2017 RANKING & REVIEWS
TOP RANKING BEST CREDIT REPAIR SERVICES
Finding the Best Credit Repair Services
Aside from your bank balance, your credit score is arguably your most important financial number. Your credit score determines whether or not you can do things like buy a home, finance a car, or apply for a credit card. The higher the score, the more trustworthy lenders think you are, which is why credit repair companies are very appealing to some consumers.
The entire purpose of a credit repair service is to help consumers fix their credit and raise it to a higher number. A higher credit score doesn’t just give you increased access to credit. It makes lenders comfortable extending lower interest rates to you as well, meaning the cost of borrowing will be lower for you.
Award Emblem: Best Credit Repair Services
Repairing your credit requires time, energy, and dedication. This is why many people turn to the best credit repair companies instead of dealing with their finances themselves. They can leave the calling, inquiring, and filing up to professionals at a credit repair company who already know how to navigate the system.
Another reason people choose top credit repair companies is that their limited knowledge of credit scores and credit reports would make them ineffective advocates for themselves. Experts at credit repair agencies can readily identify easy wins when it comes to fixing a consumer’s credit score (such as errors and misreporting).
Someone at a credit repair agency will also have the persistence and the resourcefulness to find not-so-obvious ways to improve a customer’s credit score as well.
Finding Legitimate Credit Repair Companies
Of course, simply finding legitimate credit repair companies is the first issue. While there are definitely reputable, honest credit repair companies, there are some who are primarily concerned with taking the money of people who are desperate, vulnerable, and ill-informed.
Dealing with a bad credit score is a frustrating experience. If you have bad credit you need to get credit to improve it, but your bad credit prevents anyone from trusting you. This is a horrible catch-22. Throw in the fact that an alarming number of people are not very knowledgeable about personal finance, and you have a dangerous combination of desperation and ignorance waiting to be exploited by less-than-honest credit repair companies.
There are a few things you should avoid when signing up with a credit repair company:
- Don’t sign a long-term contract with a credit repair agency when there is no money back guarantee: There is no guarantee that even the best credit repair agency can fix your credit. While there are certainly methods and tactics, there are circumstances where fixing a person’s credit is more difficult than anticipated.Try to avoid signing up for long-term contracts that lock you in with credit repair companies at all costs. If you do decide to lock into one because your case requires a time commitment, make sure there is some stipulation that allows you to break the contract if there is no improvement within a certain amount of time.
- Avoid companies that 100% guarantee they will fix your credit: Sales copy is one thing (a company’s website may tell you that you are certain to be satisfied or happy), but if you call in for a free consultation with a credit repair agency, and a representative tells you that your credit score is guaranteed to skyrocket if you work with them, kindly thank them and then find another company.Not even the best credit repair agency can promise this. Those that do just want your business.
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AdvisoryHQ’s List of the Top 6 Credit Repair Agencies
List is sorted alphabetically (click any of the credit repair agencies below to go directly to the detailed review section for credit repair services):
Top 6 Best Credit Repair Agencies | Brief Comparison & Ranking
Top Credit Repair Agencies | Pricing | Free Consultation? |
| Credit Repair | $99.95/month | Yes |
| Lexington Law | $79.95/month $99.95/month $119.95/month | Yes |
| MSI Credit Solutions | $98/month (single) $69/month (joint) | Yes |
| My Credit Group | $79/month | Yes |
| Sky Blue | $59/month | Yes |
| The Credit People | $59/month $299 for six months | Yes |
Table: Top 6 Credit Repair Services | Above list is sorted alphabetically
Can I Fix My Credit without Credit Repair Agencies?
Image Source: Pexels
While some people may be thrilled at the idea of credit repair companies that can sweep in and boost your dismal credit score for a simple fee, others may not be that convinced. The skeptic may ask, “What exactly can the best credit repair company do that I can’t do myself?”
The answer: not that much.
Even the best credit repair agency does not perform magic. A consumer with decent research skills, ample patience, and a good deal of dedication can improve their credit score on their own. Credit repair agencies (at least legitimate credit repair companies) are not purporting to be able to conduct a special magic. They are simply offering to do what consumers really do not want to do. Much like you hire a housekeeper to do the cleaning you don’t want to, a credit repair company does the financial tidying you’d rather avoid.
