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Archive for April, 2010

One item of interest for people regarding credit reports is the duration of certain negative marks on credit reports. So how long is that nasty mark against you going to remain?

This is a question that crosses the minds of numerous individuals attempting to repair their credit. Everyone deserves a fresh start but this takes time. The following guide will help you as you determine how long it will take you to repair your credit in certain instances.

A Brief Guide

In case you are wondering-and you have every right as a consumer not to be ashamed to wonder-this is a short list of the negative items that appear on your credit report and the duration of each:

Lawsuit or Judgment-Usually 7 years, or until statute of limitations is up (may be different depending upon where you live).

Bankruptcy-Usually at least 7 years, but up to 10 years

Tax Liens-Seven years after they are paid

Student loan defaults-Seven years following certain guarantor actions

More Info

Usually a negative mark on your credit report starts from the time you were first late making a payment. Either that or it is the time your payment went into collection.

It does NOT usually start from the time you made a payment on the account. Of course, there is a very sticky situation pertaining to this that you should be aware of.

Sometimes collection agencies will update their reporting statuses. This is hard to explain except that it extends the time that certain accounts appear on your credit report.

Why even care?

This is a great question to ask. The reason you should care is because it can affect every area of your financial life. You may want to buy a house some day or even be able to get cell phone service or a new car. The more you know about how to repair your credit the better off you are.

The concept of investigating credit reports is quite complex. It is done for many different reasons. Sometimes it is consumer fraud while other times it is because of identity theft.

It also could be a case where a consumer is just careless with money and has run up a “bunch” of credit card bills. It could be for any number of reasons or any combination of these reasons put together.

In any case, there is a variety of different ways that credit investigations are made. For instance, sometimes a credit report is checked. Usually this is done by way of social security number or birth date.

Other times other financial records such as bank accounts or credit cards are accessed. Of course, all of this is only done by the proper authorities who can be trusted to handle these investigations.

Investigative Concerns

Sometimes credit bureaus or other governing agencies investigate overextended consumers. However, they do not always do their own research. They sometimes hire detectives of different sorts who sift through personal records.

All of this is done in order to search for financial judgments, liens, or other “dirt” against a homeowner. If there is any negative action on a person’s record, the detective then reports this to a credit bureau.

This further puts a person in financial trouble in even more jeopardy. New information is placed on a person credit record that would prevent them from getting a mortgage, car loan, or job.

There have been legal battles in recent times as to whether or not it is lawful for credit bureaus and other financial agencies to hire these detectives. Lawsuits were even filed in various geographical locations such as New Jersey and Pennsylvania.

There are a variety of different methods and tools that are used to investigate credit. You can read about these in a future blog entry.

The reason people hire a credit repair attorney (a.k.a. debt attorney) is to help them work out their financial situation. However, in this case it is more than that. They usually are on the verge of or are already in legal trouble.

The Role of a Credit Attorney

A basic service provided by a credit repair attorney is this: to answer common questions about budgeting and crediting as well as legal rights pertaining to debt negotiation.

They also help assess length of time needed to repair credit. They also negotiate in the event a client is in legal trouble and is facing judgment or lawsuit.

While helping a client who is facing legal troubles, they also present a variety of payment options. Often people in debt are spared the plight of bankruptcy but even if this action is necessary a debt attorney is the ideal professional to turn to.

Another major issue is victim rights. Often if there are negative marks on a credit report that are not the fault of a consumer this can be reversed. A debt attorney may help individuals find a way to deal with it and/or at least help the person right letters of request.

The letters of request would be for alerts. It would also be to have negative marks on their credit to be taken off. Usually there is a process of proving that the identity theft did take place, which involves tracking unauthorized usage of personal and financial info.

Sometimes a credit repair attorney can also help fix honest mistakes. For instance, maybe a creditor may have forgotten to mark a balance paid and you have proof that you have paid it.

If you show the person representing you all relevant receipts and records, it can help get your report corrected much faster. This will help you on your way to obtaining better for yourself in the future.

People who seek free credit reports instantly online also seek ways to further monitor their credit. That is the main purpose of credit repair software.

It also helps you with a variety of other tasks. For instance, it helps you with the following:

Obtain your credit score: This can help you further monitor your credit history more successfully. This is one tool you can use to monitory your credit repair progress.

Analyze your situation: As you view credit repair software it can help you set up a repayment schedule. The goal in the end is to meet a debtor or creditor half way.

Faster retrieval of your credit report: When using the best credit repair software it is easy to obtain your report with a click of the button.

Easier financial planning: Budgeting and calculating is much easier done with the right credit repair software. You can use this to achieve your goal of financial freedom, and achieve your goals much faster.

Deal with credit cards: Some systems help you track all unsecured debt payments. This is another way to help you get rid of unpaid balances much faster.

Negotiating debt easier: As you use the credit repair software to negotiate debt, the process of negotiating debt usually goes smoother. This along with the help of the right credit or budget counselor can do wonders for you.

It is up to you to seek out the credit repair software that suits your needs. This is the best way to take advantage of all the ways possible to improve your financial situation.

It will help you start that new business you have always wanted to start, or to buy that home. It also just helps you have a clear conscience in order to obtain better interest rates. It also just helps you feel more empowered that you can change your life.