Help With Credit Score - I have really bad credit, can I ever fix it?

I have really bad credit, can I ever fix it?

I'm in college and made stupid decisions with my first creit card. All of my debt is paid off, but I paid it late to a collection agency. I've also bounced checks in the past and overdrawn my account, so my credit score is pretty horrible. Now I can't get approved for any cards so I can't improve my score. I'm totally ashamed of how careless I've been.

Public Comments

♥ I'm in the almost exact same predictiment except my debt isn't paid off. Since you cannot seem to get approved for a credit card try this: *Take $200 or $500 to your bank and ask to take out a loan against yourself. You will [[automatically]] be approved. You will give them the money & then they will give it back to you [[as if you have a loan]]. You will then pay "payments" on it so it seems as if you have a loan... that will help build your credit. Other than that I'm not sure what you could do.... Good Luck!
This can be resolved but not overnight. No reason to be ashamed, you just need to take action to repair the damage. First of all, get a copy of your report so you know what you are up against. See what your creditors see. Address each item separately with the credit bureau and your creditors. Many will be happy to assist you with your past credit issues, especially if you have paid them off already. And of course, simply put, all future credit issues should be handled on time.
u can try Orchard bank... or just have to wait till your score goes up.. it takes time.
Please head over to the creditboards.com credit forum. You'll find a ton of useful information there about techniques you can use to clean up your credit report. I am continually amazed at how effective the advice is (at least based on what the members say about their own experiences.). I think you'll be pleasantly surprised to learn that you can indeed clean things up although it will take some time and effort. The key is in knowing HOW. Best of luck to you!
Secured credit cards are a great way to rebuild your credit. Most secured credit card companies require a deposit equal to the credit line your are seeking. Make sure they report your payment monthly to the major credit bureaus. Making your payments on time monthly will increase your credit rating. You will also get you deposit returned to you after one year, turning your secured credit card into a unsecured credit card.
A Credit card for people with bad credit is a form of borrowing that often involves charges. So it's wise to compare terms and fees before you agree to open a credit or charge card account. Try looking for a credit cardwhich credit cards you should apply for? Shop around because not all credit cards for people with bad credit are created equal.
Eileen, it's not the end of the world, let start off by saying that. People make mistakes, that's why there's rubber at the end of pencils. The first step, which you've done is acknowledging your past mistakes and preparing to correct them. First things first, in order to raise your score, it helps to know what makes up your score: 1. Payment history- 35% 2. Total debt to avaialble credit 30% 3. Length of time establishing credit- 15% 4. Types of credit established- 10% 5. Inquiries and new accounts- 10% Ok, now that's out the way, now you have to equip yourself with some tools to get you back on the right track, starting with a checking account. Now you mentioned that you bounced checks in the past and overdrew your account. The only way that this would hurt your score is that the account closed while it was still overdrawn. Hopefully, that didn't happen and you still have a checking account. A checking account is one of the most important and powerful tools when it comes to building credit. It does many things like establish a banking relationship to where you can make yourself available to other products that are offered just by being a customer. But more importantly, it allows you to do the most important thing in building credit: paying your bills on time. Now if you don't have a checking account, then that can be a problem, especially if you're in ChexSystems for bouncing checks and overdrafts. An option you can do is AccountNow. AccountNow is perfect for people that has had problems in the past with checking accounts and now can't get one. It has a debt card and online billpay that also helps to build credit. http://www.accountnow.net/default.aspx?pcode=Ct000Skl00 Like one of the posters had mentioned, getting a secured credit card would be the best way to go right now. You would have to put a deposit upfront that's used for collateralto get a credit line of the same amount. For example, if you put up $200, you would get a $200 credit line. Now the credit can be increased by adding to the deposit which wouldbe a good idea, because the higher the limit that reports on your credit, the better. Another thing is that the deposit gains interest while you're building credit so the bigger the deposit, the more interest you gain. A suggestion on how to use the card would be to make small purchases that can be paid off on time every month ($20-50/month). It's important to manage the balance so that it doesn't get out of hand and get maxed out. At any given time you should use no more than 25% of your available credit. For example, you have a limit of $200, your balance should be no more than $50. After paying on time and managing the available credit for usually a year or so, the card either changes to a regular one or a better card's offered and the deposit is given back. I posted some links to some secured credit card companies. I would suggest opening 2 with different companies, and no more major cards after that for a while. Hopefully these tips I've provided will help you out some Good Luck!