Who is MSI Credit Solutions?

MSI Credit Solutions is a privately held credit repair company that operates out of Dallas, Texas. The company is a bonded agency that operates in compliance with both Federal and State laws. They are registered with the Texas secretary of state and they have ten years of experience in the credit repair business .

One unique quality of MSI is the fact that they have Spanish-speaking agents for those whose first language is not English. The company offers the option to work either online or by phone to help you repair your credit.

How do they operate?

MSI provides a free consultation, which is then followed by a plan they customize for each new customer. Because they do personalized profiles on each client, they can tailor their methods and services according to each client. They are not the cheapest credit repair agency, but the customized service may be worth the cost for some consumers.

MSI provides help with all types of negative items that you might find on your credit report, and they offer unlimited debt validations and credit bureau disputes as a part of their monthly service. You can cancel any time – there are no long term preset obligations. They’ll also let you pause your membership if you find yourself running too tight on funds to pay them until you are ready to continue their services.

What’s their focus?

MSI Credit Solutions has several key operating principles, but the main one is that they do their work in an efficient and timely manner. This means that while they may be more costly than some other credit repair companies, they also get results faster, and in the long run can save people money.

Another principle is providing unique services: MSI Credit Solutions charges based on the negative items on the credit report rather than using a one-size-fits-all approach.

This does not, however, mean that they limit their services in terms of what types of negative listings they handle. MSI Credit Solutions will help remove any inaccurate negative information, from late payments to bankruptcies.

The last area where MSI Credit Solutions stands out is their credit rebuilding partnerships. By partnering with companies and lenders in various industries, they can help their customers to qualify for new credit, even as they work on repairing their customers’ current credit files. This can be highly useful if you need to qualify for a loan in the near future, but aren’t sure which lender might accept your current credit score.

Reasons Not to Choose MSI Credit Solutions

This is not a company to consult if you want to know what you’re going to be charged before they even get started. They are not a flat fee credit repair agency and this may not be suitable for people who are on a very strict budget.

Because MSI Credit Solutions tailors each program to the individual client, the prices cannot be offered on a list ahead of time. This is also not a company to choose if you want “support” services — i.e. protection against identity theft, credit score monitoring and other supplementary offerings.

Overall, if you choose to go with MSI Credit Solutions, you need to be prepared to take a little more time with the initial set-up, and be sure to provide clear and thorough information to the company in order to get a plan that really fits your needs.

Fortunately, there is a 5-step process you can go through to get on the right track and fix your credit with the help of a reputable credit repair agency.

All the materials you need are probably already in your home — a phone, a way to keep notes (pen and paper is fine), and your financial documentation. This last can be anything from payment receipts to invoices and everything in between that is correspondence between you and your creditors.

Your financial documents are essential to the process, so if you haven’t been keeping good records, now is the time to start.

However, your most important tool is your willingness to actually do the work to get it done.

Five-Step Plan to Fix Your Credit

Step 1: Assess Your Situation

Get your credit file. This can be done in a number of ways. You can get a free copy of your report annually, but you may be entitled to a second copy, depending upon the state you live in. It is also your right to get a copy of your credit report any time you are denied credit.

You can request any of these free copies either online through the annual credit report website, or by writing in to the three bureaus. If you are working with a credit repair company, they may or may not be able to pull your credit file on your behalf. Make sure to ask if their service counts as a “hard” inquiry to your credit file, and if so, avoid using that service in favor of getting the copies yourself.

Once you have your credit files, you should look over each one for obvious errors. Check for bills that you’ve paid off, and items that were reported incorrectly — these are two fairly common errors and if you have receipts or other proof they are very easy for a credit repair agency to remove on your behalf.

Also be on the lookout for any negative items that are more than ten years old, anything you don’t recognize as a debt you owe, or anything that appears more than once. All of these types of potential errors should be investigated and more than likely you can successfully dispute this information. This will automatically start to move your credit score a little higher for each one successfully removed.

Step 2: Know Your Rights

As stated earlier, you’re entitled to a free copy of your credit report if a company takes adverse action against you, such as denying you credit. However, you can also get a free copy of your credit report if you are denied employment or insurance if you ask for your report within 60 days of getting notice of the event. This will let you find out what is on your record that they’re using as a basis to judge you as a bad credit risk.

