Credit fixing ads can be found everywhere including television ads, online ads and even books with tools and secrets to help you fix your credit issues. Often these nifty programs that have lofty claims start to sound like the tabloids:

"My credit score jumped 96 points in just 3 hours!"

"Annihilate debt and eradicate your bad credit with just 2 Magic Letters!"

But really, are all of the claims too good to be true? The answer to that is both; yes and no.

Of course many people want you to believe that time is the only real fix for bad credit, while in reality this is a far cry from what the truth is. It is true, time is one aspect of credit repair; however, it is not even close to being the only aspect. Need some proof to these claims? That is simple.

The Fair Credit Reporting Act, also known as FCRA, is a consumer protection law that regulates the negative information on your credit report. The FCRA allows only the negative information that can be proven as accurate under their law to remain on your credit report. This can mean a lot to the consumer!

Any negative information on your credit report has to be able to be proven as accurate under the FCRA guidelines to remain there. For the consumer this offers both good and bad news.

What is good is that through the FCRA you can more than likely improve your credit score considerably in very little time and with just a small effort on your end.

What is not so good is that although the actual effort will only take a little time you need to have the knowledge on how to go about it. This is the unfortunate thing; 9 out of 10 programs to restore credit does nothing more than stir the cauldron. Many programs provide you with what is considered in the industry as 'Boiler Plate' dispute letters. That means you are given a form letter that the Credit Bureaus and Creditors alike laugh at; they are ineffectual.

The Federal Trade Commission, otherwise known as the FTC, states that 'Anything a Credit Repair Clinic can legally do for you; you can do yourself at little or no cost'. While this is technically true the key to doing so successfully is having the latest inside tricks of the trade and procedures to achieve the results you desire. This often takes the strategies of 'Proof of Contract', 'Challenge of Procedure', 'Constructive Notice', or 'Restrictive Endorsement' as well as many other strategies.

These terms are really simple even though they may sound quite impressive. When all is said and done, it is nothing more than a means of communication that enforces your rights to consumer protection and allows you the results you want while raising your credit score. Once you learn how simple doing these things yourself can be you will discover that there is a virtual fortune to be had by implementing these strategies for others! Whether doing it for your self or for others it all begins by requesting a free copy of your credit report AnnualCreditReport.