Finding out that your credit is not in the best shape can be disappointing. It’s even more disconcerting when you make the discovery because you weren’t approved for a loan you thought you could get. Sometimes the reasons behind poor credit are mistakes on your credit report.

How can I fix my credit report? You might wonder if you have any control over your credit report and, as a result, your credit score. The good news is that you have a legal right to a credit report that’s error-free. Credit repair services, like those offered by Ovation, can be one path toward good credit.

What Is Ovation Credit Repair?

Ovation is a credit repair service. This means it helps you work with creditors and the credit reporting bureaus to correct any errors on your report.

What Does Ovation Do?

Ovation provides consumers with a free credit report and a free consultation, which can help you figure out what services they can provide. If consumers sign on for the Ovation credit repair services, the company works on their behalf. It sends letters to creditors, lenders and credit bureaus to dispute incorrect information on consumer credit reports. It also asks that the incorrect information be changed or removed.

Ovation Credit Repair’s Pricing Levels

Ovation offers two levels of credit repair services. Each one has a different pricing structure.

Essentials Plan

First Work Fee: $89

Monthly Cost: $79

This plan includes the basic services that help you dispute incorrect items on your credit reports. You identify each item that you think is incorrect, and Ovation launches a dispute option to try to get it corrected. You also get the benefit of a personal case manager to help you through the process and optional online financial tools to assist with budgeting or paying down debt.

Essentials Plus Plan

First Work Fee: $89

Monthly Cost: $109

This plan comes with everything offered in the Essential plan. You also get some custom perks, including:

• Unlimited challenge validation letters, so you can continue chasing a correction even if a creditor challenges your dispute
• Unlimited creditor goodwill letters, which can be sent to creditors to ask them to review a potential mistake and correct it before you take further action
• Credit monitoring through Transunion so you can ensure future mistakes are caught and handled in a timely manner
• Ovation recommendation letters, which are signed by a Directing Attorney and may provide you some positive standing with potential lenders

Ovation does note that its main pricing, as listed above, is not the same in every state. Consumers in Oregon and Mississippi have access to a different slate of services from the company, and that comes with different pricing.

What Doesn’t Ovation Credit Repair Include?

Outside of some self-serve tools and educational posts, Ovation doesn’t offer credit counseling. It also doesn’t work with you long term to improve your credit by making payments in a timely manner, balancing your credit utilization ratio or reducing debt. This is primarily a service for those who feel that their credit score is incorrect because of inaccurate information.

Pros and Cons of Working with Ovation

Working with a credit repair service like Ovation can help save you some time and frustration when trying to get errors removed from your credit report. While you can handle all these processes on your own—and have a legal right to do so—navigating the dispute process can be daunting for many people. And even if you understand the process and feel capable of tackling it, you may not want to spend several hours or more every month dealing with it.

The biggest downside of working with Ovation is that you do have to pay for these services. And if you’re on a tight budget, $79 to $109 a month can be a lot. That’s a week of groceries or a payment on a monthly bill, for example.

When making the decision about whether credit repair services are right for you, consider these factors:

• Do you think your chances at a positive result are good on your own?
• Are you frustrated or anxious about handling the process yourself?
• Would you be able to make more than $79 to $109 in the time it would take you to handle the disputes on your own?

What Is the Best Credit Repair Program?

Choosing the right credit repair program is important to overall satisfaction. While credit repair companies can’t promise 100% positive results, some offer more services than others. Look for a company that:

• Provides comprehensive credit repair services
• Has a good reputation
• Doesn’t make unrealistic promises
• Is transparent about the services it provides
• Offers plenty of options for working with them, such as online portals or numerous ways to reach customer service

Disclosure: Credit.com and CreditRepair.com are both owned by the same company, Progrexion Holdings Inc. John C Heath, Attorney at Law, PC, d/b/a Lexington Law Firm is an independent law firm that uses Progrexion as a provider of business and administrative services