About a week ago I mentioned to my readers about the $2 Trillion in credit lines that were going to be pulled in the next 18 months by the major credit card issuers. Some of my students and coaching clients began asking me how the could combat this loss as they continue to perform credit repair for themselves.

   There are several ways to fight back – just remember that you are performing this tactic to increase your credit scores and fix bad credit – not going on a spending spree!

   First, pick up your phone. Reach out to your credit card issuers and just have a conversation with them. Ask them the reasons “why” they reduced your credit limits. Sometimes just calling and asking the question will get your credit limits restored. You don’t have to blindly accept their action.

   Share with them details about your salary and job status. Did you recently get promoted? It helps if you have been a customer for awhile and also haven’t been recently late on any payments If you’ve been a good customer, paying on time for a long time, say so. But don’t feel too tied to the card company.

   Chances are you’re still getting some credit card offers in the mail, and now may be the time to use them as leverage. Threaten to leave your current provider, pointing out the better rates their competitors are offering. If you haven’t gotten solicitations, check out Credit.com, CardRatings.com or Bankrate.com to see what you’re missing. If your issuer is playing those games with you, through no fault of your own, it’s time to shop around for a new provider. Now may also be a good time to pick up another card on top of the one you have.

   Because card companies don’t want to carry as much potential for default, they’re slashing card limits. That means someone who used to have a $5,000 credit limit and spent $3,000 every month was well within the limit. But now they may be hitting their heads on the ceiling of a $3,500-a-month limit, which leaves them with an ugly “credit utilization ratio” (the amount owed relative to the credit limit). C

   Restoring a high credit limit is a great goal, but not if you’re doing it just to take on added debt. Tell your card company you want to maintain your pristine (or improve your lackluster) credit score and you’d threaten that number by having a lower limit. They’ll respond better to that than to whines about wanting a new TV.

   Finally, if your interest rates have spiked and you can’t switch to a better card, try to “opt-out” of the new rate. That means you’ll pay off your current balance at the existing rate, but you may not be able to make new purchases anymore. Ask your credit card issuer for details.

   The cost of having a poor credit rating is growing higher each and every day. It literally pays to improve your credit score. You’ll get better interest rates on loans, lower premiums on insurance, and maybe even a better job. But, is it possible to repair your credit for free In this article we will answer that question, but also ask some more questions for you to answer.

>NOTE: If you’d like to learn how to repair your credit… boost your credit scores… and qualify for any loan you want FAST… then go and check THIS out now:

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   You see the ads for credit repair services everyday on TV and in newspapers. You may even get calls from telemarketers offering “instant credit repair – 100% guaranteed.” The Federal Trade Commission, the government agency responsible for looking out for consumers, says in plain English;

   “Do yourself a favor and save some money. Don’t believe these statements.” The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) goes so far as to say that everything a credit repair company can do to improve your credit rating, you can do for yourself, for free. Is that true Maybe.

   If you have the right information on how to work with your creditors, debt collection companies, and the credit reporting agencies, and you if have the time to spend, then you can make headway in repairing your credit. For free.

   The vital “IF” in that statement is related to the “right information.”  Reputable credit restoration companies have extensive experience in dealing with creditors, the credit bureaus, and collection agencies.

   It’s all they do, every day. If you want to be as successful, you’ll need access to the information and proven techniques the reputable credit repair companies employ. Improving your credit report is not as easy as sending a couple of form letters and waiting for your score to magically rise.

   You’ll be waiting for a long, long time. The FTC says that only time, a conscious effort, and a personal debt repayment plan will improve your credit report. Yes, but that is also too simplistic. There is an unpredictable aspect to credit repair. You’ll have to be prepared to respond in different ways to individual creditors and credit bureaus in order for your efforts to be successful.

   How much of the credit restoration process you can do yourself, and for free, is based on your availability to the right information and techniques, and your skills and experience. How polished are your written and verbal communication skills How much legal experience do you have Can you get your point across on the phone, without letting your temper flare up?

   Let’s hope your math skills are adequate. All these factors will come into play if you decide to take on your creditors yourself. In the end, it comes down to how much can you do yourself based on your current skills and experience, and how much would you benefit by hiring someone to handle the more technical aspects of repairing your credit.

