Credit restoration can be frustrating and time-consuming. Many experts say that only time and patience will improve a bad credit history and this is true to a certain extent. But, this does not mean that time alone will correct anything. Nor does it mean that credit restoration is a waste of time or money. If done properly it can be effective. However, you should be careful what programs or services you buy.

The first thing to do for any credit restoration program is visit www.annualcreditreport.com. This website was created by the three major credit bureaus, Experian, TransUnion and Equifax, in response to a law enacted in 2005. Here you can view and print copies of your credit reports at no charge. Your bad credit history may not be as bad as you think. Even people with good credit should look at their credit reports on a yearly basis, due to the prevalence of identity theft in the United States. According to a survey sponsored by the Federal Trade Commission, nearly 10 million people were victims of identity theft in 2003 alone. So, if you have a bad credit history, tell your friends with good credit to keep an eye on their credit reports.

Most credit restoration processes involve disputing information that has been reported to the credit bureaus over the years. You can dispute information that you believe is inaccurate, unverifiable, misleading or obsolete. Depending on the amount of bad credit history items reported, this alone may seem overwhelming. Unverifiable simply means that the credit bureau, upon investigating your dispute, cannot verify a reported item. Get the item removed and you are one step closer to credit restoration.

In some cases, credit restoration may involve negotiating with past creditors to remove negative information. They may do this because the information is inaccurate, outdated or because you have become a good customer and it is not in their best interest to continue to report the negative item. People with a so-called bad credit history may be totally unaware of what information has been reported to the credit bureaus over the years, until they view their credit reports. Anytime that a negative item can be removed or inaccurate information can be corrected, your overall credit score will go up.

Legal credit restoration does not involve applying for an employer identification number, using a different social security number or making false statements on credit applications. Debts must be paid or the bad credit history will haunt you for years.

If you are considering a credit restoration kit, software program or book, find out exactly what is included, before you buy it. There must be a lot of people with a bad credit history, because there are a lot of products on the market which target them. Most do-it-yourself programs contain advice and information that you can find for free, if you take the time to look. If you do not have the time to look for free information, then the best advice may be to hire someone to do the work for you. Many people have failed to achieve credit restoration, because they gave up. It is hard to find the time to do the research, write a lot of letters and talk to past creditors, when you are working full time, commuting and trying to have some time with the family. This is why the credit restoration law firms have become so popular in the past several years. Many of us have the desire to correct bad credit history, but neither the time nor patience to do it on our own.

Some experts say that we should not pay someone to do something for us that we can do ourselves. But, we pay people to mow the grass, cook our dinner, wash our cars, etc. Why shouldn