Knowing how to clean up a credit report can be a pretty valuable piece of knowledge when you credit isn’t that good and you are looking to ge a loan or a mortgage.

Having a clean credit report will let you avoid embarrasment of being rejected for a loan and may even get you a lower rate of interest.

So how do you go about cleaning up your credit report? It’s actually pretty easy.

Firstly, you will need to get your free report from the three main consumer reporting agencies - Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion or you can visit www.AnnualCreditReport.com to get a combined report. These guys are obliged to give you a free report once per year if you ask for it.

Then check out what items on your credit report are either misleading or factually wrong. Be very stringent in your assessment as these items can all be disputed.

With each of those items, you will need to list why you think it is incorrect or misleading and if you can, also provide some evidence of your claims such as receipts or bank statements.

After that you need to send your list in a letter back to the consumer reporting company that listed the incorrect item on your report.

They will get back to you, usually within the month and you will be able to see where you report has improved or not.

To maximize your chances of success you might like to contact a professional credit repair outfit to manage the whole process for you. They probably aren’t as expensive as you would think and can usually get better outcomes as they are the pros!

They know a lot more about most of us about how to clean up a credit report, but in the end the process isn’t all that difficult and can lead to getting better terms on finance and loans.

Your credit report and score are some of the most important things in your life when you are trying to get loans or a mortgage.

A bad credit report will lead to more expensive interest rates and in some cases may stop you from getting a loan altogether. It’s therefore imperative that you know what’s in your credit report and, if necessary, take steps to start improving your credit score.

But where do you begin?

Well that’s the easy part. You are entitled to a free credit report annually from each of the three main consumer reporting agencies. You can even get a combined report from all three agencies over at www.annualcreditreport.com which will detail all of the items in your credit history.

Get the report and take a look at it, because you need to make sure it is accurate. If you find any items in your credit history that are not 100% accurate or are even slightly misleading, you need to take steps to get those items ammended or removed.

All that is required is that you contact the relvant consumer reporting agency with a list of the items that you believe are not correct, and state why each item should be reviewed. Be sure to include evident of your claims such as copies of receipts or bank statements to give you the highest possible chance of getting the bad items removed.

Now, that can be a little cumbersome and time consuming so also consider getting a credit repair agency to manage the process of improving your credit report and score. It can save you a real headache and often incres the chances of improvement as these companies usually know exactly what items to go after and how to get the best outcomes.

In the long term, it can also save you a lot of money when you start getting cheaper loans and mortgages.

What’s a Credit Report all About?
A Credit Report maintains information about you and, more specifically, your credit history. This information is collected on an continual basis from many sources that have lent you credit.
Service providers such as: Lenders, employers, and landlords buy your information which is called a credit report. This information helps them decide whether to approve of deny your application for a loan, credit card, job, or housing. Or maybe to offer you a product or service at a particular rate.
Your credit file will change constantly as the state of your borrowing capacity changes. For this reason it’s important that you review your information regularly and keep up to date so to check its accuracy.

What Kind Information is Included in My Credit Report?
The kind of information includes your personal information. Information which is compiled from the credit applications you have completed and lodged. This information typically includes details such as your name, addresses: current and recent, your Social Security Number, your date of birth, and maybe current and previous employers.

Your Credit History
The majority of your credit report includes details about your credit accounts opened in your name or maybe that list you as an authorized credit user (such as your spouse’s credit card). Your account details supplied by creditors which you got an account include: date that the account was opened, your credit limit -or loan amount, payment terms, account balance, and maybe a history showing whether you’ve paid for the account on time. Accounts which are closed or not active accounts - depending on the manner to which they were paid - actually stay on your report for up to seven or eleven years - from the date of last activity.

Credit Check Inquiries.
The credit reporting agencies record an inquiry whenever your credit report is shown to another party, such as a lender, service provider, landlord, or insurer. Not that Inquiries remain on your credit report for up to two years.