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Having to deal with bad credit history can be an absolute nightmare for every consumer. There is absolutely no easy way to get out of it and sometimes it takes more than 7 years to improve the scores once the damage is done. Steer clear of declaring bankruptcy as it will leave a black mark for 10 years. Most creditors and bankers wouldn’t touch you with a ten foot pole immediately after that. Work on ways to pay off your credit card debts. Talk to your creditors and also go for debt counseling. There are ways to resolve the situation if you are willing to work on it.
When you have bad credit history, it is important to immediately work on improving it. Start by resolving not to use your credit cards anymore. Cut them into pieces, give them back, call the bank and decide to close the account. However don’t close your account if it is a card that you have had from the beginning as it will dip your scores further. An old account is good to keep open. Make a strategy to pay off the credit card accounts first. Put your savings on hold for the moment and focus on closing this outstanding amount first and foremost. If interests add up to too much, you will end up paying dearly at the end of it.
One way you can opt for improving bad credit history is to opt for store credit cards. These are easily available and being for small amounts they will be easy to pay off every month. Ensure that they do send reports to the credit bureaus about your spending and paying every month though. People also additionally opt for a secured credit card. In these, you have to secure the card with an amount beforehand that sets the limit for how much you need to pay every month. If you have a secured credit card then you can easily improve your bad credit history situation. Make the payments on time and watch your credit scores improve soon.
Negotiate with your creditors. You can call in the experts for debt settlement or you can do it yourself. The fact is that they want you to pay what you owe them and rather than lose it all through bankruptcy, they will be willing to talk numbers. Discuss the situation and commit to an amount you will pay and ask them to hold out on reporting you till an acceptable date. You may be surprised to see how willing they are to work with you on things. Ensure that you cut down on your spending if you want to improve your bad credit history. Sit down and examine your statement. It is not possible to cut down without making a conscious decision not to swipe your card for everything. The sooner you realize this, the better it is. If you want to spend less and cut down on the payments, you have to work on spending less. That means using your debit card more and not using the credit card unless you absolutely have to.
