FAQs
Debt Settlement
Debt Settlement is what happens when you reduce the amount of your unsecured personal debts through creditor negotiations. At its core, debt settlement is the best option for a creditor to “lose the least” on accounts that default in payment. The process is largely predictable due to established timelines and bank policies which vary from creditor to creditor. Debt Settlement is a proven effective means to eliminate debt for the right person
Assignment collectors are companies who, on behalf of the creditor, are attempting to collect on unpaid balances. Generally, whatever they collect, they are paid a percentage. Credit card issuers will grade the performance of those they assign debt to and will continually award collection files to the best performers, the companies who get them the most money. Assignment of debt also has different tiers. You may be contacted by one debt collection company for a few months, then a different one after 90 days, and even another one 90 days after that. The collector’s job is to get as much as they can for their client, the bank, and to secure the best return for themselves on their performance based fee. Assuming the collector is able to collect 50%, the creditor may see a return of as much as 35% of the assigned balance. This number is a moving target, and will likely be different per account, per portfolio, per tier, per creditor.
Creditors select accounts for immediate referral to law firms in order to collect. Some law firm’s collection attempts will be very similar to an assignment collector where the firm is paid a performance fee just like assignment collectors. Others may start off with that appearance, but will then begin legal process in order to collect. Attorneys who sue in order to collect will generally add legal fees to the final judgment amount. Most law suits for unpaid credit card debt go uncontested and default judgment is entered against the debtor. The judgment itself is a piece of paper, but with legal enforcement implications that allow for collection of the debt via lien, levy and garnishment. Being sued in order to collect has its own costs that will vary, with no guarantee the judgment can be collected on. For your creditor, this means higher cost’s with an unknown return (rest assured the return as an aggregate justifies the expense enough to keep this part of the pipeline in tact-otherwise it would no longer be supported).
There are different tiers of debt sales. Your account can be sold several times and will have a different value at each sale. I want to focus on the sale done by the original creditor, who you opened your account with. Creditors in most cases are generally being offered bids of 15 cents on the dollar for freshly charged off debt. Charge off generally means the creditor is no longer expecting to be paid and is recording the debt amount as a loss. That was then and this is now. In the current economy, portfolios of charge off debt are being bid at 8-9 cents.
When your debt is purchased, the buyer will then subject the accounts it purchased to the original creditor described above. The buyer has risked their capital with an expectation that they will be profitable.
Historically, the percentage of non-performing credit card assets has been low, less than 5%. In today’s economy, that number has skyrocketed to all time highs. Default on mortgage debt, commercial debt, revolving unsecured consumer debt (credit cards) are all approaching, or have surpassed any prior precedent.
Focusing on unsecured credit card debt; how has all this affected settlement? Well, look at the math. Your creditor will often “lose the least” be reaching agreements with those in serious delinquency before they drop it into the collection pipeline. This is why settlement works, whether 10 years ago or today.
With these increased portfolio losses at all time highs, banks would prefer to work with the consumer in order to lose the least. Consumers, whose financial situation suggests settlement is a good option to pursue, will find by working directly with their creditors they will often be in the position to save the most.
There are a few of the larger card issuers with whom the best savings will not be achieved until the account is placed with outside collection, but for the most part, reaching an agreement with the original creditor is in the best interest of the bank and the consumer. It is why our focus at InCreditable Advisors is to design an individualized plan that will get our members out of debt in the quickest way possible. Yes, our approach is one of the most aggressive in our industry.
It will vary. Debt settlements are reached and documented in as little as a few days. It will depend on how behind in payments you are, the creditor, what kind of money you have set aside to fund any settlements and what your financial goals are.
That is the short answer. What is rarely discussed by people and companies selling debt settlement services is “how long should a settlement program be allowed to go before it needs to be taken off the short list of options available”. The answer to this is not short and will vary for each person considering debt settlement. The answer as far as InCreditable Advisors is concerned is 12-24 months. That’s start to finish. People or companies selling debt settlement programs that exceed this time frame are selling you a flawed program. In our experience, programs allowed to exceed 12 months start to become more of a gamble. Past 18 months, the risks become larger month by month. If you need more than 24 months to complete a settlement program, you will often find you should not even start down the settlement path and seriously consider bankruptcy instead.
