Now that the economy has taken a downturn, even more people are struggling to maintain good credit. Repairing your credit will not happen overnight, though here are some tips to get you started.

To repair your credit, you must first obtain a credit report and credit score in order to identify what the issues are. You can get this information through several services, and some of them perform some services for free. You can learn how to fix your credit once you have this information.

Establish communications with all the people you owe money too. While it may seem like a good idea to just ignore them, talking to them can help you work out a plan before things get overwhelming. Once you have a plan, you will find yourself paying fewer penalties and saving money. After you contact all of your creditors to make payment arrangements, you'll be able to focus on the things that need attention now.

Gather all of the documentation you have concerning the items on your credit report. There is a chance you could unknowingly have been a victim of identity theft or your report might contain errors. If there is an error on your credit report, contact the credit reporting agencies or the debtor and have the mistake removed.

Be sure to know your rights when it comes to bill collection. For instance, you cannot go to jail because you didn't pay your bills. Realize each state has its own laws and regulations, but generally speaking, you are protected from verbal and abusive threats over the phone. You need to know your rights when dealing with collectors, because they are not permitted to push you around.

Ideally, you want to keep 70 percent of the available credit on your credit cards free. If you have more than 30 percent in debt that can hurt you with big interest charges and payments that can be a burden on your monthly budget.

If you have past-due debts that have been reported to a collection agency, make contact with them, and offer to do what you can to work with them. If you stay in communication with the collection agencies, they are more willing to help you and perhaps offer a payment plan. If you ignore the collection calls, you will get nowhere. You will still owe the money, and you will find that they may be less willing to work with you. Communicate troubles paying your debts to collection agencies, and they are likely to help you by cutting your debt in half. If your debts are sent to collections, then you need to contact them to make payment arrangements. Collection agencies are happy establish payment plans for their clients that are willing to work on settling their debts. Your debts are going to be there whether you try to ignore them or not. During times of hardship, some agencies are willing to negotiate to help you pay more easily.

By following the above tips, you can be on top of your credit game. Here are some suggestions of things you can do on your own. Start fixing your credit now!