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Thursday, December 15, 2005

A More Affordable Alternative to Costly Credit Repair Services

By Mike Killian, CardRatings.com Credit/Debt Management Reporter



I had the great pleasure of interviewing Mark Enderle, owner of the very recently developed Preferred Credit Solutions. Mark's unique credit analysis service is very different than other credit repair organizations that I have investigated over the years. Mark's comments about his company were interesting.

"I would like people to know how unique our service really is compared to the alternatives out there. People should know that the vast majority of consumers really do need to start with a service such as ours before considering using either a credit repair company or a credit counseling business. Our service is quick (consultation is normally less than an hour) and affordable. [Consumers] work with me personally, not someone hired two weeks ago as a credit advisor.

I have pulled over 4,000 credit reports. I have provided consultation for hundreds of people over the years. I have yet to have the first complaint, and the most often phrase I have heard over the years after advising people on what they need to do is 'Man, I wish I would have met you years ago.'"

Mark continued,

"I review people’s credit report, identify all errors and derogatories that are lowering the credit score, and then create a written Credit Analysis and Action Plan that has the specific steps that someone needs to take in order to improve their score. Few people are offering this service. No one I know is doing it for $149. I consider this THE most important thing someone can do when it comes to taking control of their own credit."
In a follow-up e-mail, Mark pointed out several important things that consumers should consider before signing up for a credit repair service.

"First, they are expensive. They recommend people stay with them for one year, and that will cost $500-600. I have seen some people pay over $1,000 for credit repair. Second, people are usually better off doing the disputes themselves. I can teach anyone the fundamentals of how to do this in 15 minutes, and will show the people who come to me who actually have errors on their credit report how to do it. Third, credit repair companies give people a false sense of security, because they feel that disputable errors are why their credit score is not better. Unfortunately this is not true, and credit derogatories and poor credit practices are invariably more responsible for poor credit scores than errors. Most credit repair companies do not even deal with all the information that is on a credit report.

On occasion, there will be instances where an individual does have considerable repair work to be done. An ugly, drawn out divorce can be one example. There truly can be a lot of work [in this type of situation]. However, the vast majority of people should stay as far away from credit repair companies for the reasons I cited above. The service I provide is cheaper, quicker, and much more effective than regular credit repair."

I am not aware of any other companies that provide the type of service that Preferred Credit Solutions offers. If you're considering paid credit repair, then it is probably in your best interest to take a look at Preferred Credit Solutions before you make any decisions.

Finally, always bear in mind that you can improve your credit yourself for free using self-help techniques. Our credit forum is a great place to start if you want to pursue the do-it-yourself approach to credit improvement. Good luck!

We welcome your comments about credit card and other money issues in our popular credit forum!


Mike Killian has been writing about credit and debt management issues that are of importance to consumers for over 8 years. He formerly served as the Guide to About's credit site, which was recognized by Forbes Magazine's "Best of the Web" for 5 of the last 6 years. Mike has also offered debt elimination seminars to businesses and community colleges for many years.

Mike offers free consumer advice on the CardRatings.com Credit Forum as well as on his own site, FreeMoneyTraining.com. While at his site, you can view additional articles as well as his schedule of upcoming seminars.


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