Lauren Smith, WalletHub Staff Writer
@laurenellesmith
It is not worth it to pay someone to fix your credit, especially when fees can reach as much as $150 per month. There is nothing someone else or a credit repair company can do to clean up your credit and raise your score that you cannot do yourself.
You can check your credit score and get personalized credit-improvement tips for free here at WalletHub. Below, we outline steps that should help most people, regardless of their specific financial situation.
How to Fix Your Credit Yourself
- Dispute errors on your credit report: If you find any errors or inaccuracies on your credit report, file a dispute with the credit bureaus to have the information corrected or removed. You can do this online, by mail, or over the phone. The bureaus typically respond to dispute claims within 30 to 45 days.
- Pay your bills on time: Late payments can have a significant impact on your credit score, so make sure you pay all of your bills on time. Consider setting up automatic payments or reminders to help you stay on track.
- Reduce your credit utilization: Your credit utilization, or the amount of credit you're using compared to your credit limit, has a major effect on your score. Keep your utilization below 30% at all times to prevent further credit score damage. The ideal ratio is 1-10%.
- Open new credit accounts, but cautiously: While opening new credit accounts can help improve your utilization and credit mix, you don’t want to take out too much debt at once. Each time you apply for credit, it can result in a hard inquiry on your credit report, which can temporarily lower your score. Over time, however, having more available credit and keeping your utilization low will help your score.
- Pay off debt: Paying down balances improves your credit by lowering your utilization, adding positive payment history to your credit reports and reducing your total debt. Focus on paying off high-interest debt first because it will save you the most money in the long-run, and consider debt consolidation or negotiating with creditors to lower your interest rates.
Learn more from WalletHub’s guide on how to fix your credit.
People also ask
How much does it cost to repair my credit?
It can cost anywhere from $0 to over $100 per month to repair your credit. Depending on your needs and the state of your credit, you could end up paying thousands of dollars to a credit repair company. That being said, there is no need to pay for credit repair services.
Anyone who claims a special ability to “fix” or “clean up” your credit for a fee is probably scamming you. There is nothing...
read full answer by Mary Grace McCormick, Credit WriterHow can I fix my credit fast?
To fix your credit fast, you need to dispute credit report errors and add a lot of positive information to your credit report to offset existing negative entries like late payments. Examples of positive information include reduced credit utilization and on-time payments.
You can also use WalletHub’s free credit score simulator to see what impact different actions will have on your credit and how long each might take.
How To Fix Your Credit Fast
- Dispute credit report errors:...
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