Founded in 2001, The Credit People aims at helping people raise their credit scores and improve their credit reports through professional credit repair services.
For a good reason, this repair company prides itself in calling themselves the “credit superheroes,” and has helped more than 200,000 people in correcting inaccurate entries that cannot be verified.
For close to 2 decades, this company has helped thousands of consumers remove more than 1.5 million negative entries.
If you’ve been thinking of ways to take hold of your financial life and contemplating whether The Credit People is a legitimate company, they might be a good fit for your credit concerns.
Although hiring a repair agency might seem like the silver bullet in helping you achieve overnight results, that’s always not the case.
With a combination of unique strategies in helping people build their credit, The Credit People has had a tremendous success rate in the past.
If you’re considering this option, here’s what you need to know?
About The Credit People
This credit repair company was founded around the beginning of the 21st century and is known for an excellent customer-focused team.
Primarily, the team reviews their customers’ credit reports and checks to see the bad items as well as the items that could be made better.
Below are some of the ways through which the team works in improving your credit:
- An initial free service for the first seven days
- Seamless access to your online account, with the option to cancel any time.
- A comprehensive review and deletion of negative items from your credit report.
- Disputing unverifiable entries and charges on your credit report in each of the three credit bureaus.
- Recommending on viable ways to improve on your credit score.
What The Credit People does
Once you sign up for the services of The Credit People, they’ll retrieve your credit reports from each of the three data centers and upload them to your account dashboard.
Afterward, the team will create a plan of action and progressively dispute as many negative items as they can.
Besides removing the common detrimental issues in your credit report, the company will also address judgments and bankruptcies.
Most times, the strategy involves reviewing your credit report for fraudulent activity, mistakes or items that should have been removed.
Once they find these items, they send out dispute letters to the three data centers or your creditors, asking them for removal.
While many items typically require further scrutiny and verification, most people have reported seeing results within the first round of disputes.
When necessary, The Credit People talks to your creditors and negotiates with them to ease any collection attempts as you deal with the matter.
Besides, the company offers services for almost every credit-related need, like when a potential employer asks for an updated credit report.
The firm boasts in providing a comprehensive set of services ranging from unique benefits of a $39 one-week trial and a 100% money-back guarantee if you’re entirely happy with the services offered.
Essentially, the team works with your loan issuers and credit bureaus to offer credit repair services, and they have a significant track record in removing the following items from credit reports:
- Delinquencies
- Paid collections
- Late student loan payments
- Closed accounts
- Judgments
- Closed accounts
- Charge offs
- Negative settlements
- Liens and
- Modifications on your personal information
Besides removing the components listed above, the team also works to remove more ‘stubborn entries’ like:
- Bankruptcies
- Foreclosures
- Repossessions
The Credit People stats
Below is a facet of how much The Credit People costs.
- Startup fee of $19
- A monthly membership fee of $79
- Flat rate membership of $419
The Credit People primarily have one service plan, so you won’t have to think through the specific services you need and how much you have to pay.
Where the disparity comes in, however, is that there are two different ways to pay for it. If you prefer making monthly payments, you’ll pay as you proceed with their services, but if you’re confident you’ll need their services for half a year, you can pay the flat membership fee at once.
Nonetheless, you’ll receive seamless access to your account, credit reports, unlimited provision for disputes as well as creditor intervention.
One notable perk of this payment is that if you sign up your partner within three days, you’ll get a $20 discount on both orders.
Who should sign up for The Credit People?
The Credit People is ideal for people with minor credit problems looking for comprehensive professional support and friendly customer service.
The company’s basics of credit reinstatement are correcting errors, finding and overcoming legal loopholes, getting as many negative elements deleted.
However, one major downside is that they lack essential pricier services like credit repair monitoring and identity optimization.
Nonetheless, you’ll be assured to get more individual attention and excellent customer service from an online manager exclusively assigned to your account.