Any inaccurate items you find in this circumstance should be disputed as soon as possible. This is another right you have as a consumer. You can demand that the creditor validates the debt or that it be removed from your report.

You can dispute payments that were made on time but reported late, accounts that are not yours, incorrect balances, creditors or account statuses – all are disputable, and if you know your information and have proof in the form of documentation (bank statements, bills with the correct information and date, etc.) then you should provide that information to the credit repair company as well so they can properly document your dispute.

An important note to providing your records — always provide copies, never the originals. Items can and do get lost in the mail and you don’t want to lose your only proof that the debt is not yours.

The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) is a collection of laws designed to help protect consumers from unethical and predatory debt collection practices. It is enforced by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), the consumer protection agency. The FDCPA is in place to stop debt collectors from harassing and using unfair and outright deceptive ways to collect on debt. Any professional credit repair company should be able to help you understand your rights under the FDCPA as well as other consumer credit laws.

Step 3: Seek Help

Some people try to go it alone for credit repair, while others turn to credit repair agencies for help. If you are having problems with trying to fix your credit, you can hire an agency for assistance.

Stay away from credit repair company that charges large amounts of money up front, does not want you to contact the three national credit report agencies, or that makes promises that sound unrealistic. Never try to create a new credit identity to fix your credit — that’s fraud and you could face criminal charges as a result, even if you were taking the advice of a credit repair company.

If you aren’t sure which credit repair company to use to fix your credit, we have reviews of companies like Lexington Law and Ovation with good reputations who offer free consult and often will give you free advice.

Step 4: Follow Up

If you want to fix your credit, you need to keep up with your disputes and how any other credit repair efforts are developing. A good rule of thumb is that if you haven’t heard anything or received any updates within 30-60 days, you should check up on the situation.

When an investigation is completed, the credit bureau must send you results and a free copy of your report if there was any change brought about by your dispute. Keep up with this updated report — you may need it as proof if another debt collector tries to add the same inaccurate debts at a later time.

Step 5: Stay Informed

Once you have done all the hard work to fix your credit (with or without the help of a credit repair company), you can’t just kick back and assume it is going to be that way for good. Finances and credit scores are like a garden — if you want to reap the benefits, you have to keep it well tended and weed out anything that shouldn’t be there.

Remember, you’re entitled to a free credit report every year. Since there are three companies that keep the information, if you stagger your reports throughout the year, you will be able to keep a careful eye on what your credit file contains. Bear in mind, however, that not all creditors report to all three bureaus, so if there is something amiss on one report, it may or may not be on the others, and vice versa.

However, if you keep track of your credit this way, you will have a better idea of your overall credit health and you can fix your credit the moment you spot any problems.

If you suddenly get a phone call from a debt collector called Alliance One trying to collect a debt they believe you owe, be on alert. This company is well-known for calling people at work, late at night, and making harassing calls to family, friends and neighbors all in the name of getting you to pay.

Even if you don’t really owe anything, Alliance One may still report the debts and lower your credit scores. While it sounds unbelievable, it has happened to thousands of people. And it could happen to you, as well.

Who is Alliance One?

The Alliance One Collection Agency is a gigantic national debt collection agency formed from five smaller agencies when they joined together into one company in 1999. They’re a typical debt collection agency in that they collect unsecured debts. They also are a subsidiary of Teleperformance USA, Inc. They claim to help companies get paid and reportedly have a large chunk of health care debt collection.

However, if you do a web search for them, you will get another view of them.

Hundreds of reports on complaint and rip-off sites document Alliance One as a company that uses harassment and other less than savory methods to try to get people to pay up. Sometimes Alliance One continues this harassment even after the person has proven they are not the actual owner of the debt.

The list of lawsuits pending against Alliance One for violating the Fair Debt Collection Act goes on for four pages. They are apparently well-known for calling you at work and being unreasonable when told you can’t speak with them. There are complaints that they contact their victims workplace, relatives, and even neighbors trying to collect debts.

If you ever find yourself on the receiving end of one of Alliance One’s phone calls, there are some things you can do to protect your rights.

