find yourself in dire straits while you’re working on baby step 2.
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As a prelude to outlining baby step 2, Dave suggests that you get intense and do something drastic: cut up all your credit cards (he calls this a “plasectomy”). He tells the reader to close all credit card accounts that are paid off and pay off any credit card account with a balance as quickly as possible and then close the account.

Baby step 2 says to pay off all your debt (except the house), smallest to largest. At this point, he is assuming the reader has sworn off credit completely –forever.

This is where I find several inconsistencies. First of all, there is a big fat elephant in the room which Dave cannot avoid: closing all of your credit card accounts is going to ruin your credit score.

Dave’s response to this is simple, but in reality, misleading and unhelpful to most people. Dave says that people ought not concern themselves with their credit score. After all, having sworn off credit himself, he doesn’t even have a FICO score.

Dave claims that if you use his baby steps you will become rich, and I believe him. However, it should also be noted that even he admits this process takes decades. Do you want to pay an extra $50 per month on your car insurance until you become rich because you don’t have a FICO score? I don’t. Your car insurance premium is only one out of dozens of problems that will arise in your life with a poor (or no) credit score.

Do you ever want to get a decent rate on a mortgage? This is debt that Dave permits, by the way, because even he realized that most people cannot simply save $150,000 or more. Nonetheless, there is no such thing as a mortgage lender who doesn’t at least look at your FICO score. I dare anyone to find one, honestly.

Aside from the problem of ruining your credit score, the inconsistency really lies in the fact that prior to this, as we have discussed, Dave says that we need to become disciplined in money matters, yet at the same time he tells us that we lack the self-restraint to maintain an open credit card account without charging it off. The point is that anyone who lacks the ability to not use their credit card, more than likely also lacks the ability to save their $1000 emergency fund just for emergencies.

This all, of course, is a journey where we are suppose to acquire the skills to be successful with money, and this requires that we teach ourselves self-restraint rather than destroy the ability to be tempted.

Again, I wholeheartedly treasure Dave’s overall financial advice –it’s a real gem. However, I would kindly suggest that anyone who is starting with Dave’s Baby Steps, reconsider closing your credit card accounts. After all, with a little self-restraint taught by Dave Ramsey, it’s just as easy to put your cards in a dresser drawer and not use them.

Tagged as: Book Review, credit score, dave ramsey, debt, debt snowball

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3 Surprising Tactics Rich People Use To Grow Their Money

Let’s be honest, most of us daydream about what we would do if we were rich. We imagine doing stuff like quitting our jobs, buying a boat, and spending the rest of our lives sailing around the world. It brings a certain satisfaction dreaming about such things, but is this really how rich people spend their time?

Several years ago a couple of researchers named Thomas J. Stanley and William D. Danko wondered the same thing. Their curiously led them to spend several years studying the habits of millionaires. Their findings are documented in the book, The Millionaire Next Door.

I highly recommend you check it out if you are at all interested in someday becoming wealthy. You might be surprised to learn that most self-made millionaires are extremely frugal. In fact, out of all the millionaires they profiled, the most wealthy drove the oldest cars and had smaller homes compared to their peers.

Here are some of the most surprising tactics used by millionaires to manage (and grow) their money.

On average, millionaires spend almost 20% of their income on investments. More importantly, these people spent time activity researching their investments. In other words, investing isn’t viewed as simply a retirement plan, but rather, one of the most important drivers of their wealth and future security.

Surprisingly, most millionaires have a budget and consider it important to stick to it. In other words, they have a plan. And in the end, this really does make a huge difference. How many people do you know who actually keep a budget?

The most popular make of car among millionaires is Toyota. In fact, over 80% of luxury cars are purchased by non-millionaires –that is, people trying to create the illusion of wealth.

I would love to hear your thoughts on this. Are you surprised? Perhaps you have read the book and want to contribute. If so, feel free to leave a comment below.

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Repair your credit now - service through credit credit counseling

Managing your money is not different from any other skill in life - some people seem to have a natural ability to do well, while most of us need to learn how to do it well. With a debt so common today with the widespread use of cards of credit, personal loans and mortgages, manage their money well is more important than ever. Best your story face its debts and creditors, easier it will be to more funds when necessary.

