In the article, we will discuss how to remove negative items from your credit report. You don’t need to pay someone else to do this for you; it’s easy to do it if you follow the steps below.

Poor credit is a problem that is more critical than most of us know. You’re probably aware that having a loan for a home or car can be difficult or impossible with a low FICO score. You do not know, however, that bad credit may also make having a job difficult. Poor credit can also mean you are paying higher premiums for insurance.

To assess their risk level in employing someone or taking them on as a customer, employers and insurance firms look at credit reports.

Bad credit is more than just a downside. Over the years, in the form of lost opportunities, increased insurance costs, and higher interest rates, it could cost you tens of thousands of dollars.

The Fair Credit Reporting Act

The Fair Credit Reporting Act dictates what type of information can be on your credit report and how long it can be there. This law also allows you to enforce your right to have accurate credit information reported, as well as have any errors from your credit report removed. When it comes to repairing your credit, this law can become your best friend.

Removing Invalid Information From Your Credit Report

Follow these steps to get inaccurate information taken off of your credit report:

1. First, order a copy of your credit report. You can contact the three main credit bureaus, Experian, Trans Union, and Equifax, to obtain a free copy once a year.

2. Look for errors on your credit reports. Sometimes companies make errors, and you may have blemishes on your credit report that never happened.

• It’s also possible that you’ve been a victim of identity theft. Many victims don’t even realize this until they look at their credit report or get a call from a collection agency trying to get them to pay for an account they didn’t open.

3. Contact the credit agencies. You can send a letter to the credit agencies by mail or e-mail to dispute any errors you may find.

• The burden of proof is on the credit agencies, and it’s up to them to investigate and verify the entries on your credit report. If there’s an error or unable to verify the accuracy of the entry, they’re required to remove that entry.

• It’s even possible to dispute errors on your credit report by directly contacting the companies reporting those errors. When you dispute the item in writing, the business in question has to conduct an investigation. If the item is an error, they notify the credit bureaus, and the error is removed.

{RELATED – HOW TO FIX YOUR CREDIT REPORT SO YOU CAN BUY A HOME}

Removing Valid, Negative Entries from Your Credit Report

Unfortunately, there may be items that are negatively affecting your credit score that are accurate. If you have overdrawn accounts, late payments, or accounts in collections, there are still some things you can try to do to get those items removed.

Find out how to get negative entries removed from your credit report, even if they’re legitimate:

1. Make a “Pay for Delete Offer” to get delinquent accounts removed from your credit report. With a Pay for Delete Offer, you’re negotiating with a creditor that is reporting negative items to the credit reporting agencies.

• You’re offering to pay the account in full, and in exchange, your creditor agrees to remove the negative item from your credit report.

• This isn’t a foolproof technique. Some creditors will accept this deal, and some won’t.

2. Make a goodwill request for deletion. This strategy is used if you’ve already paid off the account in question. You’re basically asking the creditor if they’ll stop reporting the account’s negative details since the account has been paid.

As errors can and do occur, it is imperative to review your credit score at least once a year. You’ll want to delete those mistakes as soon as possible from your credit report.

It’s more difficult to have them removed if the derogatory items on your credit report are correct. It’s worth attempting to negotiate with your creditors, though. Otherwise, waiting seven years for those negative things to expire is your only other choice.

3. Wait Out The Credit Report Time Limit 

If all else fails, your only choice is to wait for those negative items to fall off your credit report. Fortunately, the law only allows most negative information to be reported for seven years.

The exception is bankruptcy, which can be reported for up to 10 years. The other good news is that negative information affects your credit score less as it gets older and as you replace it with positive information. The wait may not be as difficult as you’d think. Consumers can request their own credit report for free every 12 months from the three major reporting agencies. So, to be sure, you should request a report after the aging period to confirm.

However, it is important to note that while the credit reporting agency will generally delete the negative information from the report after the seven-year aging period, information may still be kept on file and can be released under certain circumstances. Those circumstances include applying for a job that pays over a certain amount or applying for a credit line or a life insurance policy worth over a certain amount. Depending on where you live, there may be more favorable regulations under state law, such as a shorter statute-of-limitations. You should contact your state’s Attorney General’s office for more information.

Reasons Why Your Credit Score is Low

A low credit score is a big deal to every person. A low score can be rather embarrassing to a person trying to buy a car or apply for a loan, especially if the loan is turned down because of a bad score. To fix your score, it would be helpful to understand what can make it drop. Here are some reasons why your score can be low.

• Late payments that are more than 30 days late can lower your score.
• Expensive purchases can lower your score for a set period of time.
• An unpaid debt that was sent to collections will lower your score.
• A negative comment was made on your report.
• Opening a new line of credit can affect your score.
• A change in debt to balance ratio will lower a score.
• Closing a credit account will affect your credit score.
• Bankruptcy will affect your credit for up to seven years after the initial filing.

It all comes down to good financial management skills. Lenders and creditors want to see a pattern of good financial skills.

In the article, we discussed how to remove negative items from your credit report. If you follow these steps, you too can have great credit. 

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