If 18 months to completion sounds impossible to you, you may be right. Then again, you just may not know what you need about the process of debt settlement. You may have talked with one or more people who have misrepresented the whole thing. Also, it is often the high fees charged for professional assistance that leads to longer program lengths. Affordable & fair fees may make an 18-24 month program well within reach!
For now, if you would like to learn more detail on this very crucial aspect for determining if settlement is right for you, schedule a FREE evaluation with an certified credit analyst today.
Yes, as will every other option available to someone who cannot maintain timely payments on their debt.
More often than not, being in debt, especially overwhelming debt, your credit accounts already have, or are about to negatively affect you. Depending on how long you have been delinquent in payments, negotiating and settling these debts for good will have an overall positive effect on your credit score. Settled accounts and or zero balances are seen as “positive” when compared to unresolved debts.
Your major concern should be dealing with the debt first! Then worry about rebuilding your Credit, it can and will recover.
Yes. It is always recommended to plan ahead for your credit needs.
Yes! Debt settlement isn’t rocket science. It’s just that there is a formula to follow to optimize your results! Most people are skeptical when they first hear about do-it-yourself or DIY debt settlement. There is no shortage of sales people out there who reinforce the idea that only a pro should handle your settlements. They only get paid, after all, if you hire them. They enroll you get their commission then hand you off to a back end service provider.
The truth is: You Can Settle with Your Creditors! When you understand how the whole collection and settlement process works coupled with up to the moment policies with each of your creditors, it becomes simplistic and straight forward. This is why InCreditable Advisors focus since our inception has been to start every client off with the tools and ongoing support needed to complete a DIY program. Maybe you really want InCreditable Advisors to do the settlements for you? That’s fine. We will, and we only charge for it when we are done and you know what you have saved! We just believe everyone should be given the opportunity to know what we know and then make up their mind. Many of our clients appreciate the education and knowledge. You will too!
No, only the ones you intend to settle.
There is no set-up fee. In some cases we may charge a small monthly fee of $20 – $35 a month. Our settlement fee, is a performance based fee structure which is 15% of total amount saved per settled account. For example, a $1,000 debt that is settled for $450, the consumer saved $550. In return, InCreditable Advisors charges a 15% fee on the amount saved for settling the account that totals $82.50. Bottom line, the total due on the settled account is $532.50; $450.00 to creditor and $82.50 to InCreditable Advisors. Overall, a $532.50 payment is paid including our fee, on a $1,000 debt saving the consumer $467.50.
Most Debt Settlement Companies charge a high monthly fee along with several thousands of dollars to settle your debts for you (usually 25% of the total debt you submit to them at the time you enroll). Many hundreds of thousands of people over the past several years seem to have no problem with these fees. However, many people did not understand they were paying these high fees due to how the fee schedule was disguised, not fully explained or hidden in the fine print of service contracts.
The Federal Trade commission has already publish new rules that has taken effect in (2010) that will ban any up-front fee for debt settlement services. Fees will be charged based on success only, which is how InCreditable Advisors earns its fees. The $50-$75 a month maintenance fee, plus 25%-30% of your debt saved fee model is still way too high.
The fees you pay to a debt settlement service provider will directly relate to how long it will take you to be successful and ultimately if you should even consider debt settlement at all. We strongly encourage one to only engage the services of a settlement service provider whose fees are based on SUCCESS. Given that InCreditable Advisors fees are 15% of what we save the consumer, we are currently the best choice when making a straight cost comparison for full service debt settlement.
Here is a an IMPORTANT note stay away from companies that buy live transfer leads from lead generation companies. Commercials aired on television; the consumer calls the number and is asked perhaps 3-4 qualifying questions and re-routed to a call center or settlement firm with their own internal sales floor. Perhaps the number provided will go direct to a sales floor for a quick 4 questionnaire.
