How Can I Fix Mistakes and Improve My Credit Score?

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You've bravely accessed your credit report.

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Maybe you saw something that wasn't right, or perhaps your credit score

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isn't where you hoped it would be.

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Does seeing that feel discouraging like it's set in stone, what if

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you could actually take steps to clean up and improve it?

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Well, stick with me today because I'm gonna share exactly

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how to make that happen.

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Hey there.

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Welcome back to your Daily Financially Confident Christian.

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I'm Ralph and I'm genuinely encouraged by your willingness

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to tackle some intimidating topics like your credit report.

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This is the show that helps you answer that question, how can I become a

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financially confident Christian?

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And taking that step yesterday to access your credit report was fantastic Progress

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on your journey through our series, dealing with the Stress of Money Worries.

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Now, today we're gonna move from just looking at your credit report to

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actively managing it because what if there are some errors hurting you or

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what if your score needs some work?

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You're not powerless.

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So let's address the question.

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How can I fix mistakes on my credit report and more importantly,

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actively improve my credit score?

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Now, perhaps you've reviewed your credit report, you spotted something that

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wasn't accurate, an account you don't recognize, a late payment, you know you

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made on time or an incorrect balance.

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Finding errors that unfairly hurt your credit is a major struggle.

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It just feels unjust.

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It adds stress because it impacts your ability to get favorable

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terms on loans or even get approved for things in the first place.

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On top of that, if your score is low, it can feel like this barrier to financial

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progress, leaving you feeling stuck and leaving you feeling frustrated.

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Not knowing the steps to dispute errors or the key actions that actually do

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improve a score adds to that difficulty and can make you feel hopeless about

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improving your financial reputation.

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But here's the thing.

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Your credit report is a record of your financial history with

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credit and sometimes, and hear me on this, mistakes happen.

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Maintaining the accuracy of that record and working to improve it is part of

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your responsible stewardship journey, and seeking to live with integrity and

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a good reputation is so very important.

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And connect this to the biblical principles of truthfulness and

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diligence, and we talked about this yesterday and seeking a good name.

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The book of Proverbs, chapter 10 verse nine says this, whoever walks in

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integrity walks securely, but whoever takes crooked paths will be found out.

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And let's keep ourselves in the book of Proverbs, chapter 22.

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Verse one.

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Reminds us a good name is more desirable than great riches.

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And like I mentioned yesterday, While our ultimate identity is in Christ.

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Managing our earthly reputation, including our financial one,

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with integrity and diligence.

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It's wise, stewardship and actively working to fix errors ensures that

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the record reflects the truth of the situation, and consistently

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practicing habits that build a credit score, like paying bills off on time,

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it demonstrates faithfulness in your commitments.

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It's a way of building a diligent and truthful steward

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of your financial reputation.

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Which in the end reflects well and can open doors for

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wise financial opportunities.

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Trust in God to honor your efforts towards integrity.

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So what can we do?

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How do you take control of your credit report and your credit

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score and fix mistakes and build a stronger financial reputation?

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Well, I've got the answer.

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The single essential solution is to take intentional steps to dispute any

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inaccuracies that you find on your credit report, and then consistently focus on

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the key financial habits that have the biggest impact on your credit score.

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And we're gonna talk about those on tomorrow's show.

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But this is truly proactive management of your credit report and score.

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So, okay, here's your one action step for today, specifically focused on

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cleaning up and improving your credit.

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I want you to dispute just one error.

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Now, this is assuming that you found one, but I want you to dispute one error.

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If you found an error on your credit report that you pulled, I want

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you to gather that documentation that proves that the error.

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I want you to grab things like your bank statement, showing an on time payment.

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So that you can prove this.

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And then what you're gonna do is go to the website of the Credit

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bureau , whose report had the error, and I mentioned those yesterday.

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That's Experian, Equifax, or TransUnion.

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Or again, if you didn't pull your credit report, I'm gonna encourage you to go back

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and listen to yesterday's episode, but you can go to annual credit report.com.

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Now, once you've done that, you've looked at your credit, maybe you see some errors.

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Go to those websites for each of those credit bureaus and

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look for their dispute process.

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It's usually an online form or they give you the instructions

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that you can mail in a letter.

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Now, here's the thing you need to remember.

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I. You've got to follow their instructions precisely to dispute

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one specific error that you found.

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Now, maybe you're not somebody who found an error, that's fantastic, but if

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you did, then this is the thing to do.

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And then once you do that, you've got to be patient and

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you've got to be consistent.

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See.

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You've got to understand that improving a credit score takes time and it

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takes consistent, positive behavior.

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So I don't want you to get discouraged if you don't see huge jumps immediately.

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Just stick to those habits, and like I said, tomorrow we're gonna talk about

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three things that you can do right away to improve your credit situation.

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Well, let's take a moment to discuss why this helps, because I think

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it's so important to understand the why behind what we're doing.

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This single action, it directly fights that struggle of having your financial

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reputation unfairly impacted by errors or limited by a low credit score.

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See, when you dispute these errors, it ensures accuracy and focusing on

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consistent on-time payments and keeping those low balances are the most powerful

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ways to build a healthier credit score.

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And like I said, over time, and this empowers you to access better

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financial products in the future, like lower interest rates on

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loans, which can save you money.

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And in the end, it's the whole point of today's show, reduce that

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long-term financial stress on you.

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Well, let's pray together now.

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Father God, thank you for giving us the wisdom and the diligence, Lord,

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to manage our financial affairs.

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And we confess that

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finding errors or having a low credit score can feel

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discouraging and feel limiting.

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Please grant us perseverance and grant us clarity as we dispute

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any inaccuracies on our report.

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And Lord, just grant us patience in the process, strengthen our discipline

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to maintain habits that build a good credit score and for integrity

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in all of our financial dealings.

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And we ask this with confidence in Jesus' name, Amen.

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Taking action on your credit report is empowering and it contributes

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to your overall financial health and your overall financial piece.

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It's an act of diligence, so keep up the good work and if managing your credit

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report feels like a challenge you're ready for, please do me a favor and

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share this episode with somebody else.

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You may have friends who also need to understand their credit, and this

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show can be a great resource for them.

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You can find resources and connect with our show at our website that's financially

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confident christian.com, and I've got a special gift for you on your journey.

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For the first 100 listeners who go to the website, financially confident

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christian.com/master, I'm gonna give you a free copy of my book.

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It's called Mastering Your Finances.

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Now, this is a quick, powerful read, designed as a starting

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point to help you break that cycle of financial shame and step.

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Into confidence.

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Again, that's at financially confident christian.com/master

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and go get your free copy today.

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Now, tomorrow we're gonna talk about three quick ways to instantly

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improve your credit score.

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You don't wanna miss it, so make sure you join me and let's all go out

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there and be financially confident.

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Christians, you can do this.

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I have confidence in you.

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Have confidence in yourself.

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Stay financially savvy.

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God bless you, and you have a great day today.

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I.