If, however, scramble and miss some payments or enter into default with a creditor, they will suffer your credit history. Having a bad credit rating can adversely affect you for years, limiting their opportunities for finance. ASAP of that begin the process of credit repair, more quickly be able to build their credit rating to a level that is acceptable to the lenders. A credit counselor can be a great help, because of its extensive formerexperience in credit repair.

Credit counseling is usually offered by nonprofit groups. There are some companies that offer credit repair services, but these are different. They should also be avoided, as many are configured as scams, particularly those that advertise online. You are in a worse situation than ever if you fall victim to one of these fraudulent schemes. Some credit repair companies are reputable, but do you really want to give more money to them to do the things that you can do for yourself? Some also used questionable techniques to repair your credit, including trying to get a clean credit rating using an alternative address.

A credit counseling service however, exists purely to advise. His advice is generally sound, because there is no profit motivating them to recommend certain services or strategies that actually may not be suitable for your situation. So using a credit counseling service is a sensible way to develop and implement a strategy of credit repair .

It is also important to note that no matter that you help rebuild a credit history poor take considerable time and effort. Once again, a credit counselor is more likely to give you a realistic picture of what is involved in repairing your credit, so it isn't disappointed when the problem does not disappear overnight. You need long term plans, and the discipline to adhere to them. A credit counselor will help you develop a strategy that is manageable and effective for you.

More credit counseling will provide advice, educational materials and workshops to help you to return to the right path. Another element of their finances that can help you with is setting a budget. You have a clear idea of how money flows in and out each month will facilitate stick to their budget and restore your credit. Some services will also give personalized advice and specific training for your situation, giving you the tools you need to make good economic decisions for their own circumstances.

This is the great difference between credit repair companies and credit counseling services. You should be suspected of any company that gives basically the same one size fits all solution to its customers. It may sound well when a company says they can repair your credit whatever happens, but without knowing something about your personal circumstances, no one can claim something like this. Main objective of a credit counselor is to understand their individual circumstances, so it can provide a solution specifically for your situation.

The other benefit of using a service of credit report or credit counselor is that your solution is intended to be permanent. So once that its debts under control, his budget and stick to it, in the long run that will begin their financial circumstances improve. This means that even though the credit repair is complete, you will have learned the tools and techniques you need to prevent him from getting back into trouble. To start with a quick fix of a credit repair company you can feel good, but unless you learn what they did wrong, you will not be able to prevent to recur. So approaching a counselor credit if you want to credit repair to be permanent.

Do a free credit report to need or want to quickly and easily improve your credit score? Try to free-online-instant-credit-report.info, a Web site of free credit report people that provides tips, advice and resources including information on credit report repair, credit accounts, credit report disputes and credit report services.

Credit - a work of DIY repair?

Credit repair services and people that they should be ashamed of themselves. Some of them take advantage of those trying desperately to solve their financial problems.

Can you repair your credit without the assistance of some of these so-called credit repair services?

Yes! What so soon you will be able to repair your credit depends on the amount of debt you have purchased and your discipline.

First, find out where you are with the three credit reporting agencies Equifax, TransUnion and Experian. Get your report of the three. Please do not take the advice of your friends and request credit get rejected. This method has at times been warned as a way to get your free credit reports. Do not do this! Whenever you request a loan or credit card and get rejected, it goes against your score. The majority of credit reports only cost around $20 and if you think about it, you will cost less in the long run. If you are building your credit, you need to consider the panorama.

When reviewing their reports of credit, see if there are any errors and if there are, contest them immediately. The creditor must check out your claim and if they can not get that the debt is valid, it must be removed from your credit report.

If your credit is really bad and you are having difficulties to obtain a credit card, you can consider a pre-paid card. It is virtually impossible to buy anything online without a credit card. Lenders today offer Visa prepaid and Master cards that function like credit cards.