This type of advertising, at its peak last year (perhaps some will pay this even today) ran anywhere from $75.00 to over $100.00 per live transfer. A good (meaning productive–not necessarily ethical) call center in this industry, paying for, and working these leads, has a cost per acquisition (CPA) of anywhere between $600.00 to $1200.00. They have to run a 20% close ratio or higher, in most cases, to hit their numbers. That means they have to approach what they do as a sales process rather than a consultation process.
The majority of people sold into settlement, in my opinion, don’t belong in it. Either the process was sold as to good to be true, or the plan, due to high upfront fees, which are often successfully disguised to the average consumer stressed to the limit and looking for relief, provides for high in-completion and program drop rates. The higher the fee, no matter how it is calculated or paid, is one of the bigger stumbling blocks to being successful in working with a settlement company. The fee itself can prevent the consumer’s success. Fees average 25% of the total debt that is submitted for settlement. Why so high? Often enough, the fee amount is related to the high cost of advertisement.
The only ethical way to promote settlement as an option is from a consultation/informative perspective where there is no pressure to hit a quota due to high CPA. If a company does any national advertising or purchases live transfers from a national advertiser whether radio or television, it is nearly 100% assured that they are using a sales approach. They must closely monitor closing ratios of the phone staff, and cut anyone occupying a chair who doesn’t hit the numbers. I have visited a few call centers. The majority of men and women in these call center atmospheres are best defined as telemarketers. There are, I am sure, exceptions. In fact, I have met some. That is not the norm though. These are the same people who will be just as effective at telemarketing residential home windows, as settlement services.
Basically, your financial future being sold to the highest paying servicer! On first contact, if you are not talking to the company that is actually going to handle your file, you are talking to a sales guy. His motivation is selling you into settlement, whether or not it’s a good fit for your situation, in order to get a commission. The criteria for where the sales guy will refer you, in my opinion and industry experience, will not be based on who does the best work, who has the most success with consumers, who will best serve your actual needs for getting out of debt with a settlement process, or who is going to charge the least so that your money actually goes to your creditors. It is absolutely (and unfortunately) predictable that the vast majority of those selling settlement, will gravitate to referring you to where they will get paid the most. You will seldom be referred to a servicer whose fees do not maximize the commission sought by the sales person or the company they work for.
The investment required to run one of these centers requires their owners to search out the companies that pay the highest commission for the referral. I have both seen and heard reference to as much as 70% – 80%, payouts of client fees for referrals. Outrageous! This model is unsustainable for any long period of time. The marketing firm will just move onto the next back end servicer who provides the highest commission.
The price for all of this is passed onto the consumer. They are the ones paying for it through their wallet and also in the form of lost time and opportunity for the fact that settlement was never the right option for many of them in the first place. They were sold into it.
One of several fabrications, used by the settlement sales person is a manageable monthly payment into your settlement fund, thereby extending the program length. This is enormous, and is used repeatedly because of its success. For example: You have $30,000 in unsecured credit card debt and are paying interest rates somewhere in the 20% range. You’re struggling to meet minimums and are looking for options and respond to an ad to “settle for pennies on dollar”. The sales pitch is to put you into a settlement program where you will not be paying your creditors and saving $416.00 dollars a month for 36 months. This is half your current debt. Awesome! That sounds like the kind of relief you are looking for, right! Your monthly minimum payments, at the high interest you are stuck at, equaled a thousand plus, and this nice salesperson is saying you can be out of debt for the low-low price of $416.00 a month. This is an effortless sell. This type of relief being offered is what many of us would focus on, no matter how much more there is to the pitch. It’s human nature. It’s the relief we need, and we found it. Some will outline a 42 month plan, or even longer. Simple.
Here is the problem. The longer it takes to settle with your creditors, the higher the risk one or more of your creditors will sue you in court in order to collect the debt. Where is your sales guy when this happens? Did he mention you could be sued? Maybe in passing, and if so, he probably said it is very rare to have that happen. What you were not told is that the longer your program lasts the more risk you face of being sued. That would take away all of the relief you felt from having been paying over $1000 a month, to now saving less than half of that a month for settlement. That little misleading of facts goes a long way for the sales close ratio.
