In this day and age, it is easy to work yourself into debt. Saving seems to be difficult when gas and other prices are on the rise. Regardless of how you got into debt, if you are trying to get yourself out you need to make sure you are trusting in the right people.
The best way to organize things and work through your bad credit is to try and do it yourself. But for several reasons, this doesn’t always work for everyone. A lack of complete understanding as where to start and sometimes a lack of time can both contribute.
The next question then is who to trust?
If you are looking to take out a loan or anything similar, you first want to check out your credit report. According to an article from our partners at TheStreet.com, about 75% of all credit reports contain some type of error. These errors (either small or large) could prevent you from getting the loan you need. Its like those commercials for freecreditreport.com where they don’t check their credit report first and end up in some type of bad/crazy situation!! Make sure to check your credit report in advance so this doesn’t happen to you! Even if you think your report should be pretty close to perfect, it is better to be safe than sorry (as they always say).
Good Guys
Be Careful Who Fixes Your Credit on TheStreet.com helps you sort through the “good guys” vs. the “bad guy” in the credit world. The Credit Repair Organizations (CROs) will do much of the “dirty” work for you such as contacting the credit bureau (but all of this can also be done by yourself).
In the article, Peter McDougall states that a legitimate CRO should provide the following items in any contract you might sign:
Payment terms and services, including their total cost A detailed description of all of the services that will be performed A timeline for the performance of these services Any guarantee the company or organization offers The company’s name and business address (preferably something more than a post office box)
Make sure that you consider all of your options and understand the conditions before signing any type of contract.
Bad Guys
It isn’t always hard to pick out the bad CROs (or those individuals who are simply trying to scam you out of your money). Make sure you aren’t doing anything illegal. Also, know what you can do on your own for free…you don’t want to get charged for something that you can do by yourself without a fee. Understanding what the legitimate CROs can do for you should be able to help you eliminate those who are doing things illegally.
As always, do your research! It is good to ask for help if you think you need it, but make sure that you are asking the right people!
Having bad credit can be frustrating enough…in the end, fixing it should be a huge relief and weight off your shoulders. Make sure to use all the Geezeo features such as your budget and personal goals to organize your finances and not get yourself into further trouble!
Photo: Kevin Rosseel
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