Credit Repair so you can Buy a Home
Are you a first-time home buyer or someone who currently owns a home, but wants to buy another one, but you have Bad Credit? The good news is, you’re not alone. There are many different people in your situation and with a little time and effort you’ll be well on your way to regaining a healthy credit score.
Let me clear one thing up before I continue…Have you ever seen a billboard or a heard a commercial on the radio saying that they can repair your credit for a fee? Stay away. Stay as far away from that company as possible. Absolutely No one can repair your credit for a fee. The only person who can repair your credit is you. Only you can contact the people who are after you for money or the credit bureaus that calculate your score.
1) The first thing you have to do, if you haven’t done so already is get your current credit report from the three major credit bureaus (Equifax, Transunion and Experian). A lot of times you’ll find errors in the report like an outstanding bill that you remember paying off years ago, but for some reason they still have it listed as not being paid in full. Things like that can really affect your credit score, so when you get your reports make sure they are similar, if they are not, call the bureau and refute them. Once a year, you can get a free credit report from the three credit bureaus by going to www.annualcreditreport.com.
2) If you have any outstanding debt, pay it off. That school loan you’re still paying after graduating 10 years ago. It might be time to just bite the bullet and pay that off.
3) Make sure to pay your bills on time. Light bill, water bill, phone bill…pay them on the day they are due and you’ll be on the road to home ownership in no time.
4) Remember those credit cards you have in your wallet or purse? Make sure to keep the balances low. A good number would be around 30% of your credit limit. So if you’ve got a $10,000 limit on your credit card, make sure your balance doesn’t go over $3,000. It’s about keeping your debt-to-credit ratio low. Bureaus look at that when determining your credit score.
5) If you’re shopping at a store and they ask you if you want to apply for their store credit card so you can get an extra 15% off your purchase. Don’t do it! Every new credit card application dings your credit score!
6) Remember that credit card you don’t use anymore and just keep in your night table? Yeah, just go ahead and keep that there, but absolutely do not close that account! Having that unused credit can actually helps you because it improves your debt-to-credit ratio!
Improving your credit score takes patience and hard work, but if you need additional help so that you can get a better credit score faster, then look into these two local companies that can assist you in creating a plan to pay down your debt and get your credit score up to where it needs to be to purchase a home.
Increasinghope.org
