In the shadow of the demise of the sub-prime lending market and the downfall of several major lending organizations, having a good credit score is increasingly important. Unlike previous years where with the help of creative lending programs and over-eager lenders it was possible for just about anyone to qualify for a mortagage or other loan with little or no down payment, lenders are again becoming more conservative with their investments. Put simply, if you don't have a credit score of over 720, expect to have to provide a down payment and to settle for a loan with less than ideal rates and options.

Fortunately, there are steps you can take to improve your credit score. By proactively managing their finances and effectively repairing your credit reports, people have been able to raise their credit scores by over 100 points in a matter of a few months - an increase that could save you hundreds of thousands of dollars over the course of a 30 year mortgage.

More than ever, people are turning to legitimate credit repair companies to get assistance with disputing and removing the negative items from their credit reports. Today, there are a number of quality credit repair companies that are experts at helping people take full advantage of the rights afforded to them under a number of acts including the Fair Credit Reporting Act.

While it is possible to repair your credit on your own, many people find it is easier and more effective to hire a professional credit repair company to perform the work for them. To assist these people, TheTopTens, a website of interactive top ten lists, provides a list of the top credit repair companies.

According to TheTopTens, the number one credit repair company is Lexington Law with numerous visitors reporting receiving excellent results from their credit repair services. Lexington Law is the largest and most successful credit repair company. According to their site, they helped clients remove over 600,000 negative items from their credit reports last year including late payments, collections, foreclosures, and even bankruptcies.