Using Fair-Credit Credit Cards to Fix or Repair My Credit Report

Sep 3, 2010
Asa Ghaffar

Types of Credit cards for Fair Credit - Image by demosphere

Past defaults have made it hard to borrow money. Responsible spending, fair-credit credit cards, and punctual repayments can help with fixing your score.

Although fair-credit credit cards don't offer the lowest rates, I've found that they can help to fix my credit report far more quickly. After research, I realized that this is how I should look at credit cards for fair credit: a genuine opportunity to repair my credit report and rebuild my score. This concept applies to you as well. It won't happen overnight, but the rebuilding process can be accelerated.

Despite the fact that past defaults and late payments are recorded by credit reporting agencies for a period of 7 years, you can start to make improvements to your creditworthiness today. Every month that you repay your debts on time will lead to an improvement. Provided that you settle the balance within the grace period specified in the agreement, you can also avoid interest.

Ways to Repair My Credit Report

I avoided using more than 30% of my limit because it affected my credit utilization figure. It's better to use several cards than a single, favored card. I was able to achieve the best results by keeping this figure below 10%.
I never carried forward my balance to the next month and always paid it off in full. If you don't think that you're going to have enough money, don't make the purchase.
If you already have a credit card for fair credit that's gathering dust, don't close it down. This is a common mistake that leads to a credit score reduction. I always use my cards to make a purchases each month, remembering to settle the full balance.
Although an interest-free balance transfer can reduce debt, don't move your balance to a card with a lower limit as it makes you appear more financially exposed.

Revolving and Installment Debt

Settling the balance on my fair-credit credit card enabled me to improve my score, but more needed to be done as the agencies scrutinize different types of debt. I also needed to make punctual repayments on my home mortgage, student loans and car finance to get the best results.

All that was necessary to repair my credit report was to abide by the above rules and repay my debts punctually. After a period of 12 months, I began to qualify for the best credit card deals. This meant that I paid less interest, incurred fewer charges and qualified for enhanced incentives. I was also be able to refinance my mortgage and auto more affordably than was previously the case.

Don't believe the claims of companies that promise rapid credit repair. Unless there are mistakes on your report, they cannot be repaired in days or weeks. Adverse entries will be visible to potential creditors, and you cannot get a new report because it's illegal. If you want to qualify for the top loans and mortgages in the future, you just need to repay your debts punctually each month.