Most people have had a credit difficulty or two in their lives. It just happens. But we all need to have good credit in order to get home mortgages, car loans and even credit cards. Here are a few techniques and tips that can help you improve and repair your credit.

As you begin make sure that you pick up a free report from each of the three major credit-reporting agencies, TransUnion, Equifax and Experian. You can get a report for free as you are entitled to a one free report each year but you may also consider a tri-merged report that has all of the information from all of three companies listed on one report. This report will cost you a little bit of money but it may be worth it because it will simplify the information and compile it into one place. That may make your credit repair job easier.

Just because something is listed on the report does not mean that it is accurate. Credit reports are inaccurate as much as 75% of the time. One thing to really look for is that your credit limits are being accurately reported. Credit scoring is based upon the amount of your debt compared to the limit of your credit. Do not let your debt balance exceed more than 35% of your credit limit. If necessary you can always request a higher limit, just don’t use any of it after you are approved for it.

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

Older collection accounts should be disputed. Never pay off an old collection account, as this will bring the account current which will have a negative impact on your score. Also collection account are often bought and sold and even though the companies are supposed to report that they no longer own the account this does not often happen and this can result in duplicate accounts showing on your report. If you have a collection account that is newer and accurate you should probably just pay it off.

You may find some unknown items on your account that you know are not yours. This happens even more frequently when you have a common name but it can happen to anyone because of things like identity theft. If the credit is not yours make sure that you dispute it and get it removed from your account.

As you work towards repairing your credit start building new positive credit right away. You can do this by getting a major credit card such as a MasterCard or a Visa. If you cannot qualify for a regular credit card then start with a prepaid card and work your way up. Never try to build up good credit by getting a department store card or furniture store credit as these types of credit are not considered positively by the credit reporting agencies.

Credit repair can be accomplished by yourself; however, you may find it beneficial to consult a professional credit repair company. A professional credit repair company has the expertise and the knowledge to get it done faster and easier than you could ever do it yourself.

Author's Bio: 

Karen Lynch is a freelance writer who writes on many subjects including credit repair. You can find more information about repairing your credit at her site CreditExert.com.