We Help Small Businesses Meet Their Potential
Repair and Improve Your Credit.
WE KNOW HOW IMPORTANT IT IS TO HAVE GREAT CREDIT. WE CAN HELP YOU GET THERE.
Onesta is here to help you meet your credit score goals.
The team at BRP Onesta has a credit repair team that is focused on making sure that your credit is accurate and clearly portrays your goals.
Whether you are looking to purchase a house, get a loan, or just prepare for your future, we can help.
Our team aggressively will identify errors or inaccuracies in your credit report, gather verifying evidence, and actively dispute/follow up with the credit bureaus.
We frequently challenge inaccurate or erroneous credit reports that contain:
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Judgements or Defaults
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Bankruptcies
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Charge-Offs
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Inquiries
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Repos
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Late Payments
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Old Accounts
Get a Free Review of Your Credit Now and Let Us Show You How We Can Help You Now!
Money Back Guarantee - No Up Front Payment For Our Work
THE PROCESS
BRP Onesta is here to help you meet your credit score goals.
The team at Onesta has a credit repair team that is focused on making sure that your credit is accurate and clearly portrays your goals.
Whether you are looking to purchase a house, get a loan, or just prepare for your future, we can help.
Our team aggressively will identify errors or inaccuracies in your credit report, gather verifying evidence, and actively dispute/follow up with the credit bureaus.
We frequently challenge inaccurate or erroneous credit reports that contain:
-
Judgements or Defaults
-
Bankruptcies
-
Charge-Offs
-
Inquiries
-
Repos
-
Late Payments
-
Old Accounts
Get a Free Review of Your Credit Now and Let Us Show You How We Can Help You Now!
WHAT IS A GOOD CREDIT SCORE?
A FICO score of 670 or more is perceived as good, while above 800 is exceptional. Conversely, a FICO score of 580 – 669 is only fair, and a score of 579 or below is considered poor. The majority of credit scores lie between 600 and 750.
The two most common credit scoring models are FICO Score and VantageScore. They both use the 300 to 850 score range and analyze much of the same information, though the VantageScore classifications are slightly different from the ones FICO uses (for example, 665 is considered “fair” on the FICO scale, but “good” on the VantageScore scale). Your financial history, including your credit usage and recent inquiries, is collected in order to generate your credit score.
Both FICO and VantageScore provide your primary score, which is their prediction of your ability to make debt payments based on your past tendencies. However, you can also get an industry-specific FICO score for something like a mortgage. These often range from 250 to 900 and estimate how likely you are to pay a particular type of debt, including credit card debt and other loans.
A good (high) credit score is crucial for obtaining loans and other financial resources because it indicates to lenders that you are a low credit risk. Now that you know what your credit score means, it’s important to learn what affects your credit score and how to improve it.
What hurts your credit score?Negative information can stay on your credit report for as long as seven to ten years, so it’s essential that you work to handle your accounts responsibly. Monitoring your credit and making payments in full and on time are critical aspects of maintaining good credit. However, it’s also imperative to know what negatively impacts your credit report so you can avoid it.
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Applying for credit. When you apply for a credit card, issuers check your credit report with what is known as a hard inquiry. This review of your credit can decrease your credit score by several points, so it’s paramount that you choose your applications wisely. On the plus side, hard inquiries should drop off your report after two years.
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Consolidating credit cards. Moving your balances to one card can seem like a beneficial activity, but it can harm your credit. Doing this increases your credit utilization ratio by decreasing the total amount of credit you have available, which may initially lower your score.
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Failing to have credit diversity. Using only one type of credit can also reduce your score. Your credit should be a mix of credit cards and other kinds of loans with revolving and installment plans.
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Cosigning credit applications. Agreeing to be a cosigner for a family member or friend with subpar credit can be a significant risk. Your credit could suffer the consequences of their delinquency.
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Missing payments. A defaulted payment more than 30 days late can have a negative effect on your credit score. The lender can report your delay, thus hurting your credit. What’s more, it can stay on your credit report for seven years.
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Debt charge-off and collections. Should you fail to pay a debt, the creditor can write off your account as a loss or contact a collection agency, both of which will lessen your credit score. Collections can also remain on your credit report for seven years.
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Settling accounts. An issuer can settle your debt, meaning they accept less than you owe, but failing to repay this debt is still shown on your credit report.
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Closing accounts. Closing your credit account diminishes your available credit, affecting your credit utilization ratio and credit history. You want to keep accounts open as long as possible in order to build credit.
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Voluntary surrender or repossession. Whether you surrender collateral, such as your house or car, voluntarily or it’s repossessed from you, it will become a negative item on your credit report. You will also be responsible for any remaining debt balance.