Besides having the provision to reach the company by email, you’ll talk to the customer representative on the phone and have more personalized support instead of automated messages.
At a glance, the online requirements for enrolling the services is a credit history and the commitment to pay the annual and monthly fees. Despite the company not warning prospective clients of the difficulty of removing some entries in credit reports, it is still a viable and worthy option.
Who isn’t this company ideal for?
Let’s face it. No company would chase away prospective clients by plainly telling them, “your case is beyond our means.”
Thankfully, you can join the dots and fill the gaps by observing some trends, and that’s precisely what we’ve done.
The Credit People doesn’t offer identity optimization, which makes it unsuitable for people who want ultimate protection against identity theft. Instead, the company has one primary “tier” of services regardless of your score.
While identity optimization is an essential element, you may have to consider another option if it’s critical for you.
At the same time, The Credit People won’t be ideal if you have complicated credit problems like bankruptcy. Keep in mind that it has a “single-tier” service, which means that you’ll pay a flat rate regardless of how much effort the team needs to put in your credit report.
Unlike the “pay-per-deletion” structure in most credit repair agencies, customers who need minor attention to elements in their credit reports will pay as much as those needing a complete overhaul.
If you have one or two minor issues that you can’t handle on your own, the firm might be an ideal option for you. If you have gone through a bankruptcy, on the other hand, the company will try to have it removed, although the success rate for this process is hardly over 30%.
Pros of The Credit People
One week $19 trial
The Credit People’s most notable selling point is this trial period.
It allows you to peek into their services, which is an interesting idea as it helps you make a decision based on your experience with their services.
Across the industry, no other reputable company offers this flexibility in pricing, especially for people who aren’t sure about hiring a specific repair agency.
Although you’ll certainly not see any positive results in your credit report within this period, you can use it as a trial option for feeling how the company is going to treat you as a client.
Within this period, you’ll undoubtedly have a solid comprehension of where your credit score stands from a professional’s view, coupled with some advice on what you should do.
If you’d prefer to forfeit The Credit People’s services, you’ll only lose $19 – which is significantly lower than the $70-$100 loss you would have made with another credit repair company.
Free credit reports
Some credit repair companies won’t allow you to use additional resources in pulling your credit report.
However, The Credit People has this provision, which you can use to view your credit report for free and track the progress of your score.
Educational resources
Without a doubt, many people seeking credit repair services do not have a solid comprehension of valuable information on credit scores and responsible credit utilization.
On their website, The Credit People offers a full set of information on all issues regarding credit, and they also answer typical questions regarding student loans, credit cards and associated debts.
Affordable pricing
Relative to related firms in the financial landscape, The Credit People offers pocket-friendly pricings for different credit repair services.
The company’s flat-rate payment of $419 that is typically due in a week after sign up covers everything that a typical monthly-membership would cover.
According to the company’s website, a standard credit repair process takes about six months to complete. From some quick algebra, 6 months X $79 is $474.
If you opt for the full up-front payment, you’ll save more than $50, assuming that you stay with the company through this period.
While the flat up-front fee isn’t for everyone, its availability offers you the flexibility to choose between short-term affordability and long-term affordability.
No hidden fees
A common downside for most credit repair firms is their perpetual appetite for hidden fees.
The Credit People prides itself on adding two vital services to its $7 monthly pricing, which include monthly credit monitoring and free access to your credit report and score.
As much as the Federal Government has mandated the eligibility for customers to receive a free credit report each year, the provision of this feature without additional fees is a plus.
60-day money guarantee
Admittedly, money-back guarantees aren’t something commonly found in reputable firms across the industry.
While the first free week of access to service is essential in gauging your match with this company, it certainly isn’t sufficient to give a comprehensive picture.
However, expecting results within the first two months of usage might seem like a huge stretch, mainly because it might take up to 6 months for some people.
For instance, if your credit report has 20 errors, it might take about five months to clear. In other words, canceling the service after two months because you haven’t seen a positive change sounds unreasonable.
