Things You'll Need:
- Copy of your credit report
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Step 1
Look at your credit report to determine your standing. Look for credit accounts, loans, and anything in collections. You need to determine if any accounts are negative.
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Step 2
If a credit card account is negative, look at it to determine why. Do you pay it on time every month? If not, simply doing that will improve your credit score. Also check to see that you are not over your credit limit. If you are, pay it down immediately. This will help improve your credit-to-debt ratio and improve your score quite easily.
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Step 3
If you have an account in collections, check to make sure it is something you charged. If it is your account, the best thing to do is to pay it off. Contact the collection agency and ask if they will remove it from your credit report if you pay it off. You want them to at least mark it paid in full so it does not remain as a negative account.
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Step 4
If a collection account is not yours, then you will have to dispute it. This will likely be a lengthy process. You can dispute it with the three credit bureaus, though that is not always successful. If it doesn't work, you will have to contact the original creditor, the collection agency, and write letters to all three credit bureaus.
