Accelerator: 1.1 Introduction to Credit Repair

Accelerator – DIY Credit Repair
1.1 Introduction to Credit Repair
Cheat Sheet

In order to fix your credit, you need to know what’s reporting on your credit profile. You can sign up for a credit monitoring service for a monthly fee. Credit monitoring services update your account on a monthly basis. That way, you’ll be aware of the most recent activity.

Sign up for a credit monitoring service

1. We recommend that you sign up for: 100PFCreditCheck.com
2. If you don’t want to pay for a monthly service and would like a free copy of your credit report, then go to: Annual Credit Report to have your credit report mailed to you.
3. Once you have your credit report in hand or you are viewing it online from your credit monitoring service, it’s important that you begin the credit repair process.

Begin the credit repair process instructions

1. Correct inaccurate name variations listed on your credit report. This helps to make it difficult for the credit bureaus to associate negative accounts to you.
   • Write to the three major credit bureaus and explain in your letters that the name(s) listed on your credit report do not belong to you and you want them removed. Be sure to include a legible copy of your personal identification, social security, and a utility bill.
2. Remove old outdated addresses by sending the three major credit bureaus a letter. 
   • Explain in your letter that the addresses listed on your credit report do not belong to you. This makes it difficult for the credit bureaus to associate negative accounts to you. 

Opt out of credit promotions

1. Opting out of prescreened credit card offers prevents the credit bureaus from selling your personal information to creditors. There are several ways to opt out.
   • You can call (1-888-567- 8688). You will be asked to provide certain personal information, including your home telephone number, name, Social Security number, and date of birth. Federal law provides that the information you provide is confidential and may only be used to process your request. 
   • You can opt out by going to www.optoutprescreen.com. When registering online, consumers do not have to provide their Social Security number or date of birth (although the online service encourages supplying such information to assist processing the request). Requests to opt out made by telephone or online are effective and expire five years after notification.
   • You can opt out in writing to the three major credit bureaus. When mailing your written request, you should include your complete name, full address, Social Security number, date of birth, and signature. State in your letters that you want to “opt out” of receiving prescreened offers of credit and insurance for either five years or permanently.
     1. Equifax Options, P.O Box 740123, Atlanta, GA 30374-0123
     2. Experian Opt Out, P.O. Box 919, Allen, TX 75013
     3. TransUnion Name Removal Option, P.O. Box 505, Woodlyn, PA 19094

The Dispute Process

1. After you’ve completed the previous three steps, it’s now time to dispute inaccurate and negative items reporting on our credit report. 
2. Negative items consist of:
   • Late payments
   • Public records: Judgments, bankruptcies, foreclosures, tax liens
   • Student loan payment history
   • Collections
   • Charge Offs 
   • Repossessions
   • Hard inquiries (6 or more within a 2-year period)
3. To dispute any of these negative items, you’ll need to draft a letter, or use our dispute letters located in the resource section of Accelerator, to all or any of the major credit bureaus that is reporting the negative account on your credit report.
   • In the letter, you’ll explain that the account is reporting inaccurately or that it’s unverified or whatever reason you decide upon, and you want the account removed from your credit file. 
   • Be patient and continue to dispute; some accounts are stubborn and take time to come off. If the credit bureaus continue to verify the account after four months of disputing, it’s time to send them a 609 Letter. 
     1. This letter demands the credit bureaus to provide you with the same information they used to verify the account. 
     2. If the credit bureaus cannot provide you with this information, then by the FCRA, the account must be removed.  
4. Write down no more than six disputes starting with public records, charge-offs, closed collections starting off with two years or younger, and then medical bills and late pays.
   • Include in the letter the account name, number, and reason for the dispute.
   • Don’t dispute any accounts close to 7 years of age unless you’re in dire need for a mortgage.

Build your credit history

1. Once you’ve completed the dispute process and those negative accounts have been removed, it’s time to start building up your credit. 
2. The ideal credit profile will have:
   • Have less than 30% debt utilization
   • 720 FICO score
   • Have no more than 5 hard inquiries within a 2 year period
   • No bankruptcies or foreclosures
   • No late payments in the past 6 months
   • Not have any accounts closed 
   • Have a 10 year credit history 
   • Have one mortgage, one auto loan and 2 credit cards (one of the credit cards should have a $5,000 credit limit)
3. What you can do to start building your credit history is to apply for credit line increases with existing creditors every six months. 
   • Call the number on the back of your credit card and ask the representative for a credit line increase without doing a hard pull inquiry. 
4. Check with your creditors once a month for any promotions.
5. Keep track of all your bills and pay them before the due date.
6. Pay more than the minimum amount due on your credit cards. 
7. Keep your credit card balances at 30% or below. 
   • What this means is that if you have a credit card limit of $1,000, then your average balance should be around $300.
8. Continue to monitor your credit through your credit monitoring service.

Words of advice

• It may take three or more rounds of dispute letters before the credit bureau(s) removes the negative account from your credit profile. 
• Be patient and continue to dispute; some accounts are stubborn and take time to come off. 
• If the credit bureaus continue to verify the account after four months of disputing, it’s time to send them a 609 Letter. 
  • This letter demands the credit bureaus to provide you with the same information they used to verify the account. 
  • If the credit bureaus cannot provide you with this information, then by the FCRA, the account must be removed.

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