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Filing for bankruptcy. If you file for Chapter 7 bankruptcy (liquidation), you most likely won’t have to repay any of the debt in the filing, but your credit report will show the bankruptcy for 10 years. In a Chapter 13 bankruptcy filing, or a reorganization of finances, you’ll be responsible for paying some of the debt and the notation will stay with you for seven years.
How to check your credit scoreIt’s important to check your credit score and report frequently. This way you can track your progress to see whether your credit history is improving or not, and adjust your actions accordingly.
You can check your credit score by requesting your score from your credit card company, through your bank or through an online service. Be wary when choosing the last option, though. Few sites offer free credit scores without any gimmicks. Some use it as a ploy to get you to inadvertently sign up for a paid service.
As for your credit report, you can request a copy from the three major credit bureaus, or credit reporting agencies: Equifax, Experian and TransUnion. You can only do this for free every 12 months, but it’s a useful service. Make sure to scan your credit report for errors, because it’s possible for mistakes to occur that damage your credit score. If you watch your credit closely, you can dispute any accuracies before too much damage is done.
Why good credit mattersWhen you have good credit, you have more of a financial advantage than you would if you had poor credit. Showing that you’re financially reliable allows you to get approved for credit cards and loans with lower fees and interest rates. You’ll also be more qualified for rewards and perks.
There are some surprising circumstances where good credit matters. Landlords, mobile phone providers and even potential employers can conduct credit checks to analyze your financial risk level. This means that your credit could stop you from acquiring housing, a smartphone or even a new job.
How to improve your credit scoreIt takes more than just a few days or weeks to improve your credit score. In fact, it often takes several months or even years to repair bad credit. The length of time it will take to get back to good credit depends, in large part, on how severe your financial situation is and the steps you’re taking to remedy it.
If your credit is good, or at least fair, you can make it even better by focusing on your payments. This includes any outstanding debts in addition to your credit card payments. Work to pay down other debt before focusing on your credit card.
Making full payments early or on time plays a large role in building your credit. Not using too much credit at one time ensures that you will be able to make monthly payments. It’s advised that your credit utilization, or the ratio of your credit card balance to your credit limit, stay below 30 percent.
If you have poor credit, attempting to repair it can seem like a daunting task. In order to get it on the mend, you may want to apply for a credit card for designed for consumers with bad credit. After you get such a card, follow the steps below to raise your credit score from less-than-desirable to satisfactory.
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Use the credit card. You have to use the card to incur credit debt that you will turn around and repay to raise your credit score.
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Pay at least the minimum balance on time. A surefire way to start repairing your credit is to never miss a payment. It’s even better for your credit score if you pay more than the minimum amount.
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Monitor your credit reports. As mentioned previously, you should check your credit reports often to track your progress and look for discrepancies.
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Look for card upgrades. As you rebuild your credit, better credit cards will become available to you. Keep an eye out for cards at your institution with lower fees and better perks.
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Repeat. This step is self-explanatory. Start the credit repair process over again to continue to build your credit.
Even if your credit score goes from bad to fair to good, there’s no reason to stop striving for improvement—challenge yourself to achieve an excellent credit score.
Having a good credit score is essential to receiving financial resources, such as loans. Not to mention other factors, including applying for a lease or financing your car, where your credit report comes into consideration.
Furthermore, building up your credit helps you save money in the short term and in the long run. People with good credit are less risky for lenders and, as a result, typically pay cheaper deposits, fees and interest rates. Make managing your credit score a priority today.
WATCH OUT FOR CREDIT REPAIR SCAMS
Some Signs of a Credit Repair Scam
There are many things credit repair companies are not allowed to do or promise customers. If it sounds like it’s too good to be true, it probably is, and you should steer clear of that company. We’ve put together a list of signs you should watch out for when working with credit repair companies.
Guaranteed results
Under the Credit Repair Organizations Act (CROA), credit repair companies cannot guarantee results. Here are a few common examples of false promises unethical credit repair companies might make:
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Improvement to your credit score
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Results in a fixed time period
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Removal of all of negative items, even if they are accurate
Up-front payment is requested
The CROA prohibits credit repair companies from asking for any payment before they render services. Many scammers know that most consumers don’t know this and, as a result, promise a quick turnaround on credit repair for a large upfront payment.
Some illegitimate credit repair companies may not allow you to cancel unless you pay a fee. All credit repair companies are required by law to give you at least three days to cancel services with them and there is no penalty for canceling.
BRP Onesta will not collect $1 until we have rendered services and we also have a money back guarantee where if we do not perform you can recover some or all of your costs.
Claims a new identity is needed A credit repair company can’t promise or offer you a new identity. Anyone offering you a new identity is a fraud. Besides guaranteeing results, scammers may try to promise you a clean slate with a new Employer Identification Number (EIN) or a Credit Privacy Number (CPN).