Debt collectors, including Alliance One, may not use threats, or use bad language. They may not repeatedly use the phone to annoy you. They can’t lie – misrepresent themselves as lawyers or government officials, for instance. They can’t say you’ll be arrested or that they’re going to take legal action or have you arrested unless they are planning to file a lawsuit or file a bench warrant.

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC), has given all consumers a shield against aggressive and harassing debt collectors – the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) – which makes it illegal for debt collectors to use abusive, unfair, or deceptive practices to collect from you.

Under the same Act, Alliance One must send you a written validation of your debt within five days after contacting you. It has to include the name of the original creditor to whom you owe the money, and what to do if you don’t think you owe that debt.

Alliance One cannot contact you at inconvenient times or places, very early in the morning, very late at night unless you agree to it, or at work if you told them not to. So tell them, both verbally and writing, that you cannot speak to them at work and not to call again. Alliance One has been reported in many complaints for not only calling at work but calling multiple times a day while using harassing and threatening language.

While we’re on the subject of the workplace, be aware that Alliance One, like any other third-party debt collector, has to sue you before they can do anything like garnish your wages or bank account. And they have to give you notice of that lawsuit as well.

Alliance One: Stop the Harassment

After you talk to Alliance One and find out what they want, you can get their mailing address and send them a written letter by certified mail with a return receipt telling them to stop contacting you. Do not admit to owing any debt you do not recognize — it may not even be yours at all.

Once you notify them in writing to cease contact, they can respond to you to tell you they won’t contact you anymore. They can also send you a notice they’re taking action against you. If they continue sending you anything else, especially harassing debt collection letters, note the date and save them and you can report them to the FTC on them for violating the FDCPA.

If you’re having trouble with Alliance One and you need help, you should get in touch with the National Association of Attorneys General (NAAG) and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and talk to your state’s attorney general. They will be very interested to get the details of Alliance One’s behavior, and they can help you know your rights and what you can do to prevent further harassment.

When you are starting to fall behind in payments or have had a major financial setback, you may want to get some professional help. Fortunately, getting the help you need isn’t as costly, nor as overwhelming as it may seem to some people. However, credit repair is big business these days – you want to choose someone who has a good reputation, or you could just be digging yourself into an even bigger hole of bad finances.

Rounding out our top five list of good credit report repair companies, Ovation is a strong choice for many. They were originally known as Ovation Law, and they have a good history with the Better Business Bureau. While not all of their members are legal professionals, they are rated well in expertise and they are very reasonably priced.

Let’s look at what they can do for you, and if they are the company you should choose.

Why You Might Need Ovation Credit Report Repair

It is estimated that up to 79% of credit reports contain some kind of mistake, and 25% of all credit reports contain errors serious enough to get your requests for credit cards, house loans and other credit denied. With credit problems this serious, you would also be at risk for higher rates on your insurance and any current loans as well.

Ovation’s credit report repair service works with the credit bureaus and your creditors to update your credit report with accurate and up-to-date information. They are dedicated to completely legal credit report clean up and they also help you to remain on solid financial footing after your credit report repair by providing tips and advice to keep your credit healthy. However, they are not a debt settlement firm — their only service is credit report repair.

Ovation credit report repair starts you off with free credit consultation, and they will advise you on whether or not you can benefit from their services given your current credit situation.

Ovation offers several programs to repair your credit, depending on your needs. They assign you an agent, called a Case Advisor, to help you one-on-one. Ovation also provides the services of an online dispute manager that lets you direct how they handle your case.

Ovation credit report repair is not a contracted service. They allow you to cancel at any time, and they have a no-risk refund policy if you don’t get the results you think you should be getting. As an added measure of insurance, Ovation is bonded as required by the various state laws where they practice.

What Ovation Credit Report Repair is NOT

Ovation credit report repair is not debt consolidation. They will not work with creditors for payment arrangements — they only negotiate to clear your credit. If you need help with debt settlement or payment negotiations, you will need to look elsewhere for that service.

Also, Ovation will not get your credit report for you — that could potentially cause an inquiry to appear on your credit record. Instead, Ovation will show you where and how to get all three credit reports for free. In this way they’re actually protecting your credit by helping you to get your own records so it does not impact your credit score.

