Debt Management Answers For You…

Most people never consider their rights in the process of credit repair — they think they don’t have any.

But they do. And knowing your credit repair rights is important.Here is a site with helpful information regarding your rights:

http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/edu/pubs/consumer/credit/cre18.shtm

Don’t confuse creditor, debt collector and credit repair. A creditor is the person or organization you owe the money to. A debt collector is a person or organization that purchases, at a discount, the right to collet the debt you owe to a creditor. They make their money off the difference. A credit repair company is one that offers to help you deal directly with your creditors, usually for a fee, For the purpose of this article, the three terms may be used interchangebly.

What if your creditors/debt collector is trying to scare you into paying them? What if you need to dispute items in your credit report? Or how about if you’ve been scammed by a credit counselling company? In all these instances, knowing what you are entitled to is critical.

#1) Scare tactics

Are you being harassed by those you owe money to? Then you will be relieved to hear this isn’t legal. There are certain procedures creditors have to follow when dealing with you. But most folks don’t know what those procedures are, so they just put up with the barrage of phone calls, letters, etc. In some instances creditors have been less than truthful in order to get you to pay them.

How can you tell if it’s a lie?

If they say they are going to call the company you work for, rest assured they are not telling the truth. This is against the law, and you should notify the authorities.

Sometimes they will tell you they will take your income. Again, this is totally illegal unless they’ve been told they can do so by a court – In which case you would have plenty of advanced warning.

And obviously they can’t touch your checking or savings account. All these are common threats that are not actually legal.

#2) Credit score

You are legally entitled to get a no cost copy of the report each year. You can do so from all of the major bureaus. This helps you verify that there are no mistakes on any of them.

But isn’t one enough?

No! Remember, the bureaus all get their information from different companies, because very few of the merchants you work with report to all them. Therefore, even if one of the reports is mistake free, another one might not be.

What if you find an error?

Then you have a legal right to see that it’s fixed. And the bureaus have a legal obligation to check with the company you have issue with and let you know within thirty days of their decision. If you aren’t proactive, the mistakes on your report will never get fixed. Be persistent in getting those errors off your report.

#3) Credit counseling scams

Thiese are very popular.. A lot of “credit counseling” firms are nothing more than scammers out to take your money.

Before going any further, let me say I would never pay any ‘credit repair’ agency money up front. If they have a positive evvect on your credit, go for it. Also remember there are usually local agencies that might assist you, often for free.

Is there anything you can do if you’ve been taken?

Maybe. If the company told you to file disputes with items in your credit report, that you know are correct, this is illegal. You get your money back because they were advising you to do something illegal. And if they don’t fulfill the service you agreed to when you first paid them, they are lawfully required to do so. If they haven’t, you again have legal recourse against them. But if they are scammers your chances of recovery are not good.

How do you know your rights when dealing with a scammer?

Read the ‘Credit Repair Organization Act’:

http://www.ftc.gov/os/statutes/croa/croa.shtm. A guide to your rights in this situation.

The bottom line: don’t allow yourself to be taken.

Even if you owe others money, you have more rights than you think. While this article can’t give you every single one of them, hopefully it’s alerted you to the fact that you have legal courses of action.

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The Fourth Of July

On this, our nations ‘birthday’, I would like to wish every one a Happy Fourth Of July!

I would also ask that you remember all those who have fought, and continue to fight, for the freedoms we enjoy — Freedom Is Not Free!!

There is a cost to this ongoing fight, not just that borne by our armed forces, but by you and I! It is your and my job to ensure that cost has not been in vain.

We are the greatest nation in the world because of our freedoms. We, you and I, have a responsibility to ourselves, our families and friends and our country, in that order, to ensure the freedoms we enjoy. The freedoms which every peoples in the world aspire to and deserve.

The freedom to make their own destiny.

** A Very Happy Fourth of July To All **

The Jedi’s Grandpa

Please, take a moment to watch this video

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There are all sorts of credit repair schemes out there. The reality is, if you have bad credit, there are solutions to repair that credit. It’s possible to improve or repair your credit in a relatively short time period. How?

Here are five strategies that can be effective in helping you correct your credit..

!) Before you do anything ‘Get A Copy Of Your Credit Report’. You are entitled to a free copy once a year. You need to see what’s there before taking any action. You can begin to correct obvious errors yourself by contacting the credit reporting agencies and having them investigate and correct those mistakes. Scan your credit report and looking for mistakes.

If you find errors, then contact the particular credit bureau and let them know. While I prefer doing so in writing via certified mail, they all have contact phone numbers. They will look into it. If they verify that indeed there is an error in your report, they must erase it from your report. Have them send you a corrected copy of your report.

This should instantly improve your credit score. And since mistakes are quite common, there’s a good chance this will work.

And don’t give up. If they don’t remove something the first time, keep after them. It may take two to three months, but eventually you can get that erroneous information taken off.

2) Pay on time

This is one of the simplest methods for raising your credit score. It’s so obvious it might not seem worth mentioning, but it’s one of the most important tips of all.

Can’t pay on time? Contact the creditor directly and see what king of terms you may be able to work out twith them. But do remember to stick with whatever terms you devise.

Creditors have been know to make ‘adjustment’ to terms more than once, as today our personal situations are very fluid.

3) Credit counseling

This will not only give you strategies for better money management, but the company can negotiate with your creditors on your behalf as well. In many instances they may be able to reduce the amount you owe substantially.

Look for an agency local to your area, where you can do things face to face. Try o getting a referral from someone you know.

Since they are very experienced in the industry, they may have a much better chance of negotiating better terms for you than if you were to do it yourself.

4) One of the least desirable techniques is obtaining a consolidation loan. This might make it easier for you to pay your creditors, leaving you with just one payment rather than multiples. But exercise caution here. Many have gone this route but began piling up more debt because they suddenly have more money! You need to be very disciplined to use this sort of strategy.

5) Build up your investments

Instead of spending on things you don’t need, start putting a certain percentage of your money away every month for investing. This is easily one of the best methods to repair your credit.

But be wary of scams.

Remember, there are many firms that come after people with bad credit. They claim they are going to help you raise your score. But often times they just take your money and disappear.

How do you spot those companies?

Charging you an up front fee is often an indication you should exercise extreme care in working with the firm. Also, telling you to dispute everything on your credit report even if it’s right, it’s certain they are not legit.

Implementing these tips can help you improve your overall credit rating.

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Many of us live paycheck to paycheck, spending without regard to the consequences. Keep that pattern up long enough and you soon discover the money runs out before you’ve paid all the bills, and there is never any left over for special purchases or holidays. Getting control of your household spending means setting u a budget, which will allow you to begin saving as well. [Read more →]

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How you think about money is the single most important factor to determining whether you are wealthy or not. If more money in your life is what you want it’s crucial that you develop a positive money mindset.

However, many of us have been taught to think negatively about money. We’re told things like “money is the root of all evil,” It’s not! How you acquire/use it is – ‘Greed’. Another is “money doesn’t grow on trees”. Actually it figuratively can if you know how. No wonder we have such a difficult time thinking positively about money!

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We’ve all seen the plastic bottles and other plastic waste along our roadsides, in our parks, at the beaches, etc. Many say plastic is the bane of our existence. Many organization are calling for the banning of such items. As these efforts move forward (or don’t as the case maybe), we still need to contend with the here and now.

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