At the same time, if you have one or two issues, 60 days should be more than enough time to show positive results.
Nonetheless, the provision for this money-back guarantee works differently for various people but is an overall good provision.
The Credit People cons
No BBB accreditation
The Credit People has an average rating of ‘C,’ according to The BBB.
It isn’t unusual for customers to fail to understand the entire process, but this score is significantly lower than what we expected.
No individual advisor
Every time you call the customer service team to discuss your credit problem, you’ll be assigned a different agent.
Unlike other companies that offer personalized support through your assigned paralegals that act as a primary point of contact whenever you speak to the company, The Credit People lacks this provision.
While there is a difference in the level of appreciation of personal touch among different consumes, a familiar voice would not only build rapport but also be a welcome component.
However, the credit option currently does not have that feature.
What to expect when using The Credit People’s services
At a glance, The Credit People is good for removing negative items from your report and boosting your credit score.
Besides, the company is good at offering personalized advice to help you make tailored decisions on home loans, mortgages, and ways to boost your credit.
Keep in mind that no one is legally able to remove legitimate items from your credit reports, but it doesn’t mean that they can’t be removed.
In several cases, the items would be removed if the creditor can’t verify them or if you made a late payment as a result of a pandemic.
That said, The Credit People’s success rates in different categories include:
- A rise in credit scores – 32%
- Home loans approval – 71%
- Auto loans approval – 78%
- Approval for refinancing – 74%
- New credit approval – 81%
How long does it take to see positive results?
When your assigned team challenges the items in question, the creditors will have 30 days to respond. If they fail to respond, the items will be removed immediately.
Since The Credit People swings into action immediately, you’ll likely start seeing positive results within the first 45 days, and most likely have an overall outcome in approximately six months.
How to sign up
To sign up, you can go through the process on their official page. Once you fill out the form, you’ll be asked to enter your payment information and authorization to retrieve your credit reports.
Shortly after signing up, you’ll have access to a customized online portal where you can track the progress of the disputes. Besides, the team is available by phone or chat, and you can reach them whenever you have any questions.
You can either contact them through the online portal or call their toll-free number. You can make the cancellation any time with the monthly membership, but if you’re using the flat-rate membership, you would have to cancel within two months to have your full refund.
The Credit People vs. competitors
Although The Credit People has an average C rating according to the BBB, it has FCRA certifications coupled with some features that make it stand out from the crowd.
It’s one of the few companies that offer a satisfactory 100% money-back guarantee for 60 days. Besides, The Credit People provides updated credit reports every month, and you’ll access your score every three months.
Frequently asked questions
Can deleted items appear on my report after deletion?
Although this occurrence is rare, it happens sometimes.
There is a possibility that a credit agency will continue to report to the bureau if you have an incomplete debt or credit issue.
This event is neither within your control nor the agency’s, so deleted items might still reappear.
The great news, however, is that the company afforms that they will maintain constant vigilance on their clients’ reports to offset the likelihood of such errors.
Do they offer discounts?
The Credit People offers a $20 couple discount for the first three months of your membership.
Note that the discount is quoted in total, which means that it is $10 per person.
How can I contact them?
The company’s official number is (888) 619-7942, and you can find them from 9 AM – 5 PM CST.
Conclusion – The Credit People Review
The Credit People offers very competitive pricing coupled with a 60-day money-back guarantee and a complete satisfaction guarantee.
No doubt, most of us have experienced credit concerns at some point in our lives – sometimes due to mistakes and youthful hype or things that are entirely out of control.
Whatever the reason, you always have a second chance to get a hold of your financial life, and that’s precisely what The Credit People provides.
As a company that has been in this landscape for a significant period and known for excellent customer service, it’s certainly worth your considerations.
Overall, patience and maintaining optimal financial habits is the perfect ingredient to taking hold of your financial life.
