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Last Updated: March 2nd, 2009
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Bad credit can strike consumers for many different reasons. Perhaps you had emergency medical needs and no medical insurance. Perhaps you lost your job and got behind on your bills. Regardless of the reason, you now have blemishes on your credit report. If this sounds familiar, chances are good that you may be investigating credit repair companies. There are hundreds of companies claiming that they can help you repair your credit. How do you separate the good from the bad, the viable from the unviable? Here are a few tips to help you compare credit repair companies and make the best choice possible.
- Amount of Information Provided – All legitimate credit repair companies will provide you with a considerable amount of information about their services, steps that you can take on your own and more. Most importantly, a quality company will tell you upfront that you can do everything they can do, at no charge. If a company is not transparent about their methods, or the fact that you can take each step on your own, they are not worth your time.
- Outrageous Claims – Credit repair companies making outrageous claims about cleaning your credit report should be avoided. It is important to understand that there is no legal way to clear legitimate claims and accounts from your credit report. Unethical companies may attempt to tell you that you can have a spotless record in no time at all; run far from these companies!
- Illegal Methods – If any credit repair companies tell you that you can apply for a new Social Security number, or that you should use an EIN (Employer Identification Number) rather than your Social Security number, they are performing illegal acts. In addition, if you follow their advice, you can be considered an accessory to the crime and face severe legal charges over the matter.
- Counseling – Legitimate credit repair companies will offer you credit counseling to help you come to grips with poor spending habits. This counseling is vital and will help you regain control over your financial life, ensuring that when you do rebuild your credit, it stays good. This type of counseling is an important part of the credit repair process for many consumers.
Comparing credit repair companies is of vital importance. The wrong choice can leave you with much more than a bad experience – you may end up facing criminal charges!
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