But credit repair services can be a significant time saver. In fact, even if you know you are capable of addressing the issue, it may be smarter to leave things to a credit repair company if only for the fact that you’ll never get around to it. That said, there are simple steps that you can take on your own to improve your credit score.
Review Your Credit Report
You are entitled to a free credit report once a year from each of the three credit reporting agencies. Even if you will be using credit repair services, some may require you to acquire your credit report yourself, so this is a good first step regardless of your plans. The three credit reporting agencies are Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion. It’s your credit report that directly informs your credit score, and since you do not know which credit report will be used, it is crucial to check all three of them.
Review each report to look for information that has been reported incorrectly or blatant errors and then go through the process of disputing them. If you’d rather not dispute the errors on your own, this is where the best credit repair companies can be very useful and serve a specific purpose.
Get a Secured Credit Card
One way to escape the “need credit to get credit” trap of building credit before finding the best credit repair company is to acquire a secured credit card. The difference between a secured credit card and an unsecured credit card is that an unsecured credit card does not require collateral, while a secured credit card has a security deposit.
For instance, if you want a secured credit card with a $1,000 limit, you have to provide a $1,000 deposit.
Other than the collateral, a secured credit card works exactly the same as a regular credit card. You have to pay a minimum balance at the end of the month (your security balance is not used for this), and most secured credit card providers will report your behavior to the credit reporting bureaus. This way, if you use the secured credit card responsibly, it will help boost your credit score.
Additionally, many secured credit card providers will give you back your security deposit after about a year of good usage, allowing you to easily transition into an unsecured credit card before even looking for the top credit repair companies.
Aggressively Pay Down Your Debt
You don’t need the top credit repair companies to tell you this. It goes without saying, but we’ll repeat it anyway: pay off your debt! Make serious lifestyle changes and start putting a significant amount of your income toward paying down your debt. Make your monthly minimum payments on time and in full since this plays a huge role in your credit score calculations.
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AdvisoryHQ Selection Methodology
What methodology does AdvisoryHQ use in selecting and finalizing the credit cards, financial products, firms, services, and products that are ranked on its various top-rated lists?
Please click here “AdvisoryHQ’s Ranking Methodologies” for a detailed review of AdvisoryHQ’s selection methodologies for ranking top-rated credit cards, financial accounts, firms, products, and services.
Detailed Review—Top Ranking Best Credit Repair Services
Below, please find the detailed review of each card on our list of the best credit repair services. We have highlighted some of the factors that allowed these credit repair agencies to score so high in our selection ranking.
Credit Repair Review
CreditRepair.com is a credit repair agency that uses a step-by-step process to help consumers improve their credit score by challenging credit report entries.
As its first step, this credit repair agency pulls a consumer’s credit reports for them and organizes the information in a way that allows the client to quickly and easily identify what information they want to challenge first. This helps Credit Repair know what they should be targeting first and where they should be focusing their efforts in order to effectively meet their client’s goals.
Image Source: Pexels
The second step involves engaging directly with the credit companies. This is the part that is often the most frustrating for people when they try to address credit report issues on their own. It is also the step that usually leads them to turn to finding the best credit repair companies. They engage in the back-and-forth with the credit companies necessary for ensuring those companies meet their obligations and correct the inaccurate information.
Credit Repair then contacts the credit reporting bureaus to confirm that those changes have been reflected, something any company that wants to consider themselves one of the best credit repair companies would guarantee is done.
The final step is ensuring those changes are reflected in your credit score and that the credit repair agency helps you reach your goals that require more long-term work through their online tools. These online tools help you see how your financial habit changes affect your progress and more.
Lexington Law Review
Lexington Law Review offers specialized credit repair services for consumers trying to boost their financial standing. They work to distinguish themselves as one of the best credit repair companies by making the credit repair process as easy and effortless for their customers. It’s one of the main reasons it is included in our credit repair reviews.
Lexington Law’s credit repair reviews are conducted using the firm’s specialized understanding of consumer rights, protections, and laws to give them a strong chance of greatly improving their credit. They have experience tackling a wide range of credit report issues including bankruptcies and tax liens, and they can use their expert legal knowledge to help their clients.
