Repairing Your Credit for Home Ownership

Don't let bad credit stop you from moving up in the world. Take steps today to break away from your past and change your situation. A bad credit rating is not forever. You can take steps today to make your credit good.

1. Get A Handle on Your Financial Situation. Don't hide from your finances--take a good hard look at them. Obtain a copy of of your credit report from the three main financial institutions. The credit reporting agencies are required to give you a free copy of your report if you've been turned down for credit within the last 30 days. Otherwise, the cost to get your report is around $10. It's well worth the investment to straighten out your finances.

Equifax
P.O. Box 740241
Atlanta, GA 30374-0241
1-(800)-685-1111
http://www.Equifax.com/

Experian (formerly TRW)
National Consumer Assistance Center
PO Box 2002
Allen, TX 75013
1-(888)-397-3742
http://www.Experian.com/
Dispute a report online

Trans Union Corp.
760 W. Sproul Road
Springfield, PA 19064-0390
1-(800)-888-4213
http://www.TransUnion.com/

2. Begin Repairing Your Credit Immediately. Start now doing what you can to remove the negative aspects of your credit report.  This may involve paying for collection accounts and disputing invalid information. Document your conversations with the credit reporting agencies and keep the letters you send to them in a file for future reference.

Here's some things you can do to repair errors on your credit report:

• Create a Credit Repair File. You'll need a file to keep track of all your correspondence. You may eventually need two of these.
  
• Get Informed About Credit Laws. The Fair Credit Reporting Act offers protection for consumers against bad credit scores that are incorrect. Fair Credit Reporting Act.
  
• Analyze Negative Accounts. Write down all the negative issues on your report, including slow pays and discharges.
  
• List All Errors in Your Credit Report. Chances are good that some of the bad marks on your credit are wrong. Make a list of any errors that you see.
  
• Inform Credit Bureaus of Errors on your Reports. You have the right to have errors removed from your credit report. For each error you find, you should write one letter to each of the three credit bureaus. See sample letter here. Keep a copy for your files and send the letter registered mail. In some instances you can dispute your credit report online.
  
• Follow-Up on all your letters in 30 days. By law the credit reporting agencies must verify every letter sent to them. If they are unable to obtain proof and documentation from the agency reporting the bad credit, the bad report must be removed from your credit report.

3. Talk with our Mortgage Loan Professionals to see if you are currently in the situation to purchase a home. Many people are surprised to find that there are actually financing options available to those with less than perfect credit. Contact us today to see if you are eligible.