The truth about settlement is; you have to be aggressive. You have to put every available penny aside to settle the debt as fast as possible in order to avoid something as adverse as a lawsuit. The relief you will find by using a settlement approach is not going to come until the debt is gone.
How big is your risk of being sued along the way? It will be different for everyone. It can depend on how fast you can settle, who your creditors are, who they may assign the debt to, who a creditor sells your debt to, what your credit report looks like, the state you live in, transaction history on the account leading up to default. Is a debt settlement sales person going to go over all of that with you? NO! Lawsuits filed, in order to collect on unsecured credit card accounts, are generally a pretty low percentage compared to how many accounts default each year. I believe those numbers will start to increase in what’s left of 2011 and into 2012. The two largest card issuers in the U.S. have been huge participants in submitting defaulted accounts for arbitration, an alternative dispute resolution done outside of the courts. The National Arbitration Forum (NAF) and the American Arbitration Association (AAA) have ceased all arbitration activity relating to consumer credit cards this past summer. Card issuers will likely increase the accounts they place with collection law firms as a result.
At InCreditable Advisors we are the only full service credit & debt consulting company in Indiana that we know of, we do NO paid advertising. We do not have sales people. When you consult with InCreditable Advisors, you are talking to a credit advisor on first contact, someone who works with our clients and their creditors every day.
Yes. We have a guarantee for all InCreditable Advisor Clients. When it comes to guaranteed settlement results however, there can be no guarantees. If anyone is offering one to you promptly become skeptical of whom you are dealing with.
Guarantees have long been used when offering products and services to the public in two ways; by those who are supremely confident in your satisfaction with the product or service they offer, or by those whose only goal is to get you in the front door and satisfaction be lost. Due to all of the negative press the debt settlement industry is deservedly receiving lately, you be the judge of which category one offering results guarantees would fall into.
InCreditable Advisors will guarantee that when you ask us to perform direct settlement services on your behalf you will not pay a fee unless we get you a deal in writing that you agree to!
Yes, absolutely. In a case where we are negotiating settlements for you, however, you will be required to provide InCreditable Advisors with written, and sometimes verbal, authorization that allows us to give and receive information on your behalf when negotiating credit accounts with each individual creditor, as requested by you, the consumer.
Creditor calls are simply part of the process. Our program includes options you can use to reduce unwanted collection calls to a minimum without causing a bad reaction from your creditors. Many companies send out letters to your creditors instructing them to cease communication with you. This is a harmful business practice! It is important that you allow contact with creditors and even collectors. If they cannot contact you they are left with the most aggressive tactic for collection, the courts.
Collection calls, for some, will seem to be the most burdensome part of the process. The goal of the collector is to get any type of payment from you that they can. They have proven willing to cross the line when doing so. Our program will show you what to watch out for and recognize as abuse. Should collection abuse occur you can be referred to a consumer attorney familiar with taking the collection industry to task on violations of state and federal laws that exist to protect you!
Yes. If you have a debt that is settled for less than the original balance, and the difference (the forgiven portion of the debt) is greater than $600.00, the creditor is supposed to send you a 1099c, which would then be reported as income.
The IRS does allow you to write off any income from forgiven debts up to the amount by which you were insolvent at that time. Unless you had a positive net worth at the time that you settled an account, which, for many, is unlikely if you’re buried in debt, then you generally wouldn’t have to pay any taxes on the forgiven debt(s). Always consult a tax attorney or adviser for options that can be applied to your specific circumstances. Incidentally, if you do wind up owing taxes, it is because you saved money. So, keep that in perspective. In the same way that you would budget and set aside funds to settle with, if you are solvent and owe tax on forgiven debt, you must also budget accordingly. For more detail, please visit: http://www.irs.gov/individuals/article/0,,id=179414,00.html http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/f982.pdf
Most any type of unsecured debt can be settled. For example:
- Consumer debt
- Credit card debt
- Business and/or Commercial debt
- Defaults
- Charge offs
- Debt collectors and/or Attorneys
- Medical bills
- Utility bills
- Store credit cards
- Major credit cards
- Pre Judgment and Post Judgment Settlements
- Bank account and/or Wage Garnishments
To best determine which accounts can be settled and the current trends with each of your creditors, you should schedule a consultation with an credit advisor specialist.
