The term “credit repair company” is often heard, but could you define it? In this article, we will tell you all about what this is and how it works. In a nutshell, credit repair companies can help you remove negative credits from your credit reports, but we will dive deeper into this matter shortly. Continue reading if you want to know all the basics about credit repair companies and what they do to make the most of this type of service whenever needed. What are credit repair companies? Credit repair companies can be defined as entities that help you remove negative items from your credit reports. This can help you improve your credit scores and it can be done in exchange for a fee. Many people out there struggle with poor credit and, therefore, they might find it extremely challenging to qualify for a new credit card or even with more usual expenses such as renting an apartment or being qualified for a personal loan. Legit credit repair services can help you with this matter, as they can review your credit reports, address any negative items and work as intermediaries with credit bureaus. They are extremely helpful in working on your behalf for matters that might be too complex or time-consuming for you. You can find great professionals in this area, but be advised that there are also companies that are not well-intentioned and you should be able to evaluate them properly before deciding to work with them or not. Let’s see how you can verify a credit repair company and then we will proceed to explain how they actually work. How Can You Tell if a Company Is Legitimate? A great place to start this process is to read reviews of such companies from good sources online. Also, you can verify the legitimacy of a company by searching for it in the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s complaint database and studying the type of complaint you might find. Plus, you can get in contact with former clients and ask them about their experience with it. If a company seems too good to be true, that’s because it probably is. Check any of the following promises and consider them as red flags. The first red flag should be seen in the promise to remove any inaccurate negative information from your reports, but also in the promise to legally create a new credit identity for you. You should also be careful with companies that request that you pay before providing a service and guarantee improved credits. How do credit repair companies work? Now that you know what they are and how to determine the legitimacy of a company let’s see how they actually work. The best credit repair companies out there will start their working process by requesting a copy of your credit report from each major consumer credit bureau in your country. After this step, they will prepare a plan for you to dispute errors and negotiate with creditors to remove those items. This might include passages such as requesting to validate information and writing letters to dispute erroneous negative marks. Also, they might need to send so-called “cease-and-desist” letters to debt collectors on your behalf. There are some more things that this type of entity will recommend you do. For example, they may recommend you apply for new accounts. This will be done to add positive information to your reports. This might be a challenging process for you if you have had trouble managing credit in the past. Be aware of the fact that you should avoid doing this if you don’t need it. How long does this process take? It normally takes 30 days for the bureau to check your information once they receive it. Once received, they will have to reach out to the company that provided such information to check on them and ultimately investigate them. After the investigation is complete, the bureau will normally take five business days to send you the results. Be aware of the fact that you could also do all this process of reparation by yourself, but that might be quite a trick for people who lack the right background and expertise. So if you feel like you might need some more help in this process, hiring a credit repair company might be the right move for you. This was an overview of what credit repair companies are and how they work. Additionally, we gave you some tips on how to make sure that a company is legitimate. Now you have a better knowledge of this matter and you should be able to navigate it easily.