Sculpting your score - top ten ways to chip away at poor credit
What's harder to improve—your credit score or your bowling score? I'd say the latter. In bowling, eventually you'll hit a wall (not literally) where you've exhausted all the ways to improve. If you ever miraculously roll a 300, you're definitely done. As they say in the beer commercials, it doesn't get any better.
If your credit score is 300 (or even 600), you have a long way to go in the "uphill" direction. There are enough ways to improve a low credit score to fill many books (and they have). Here are our top ten.
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Pay your bills on time
(This just in, courtesy of the Duh Department.) Delinquent payments and collections can have a major negative impact on your score. If you have missed payments, get current and stay current. The longer you pay your bills on time, the better your credit score.
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Don't open new credit accounts you don't need
"Fifteen percent off today's purchase" can be an attractive offer. Consider the effects on your credit, particularly if you're over-carded already.
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Spread it around
If you have two accounts each with credit limits of $5,000 apiece, it's better to carry $2,500 on each than $5,000 on one. Rating agencies frown on maxed out accounts.
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Dispute significant errors
Your credit report (available for free at FreeCreditReport.com) may include misinformation about late payments, charge-offs, and credit limits lower than they really are. Write to the reporting agency and correct the record. Negative items more than seven years old should automatically fall off your report.
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Marry Donald Trump
Nobody said this would be easy.
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Get professional help
There are many free resources for consumer credit counseling and you can locate an agency through the National Foundation for Credit Counseling.
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Call your creditors
Tell them your situation. Many of them have temporary hardship programs that will reduce your payments until you can get back on your feet.
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Buy a home
No single thing boosts a credit score more effectively than a long-term record of staying current on a mortgage. This tactic has the double benefit of putting a roof over your head.
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Be patient
A significant credit cleanup takes time—at least a couple of years. Think of it as a lifestyle change rather than a quick fix.
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And the number 1 tip for improving your credit and your life in general
... Make more money! There are so many ways to increase your income and asset base through some targeted training and creative thinking. Real estate investing, for one, has created more millionaires than any other single path to wealth. We live in a land of opportunity. You can't scrimp and save your way to affluence. Get out there and get educated to get rich.
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I bet you wrote down your goals in January 1st this year. Is that all? Did you re-think them this month and write them down again? If you don't know what your goals are, how are you going to measure whether you've reached them? And, I would bet that if ...
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Comments
It's a website put together by the credit agencies and is the ONLY true way to get your credit report free online. Other sites require a credit card # and will charge you if you forget to notify them within 30 days.
Crystal Beard
Ambient Home Lending
http://www.ambientlending.com
A 620 + Beacon Score
2 Years Verifiable employment
29% Income ratio
41% Debt Ratio
2 Years tax returns that correspond to the income
Sales Contract.
This loan I can close most buyers with 100% USDA or FHA 3.5% Financing in Suburban and rural areas in 5-7 days.
Seller consessions and Gifts take a little longer.
Other types of credit and loans we have to work on and work with the situation we can assist you in getting to a 620 score sometimes in as little as two days, verifying income through other sources such as small business owners option is a CPA's review of financial statements and Co signers for those that cant make the debt ratio's.
25 months out of Bankruptcy and letters of explanation and alot of me begging my Executives you can buy a home with a 620+ Beacon.
How much you put down is really not viable anymore except to lower the debt and income ratios to get a loan.
BUT
The website for your free credit report every year is http://www.AnnualCreditReport.com .
Only AnnualCreditReport.com and its members (Equifax.com, Experian.com, Transunion.com) are legally authorized to provide the free credit report as described in the FACT Act.
Don't get frustrated whenFreeAnnualCreditReport.com doesn't seem to be loading...that website doesn't exist!
Also - "Make more money"? Gee, thanks for the sage advice! And how do they recommend increasing income: real estate investment (read: house-flipping)? Uh, yeah OK, see above. Besides, all that flipping was part of what got us into the mortgage/housing crisis in the first place wasn't it?
How 'bout "Win the lottery," that's a useful and practical tip! lol
To own try lease purchase or land contract-less choices but a could be a way to buy a home-if not advertise to your friends,co-workers, church group,or organization and anyone who will listen you want to own your own home and would be willing to consider any reasonable offers. If you don't belong to any organization join one that is of interest..
A couple of tips of improvement pertain to an isolated late payment or collection/charge off
If you have a good history with a seasoned account and then forgot to put the payment in the mail that results in a 1 X 30 day late, plead your case and ask the creditor to remove the adverse history.
On a collection / charge off don't settle for a simple negotiated settlement that is updated to read "satisfied". They want your money and agree on better terms. Negotiate the amount under the stipulation and that they send you a letter stating that is is satisfied and the adverse action should be removed from your credit profile. In turn you can apply for a rapid rescore or wait for the cyclical update.
We're seeing creditors and collection agencies agree to this on several occassions and as a result credit scores are improving. Subsequently folks become eligible or find better terms as a result of higher scores.
Steve Morgan
Fairfax Mortgage Investments
302-541-5363
Leo Namiot
http://www.LeoLends.com