The Employer Credit Check – Just One More Reason To Get Your Finances Right

The power of getting out of debt can’t be denied…or can it? Lately we’ve been seeing a few inflammatory messages on forums and the like about how fixing one’s credit isn’t worth it, now that the economy has become so uncertain. There are so many thoughts circling the whole concept that we really don’t know where to start. Yet the truth is that there are numerous reasons to fix your credit. Other than the emotional boost it gives your life, we can think of one practical reason to clean up your credit: your future employer.

In the past, it used to be that the only way you were going to get credit checked is if you tried to apply for a government job. That’s no longer the case — even the gas stations are asking for credit checks and background checks, which can be rather shocking. You really want to push forward and get a job so you can get out of debt, and here you have some employer looking at your credit and making assumptions about you. The assumption in most business circles is that people with challenged credit are going to make risky decisions at work that could cost the company money. Therefore, the top applicants in a pool are always going to be the ones that not only have the experience that the company is looking for, but they also have near flawless credit.

We’re not saying that there’s no job that you can get into here, but we are saying that the worse your credit becomes, the harder it will be to land the job that you really, really, really want. Especially if you feel that it has a long term future — a job that you can not only hold onto for a while, but a job that you can actually get promoted at. Those are the jobs that people want to chase the hardest, and they already have enough competition as it is.

So before you go to apply for a job, keep in mind that they’re probably going to ask permission to pull your credit report. This means that before you even go into your interview or try to plan for your resume to go out, you’re going to want to handle your credit.

What do we mean by that? Well, simply put you’re going to want to make sure that you actually look at your credit report. Check things out for yourself — are there any errors? Did they get your address right? Are there duplicates of trade lines? You might think that it benefits you, but it really doesn’t to have anything that isn’t correct. If there are negative things that aren’t yours, you need to immediately start disputing things. Make sure that you send all of your requests in writing. Email isn’t going to cut it, and neither is the phone. It’s too easy to brush either option off, and that’s not what you want.

The good old-fashioned letter is really what’s going to save the day here. You want to make sure that you actually tap into getting your dispute letters out there, and have them sent certified mail — return receipt requested of course. This is the only way that you’re going to make progress on taking care of your credit report.

Keep in mind that you’re probably not going to be able to take care of everything overnight. However, it’s always good to get a start on things as early as possible. If an employer brings up your credit report, you can always show proof that you’re trying to get it taken care of — especially if you’ve been the victim of identity theft. That’s never cool.

Overall, you truly have the power to seize control of your credit report, but you have to decide right here — right now — what you want to do. It’s easy to ignore it and let the problems build, but that’s not going to get you your dream job. The top applicants are decisive, so if you really want your life to be different, you’re going to have to push forward and take action today!