They tell you to use these numbers on your future credit applications instead of your Social Security Number. We explain more about common credit repair scams below.
We will never this as its totally unethical.
Don’t explain your legal rights
Credit repair companies should explain your legal rights to you from the beginning. These are a few common things an unethical credit repair company might do.
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Tells you not to contact the credit bureaus directly
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Doesn’t give you a copy of the contract to review before signing
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Fails to inform you that you can repair your credit yourself without the help of a credit repair company
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Leaves out important information from the contract, like the date services will be executed or the amount you will pay
If you feel like the company isn’t telling you everything or refusing to answer your questions, you should seek services elsewhere.
Asks you to misrepresent information
Finally, an unlawful credit repair company might ask you to misrepresent your information. This can range from unlawfully using an EIN or CPN number in place of your social security number to claim you are a victim of identity theft when you’re not.
Common credit repair scams
You’ll most likely see credit repair companies illegally promising results. However, it’s important to familiarize yourself with other scams so you understand what is and is not legal. We highlighted a few common ones below.
File segregation schemes
A file segregation scheme is when a company or individual offers to give you an Employee Identification Number (EIN) to use in place of your Social Security Number when you apply for credit. It’s illegal for companies to do this, and it’s illegal for consumers to obtain one to use in place of their Social Security Number.
Credit privacy numbers Like an EIN, a Credit Privacy Number (CPN) is created by scammers to use in place of your Social Security Number when applying for credit. Simply put, a CPN is a fake Social Security Number. Usually, these are created using somebody else’s identity, and using one can be considered identity theft.
Tradeline renting
Tradeline renting is when you pay for authorized user status so that the tradeline shows up on your credit reports to improve your score. This doesn’t repair any negative information on your credit, but adding a positive tradeline to your credit report can boost your score.
While this isn’t necessarily illegal, it can get you into trouble. There is nothing wrong with a loved one adding you as an authorized user. However, if you pay to “rent” a tradeline from a stranger, you don’t know how it will impact your credit and it may be a scam to get your money.
What to do if you are scammed?
There are a few things you can do if you realize you’ve fallen victim to a credit repair scam. Take a look at your options below.
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Report the organization to your state attorney general
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File a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission and the Better Business Bureau
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Consult with an attorney if you’d like to take further legal action
Can credit repair companies fix your credit?
Yes, a legitimate credit repair company can help you work to remove inaccurate negative items from your record that may be damaging your credit score. Here are ways to recognize a legitimate, expert credit repair company. Although you can work to repair your credit yourself without a credit repair company, ideally a credit repair company would make the process much easier. Here are some signs of a legitimate, expert credit repair company:
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They create a repair strategy custom to your unique situation. A good credit repair company will customize their course of action only after evaluating your credit reports and credit history. Everyone’s credit history is different, and their approach to repairing your credit should reflect that.
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Maintain communication with you during the process. A credit repair company that maintains scheduled calls, emails or any other form of communication with you will help you stay up-to-date with their progress. They shouldn’t keep you in the dark as they’re conducting their services.
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Informs you of your rights from the beginning. At the time of signing, a credit repair company should provide two documents: a disclosure of your right to repair your credit yourself and a detailed contract of services.
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Make realistic claims about their services. Like we said above, credit repair companies cannot guarantee results. A legitimate credit repair company will not guarantee timeframes or point changes, but they can guarantee the delivery of services—access to credit monitoring tools, or letters delivered on your behalf.
How to safely repair your credit
Making payments on time and disputing inaccurate information on your credit reports can help you repair your credit. While you can do this on your own, a professional credit repair firm like Onesta will make the process easier and more efficient.
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BRP Onesta proudly adheres to CROA to make sure we give our clients the best experience possible.
Regardless of the credit bureau, there are several main factors that influence credit scores. We have put together a list below which might assist you in better understanding what happens if one of the below changes either positively or negatively.
The Main Factors That Influence Credit Scores:
Payment History & Late Payments - (35% of Credit Report)
Credit Utilization - (30% of Credit Report)
Number of Hard Inquiries - (15% of Credit Report)
Length of Credit History - (10% of Credit Report)
Credit Diversity & Types of Credit - (10% of Credit Report)
PRICING
Customizable Options:
We have plans for every situation, from people who are have good credit or have fixed their credit and want to continue to address unfair or inaccurate negative items on their credit as they come up to people who need to challenge 1 or 100 unfair or inaccurate negative credit items.
Our plans begin with free credit monitoring and a free credit audit.
If we find unfair or inaccurate negative items on your credit report we will develop a strategy for what we can do to remove the unwarranted negative items or those that are inaccurate.
We offer discounts for referrals and autopay.
Our lowest plan is $59 per month.
We offer a moneyback guarantee and we do not take payment in advance for our work.