Their credit repair reviews go a step beyond disputes. They leverage their understanding of the law to challenge credit providers to ensure that customers are getting a fair shake in all areas. This ability to address people’s credit scores at the root of the problem—the ongoing debt with lenders—makes Lexington Law one of the best credit repair companies.
Related: The Credit Cards for Students | Guide | Finding the Best Student Credit Cards
MSI Credit Solutions Review
MSI Credit Solutions is a credit repair company that works with consumers and creditors to have questionable or dubious items removed from credit reports. There is one particular feature that sets MSI Credit Solutions apart from some of the best credit repair companies: they offer a money back guarantee.
If MSI Credit Solutions is unable to raise your credit score by 50 points through their credit repair services, customers get their money back.
Like we mentioned earlier, not even the best credit repair companies can 100% guarantee that they will significantly improve your credit. You should be wary of credit repair agencies that make such claims. A good sign of legitimate credit repair companies is when they are willing to give you your money back if you do not meet your credit repair goals.
My Credit Group Review
My Credit Group provides personalized plans for customers who need to deal with credit report disputes. It even helps people establish new credit if they have a blank credit history. My Credit Group is one of the credit repair services that doubles as a new credit building agency.
This credit repair company has been in business since 2000 and serves more than 100,000 clients. Its process is to review each client’s credit report in order to decide on the best course of action. This is an important step that the best credit repair companies take because it means they will let you know from the jump whether credit repair agencies are even equipped to help you instead of simply taking your money.
Instead of a one size fits all approach, customers receive a tailored credit repair services plan customized to their unique situation.
Sky Blue Review
Sky Blue Credit Repair allows customers to easily get set up with their credit repair agency by filling out an online form. In order to start their credit repair review, customers have to provide their basic information. This includes their name, address, state, and email. After filling out the form, customers are emailed links that walk them through the process of acquiring their three credit reports from the credit reporting bureaus.
Gaining access to your credit report is unavoidable for your credit repair review, but this is one drawback of some of the best credit repair companies—the fact that you have to get your credit reports for them. On the other hand, some people may prefer this option.
After Sky Blue has received your credit report, they will conduct a credit repair review and identify items that they believe they can dispute. They will also send you lists of suggestions and actions you can take to further optimize your credit score.
After this step has been completed, Sky Blue beings the process of disputing items. The answers from the credit reporting agencies are sent directly to you so that you can stay up to date on what is happening with the credit repair services you’re paying for.
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The Credit People Review
The Credit People allows consumers to sign up for their credit repair review over the phone or online. Additionally, customers can call in for a free consultation to decide whether credit repair services are right for them before committing.
The strategy of The Credit People’s credit repair review is to “attack” your credit score at all possible angles. There are numerous reasons that an item on a credit score can be challenged: it may be completely inaccurate, incomplete, biased, or unverifiable. If an item is unverifiable, it has to be deleted.
This is why it helps to find the best credit repair company doing a credit repair review for you instead of doing it all alone. A credit repair agency already has a comprehensive understanding of how credit scores are calculated and the specifics of the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA), allowing them to work more quickly and efficiently.
The Credit People do all of this checking and challenging of unverifiable line items on your behalf.
Conclusion: Credit Repair Services Can Be Time Savers If You’re Willing to Pay for Them
You can do a credit repair review on your own, but it takes time, and you may never get around to it. If you find legitimate credit repair companies, their fee may actually be less than the money bad credit is wasting you. If you have sky-high interest rates on your credit cards or your mortgage could be refinanced for a lower rate, you could qualify for more competitive options with a better credit score. This means every month you wait is another month you are losing money.
If you want to explore credit repair services, be mindful of unrealistic promises and go in with a solid understanding of where you would like your credit score to be. The best credit repair companies will give you an honest assessment and let you know whether your goals are realistic. It’s never too late to start rebuilding your credit.
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AdvisoryHQ (AHQ) Disclaimer:
Reasonable efforts have been made by AdvisoryHQ to present accurate information, however all info is presented without warranty. Review AdvisoryHQ’s Terms for details. Also review each firm’s site for the most updated data, rates and info.
Note: Firms and products, including the one(s) reviewed above, may be AdvisoryHQ's affiliates. Click to view AdvisoryHQ's advertiser disclosures.