   So, the answer to the question, “Is free credit repair possible” is a definite “maybe.” Your first action should be to arm yourself with the vital information you’ll need. There are a variety of public sources of this information, including the Federal Trade Commission.

Get access to some incredibly powerful credit increasing score info: http://www.CrushingTheCreditBureaus.com/ebook

Talk soon, Mark Garcia

 

P.S. If you haven’t downloaded your copy of my online eBook “Crushing The Credit Bureaus”, then you need to do that immediately. You can download it to your computer and be reading it within a few minutes.

It’s here: www.CrushingTheCreditBureaus/eBook

What would you do if you received a phone call or letter from your bank that you have been doing business with for years and they suddenly told you that not only had your credit card limits been reduced but now your Home Equity Line of Credit has been frozen…Yikes!

I recently had one of my students called me to share the details of this frantic phone call. Now, several months ago we had worked on her FICO scores and raised them to the high 700’s and one into the low 800’s. I share this with you so that you can see that a credit crunch can happen even to people with high credit scores. That is why it is so important that you arm yourself with the knowledge of how the credit game works and more importantly what to do about it when things change.

With everything that is going on in the economy right now, phone calls like the one above are not surprising. However, I want to share with you her story with you for a couple of reasons;

First off, my student has a problem…she is in-between jobs and was relying on the HELOC to be her nest-egg until she sells one of her real estate properties. Not good right now in this environment.

You see, the time to get, maintain, or increase your credit limits is when you don’t need it – not when you’re in crisis mode.

I was a bit curious as to what caused her bank to call her and freeze the line of credit. It turns out she was 30 days late on her primary mortgage with the bank for the first time ever. Bingo, that is what caused her bank to freak out.

Banks are running scared right now – and for very justifiable reasons. The second that there is any indication that you as a borrower are in the slightest bit of trouble, they immediately take action to “cut their exposure” to you. Is it any wonder though? Just turn on any of the news channels to hear about the latest meltdown or bank takeover.

I think that my student was a bit taken aback by this phone call…listen, when you have the extremely high FICO scores like she has, you tend to think that you are untouchable and that this “credit crisis” is affecting other people. She believed-as most folks do- that her long-term business relationship with her bank was worth something…that her impeccable credit rating made her untouchable, and that her letter perfect payment history would shield her from the woes of Wall Street, Main Street, and every other street.

The hard, cold truth is this; banks, lenders, and credit card institutions don’t give a rip about you or me – they only car about getting paid…period!

Now if you think that just freezing your line of credit or reducing your available credit line is the only thing they can do…think again. How about raising your interest rate? I personally have seen my students get their credit card interest rate doubled or tripled from where it was the month previous.

How scary is that? One month you have a 9.75% APR on your credit card and BLAMO, this month it is increased to 30% because you paid one account late.

Want another example of how screwy things are right now? Ok then-  I was speaking at a Real Estate Investor Summit in Austin with my mentor Bob Leonetti and a gentleman came up to me after my credit presentation and mentioned to me that his bank recently offered him a bribe to close his $300,000 home equity line of credit. They offered him a cash sum on the spot!

This all goes to show you how desperate the banks and the banking system are right now.

So what is the best way to survive the current credit meltdown? 

Make sure that you pay all of your bills on time, no matter what.

I know that I have said it before, but I believe it is worth repeating again. If you have the choice of paying your creditors on time vs. paying for the electric bill…pay the creditor that reports to the credit bureaus first. Now, I know that may seem like strange advice, but you can work out payment arrangements with the electric company. The creditors will report you as 30 days late and then an avalanche of bad things start to take place.

If you pay your bills through “auto pay”, internet billing, or over the phone, make sure that you allow extra time for the payments to post to your account. This will make sure that you don’t get charged late fees, but this will also decrease your chances of receiving “the phone call”  from your banker or creditor wanting to raise your interest rate, lower your credit limit, or freeze your line of credit completely.

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There are many strategies, tips, and techniques available on the Internet on how to repair your bad credit. Unfortunately most of them are old, outdated and ineffective!

 

Having great credit scores is THE most effective way to improve your finances and financial independence. When you build and maintain excellent credit, you control your future.

 

Discover how to repair bad credit and improve credit scores.

 

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