Actually 30%, from what I know, is the magic balance for credit improvement...

Here is the killer...Banks like Capital One, for example, only put the high credit used on the bureau so if you have a 5K limit and never put more then 1K on it and maintain 700 on it, it appears that you have a high use of credit on file instead of a very low one...You almost need to max them out one month with all your bills and pay it off the next month to get it in line...Banks like Cap One are not required to report the high limit although there are forces at work trying to change that...Many people have more than one Cap One card, manipulating program over a few month period can really change a credit score...

Each consumer should obtain a copy of their credit report at least once per year and verify the credit report for inaccuracies. This is the best credit repair tactic available. By keeping tabs on your credit report you can take care of and errors or inaccuracies upfront before they become a problem and they cause your credit score to decrease.

If you carry credit cards that have balances over 50 per cent of the maximum limit you should ask the credit card company to raise your limits. When the balances are less than 50 per cent of the limit your score should improve.

Talk to your mortgage company about utilizing credit improvement simulations to get a better idea of what would happen if you took certain actions. These tools can be incredibly useful in minimizing the expense and maximizing the effectiveness of credit repair tactics, by scientifically analyzing your situation and approximating the positive or negative impact of a variety of predefined scenarios (for example, taking $1000 and paying down the balances on all your credit cards equally, or opening a new card with a $10,000 limit and consolidating all of your other balances onto one card, or removing an incorrect medical collection account from the report entirely, etc) You can also see what would happen to your credit score if you missed a mortgage payment, an eye-opening experience believe us!

The three national credit reporting bureaus - Equifax, TransUnion, and Experian - are required to provide you with a free copy of your credit report, by your request, once every 12 months.

If you come across inaccurate information regarding any accounts, a good credit repair tactic would be to write each bureau a letter stating that there is errornous information contained in your credit report. Then state that you would like to dispute that item(s) and always be sure to provide documentation supporting your claim.

One credit repair tactic is to call your credit card companies and ask that they raise your credit limits. This helps get your balances down to a better level, which helps your credit scores. Most companies will only raise your limit once every 6 months. They are more likely to raise your limit if they believe you may close your account in favor of another account.

When an account is past due, often the creditor will contract with a collection company to collect that account. Sometimes the original creditor and the collection company will both continue to report payments as being late. Because this account is being reported twice, this is a violation of the Fair Credit Reporting Act. If this happens, notify the creditor in writing and demand that they remove one of these immediately.