My husband Jamie has been talking about cleaning up his credit since we got together nearly 5 years ago, for one reason or another we’ve always had to put it off--until this year when we decided that it was definitely time. We have been throwing money away (as he puts it) paying rent for far too long and we finally decided that if we wanted to buy a house his credit score was going to need some major improvement!
At the beginning of the year Jamie took the first steps to cleaning up his credit by going online and getting his credit report and then he immediately got to work figuring out a plan of action. Before anything else we thoroughly checked his credit report to ensure that there were no accounts that could be disputed and I cannot stress how important this step is…Jamie had 3 accounts that were duplicated on his report and all of them were negatively impacting his credit score. Our goal next was to pay off, in full, everything that was reporting each month so that no more damage would be done to his credit score from the monthly reporting. We were able to take a portion of our income tax return and pay off the larger accounts which made it much easier to tackle the rest. Once that was taken care of we set up payment arrangements for a few smaller accounts that were still in good standing in order to keep them in good standing. It’s also worth noting that almost every debt collection company is willing to work with you to get your account in good standing, as one lady told me recently, “We tell us what you can afford!” It’s also extremely important to remember that once you set up payment arrangements paying them on time is a necessity, nothing is worse than having a debt collection company unwilling to work with you after you’ve flaked on your commitment!
That was in February and I’m very happy to report that as of this month my husband has no negative accounts on his credit report, he owes zero debt, and already his credit score is reaping the benefits! We’re taking our time and slowly building his credit score so that this time next year we can buy our first home without having to worry about past debt looming in the background…and I must admit that is a great feeling! If you’re trying to build your credit you can look online for a free credit score offer and be well on your way to rebuilding your credit as well!
At the beginning of the year Jamie took the first steps to cleaning up his credit by going online and getting his credit report and then he immediately got to work figuring out a plan of action. Before anything else we thoroughly checked his credit report to ensure that there were no accounts that could be disputed and I cannot stress how important this step is…Jamie had 3 accounts that were duplicated on his report and all of them were negatively impacting his credit score. Our goal next was to pay off, in full, everything that was reporting each month so that no more damage would be done to his credit score from the monthly reporting. We were able to take a portion of our income tax return and pay off the larger accounts which made it much easier to tackle the rest. Once that was taken care of we set up payment arrangements for a few smaller accounts that were still in good standing in order to keep them in good standing. It’s also worth noting that almost every debt collection company is willing to work with you to get your account in good standing, as one lady told me recently, “We tell us what you can afford!” It’s also extremely important to remember that once you set up payment arrangements paying them on time is a necessity, nothing is worse than having a debt collection company unwilling to work with you after you’ve flaked on your commitment!
That was in February and I’m very happy to report that as of this month my husband has no negative accounts on his credit report, he owes zero debt, and already his credit score is reaping the benefits! We’re taking our time and slowly building his credit score so that this time next year we can buy our first home without having to worry about past debt looming in the background…and I must admit that is a great feeling! If you’re trying to build your credit you can look online for a free credit score offer and be well on your way to rebuilding your credit as well!
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