Debt Collectors can be intimidating and may use questionable tactics that are designed to scare people into making a payment, even if you cannot afford to make one. Actual garnishment actions are not that common and you will have advance warning. Creditors must first file a lawsuit, get a judgment, and then get court authorization for a garnishment. You cannot just have your pay check, or any portion of it, taken without court approval, and you must receive notification and proper documents from the court first. Worst case scenario, you may need to negotiate a settlement that is higher than you would have liked, or commit to a payment plan in order to avoid a garnishment.
Creditors have the right to file a lawsuit if you are not paying a debt. This is one of the biggest concerns you should have before determining if debt settlement is something you should attempt. Given how many accounts fall delinquent each year, lawsuits in order to collect are not that common. Don’t let this statement lead you to think it won’t happen to you though. Being sued means you will have to address that specific debt as a priority to settle before it becomes a judgment. Settling a lawsuit out of court and avoiding judgment is quite normal, but the rate of savings will generally not be as good as when settling debt that is not in the courts.
If you are only marginally suited to try debt settlement as a means to avoid bankruptcy and you get sued early on, it may become a show stopper. You may then have to file bankruptcy due to not being able to fund an out of court settlement or have to agree to a payment plan that will hinder your ability to save money to settle with other creditors. This can and does snowball into delays in settling other debts which can then lead to more lawsuits.
Threats of litigation are very popular, regardless of the fact that debt collectors are prohibited (by the FDCPA) to threaten legal action unless they’re authorized to do so. This does not stop collectors from making the threat. You will need to know which threats are credible and which are part of typical (and unfortunately abusive) debt collection efforts.
Yes. It is still possible to come to acceptable settlement terms during litigation or after a judgment has been filed.
Yes, we can assist companies and small businesses seeking debt relief.
Your first step will be scheduling a consultation with an credit advisor specialist so you can learn in detail what and how debt settlement will work in your particular circumstances. You will need to qualify for our program. Not everyone qualifies, but everyone appreciates the time we take in helping to determine what options will fit you. You can call us to schedule a strategy session at: 317-837-4969
Credit Repair
The Bureaus have 30 days to respond to any dispute request made, you should see initial responses within 30 days up to 45 days.
Each individual credit situation and needs are unique per client. A set time frame can be estimated at 60-145 days. Credit Repair should not typically last longer than this time frame. Most Credit Repair companies require enrollment for 12 months; it is our belief that this recommendation is too long.
Yes, we will guide you through the process of opening a secured credit card. This is one of the best ways to rebuild credit and improve your credit scores. We have teamed up with local banks to provide a Follow-through service to get our customers back on the right track. A secured credit card requires a small savings deposit which usually secures the entire credit line on a MasterCard or Visa.
InCreditable Advisors will not share, sell, transfer or convey your personal information to any third parties. InCreditable Advisors maintains strict confidence of your personal information. We even have strict policies for all InCreditable Advisors employees when it comes to sharing personal information internally.You may see our Privacy Policy for additional details.
We Get Results. We have the BEST customer service in the industry and we are recognized by consumers on Angies’s list and not a paid BBB certificate that anyone can purchase. These are just a few factors that set us apart from our competitors. InCreditable Advisors prides itself on our superior customer service, our utmost respect for clients and our professional specialists that work one on one with each of their clients. At InCreditable Advisors we stay current on consumer credit laws and economic issues, and we utilize the newest technology and proven techniques to ensure successful removal of inaccurate credit report information for our clients. InCreditable Advisors provides the following advantages: Your case is reviewed by your personal specialist who is well educated in credit repair techniques and Certified in the Fair Credit Reporting Act. Your specialists will work with you each month to make sure your case is moving towards your credit repair goals. We stay current on consumer law as it pertains to credit repair and credit bureaus to make sure that our clients receive the best possible results. Unlike other credit repair companies, your privacy and confidentiality (especially with regard to your social security number, credit card number and credit report information) are protected with InCreditable Advisors. Our Customer Service Guarantee is effective from day one. You do not have to be a client for any particular amount of time before you are protected by our guarantee.
