Credit repair tips

We just had one of our buyers tell us that they needed 60 days to close escrow because their loan officer told them they needed to clean up a small collection on their credit report. This opened up a can of worms for us since their loan officer already told us that they were pre-qualified and homes are selling so fast here in Placer County, that a 60 day escrow is sure to get our offer rejected. So for those of who are buying a home, buying a car or motorcycle, just want to see what your credit looks like, want to clean up a derogatory trade line or just want to maintain your good credit rating, here you go! First, look at the open trade lines on your report for accuracy. The most common credit killers are old utility bills or HOA bills from a previous residence that you did not know about. Contact these agencies and make the payment, but make sure they give you a receipt and that they report the "paid" account to the credit bureaus. Tip; it takes 30-90 days for the repaired account to help improve your scores, so plan any purchases accordingly. If your credit is good but your score is low, then there are two possibilities. First, your credit line to current balance is too high or you just do not have enough credit depth. These are easily remedied by either paying the balance down or attempting to get your credit limit increased. These will typically raise your score and that is an excellent thing to have, as almost everyone is judged by their credit rating! Remember this is free advice so please use caution when working with creditors and good luck!