Pay everything you owe is a good first step.

First, let me state this is not legal advice…. start with current copies of your credit reports for each of the CRA’s (credit reporting agency)..then you need to KNOW and understand the FDCPA and FCRA laws before continuing.

Opt out-optoutprescreen.com, remove all incorrect addresses and name variations. Once you complete those steps then you will be armed and ready to go to work on your reports.

The average consumer’s credit reports can contain an error rate of as much as 70% so its important to really understand the laws mentioned above to ensure an accurate credit portfolio. Many people think because a negative is on your credit report then the debt must be true which couldn’t be farther from the truth.

Now, make copies of your reports and begin working from the copy and file away your original… Get a highlighter and begin marking those accounts that need your attention…This would be items like lates, collections, public records, chargeoffs, repos, etc. Don’t forget to look for accounts that may be obsolete..meaning too old to be reporting. Positive accounts may report for 10 years as well as bankruptcies and some judgments..Negative accounts remain for 7 years.

Accounts with 30-60 day lates may be able to be resolved by sending the company a “goodwill” letter. In this letter you are asking for “forgiveness” for being late and explain what may have caused the late and what you have done to prevent it from happening again.

Some accounts may come off with a simple dispute with the CRA’s. They have 30 days to complete an investigation once you initiate the dispute and if the creditor doesn’t respond or can’t verify they are obligated under the law to remove it from your reports.

Once your comfortable with the FDCPA and FCRA laws, you will become more confident with having tradelines removed for reporting violations. Hint: Debt collectors cannot report accounts as “past due”, installments like it may say terms: 1 month, etc. It’s up to you to learn the law and comb for violations.

This should get you started..Good luck!