So if you need help with your report, but not with payment arrangements, Ovation credit report repair is an excellent choice for assistance.

Repairing Bad Credit: What is Zombie Debt?

Zombie debt is a very amusing name for a very un-amusing type of debt that you may find listed on your credit files when you start the process of repairing bad credit. Like their namesake, zombie debt is past its lifespan, an old debt purchased by a debt collecting agency who intends to collect on that debt without regards to your rights, and in spite of it being long past the legal statutes that would allow them to sue.

Repairing Bad Credit: Where does zombie debt come from?

Sometimes, zombie debt is just an honest mistake such as a computer glitch that relists an old debt or human error causes it to be posted. In those instances, it’s simple to get it fixed by speaking with the creditor.

However, having “accidental” zombie debt is not very likely. There are some third-party debt collection agencies out there that will use any means to try to get money. Your old debts are highly valued by this debt-buying industry, even if those debts were already paid off. Third party debt collection agencies often buy up these debts for pennies on the dollar (even the improperly listed debts) and then try to collect the entire amount from you.

When you are working on repairing bad credit, you may not even realize that you are dealing with zombie debt until you start getting the harassing phone calls and letters for a bill that is 7, 10, or even 15 years older or more. Some debt collectors even add ‘collection fees’ to try to wring even more cash out of you. They will use your credit report against you to force you to pay in order to repair bad credit that shouldn’t even be on your file.

Repairing Bad Credit: Why is zombie debt so dangerous?

One of the scarier parts of any zombie movie is when the monster everyone thought was killed gets back up – and the companies who deal in zombie debt often do the same thing. They call it ‘debt re-aging’.

Debt re-aging can happen when a collection company re-reports an old debt again and the seven year time period starts fresh. Or it can happen because you are a good person and try to pay them when contacted, not realizing that the debt is too old for the agencies to actually collect upon legitimately. In many instances, debt re-aging is actually illegal, and should not restart the statute of limitations at all. However, creditors have been known to sue once they manage to get even a partial payment on the debt, so it pays to be wary of any collection attempts while repairing bad credit.

Repairing Bad Credit: Fight back against zombie debt

You have the right to verify debts before you have to do anything about them, so says the FDCPA. You can send a letter within 35 days of being contacted by the debt collector and request that the collector proves you owe the debt.

Always use certified mail with a return receipt. If they don’t send back some kind of document from the original creditor showing you owe it and how much you owe, and in addition that the agency Is authorized to collect from you, then they cannot legally collect from you, or add a negative listing to your credit report. This can really give you a boost when you are repairing bad credit, as it can prevent negative listings from lowering your scores in the first place.

Check the statute of limitations in your state. A debt collector cannot use the courts to collect debts that are past their statute of limitations, also called ‘time barred’. They can still try to collect in other ways, however. In the case of time-barred debt, you can send a cease and desist letter that will effectively stop all collection attempts. If they file suit, you can attend the hearing with your proof that their statute of limitations has ended and you will not be held liable for the debt, even if you do owe it.

If you request documents validating the debt and they jump the gun and add the debt to your credit report before your grace period is up, you can have the account deleted by filing a credit report dispute. If you include copies of your documents, including the certified letter and return receipt, your case will be even stronger.

Gather your weapons – documentation, knowledge and the law on your side – and you can put up a good fight and even survive the zombie debt, repairing your bad credit at the same time.

Scammers are abundant in the world of credit repair and it is all too-common for a person to think that he or she is hiring a credit repair expert, when in reality the only thing that happens is a clever scam that leaves the wallet lighter and the credit file unchanged, or worse than when the “expert” started helping.

The truth is, of what a credit expert can do for you, you can do for yourself. But when figuring out what to dispute gets tricky or you are just too swamped to deal with the daily grind of checking and rechecking your credit standings, following up with creditors, and keeping on top of the process, hiring a real credit repair expert is well worth the money spent.

What should I look for in a Credit Expert?

When choosing a credit expert, look for qualifications. Don’t just go to an accountant or bookkeeper, or even a lawyer if he or she doesn’t have the experience or training in the field of consumer law – you need to have someone who specializes in credit and the laws surrounding it. A membership to the NFCC ( National Foundation for Credit Counseling ), the AICCCA ( Association of Independent Consumer Credit Counseling Agencies ) and similar organizations is a good start. Being registered with the Better Business Bureau is also reassuring – they keep tab on their members.

