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Ever notice how your mailbox seems to be flooded with credit card offers every week? If your residence is like the average U.S. household, you probably get dozens of credit card solicitations in the mail each year. To put an end to them, simply call 888-5-OPT-OUT or go online to www.optoutprescreen.com.

The toll-free number I’ve given you, 888-5-OPT-OUT is an automatic phone service that’s run by the four main credit reporting agencies: TransUnion, Experian, Equifax, and Innovis. (Many of you may be thinking: “What is Innovis?” I’ll tell you more about that company – and the credit report you’ve probably never even heard of – later, in Day 4. For now, though, let’s stay with this OPT-OUT number).

The reason this number works is because it takes you out of the credit bureaus’ databases for pre-screened mailings. This will force the credit bureaus to stop selling your name and address to banks and other institutions that send you credit card offers each month.

Research companies and public-interest groups, such as the Consumer Federation of America in Washington D.C., track the rate at which banks and other credit card issuers send out credit card offers. What they’ve discovered is that some six billion credit card solicitations are sent to people like you and me every year. Imagine that: a whopping six billion credit card offers, or roughly 60 per U.S. household! And the numbers keep rising every year. According to the Mail Monitor report from Synovate, a Chicago-based research company, 90% of credit card mail comes from the 10 largest credit card issuers. If you’re wondering why in the world banks send out so many darned solicitations, the obvious answer is because they’re hunting for new clients. But the less obvious reason is that financial institutions are also responding to changing customer demand. When interest rates rise, banks often increase their mailings because with higher interest rates, people often start looking for fixed rates products on things like credit cards and mortgages. As a result, consumers are more likely to be receptive to new offers for credit. Still, if you’re like most people, you probably tend to give credit card offers the cold shoulder – perhaps tossing them in the trash can without even opening them. That’s why the average response rate to credit card solicitations is miniscule – just 0.2% in 2006 – a record low, according to Mail Monitor and other industry trackers. For all the mail being sent out, direct mail doesn’t seem to be the most profitable way for credit card companies to do business. For starters, they have to send out more than 250 solicitations just to acquire one new customer. That means up to $200 spent to attract every new cardholder.

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If you are already more than 30 days delinquent in paying a debt such as a credit card bill, chances are the account has already been reported to the three main credit bureaus: TransUnion, Experian and Equifax. But you don’t have to do any guesswork about this. Nor do you have to take the collection agency at its word — regardless of whether or not it’s saying the report has been reported or hasn’t been reported. There’s a sure-fire way to know what’s on your credit report. It’s simply by taking advantage of your rights to get a free copy of your credit files from each of the “Big 3″ credit bureaus I previously mentioned. Just go online and get your credit reports and see for yourself. Look particularly closely at any records for “collections” or “public accounts.”

To get your free credit files, just go to: www.AnnualCreditReport.com.

Regarding your other question, I think it’s usually faster, easier and sometimes less financially costly to deal directly with creditors — as opposed to collection agencies. Those bill collectors often tack on additional fees, penalties, and other charges – expenses your creditors may be willing to waive.

If you’re having trouble paying your bills on your own, yes, a debt management company can help. And contrary to popular opinion, simply enrolling in a debt management plan does not impact your credit score. Read this article on the differences between debt management and debt settlement companies, and learn why I strongly recommend debt management firms. One excellent non-profit organization is the National Foundation for Debt Management (www.NFDM.org).

I’m sorry to hear that you are in a financial bind. But you’ve definitely taken the first step to turn things around financially, which is to recognize that you do indeed have a big problem. Maybe you were in denial in the past, or maybe your economic fortunes simply changed recently for some reason. Whatever the case, you seem to acknowledge that things can’t go on the way they have been. Not with you living $400 in the red each month.

If you’ve had a home for 22 years without missing any payments, I would hate to see you lose your house, so I hope you’re not talking about skipping payments on the home. Probably not. Since it sounds like you’ve reached out to your mortgage lender and received at least some support. I assume you are considering not paying other creditors, like credit card companies or perhaps your auto lender, that kind of thing.

I would suggest you take two steps. The first is to do an honest assessment and overhaul of your budget. Even if you get some relief from your creditors, it won’t do you any long term good if you are deficit spending. Go over your spending with a fine-tooth comb and see where you can cut back. Surely there are some areas/expenses you are willing to sacrifice or slash in order to keep your home, maintain your very good credit rating, and have financial peace of mind. Read this post about how to create a proper budget and this article on overhauling your budget too.

Additionally, before you simply stop paying creditors, contact each one directly and see what options, if any, might exist. Perhaps some of them are willing to put you on a deferred payment plan. You suggested in your email that a six-month reprieve from certain payments would give you some breathing room. Tell that to your creditors. If you make small token payments, that may show a “good faith” effort on your part, and it may keep bill collectors and creditors from hounding you. But those partial payments won’t necessarily stop creditors from reporting you to the credit bureaus. Anytime a debt is not paid as originally agreed, the creditor has the legal right to report that information to the major credit reporting agencies: Equifax, Experian and TransUnion.

If your creditors won’t offer any relief, and there’s nothing else in your budget to cut, yet you find yourself still in the red, then yes, it’s time to “cry Uncle.” At that point, I would make strategic decisions about what bills get paid first and which are second and third-tier obligations. See this TV interview in which I explain how to prioritize bills when you can’t afford to pay everything. Good luck!

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The two absolute fastest ways to significantly boost your credit scores both involve getting negative information deleted from your credit files. If you have anything negative on your Equifax, Experian or TransUnion reports that is outdated, inaccurate or that can’t be verified, try contesting that information directly with the credit bureaus. Use their online credit dispute services for the fastest possible results. I’ve disputed information online and had erroneous information removed in just a day or two. Here are the direct websites for the credit bureaus to initiate an online dispute:

www.investigate.equifax.com

www.Experian.com/disputes

www.Transunion.com/investigate

Additionally, since you are trying to get a mortgage, you can utilize a service known as “rapid re-scoring” also known as “credit re-scoring.” Read this post about rapid re-scoring to learn how to get errors removed from your credit report in just 48 hours.

There’s no guarantee that either of these methods will boost your credit score by the 75 points you are seeking, but it’s certainly worth a shot. And if there is negative information that gets removed, you will likely experience some boost to your FICO scores.

However, if there are no mistakes to dispute, trying paying off some or all of your credit card debt. That will usually improve your credit scores. Even though it may be a hardship to come up with the money to pay off credit card bills, it’s helpful to become debt-free. Not to mention the short-and long-term savings it will net you from snagging that better loan when you are able to refinance.