3 Ways to Raise Your Credit Score in 90 Days or Less!

Pay your bills on time, pay down your outstanding balances to 25-30 percent of your total available credit and don't close any aged accounts. You've heard it before and you this time, you get it, but you need to raise your credit score now. So what can you do to rapidly raise your credit score? Pay attention and you will discover three ways you can increase your FICO score in 90 days or less.

Leverage Another Person's Good Credit History

We all know someone - Mom & Dad, Aunt Winnie or your boyfriend Bob - who has great credit . They always pay their bills before they're due and they never max out their credit cards. Wouldn't it be great if you could borrow their excellent credit history? Well, you can and here's how to do it. If dear old Mom & Dad or your favorite Aunt Esther adds you to their credit card as an authorized user, you can dramatically increase your credit score by having their great credit history added to your credit report. But, before you start sweet talking your relatives, there are a few things you need to know about the authorized user strategy, which is commonly known as "piggy backing". You need to be sure that the person actually has good credit and aged credit accounts that are at least 24 months old. Also, you want to make sure the credit card issuer will report to the authorized user's credit report - otherwise, its not going to help you increase your credit score. If their credit reports show 3 to 5 paid accounts that have been reporting for at least 24 months, you get added as an authorized user on those accounts and the credit card company reports to your credit report, their 24 months of excellent credit history gets added to yours in about 90 days.

The hardest part about piggy backing is getting someone who is willing to add you their credit card accounts in the first place. This will be especially true if the person knows you have a history of paying your bills late or not paying your bills at all. Also, just as riding their good credit can boost your credit score, if their credit takes a nose dive while you are an authorized user, your credit score will drop along with theirs. In order to minimize these risks, have the credit card company send the additional card and PIN to the primary account holder, and you should only remain an authorized user for a period of 6 to 9 months.

Rapid Re-score To Get A Higher Credit Score

Its estimated that 79 percent of credit reports contain errors. The last thing you want to see when you're trying to get a mortgage on your first home or your dream house are a bunch of erroneous entries on your credit reports. You would dispute it yourself, but your closing is in 30 days. What do you do? Ask your mortgage broker or loan officer about rapid re-scoring. Rapid re-scoring is a way to quickly remove incorrect credit report entries that either prevent
a closing or would result in closing a loan at a less than attractive interest rate. Using a rapid re-scoring service could re-score and boost your FICO score in 3 to 5 days. The primary reason rapid re-scoring can work so fast is that corrections are made from documentation provided by your creditors.

Before you run off to find the nearest rapid re-scoring service, there are a few things you need to know. Rapid re-scoring is available only through mortgage brokers and their loan officers. The service is not free, but it could be a worthwhile investment for you, especially if the increase in credit score saves you thousands of dollars in interest. Also, rapid re-scoring is not widely known about in the mortgage lending industry, so your mortgage broker or loan officer might not have the training to make it work for you. Additionally, rapid re-scoring won't help if an account is already being disputed with the credit reporting agencies or you have negative items on your credit report that are true.

Dispute It Yourself To Make Them Remove It

What if you find out the rapid re-scoring service is outside of your budget? If you can't afford to go the paid route, do it yourself. Here's what you need to do to launch your own dispute campaign. Order current copies of your credit reports from Equifax, Experian and Trans Union to launch your campaign. Contrary to popular myth, pulling copies of your own credit report, a soft pull, won't bring down your credit score. After receive your credit reports, make 3 copies of each report, make detailed notes of all derogatory entries. For the purpose of this article, your focus should be on the untrue negative entries.

When writing to the credit bureaus, be sure to group the items to be disputed to no more than 3 per letter. You can use the model dispute letter templates found on websites like CreditNet or BrokenCredit, but don't copy them word for word. The letter must read like its coming from an "Average Joe" credit consumer that needs help getting a reporting error fixed, otherwise it may go in the "frivolous" dispute letter bin. Exercise extreme care in how you dispute items on your credit report. You wouldn't want a paid account deleted from your report when all you were really after was having a 30 day late removed, would you? That's why you have put more than "not mine" or "never late" as your reason for the dispute and you must state what action you want the credit bureau to take if the creditor cannot verify the negative item. Type out your letters on your computer, print them out on plain paper and sign them. Make sure you include the correct spelling of your name, your social security number and your current address. Never include any documentation or make any statements that the credit bureau checkers can use against you. Only include a copy of your credit report with the disputed items circled or highlighted with your dispute letter. Some credit repair experts recommend you send your letters by certified mail return receipt requested to establish a paper trail and others suggest you use priority mail or first class mail because your friendly credit reporting agency employees might refuse to accept the certified mail piece.

Under the FCRA (Fair Credit Reporting Act), the credit bureaus have 30 days from the date the dispute was received to respond. If the creditor who reported the negative item cannot verify the item within the 30 days, the credit bureau must delete the negative entry.

By following these methods, you can dramatically increase your credit score in 90 days or less. How much of an increase varies from person to person. Make sure you do your homework and have a solid understanding before proceeding with these or any other method to quickly raise your credit score. Remember, these are short term boosts. Over the long run, paying your debts in a timely manner, keeping your total outstanding balances low and wisely adding new credit lines are the best ways to maximize your credit score.

2007 Ray E. Harris. All rights reserved.