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We all need to have good credit scores in order to function in our economy. Home mortgages, car loans, credit cards and more all require good credit. Luckily, since many of us have had credit problems at one time or another, there are a couple of tips and techniques that can help improve and repair your credit.

First off, make sure that you get a free credit report from all 3 of the major credit reporting agencies, TransUnion, Equifax, and Experian. Better yet, spend a little money and get a tri-merged report that has the information from all three agencies in an easier to read and understand format. When all of the important information is compiled on one report your task of repairing your credit will be easier to handle.

Next up, search out the reports for inaccurate information. Just because it is listed on the report does not mean that it is accurate. Make sure that your highest credit limits are listed. Many companies are famous for not reporting credit limits. This affects your credit score because most of your credit score is based upon your available credit compared to the credit that you have used. Make sure that you are using less than 35% of the credit limit that you have to ensure the best credit scores.

If you check out your report you may find duplicate accounts. While this may not necessarily be negative it will still negatively affect your scores because of the debt balance/credit limit ratio. Dispute and remove any duplicate accounts.

If you have collection accounts on your report make sure you dispute them if they are old or inaccurate. Do not pay off an old collection account or charge-off because the account will then be a negative on your account because the account will be reported as current. However, collection accounts are bought and sold sometimes many times over and even though the original company is supposed to remove the item from your credit many times they do not. There are sure to be duplicate accounts reported because of that. If the account is recent and accurate your best move is to pay it off but it is wise to dispute the older accounts and try to get them removed.

Make sure that you dispute any unknown items. Many consumers find that other people’s credit ends up on their report. This is especially common if you share a name with someone else. Make sure that the credit being reported belongs only to you and not to someone else with common characteristics. Another thing to be aware of in this day and age is identity theft. If you know that the credit is not really yours then make sure that you dispute it and get it removed from your report.

Start acquiring your new credit immediately. The quickest way to do this is with a major credit card like MasterCard or Visa. Do not ever open a department or furniture store account in an attempt to regain your credit as the reporting agencies do not look at that type of credit as a positive but rather as a negative. If you are unable to qualify for an regular MasterCard or Visa then start with a prepaid credit card. You can often get a prepaid credit card for as little as $500 and then work your way up to the regular credit cards.

While you can attempt to repair your credit yourself it may to your benefit to consult a professional credit repair company. These companies specialize in credit repair and they have developed an expertise that can help you in completing the process sooner and more efficiently.