How To Find a Credit Repair Lawyer
2 minute read • Upsolve is a nonprofit that helps you get out of debt with education and free debt relief tools, like our bankruptcy filing tool. Think TurboTax for bankruptcy. Get free education, customer support, and community. Featured in Forbes 4x and funded by institutions like Harvard University so we'll never ask you for a credit card. Explore our free tool
A credit lawyer can help you repair your credit score by correcting mistakes and errors on your credit report. But you can perform many of these steps yourself without an attorney.
Written by Jonathan Petts.
Updated May 10, 2023
Table of Contents
Why Do You Need a Credit Repair Lawyer?
Unfortunately, many people realize too late that it is far too easy to damage a credit rating. By the time they search for a credit lawyer, their credit scores have already fallen. But you can repair your credit rating. Credit ratings are not permanent. The scores change based on your credit history. So, you can begin right now to repair your credit — with or without a credit lawyer.
What Does a Credit Lawyer Do?
A credit lawyer helps clients with credit repair when their credit ratings have been damaged. Your credit lawyer performs several services aimed at helping you improve your credit score.
Some of the services a credit lawyer may perform include:
Obtaining copies of your credit report from all for the credit lawyer to review;
Notating mistakes on the credit reports;
The credit lawyer takes steps to correct the mistakes and errors on the credit reports;
Verifies negative items have been removed that should no longer be on your credit history;
A credit lawyer negotiates with creditors to; and,
If a is filed, the credit lawyer represents you in court.
Depending on your unique situation, the credit lawyer may perform other services to help repair your credit rating.
Upsolve Member Experiences
1,940+ Members OnlineDo I Need a Credit Repair Lawyer?
You can do many of the things that a credit lawyer does to repair your credit. However, correcting a credit report can be a time-consuming and frustrating experience. Creditors and credit reporting agencies can be very difficult to work with when they made a mistake. These companies require an abundance of proof there is an error and then they are still slow to act.
In addition to the frustration of dealing with your creditors and the credit reporting agencies, you need to understand your legal rights. You should also understand how to recognize and avoid credit repair scams.
If you are not an attorney, you may not know your rights. You may not understand the steps to take to repair your credit score. A credit lawyer can provide legal advice that you may not receive from a credit repair company.
How To Avoid Credit Repair Scams
The Federal Trade Commission provides information on credit repair scams. Some of the signs of a credit repair scam include:
Promises that you will have a new credit identity;
Insist on receiving payment before work is performed;
Recommends that you dispute accurate information on your credit report;
Does not explain your legal rights regarding their services;
Advises you to use false information when you apply for a loan or credit account; and,
Tells you that you should not contact credit reporting agencies directly.
If you want to use a company or credit lawyer to help repair your credit, you should read the information from the FTC about your rights under the Credit Repair Organization Act (CROA).
DIY Credit Repair
The FTC provides information and steps for disputing errors on credit reports. You can perform many of these steps yourself. If you are unable to correct problems on your credit report, you can contact a credit lawyer.
One of the first steps you need to take is to order your free copies of your credit reports. You are entitled to free copies every 12 months. You can follow the steps provided by the FTC for disputing errors and mistakes.
It may take a significant amount of time, but you can save money by doing the work to repair your credit yourself.
Check out the video below ⬇️for more information.
Do You Need To File for Bankruptcy Relief?
In some cases, the first step to repair your credit is to get rid of bad debt. Filing a Chapter 7 or Chapter 13 bankruptcy case can eliminate debt.
If you can hire a bankruptcy attorney, that is usually advised. However, you can file for bankruptcy relief without an attorney.
Upsolve is a non-profit organization dedicated to helping individuals obtain the bankruptcy relief they need at no cost, even when they can't afford to hire a bankruptcy attorney.