But be forewarned. Prepaid cards are a great start in the right direction to build your credit, but most cards offer nothing online to restore the results of the last credit. Prepaid cards are treated as credit cards in a way, but gradually build your credit.

There are other types of credit cards available that are intended to help restore their credit rating. Some card providers offer a lump sum of credit, but you have to pay around $200 or $300 in advance. The disadvantage is that some of these companies are fraudulent and work hard at taking your money, but at the same time provide no results.

Continue to pay your bills and avoid spending money on items you don't need. It is the discipline.

Many people spend a fortune over the years in articles that end up on eBay or turn off in a weekend at a garage sale. You will pay in the long run to think about their choices of spending in the first place, to avoid problems later.

Bad credit is only an obstacle, and to overcome the obstacle, you have to take the necessary measures to get around it with thought and discipline...

Frank Mayes is a 51 year old professional and entrepreneur's business tax growth-oriented House. Owned and operated a tax on the income of house service for more than 25 years. Its objective is to partner with entrepreneurs who have the desire to earn six-figure business online. Check out your website and collect your free cash building strategies report - http://www.born-to-prosper.com

5 Amazingly Simple Techniques to Optimize Your Credit Score

Forget maxing out your credit cards, here are some easy techniques anyone can use to max out your credit score. Most of these techniques can be used by those who have both good and bad credit. I recommend that you try to do as many as possible on an ongoing basis.

There are two types of credit inquires that might show up on your credit report. One can negatively affect your credit score, and one doesn’t.

Soft Inquiry: This type of inquiry will not negatively affect your credit score so you shouldn’t worry about these. Examples of soft inquires are when you check your credit report, an employer pulls your credit report, or when you use a credit monitoring service.Hard Inquiry: This type of inquiry can impact your credit score (but not always). Examples of hard inquires are when you apply for a credit card, a car loan, etc.

The main thing to keep in mind when it comes to credit inquires is that a hard inquiry means you are applying for credit, while a soft inquiry is simply you (or someone else) looking at your credit report for reasons other than loaning you money.

As a general rule, you should keep hard inquiries under 2 during any given two year period. Hard inquiries fall off your credit report after two years. This basically tells lenders that you aren’t actively looking for a bunch of credit. You may start to see your credit score negatively affected once you hit three or more hard inquires. Having more than two hard inquires won’t kill your credit score, but it will likely take a few points off.

There are 4 types of credit accounts on your credit report and the type of an account determines how much of an impact it has on your credit score. I put together the graphic below to show you which types matter the most.

It’s best to keep a mixture of all these account types. It doesn’t mean that you should close your retail cards, it simply means that a real estate loan will more than likely have a bigger impact on your credit score than a retail card or credit card.

Maxing out your credit cards will kill your credit score really fast. Credit vs. Debt ratios are something people often overlook. Most people think that their credit score isn’t impacted unless they are late on a payment. This isn’t true! In fact, I would suggest keeping each credit card under 25% utilization. In other words, don’t charge up more than 25% of your available credit on any particular card.

If you have already charged more than 25%, paying it down to under 25% can significantly increase your score. I have written an entire article about credit utilization that you should check out if you want to understand it more in depth.

This one can sometimes be difficult for people who have bad credit, but it should be something you work towards in the long run. Since major credit card companies usually require decent credit to approve you for one of their credit cards, having one (or a few) shows that they trust you. This will positively affect your credit score. Again, if you have bad credit, simply keep this in mind and work towards getting to the point where you can get approved for a Visa or Mastercard.

I should also mention that if you don’t have any credit, sometimes major credit card companies will approve you. Consider this your trial period and don’t screw it up

A mistake that I see people do again and again (and one I did myself, actually) is close old accounts thinking that it will improve their credit score. A person usually does this because the old account has a late payment or something. The truth is, this isn’t going to make the late payment “go away” –it will still be there. What you will do by closing an old account is stop building history for that account.

There are several factors used to calculate your credit score (see chart below), and your credit length makes up a significant portion: 15%. By keeping old accounts open, the account continues to build credit history and this is a good thing! In the long run, your credit score will usually benefit.

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