Also remember to think about the personality of the person you’re dealing with – if they seem like you can work with them, and you trust them, it will go a lot better. Don’t hire someone you feel is talking over your head – or down to you. You need to feel comfortable working with them.

Check their Record

Even if your potential credit expert isn’t a member, the Better Business Bureau will likely have some record of their past complaints if there are any to be found. However, you can’t rely solely on the BBB to inform your choice. For very young businesses and independent consultants that haven’t been in business long, the BBB may not have any information.

Also, it’s quite likely that a scammer may change their company name often. Do a search for Doing Business As (DBA) names to be sure the credit expert you choose doesn’t have anything to hide.

Look for good references from real customers – not just their blurbs in their handouts or on their website. There should be some real references you can go over that don’t sound canned. If there are people you can speak with who have worked with this credit expert in the past, that’s even better.

Talk With a Credit Expert Before You Choose

Most real credit experts are not reluctant to answer questions –a free consult is part of many credit repair agencies. You should be wary of any credit expert who professes expertise in credit and credit repair but who doesn’t want to talk over what he or she will do for you, what your problems are and how they should be handled. A real credit expert will discuss your situation with you without asking for cash up front, generally speaking. The most reputable credit experts do not try to lock you into a contract before they’ve even discussed your situation to be sure that they are a good fit for your needs.

Speaking of discussion, don’t depend on any credit expert who offers to take your case right away without speaking with you and asking a few questions. At best it’s a sign of a canned approach — one that is likely to yield less than stellar results. At worst, you’ll find yourself locked into a contract with no results whatsoever. If you don’t get a chance to discuss your particular credit problems during the initial consultation process, you may wish to look elsewhere for your credit repair expertise and assistance.

The best advice with choosing a credit expert is to trust your instincts. If you feel rushed or if something doesn’t seem right, chances are good that the person or agency is not a good fit for your situation. Using your common sense and avoiding things that seem too good to be true will help as well. With careful planning and little research, you should be able to find a credit expert that meets your needs.

Consumer laws, including the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA), are designed to protect you against being treated unfairly by debt collectors. While a credit repair company can help you to improve your credit scores, they can’t represent you in a civil suit if your rights have been violated — for proper representation, you need a credit repair lawyer.

Three Reasons to Hire a Credit Repair Lawyer

You are being harassed/threatened by a debt collector.

Debt collectors who call multiple times a day after you’ve already spoken with them once, or who use profanity or other threatening language are guilty of harassment. It is also considered harassment when creditors call you at work after being told not to, or if they threaten to take actions that they do not intend to take.

Each FDCPA violation can cost debt collectors $1000 if you file a civil suit, but you have to have credible evidence that a violation took place. This is where having a reputable credit repair lawyer can be of most benefit. As a legal professional specializing in these kinds of cases, a credit repair lawyer will be able to help you put together a credible case, and may even represent you in court.

You are being coerced into paying more than you owe.

Third party debt collectors cannot add additional fees and interest to your debt unless you specifically signed an agreement with the original creditor that allows this to occur. Debt collectors that continually add interest, fees, and other fines to a debt are in violation of the FDCPA which again can carry a $1000 penalty for each violation if they are sued in court.

Putting together a case with the help of a credit repair lawyer is smart in this instance because it can be difficult to piece together the paper trail that shows exactly where and when the fees were added. If the amount the debt collector tries to collect is substantially different than what you owe, breaking down the individual fees and collection attempts could prove beneficial in showing that multiple violations took place.

You have been sued by a debt collector.

It can happen at any time, but most often it occurs in the case of debt being close to, or even past the statute of limitations for collection. Because this statute varies from state to state, it is possible for creditors to file suit in error. Because the statute of limitations is an affirmative defense, if you don’t show up to defend yourself, the judgment could still show up on your credit file.

Many people are intimidated by the idea of showing up in court to explain their debts. Many more aren’t aware of their rights, and this is exactly what the debt collector is hoping for. Hiring a credit repair lawyer insures that you are adequately represented, and if your debt is past the statute of limitations for collections, you can rest assured that you won’t have a judgment listed on your credit report.

