How can I improve my credit score?

The first thing you should do is get a copy of your credit report and look for negative items. Sometimes these items are erroneous and it's pretty easy to dispute them. You should also only use up to 30% of your revolving credit so look in to paying off your debt. Pay all of your debts on time and your credit will improve over time. These are just some general tips but every situation is different. Contact a mortgage banker, or a personal banker, and they can tell you exactly what you should do for your specific situation.

Tara -- get in touch with a local, licensed mortgage professional who can review your credit with you, and explain the specific action itemsyou need to follow to improve your credit score. Unless it is just matter of being too close to high credit on your credit cards, and you havesufficient reserves to pay them down quickly, this is likely to be a 3-6 month process at least.

Get a credit report and then get with a Lender411 loan officer to go over the items on it.

By paying your bills on time, and be sure to have your credit card debt below 50%, but ideally below 30%. if you have major derogatory credit, you might benefit from the services of a professional credit restoration company.. but be careful and do your due diligence by looking up the company and checking with BBB. There are a lot of good companies out there, but there's even more bad ones.. I'm a Broker here in Scottsdale AZ and I only lend in Arizona. If you or someone you know is looking for financing options, feel free to contact me or pass along my information. 480-287-5714 WilliamAcres.com

Tara, I will do a credit rescore for you for free and put together a plan. Let me know if your interested. Costs $20-30 on my part. 0 for you. 949-529-5521 David Sanders. www.homeloansbydavidsanders.com

Yes you can. It depends on how many negative items are on your report and how old they are. If they are newer, it is harder to get them removed and they have a greater negative impact. If you don't have much in the way of negative items, it can sometimes be simply paying down some of the debt you have. I would recommend you contact one of the Lender 411 mortgage professionals in your area. They can help you. If you have a lot of negative items, they might refer you to a credit repair company. Good luck.

By paying your bills on time, and be sure to have your credit card debt below 50%, but ideally below 30%. if you have major derogatory credit, you might benefit from the services of a professional credit restoration company.. but be careful and do your due diligence by looking up the company and checking with BBB. There are a lot of good companies out there, but there's even more bad ones.. I'm a Broker here in Scottsdale AZ and I only lend in Arizona. If you or someone you know is looking for financing options, feel free to contact me or pass along my information. 480-287-5714 WilliamAcres.com

Pay down your debt, challenge old or false negative items with the 3 bureaus.

Get a credit report on yourself- you can use freecreditreport.com or another company that offers it- Once you receive your credit report, speak to a Lender or banker in your area. They can help you and lead you in the right direction.

The first step is to go to AnnualCreditReport.com and pull your own credit report. The three major reporting bureaus each must provide you with a FREE credit report at least once every 12 months. When there DO NOT pull a 3 in one report. Go to each of the bureaus separately an get the reports. The reason for doing it this way is if there is any derogatory items on them you can dispute them while on there website. You are able to clean up a lot of discrepancies this way, that's assuming they are truly incorrect. If the the derogatory items are correct you will need to determine their nature. If you are currently behind on payments bring them current. If they are collections or judgments call and negotiate a settlement and pay them. There are credit repair companies out there but be very careful and choose wisely. Outside of that time heals all wounds. Cleaning up credit is a lengthily process and you can do it your self if you know what you are doing. Otherwise, like most here are saying contact a mortgage loan officer here on Lender411 to get an assessment of your situation.

Hi Tara, As the other have said. Get a copy of your credit report and start knocking down any outstanding balances to under 30%. Don't get any new late payments and keep your credit inquries at a minimum.

Yes, everyone can improve their credit scores.