| Ads, Ads, and More Ads | | | | guidelines of the FCRA. This is great news for |
| Advertisements abound nearly everywhere these | | | | consumers! However, there is a caveat. |
| days selling products and services that claim they | | | | Thanks to the Fair Credit Reporting Act, it is easy to |
| hold secrets to help you repair your credit. These ads | | | | improve your credit score considerably in a very |
| present cliché claims which press emotional | | | | short period of time with little effort on your part. |
| hot buttons: | | | | Although the effort on your part is minimal and takes |
| "My credit score jumped 105 pts in just 12 hours!" | | | | little time to accomplish, it is essential that you are |
| "Destroy your bad credit and annihilate your debt in | | | | accurately informed about how to go about it. One |
| just 4 magical steps!" | | | | thing you should avoid is a "boiler plate" dispute letter. |
| What value do these companies actually provide | | | | Creditors do not always take them seriously. |
| customers who want to erase bad credit overnight? | | | | How to Approach the Creditors |
| Can anyone actually get a major credit card without | | | | The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) says "Anything |
| providing a deposit and without submitting to a credit | | | | a Credit Repair Clinic can do for you legally, you can |
| check? Or are these claims always too good to be | | | | do for yourself at little or no cost." The crucial |
| true? Unfortunately, there is no global answer for | | | | component needed in order to succeed is to stay up |
| these types of claims. | | | | to date regarding the proper actions that produce |
| The Verdict | | | | the best results. This involves strategies such as |
| There are many people who would have you believe | | | | "Proof of Contract," "Constructive Notice," "Challenge |
| that only time can repair bad credit. In reality, time is | | | | of Procedure," "Restrictive Endorsement" or several |
| only one factor that can fix a credit report, but there | | | | others. |
| are many other solutions to this problem. | | | | It's Never as Hard as You Think |
| A consumer protection law known as the Fair Credit | | | | Although these terms may sound daunting they are |
| Reporting Act ("FCRA") states: the only negative | | | | actually fairly straightforward to implement. It |
| items which can remain on your credit report are | | | | ultimately exercises your consumer protection rights |
| those which can be proven as accurate. | | | | by communicating in a way that attains desired |
| What This Means to You | | | | results and raises your credit score. It all starts by |
| This means that any negative item on your credit | | | | requesting a free copy of your credit report from |
| report can only remain there if: (a) it is accurate and | | | | one of the credit bureaus or the numerous other |
| (b) it can be proven to be accurate under the | | | | free, online sources. |