When a Credit Repair Company is a Better Choice

Despite these helpful scenarios, there are many times when a credit repair company is simply a better choice versus a credit repair lawyer. After all, lawyers can be expensive, and if your credit concerns don’t fall into one of the specialized categories above, you will simply be paying more for the exact same services that a credit repair company could provide.

If your only issues are inaccuracies on your credit report — i.e. on-time payments incorrectly reported as past due, charge-off accounts that have been paid in full, or multiple listings of the same debt — then hiring a credit repair lawyer is most likely not worth the cost.

However, a reputable credit repair company will not only help you to successfully dispute these kinds of errors, they will also provide much needed support and information that will make you aware of your rights as a consumer. This will help you to make better choices in regards to your credit in the future.

It’s also a good idea to turn to a credit repair company versus a credit repair lawyer if your problems only involve understanding credit repair issues, versus going to court over violations of your rights. Even complicated issues such as understanding which laws apply to debt collectors when you’ve moved from one state to another, can be answered by most credit repair companies. This is especially true when the credit repair company has lawyers or legal professionals on staff.

No matter which option you choose, a credit repair lawyer or a credit repair company, the sooner you act to protect your rights and improve your credit, the better. Get a handle on credit issues now, and you’ll soon see positive returns on your hard work in the form of increased credit scores and greater financial stability.

At best, a bad credit repair company will cost you money while doing nothing to help you improve your credit. At worst, you could find yourself with larger credit problems, or even legal issues with serious consequences as a result of taking the advice of an unscrupulous credit repair company.

Is This a Bad Credit Repair Company?

A recent study conducted by the Better Business Bureau found that on average, consumers spent more than eight-hundred dollars on fraudulent credit repair. This means that the individual hired a bad credit repair company and was provided no services whatsoever.

Protecting yourself from these kinds of losses should be your primary goal when evaluating a credit repair company to work with you and your credit problems. There are many large, well-known, and reliable credit repair companies out there, and we review several on this site.

However, if you decide to look for a local company, or you want to evaluate a credit repair company that you’ve found on your own, there are some red flags that you should avoid:

A bad credit repair company will ask for large amounts of money up front.

Because they have no intentions of actually helping you, a bad credit repair company will try to get as much money up front as possible. Once you realize that it was all a scam, the company may have closed its doors, or moved on to operating underneath another name. Regardless of what the company promises, don’t pay up front for credit repair.

The only exceptions are the account set-up fees charged by some companies who provide credit repair. However, an account set-up fee should be reasonable, and you should get an explanation of the work that fee covers.

Bad credit repair companies often tout that their services are 100% guaranteed.

No reputable credit repair company will offer a guarantee of success, because it is impossible to know whether or not an item on someone’s credit report is accurate or not. Results with credit repair are as varied as the people who need it, and any credit repair company who takes a one-size-fits-all approach is likely a bad credit repair company that will take your money and leave you holding the bag.

Bad credit repair companies often push unnecessary services to boost their fees.

Be particularly wary of any company that requires a debt management plan (DMP) in order to look at your credit file. Companies who force the issue are likely more interested in collecting a monthly payment than in repairing errors in your credit file. Besides, a DMP will actually lower your credit scores in many instances, and lenders will be reluctant to offer additional credit to anyone who is under a debt management plan because it is an indication that you can’t pay your current debts.

A bad credit repair company may offer illegal advice.

The absolute worst advice you can take is that of a bad credit repair company that suggests you can get a “new” credit file. Signing up for an employer identification number in order to get rid of your bad credit history is not only ineffective — it’s illegal and you can go to jail as a result. Claiming that you were just taking the advice of your credit repair company isn’t a proper defense, either, so be very careful with any unorthodox method of cleaning up your credit.

Weed Out a Bad Credit Repair Company

If you are trying to decide between several credit repair companies, there are several options that will help you to make the right choice:

Questions to Ask

What credit repair services do you offer? Be wary of any company that offers services in direct conflict with credit repair, such as debt management services or bankruptcy management.

