I do to fix it? I am having trouble renting an apartment, I am going to need to buy a car and I would like to eventually own a house.

Credit counselors don't "fix" your credit. They set up payment plans with your creditors to reduce interest and fees / consolidate. So if you have $20K in credit cards at 20% interest they might reduce that in half or nothing at all. It's in the banks best interest to negotiate because at least they get some money rather than you default. The problem is too many people until all their cards are charged off and THEN they try to get help. It's too late at that point. Your credit is already hurt.

You'll be able to buy a house, car, and anything else you want but it will take TIME. As in love, time heals all wounds. Seven years to be exact. (that's how long the bad marks stay on your credit, 10 for bankruptcy).

Find a trusting coborrower to get your apartment. Have them cosign for a car loan and rebuild your credit. Don't get yourself in too much debt. Just because someone gives you a little rope it doesn't mean you should tie it around your neck and hang yourself.

[Qtip]

That is great advise, in addition try not to charge over 30 percent of revolving credit lines "credit cards etc..." Credit counseling will still mess your credit file as there will be notation on all the accounts that you are going trough credit counseling.

[Hedwig]

In many cases, you can do the same thing yourself. The money you pay credit counselors can go toward your debts.

If you do use a credit counseling firm, do a lot of checking on them first. Many of them charge very high fees, and your payments go first to paying the fees. Some people have actually ended up with worse credit because there wasn't enough after the fees to actually pay the bills. Some negotiate settlements first, but some companies just don't pay your bills for several months, then the companies negotiate because you're delinquent. You can often do better yourself by setting up a schedule, paying minimums on everything and all extra to the highest interest rate account.

When that account is paid off, you add what you've been paying on that to the payment on the next highest interest rate account. Keep paying the same total, but only minimums on everything except the highest rate, and all extra there.

I made a spreadsheet and updated it every month. Each month you sort by the interest rate, since they could change. Everything goes to the highest rate account except minimums on everything else. You are keeping all accounts current but paying off as quickly as you can, because everything extra is going to pay off the highest interest rate.

You also need to cut expenses, or maybe get a second job. Put all of that money (the income from the second job plus what you save in expenses) toward your bills.

When you get them paid, try to put the same amount that you were paying on bills into a money market account. It will add up quickly.