How to Repair Your Credit for Free Yourself

Credit repair is an important part of improving your financial standing. Not only does good credit afford you opportunities to purchase big-ticket items--such as a car or a home--at lower interest rates, it may also help you rent an apartment or get a job. Many people invest much-needed funds into costly credit repair programs, only to find themselves no better off than they were when they contacted the credit repair agency. Fortunately, there are ways that you can repair your credit yourself--for free.

Instructions

1

Get a copy of your credit report from each of the three major reporting agencies: Experian, TransUnion and Equifax. This gives you a clear idea of where you need to start in terms of settling old accounts and working with your creditors. Write down contact names and phone numbers next to each account on your report, so you'll know who to talk to and what number to use to reach the company. You can find this information on your bill or online. If you do not have a contact name, you can call the main customer service line and ask them for the best contact.

2

Draft a letter to all of your creditors either requesting a payment plan or informing them of your intent to pay. Most creditors just want to get their money back, and they will be willing to work with you while you clean up your credit.

3

Offer a reasonable payment plan to larger creditors. Come up with an amount you can afford to pay each month and offer to begin making the smaller payments to eradicate your debt.

4

Ask for a settlement on moderate to small accounts. For example, if you owe $1,500 on an old credit card, the company may be willing to take $750 for it, provided you can pay it all at once. If they agree to a settlement amount, ask for it in writing, so they can't claim later that you still owe them money.

5

Monitor your credit report closely. As you pay off accounts, send a request to the credit bureaus and the company you have paid to update your account to reflect its new status. Some companies are much slower to report the good news of a paid account than they are the bad news of a past due one. It's up to you to stay on top of them about it.