Our experience (and dedication to our clients) in working with the credit bureaus facilitates the credit repair process because we are more likely to anticipate the tactics and responses of the credit bureau. Members of our professional team have experience in interacting with the bureaus and creditors and have gained insight in regards to efficiently and effectively disputing credit report errors. We stay current on consumer credit laws and economic issues, and we utilize the newest technology and proven techniques to ensure successful removal of inaccurate credit report information for our clients.
No! InCreditable Advisors Does Not Charge in Advance For Credit Repair Services. In compliance with the Credit Repair Organizations Act, we only charge for credit repair services after they have been fully rendered. Your first payment to InCreditable Advisors is called a one-time “Credit Analysis Review and Consulting Fee” and is made after we have completed the identified services relating to this payment as detailed in the service agreement, usually billed after 3 days.
InCreditable Advisors safeguards the security of your data with physical, electronic, and managerial procedures. We urge you to take every precaution to protect your personal data when you are on the Internet. Change your passwords often, use a combination of letters and numbers, and make sure you use a secure browser. The InCreditable Advisors web site uses industry-standard Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) encryption on all web pages where personal information is required. To sign up for InCreditable Advisors service, or to log into the client section of the web site, you must use an SSL-enabled browser such as Netscape Navigator 3.0 or later, or Internet Explorer. This protects the confidentiality of your personal information and credit card information while it is transmitted over the Internet.
Yes. InCreditable Advisors carries a bond as required by the state of Indiana and is registered with the State Indiana Attorney General’s Office as required to operate in the great state of Indiana.
In order for the credit repair program to be successful we need you to follow and adhere to certain rules.
When you receive any correspondence or updates related to the accounts in dispute, it is vital to get them to us as soon as possible. We will need it to continue our process. Remember, we are disputing various aspects of your credit profile and are requiring creditors to prove they have complied with over hundreds of different regulations. We will need to know where each creditor stands after the initial round of dispute letters have been delivered to them. We also ask all of our clients to refrain from applying for new credit while they are going through the credit repair process. Be patient. The process takes anywhere between 45 business days and 6 months.
Never answer collection letters or calls without alerting us. It’s highly recommended to forward any and all correspondence to InCreditable Advisors for further review.
If you start receiving collection please keep a written log of those communication calls. Include the collection agency name, complete address, date and time, the name of the person who called and the content of the conversation. Under the FDCPA they must provide all of this information if you ask. If you have those logs and you send them to us, we might find FDCPA violations and use them to negotiate with the agency.
As soon as they start to receive our dispute letters they will attempt to get in contact with you. They assume they have a better chance to collect directly from since now you are attempting to restore your credit history. .
The credit repair process is actually quite simple; however it does require you to be persistent, patient, and to understand how the process works.
Our clients typically start seeing results in 2-3 months. Because everyone’s case is different, some cases are completed in that time. It varies on the type and number of items that need to be addressed in the credit profile. Successfully repairing credit requires persistence, patience and experience and re-establishing credit and using it wisely (InCreditable Advisors will show you how to increase your credit score by using a secured credit to re-build your credit). This is where InCreditable Advisors expertise saves you valuable time. To effectively dispute incorrect information on your credit report, the key is knowing the ‘valid disputes’ and understanding the methods used by the credit bureaus in order to submit personalized disputes that meet their requirements and warrant a timely response.
No! Federal Law requires that all disputes be submitted in good faith. When you become a client of InCreditable Advisors, you’ll complete our Credit Analysis to provide us with the necessary information about the items on your credit reports that qualify for a good faith dispute. We’ll also consult with you directly. We compile that information and use it to create your custom dispute letters. We will dispute any item, positive or negative, that you review and mark for dispute. Not only is our process legal and in compliance with the FCRA, but it results in more efficient and effective disputing. Several companies out there simply take your credit reports and generically dispute every negative item without any information from you regarding the legitimacy of the negative items. Not only is this process illegal, it is ineffective and results in an extremely high return of frivolous responses.
