Being brutally honest about credit histories, it is safe to admit that a lot of people have a fair bit of struggle maintaining a good credit history. People are facing a credit crunch and bad credit histories make it harder to qualify for a loan. The situation is not very rosy and there is little that can be done about it. Many services and companies popped up in response to this need, offering to clear bad credit completely for a set amount of cash.

While companies that offer to repair or clear your credit history or sell you good credit are scams at best, the next best option is to work with a credit counseling agency that provides you with services that would help bring your credits out of the pit. Here are some things to keep in mind and be on the lookout for when you’re on the hunt for credit counseling agencies.

• Are they licensed to operate in your state of residence?
  This is one of the important questions to ask because this ensures that you are not duped by an illegal consumer credit  repair counseling service agency with no license to practice counseling in your state. Always make sure that the agency you consult is duly licensed and approved to operate in your state.

• Are they reputed?
  The next most important question to answer when it comes to prospective counseling services is whether they are reputed in the area that they operate in, if not the state. This gives you an idea of the experience level of the agency.

• What are the qualifications of the counselors?
  Are they accredited or are they certified by another organization that specializes in credit repair counseling? Make sure to get satisfactory answers to such questions before you go ahead with a counseling agency to help with your credit repairs.

• What services do they offer?
  It is always better to go for a consumer credit  repair counseling service that offers a range of services that cover most, if not all aspects of financial planning, such as debt management, budget counseling, savings, and so on.