What are your fees? If the credit repair company doesn’t have a clear schedule of fees, it may be a scammer who is just looking for a way to get as much money as possible.

What will you do for me that I can’t do on my own? A reputable credit repair company will let you know that the credit repair process is just the same when a company performs the task as it is when you do it on your own. The difference is in their experience with conducting the credit repair, and their knowledge on credit issues. A bad credit repair company will likely try to keep you in the dark as much as possible, and may even try to avoid answering this question entirely.

Avoiding a bad credit repair company is simple if you notice the signs. Don’t pay for credit repair services before you receive them, remain informed as a consumer, and always carefully evaluate all credit repair programs in order to choose the one that is right for you.

However, getting a reputable credit repair agency to work for you can do more than clear up your credit. It can give you peace of mind and the confidence to work towards the financial future of your dreams.

Top 3 Reasons to Hire a Credit Repair Agency

There are many reasons why a person might choose to hire a credit repair agency, but if any of the following three reasons applies to you, you may wish to hire a credit professional sooner rather than later:

Credit File Complications

If you know your credit file contains many errors, such as having a single collections account listed as being held by multiple creditors, then you will want to hire a credit repair agency to help you sort through the mess.

You will also want to consider a credit repair agency if your file is complicated due to having been a victim of identity theft, or other personal circumstances that make proving the errors a challenge.

For example, some individuals have credit errors due to an ex-spouse using their information to open lines of credit without permission. While a formal complaint may never have been filed with the police, it may still be possible to successfully dispute these items and have them removed with the help of a credit repair agency.

Multiple Errors in Your Credit File

You should consider how much your own time is worth compared to how much a credit repair agency will cost for the same services. It’s estimated that each error takes an average of 4 hours to repair.

If you only have one or two mistakes on your record and you’re comfortable with the process, that isn’t much of a problem. However, if you have multiple errors across all three credit bureaus, the amount of time it takes to get your credit file cleaned up could outweigh the cost of hiring a professional.

Likewise, you have to also consider your ability to follow-through on your disputes. If you don’t respond within the 30-day time limit imposed by the law, it will only make it more difficult to get errors removed, even if you have proof. Paying a professional credit repair agency to stay on top of your credit file is a solid investment in this instance.

You Don’t Know the Law

There are multiple state and federal laws that pertain to credit repair and credit reporting. Not knowing your rights can put you at risk, and even cause you to think that you have to pay when nothing could be further from the truth.

For example, you could have accounts on your credit report that are past the statute of limitations for lawsuits in your state. If you don’t realize this, when the debt collection agency threatens to sue, you could pay up instead of taking them to court to sue for violating your rights. Only a reputable credit repair agency can help you to sort through the particulars in your situation to help you get your credit file cleaned up without paying more than you owe.

Choosing the Right Credit Repair Agency

Choosing the right credit repair agency means staying away from scammers. Companies that offer promises or guarantees that seem too good to be true are almost always scams.

Warning Signs to Watch out for:

•  Demanding large amounts of money up front.
• Insisting on contesting every item on the credit report with a letter of dispute
• Promising things they cannot legally deliver, such as clearing your record in a matter of days.
• Trying to get you to set up a new identity to avoid your debts accrued on your real credit report.
• Being vague about how long it will take or how much it will cost.
• Asking you to sign a long term contract.

Signs of a Good Credit Repair Company:

•  A contract that clearly spells out who they are and what they will do for you.
• A payment plan that is month to month, not long term. (three to six months is average)
• Paralegals and other professionals.
• A clean record with the Better Business Bureau.
• The only up front fee should be for ordering credit reports and setting up your plan.

With these items in mind, you should be able to pick a solid credit repair agency. If you’re looking for suggestions, check out the reviews we have on our site for our top picks for credit repair agencies to get your credit back on track.

Most people are only concerned with credit file repair when they are trying to qualify for more credit such as additional credit cards, or an increase in the spending limit on the credit cards they already own. These people can be unaware of how deeply their credit file affects their everyday lives.  Credit file repair can benefit you in numerous ways — here are three very important reasons to consider getting your credit in shape this spring:

Lower Insurance Rates with Credit File Repair

Better Job Prospects with Credit File Repair

Credit File Repair Equals Savings