The Credit Bureaus (CRA – Credit Reporting Agencies) must investigate items in question unless they consider your dispute frivolous. A blanket dispute (i.e. all negative information is challenged) may be considered evidence that the dispute is frivolous, or if you fail to provide any allegations concerning specific items in your file. Frivolous disputing will unnecessarily increase the amount of time it takes to repair your credit profile and your overall success rate. This is common error made by inexperienced credit repair consultants who simply dispute all negative items or most of your credit items on your credit report at one time without any specific basis for the dispute.
A recent amendment to the federal Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) requires each of the nationwide consumer reporting companies to provide you with a free copy of your credit report, at your request, once every 12 months. The credit bureaus set up a separate website for this purpose, the web address is www.AnnualCreditReport.com. For qualified consumers, there are some options provided under the Fair Credit Reporting Act that entitle you to receive a free copy of your credit report. You are entitled to a free copy of your credit report if you’ve been denied credit, insurance or employment and request the report within 60 days of notice, or if you can prove that (a) you’re unemployed and plan to look for a job within 60 days, (b) you’re on welfare, or (c) your report is inaccurate because of fraud or identity theft. If your application for credit, insurance, or employment is denied because of your credit information, the company to which you applied must give you the name and address of the reporting credit bureau. If you don’t qualify under any of those categories, you will need to purchase your credit reports, which are approximately $9.00 – $12.95 each when purchased directly from the credit bureaus.
InCreditable Advisors helps clients repair their bad credit by disputing the inaccurate, untimely, misleading, biased, incomplete or unverifiable negative items from their credit reports. Our service uses targeted disputes based upon the Fair Credit Reporting Act in an effort to delete the questionable negative information from your credit reports. These statutes include the federal Fair Credit Billing Act which gives you the right to request extensive information regarding billing and account history, the Truth in Lending Act which stipulates conditions for establishing credit accounts, and the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act which defines your rights regarding accounts that have passed into collection status.
At the conclusion of the credit bureau’s investigation, a new copy of your credit report should be sent to your home along with any deletions or improvements if any were made. If you are not satisfied that the questionable, negative credit has been resolved, send us a copy of the new credit report and the cycle will begin again.
In order for a credit bureau to keep a disputed credit listing on your report, they must have evidence that it is accurate, timely and verifiable. If the credit listing is only somewhat inaccurate, the credit bureau may simply change the item to reflect the accurate status. Very often, though, disputed credit items cannot be verified because the creditor no longer possesses the information or does not wish to go to the trouble of verifying it. In these cases, the listing should be removed. Also, the credit bureau reinvestigation must be completed within 30 days, though the credit bureaus do not always meet this deadline, or the listing must be removed. However, be aware that in these instances, once the bureau finds evidence of the listing, the item may eventually re-appear on your credit report.
By using some or all of their legal rights to fair and accurate credit reporting, thousands of people have legally and successfully restored their credit and improved their credit score.
On occasion, a negative listing that was recently deleted may eventually be verified by the creditor. The Fair Credit Reporting Act requires that the credit bureau inform you before they re-report a previously deleted listing. The FCRA also makes it more difficult for credit bureaus to re-report listings. Because of these factors, it is fairly rare for listings to come back on once they’ve been deleted. If a questionable credit item is verified at a later point in time, InCreditable Advisors will help you challenge the listing again if there are legitimate grounds to do so.
It is important to understand there are no guarantees involved with legal services. It is just like in a court of law where an attorney could never guarantee a client that the judge or jury would find in their favor.
In fact, any credit repair company that guarantees success is not being honest with you. Also, InCreditable Advisors offers over 30 years of combined experience and its good name as assurances that your case will be handled responsibly and professionally.
