Back in 2018, West Lakes Partnership created the Reclaiming the Dream Housing program to create a pathway for increased homeownership in the Communities of West Lakes. We discovered that one of the impediments for most families in purchasing a home was the lack of credit worthiness.
Determined to increase the number of credit-ready applicants for the housing program, the Board of West Lakes Partnership implemented a six-month credit repair program for residents and applicants to work with them to improve their credit scores. Six clients signed up and here are the results from our initial four-person graduating class.
Client L (start 556 current 610, items removed 24)
Client M (start 623 current 684, items removed 6)
Client P (start 561 current 626, items removed 38)
Client Y (start 650 current 703, items removed 28)
Credit reporting mistakes are not uncommon as you may think. More than one-third, or 34%, of Americans, found at least one error on their credit report, according to a 2021 Consumer Reports investigation. Consumer Reports asked volunteers to get a copy of their credit report and check for errors and 5,858 did so between Feb. 1 and April 1, 2021. A significant number found personal information and account mistakes.
As Client M noted, “to be free of mistakes on my credit report … allowed me to get a credit card and make real responsible choices that helped my family financially … West Lakes Partnership’s Intensive Credit Repair Program catapulted a new stage in the life of my family.”
If you are interested in this program, email Timothy Ayers @ tayers@westlakespartnership.org. There is a small, one-time fee for services. Each credit report is different and there are no guarantees of similar results.