Cleaning up Your Credit Report

Frank Cransworth http://www.yrcredit.com

Have you applied for a loan or a credit card only to have your application rejected with the remark poor Credit Rating? You need to act fast to rectify this.

Here is what you can do. Pick the phone

A lot of folk don't realize they actually have rights that let them set their credit straight. They just want to clear up their dues, and that will settle the whole thing they assume.

There are however other ways in which you can regain your credit rating and one of them is through your credit card.

It's time to call the credit card company and ask if they can lower your interest rate. You will be surprised at how simple this is and how much money it will save you. Of course, if you've been perpetually late with payments, they may not say yes, but if you've had a pretty good record, you can take this step to cleaning up your credit.

Ask for your free credit report

It is a good idea to ask Equifax and Experian for your credit report -- free, because the new laws give you that right to do so. And once you get it, you can go through it, checking that the credit amounts on it are all okay. If it does not look right, you are going to need to find out where they are coming from.

The fraudulent use of one's identity by imposters and thieves is becoming commonplace and is often not noticed until your credit rating takes a nosedive. It may take a while to sort out all the frauds but your first priority should be to get your credit rating up again.

Report the matter to the police and the social security administration so that you have a record of the steps taken to resolve the matter. Seek the advice of credit agencies who can guide you on what your course of action should be.

Close down all the fake accounts registered with the various agencies that keep records of the credit scores. You may want to check all the agencies since an account listed with one agency may not be on the list of another.

After you have completed these steps, you will want to put a fraud watch on your credit to ensure that no one else tries to start false accounts under your name.

It's a tedious process to clean up your credit report, but it's necessary to get the bigger loans for cars and houses without paying a load of interest in the end.

To receive a copy of your TransUnion or Equifax Credit Report, simply click on the link below and fill out a short form.

Other Free Credit Report Sites