We have several plans that will fit everyone’s budget, plans range from $59 – $299 a month. We must first access the picture of your credit profile to determine your need of service level and the cost associated with your credit profile. This will all be explained with your credit advisor during your initial scheduled consultation.
The monthly fee charge is for us to review credit reports or dispute letters, to write dispute letters to credit bureaus or creditors, to analyze investigation results from credit bureaus and to resend letters, to write a debt validation letter to a collection agency, to write investigation request letter to original creditor or collection company and for customization of letters and forms and for continuous ongoing education and correspondence between client and company.
Our total prices are actually lower than the prices you can expect to pay to any of our competitors. The truth is… The longer they take to do the job the more money you will pay them… They do not want to repair your credit quickly; doing so would hurt their revenues.
When considering the cost of a credit repair service, you should compare it to the cost of living with poor or even average credit. Over the course of a 30 year home loan, a person with average credit may end up spending tens or even hundreds of thousands of dollars more in interest payments than someone with good credit.
Improving your credit score, and understand how much bad credit is costing you. The benefits of having a good credit score are not limited to helping you get into a home. Almost any lender who offers credit will take your credit score into account. This means that a better credit score may help you get approved for a car loan, credit card, home equity loan, debt consolidation loan or other personal loan at a lower interest rate.
Even further, many entities are now using your credit score to make different sorts of decisions about you. In today’s society, a better credit score may also help you lower your insurance premiums, get an apartment and possibly increase your chances of landing a new job!
With the recent downturn in the economy, many Americans have lost their jobs and are now looking for work. With such a large number of job seekers the market has become very competitive and finding gainful employment is difficult. Many people have gone through interviews and performed well, only to be turned down for a position they felt would be offered to them. What these people didn’t know was an increasing number of employers not only perform background checks, but also look into potential applicants’ credit scores.
When an employer sees late payments, charge offs, and collections on an otherwise great candidate’s credit report–red flags go up. They begin to wonder if the job seeker will meet deadlines, show up late, or forget to complete tasks. If you can’t manage your finances properly an employer might assume that you won’t be able to manage the responsibilities of the position you’re seeking. At InCreditable Advisors, we aim to help remove errors and questionable negatives from your credit report. This can make you look better in the eyes of your potential boss and give you the power to confidently give an employer the go ahead to check your credit history and see that you are a responsible individual.
You sure can! Many consumers want to fix their credit report on their own. Some consumers have read, per the Federal Trade Commission, that DIY credit repair is just as effective as any credit repair company’s services. In fact, the FTC states: “there’s nothing a credit repair agency can do that you can’t do yourself.” The same holds true for repairing your car or mowing your lawn, but that doesn’t necessarily mean you want to do it yourself. And while you can do your own taxes, most of us prefer a professional accountant to help with such services in order to guarantee credibility and accuracy. It’s a fact that DIY credit repair can be effective and inexpensive (the Web is packed with cheap or free credit repair kits, forums and books), but it can also be time-consuming and difficult due to the intricacies of credit law and the extensive efforts involved in contacting dozens — or even hundreds — of creditors.
So in the end even credibility, accuracy and efficiency all features you get with InCreditable Advisors pale in comparison to the convenience we provide our clients. The reality is that most “do it yourself-ers” get bogged down by a lack of time and experience. InCreditable Advisors provides a convenient and trusted alternative that allows you to avoid the hassles and long hours involved with credit repair. Our support and encouragement goes out to those consumers who spend countless, untold hours researching credit repair books and online forums before typing, printing, addressing, stamping and sending dispute letters, only to wait for replies and do it all over again. But remember, disputing your credit report is only half the battle when it comes to repairing your credit. With InCreditable Advisors, one call does it all quickly, legally and efficiently.
That`s a decent start. If you need any further assistance, please call or chat with our credit repair representatives, especially if your “do it yourself” credit repair bogs down. However you go about it, InCreditable Advisors credit repair team is ready to help you optimize the accuracy on your most important financial asset: Your Credit!
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We have a team of credit professionals dedicated to helping consumers and businesses take control of their credit and improve their overall credit health.
