When an Illinois consumer fills out a loan application, it typically means that they are planning something major. A home or car purchase is likely. Or, if it’s a smaller, personal loan, a wedding, vacation, or home improvement project are strong possibilities. Whatever the case, a loan application rejection means that your plans come to a screeching halt. When denied a loan in Illinois, the first thing you should do is find out why. Luckily, anyone who gets turned down for a loan or line of credit may request free copies of their credit reports. It’s important to take advantage of this opportunity when denied credit. This is especially true if the rejection comes as a complete surprise.
Finding out why your Loan Application was Rejected in Illinois
There are a few reasons why loan applications are rejected in Illinois, but the most likely explanation has to do with credit reports and credit scores. If there are negative items on your credit reports bringing your credit score down, it is harder to get loan approval. Unfortunately, a fair to bad credit score makes you a risky borrower in the eyes of a lender. Of course, there is a chance that your low credit score isn’t entirely your fault.
When looking over your credit reports, you should verify the accuracy of the items you see. Negative items such as delinquent accounts, repossessions, and bankruptcies cause credit scores to drop. So, if you have these items in your credit history and they are legitimate, it’s understandable why your credit score is low. However, for Illinois consumers who find these things on their credit reports and don’t recognize them, there is a more complicated issue.
Credit reporting errors are incredibly common, and result from several types of incidents. For example, delinquent accounts that you don’t recognize are likely proof of identity theft. Whereas, if you have a paid account inaccurately listed as delinquent, either a lender or credit reporting bureau has probably failed to update the item.
The upside for Illinois residents whose credit scores are low due to credit report errors is that these mistakes are fixable. Actually, a federal statute called the Fair Credit Reporting Act demands accuracy in consumer credit reporting. This REQUIRES the credit bureaus to fix their mistakes. Once the errors are disputed and removed, you can re-submit your loan application with an improved chance at approval.
Advice for Illinois Consumers with Legitimately Bad Credit
Consumers in Illinois whose loan applications are denied because of actual bad credit shouldn’t give up on their goals. There are ways to repair bad credit and eventually earn loan approval, but it may take a little time. Here are some good ways to start the credit repair process:
- Get current with your bills. Late payments can hurt your credit score.
- Pay down high credit card balances. If you are using more than 30% of your available credit, your credit score might drop even if you are making every payment on time.
- Apply for a secured credit card. If you don’t have an unsecured credit card to use as a credit building tool, a secured card may be easier to get. This is because opening a secured credit card account requires a cash deposit.
- Check your credit reports for errors. Cleaning up your credit reports may not resolve all of your credit issues. But it could give your credit score the boost it needs to jumpstart your efforts.
Illinois consumers who want help with cleaning up their credit reports can get the assistance of an experienced credit repair attorney for FREE by contacting Credit Repair Lawyers of America. Just give us a call or drop us an email and we’ll go over your credit reports together.
The Free and Legal Way to Get Better Credit
Don’t let errors or medical debt reporting mistakes on your credit reports bring your credit score down. At Credit Repair Lawyers of America, we’ve been cleaning up credit reports for consumers since 2008 for free. How do we do it? All of our fees come from the defendants in settled cases. This is why our clients pay nothing for the work we do.
Let’s start the conversation about what we can do for your credit. Set up your free consultation today by calling Attorney Gary Nitzkin at (773)360-0665 or sending him a message through our contact page.
