If you (or someone you know)is thinking about paying someone who says they can repair your poor credit rating, be careful! It might seem like you could pay someone to erase your mistakes. This isn’t really true.

Credit reporting agencies report your credit  respect to paying your bills and can only report what’s sent to them from your creditors. They can’t simply ‘erase’ your mistakes. In truth, only you can repair your credit.

How can you repair your credit report?

First, you need to look at your credit report to see what is on there. You should be able to obtain a free copy from your credit bureau. If you want an instant copy you can pay for that online. If you spot any errors, you can have them removed by contacting the credit bureau. Also, if you have any unpaid or bad debts you can talk to the companies individually to make payment arranges and in some cases they will negotiate and change your report on their next report to the credit reporting company. If you work with your creditors, you can often come to an agreement that results in the negative report being removed. If you want someone to do this negotiating for you, this is an option but may or may not result in a favorable credit report. You can get help from companies willing to negotiate on your behalf through debt settlement as well.

Time can be a healer of credit ratings as well because previous slow payments or missed payments will eventually disappear from your report due to time limitations set forth based on wherever it is that you live.

Other options for helping your credit score can include getting a loan with a company that will charge a high interest rate to those who haven’t got perfect credit in exchange for regular and good reports  (so long as you make  on time payments ) Getting a secured loan or signing up for a credit card that’s  pre-paid could also improve your credit. You need to be diligent in changing your financial habits in order to show to future creditors that you now take your finances very seriously.

Be careful:

Going into debt to improve your credit doesn’t always work. Be sure you’ve cleared up old debts before starting new ones! The best way to repair your credit report is to act responsibly going forward. Pay cash for goods now and if necessary, seek credit counseling or a debt settlement to help you start fresh.