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Remember when I said last year that I would start car hunting? Well, fast forward to today, and I’ve actually made the decision to put off the purchase and instead focus on building my credit as much as possible. Being self-employed already means next to my credit score, my unpredictable income history may be a dealbreaker when it comes to buying a car from a dealership. With the odds against me, not only do I need to save up for a sizeable down payment, but I also need to make my credit score as pristine as possible to be considered for a car loan.

As you know, personal finance is not part of our school system’s required curriculum, so many of us graduate from school having no clue how to build credit, save adequately, or where to even start with financial management. I was definitely a reflection of that. On top of that, my parents weren’t knowledgeable enough to guide me through building my credit, so I’ve basically been winging it and doing my own research ever since I can remember. And though I consider myself proficient with financial management, there are still so many things I don’t know about credit building or credit repair, so I worked together with Lexington Law to get a gameplan of how to maximize these next few months and work to repair my credit. Millions of Americans are unable to qualify for car loans due to inaccurate  or unfair negative items on their credit, but those things may actually be corrected. However, contesting those errors takes months to fix, so I wanted to fill you in during the next few months on my credit repair journey with Lexington Law. It never hurts to try and increase your credit score where and when you can, so I’m shooting my shot and seeing where I can make improvements. I hope you’ll be able to learn from my experience over the next few months!

Despite being knee-deep in consumer debt more than a few times, I’ve only ever missed one payment during my entire credit history, have a good variety of credit lines, and a good history of timely payments working in my favor. However, it could be better! You don’t necessarily need to have flat-out awful credit in order to seek out credit repair – I recommend it for basically everyone, regardless of their credit score.

Lexington Law really understands the complexities of the seemingly endless consumer protection laws that most people like me don’t, so it was only fitting to work with them to catch anything I may have missed on my credit report. I know that tackling your credit score can be an intimidating thing to do without guidance, so I highly suggest working with them so that you can also get the right financial advice that’s customized to your credit situation. Their lawyers focus on equipping their clients with legal-based solutions so that they can confidently tackling the credit score behemoth. And the best part? Their services offer packages that meet every client’s needs.

I’ve always been intimidated to hire someone outside of myself to assist me with my finances, but the truth is that there is so much information online yet not enough reassurance that any of it will actually benefit your unique situation, so consulting with a professional who understands the credit repair industry will save you a lot of time and headache in the long run.

I’ve been working with Lexington Law all throughout July to improve my credit score, and it’s been really easy and convenient so far. I reviewed my credit history with one of their consultant and he gave me an overview of what we would be working on over the next few months. My consultant informed me that I had a “charge-off” on one of my credit cards, which surprised me: a charge-off usually means a debt has gone unpaid for over 6 months, and the creditor has given up on trying to retrieve the money, so they report the debt as a charge-off on your credit report. This was the only late payment I’d ever made – simply by just forgetting and being a day late – so I was shocked to see that the creditor listed it as a charge-off. Luckily, the charge-off was only noted on my TransUnion account, so my Experian and Equifax reports were left untouched.

My consultant sent the creditor a letter on my behalf contesting the charge-off, which I would not have even known how to do on my own if not for him. He made it quick and easy and saved me a lot of unnecessary worry and stress! Typically, it takes a few weeks for the creditor to issue a response, so this is even more reason to start repairing your credit as soon as possible.

Because challenging these kinds of derogatory marks can take a lengthy time, it can be difficult to consistently check your progress. I love that Lexington Law has a client portal as well as an app that allows you to view your credit reports, review any open cases, and more. It even has a feature called Identity Protection, which notifies you when any suspicious activity is made on your account to protect you from identity theft and credit card fraud. As part of your membership with Lexington Law, you also have ID Theft Insurance, which covers you up to a certain amount (I have up to $1,000,000). 

Additionally, one of my favorite features of the app is the Money Manager, which allows you to connect all of your financial accounts in one place and automatically categorizes all of your expenses, which makes budgeting even easier. Building and repairing credit is only one facet of personal finance, so it’s great to see that they’ve included an easy way for clients to monitor their budget in tandem with their credit. Money Manager is a robust money management tool with great features that you would pay a good amount of money to have access to with other financial software, so it’s a major perk to have this tool included in your Lexington Law membership.

It’s possible to dispute any inaccurate or unfair credit marks made against you on your own, but it can be a confusing process without the appropriate knowledge to navigate the world of credit. Lexington Law has relationships with the three major credit bureaus Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion, which makes them a viable partner to work with on repairing your credit. Their lawyers also have extensive knowledge of consumer protection laws and know how to handle conversations with creditors, which gives you a better chance of resolving credit issues rather than on your own.

So far, I’m waiting to hear a response from the creditor about the charge-off, but for now, I’ll spend my time monitoring my credit, budget, and spending habits on the Lexington Law app. I’ll be publishing another blog post in the next few months to keep you updated on my credit repair journey! Have you thought about trying out credit repair services, or are you trying to do it on your own? Let’s chat in the comments below! Don’t forget to subscribe to my newsletter and follow me on Instagram for more money-making lifestyle, fashion and beauty tips.

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