Can you fix your credit score?

Given the current economic situation, many homeowners have been affected by a decline in their credit score. Low credit scores prevent many homeowners from qualifying for new or refinanced mortgages under the strict underwriting standards presented by lenders and investors such as Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.
The decline in credit scores presents a great concern for homeowners, and many are looking for ways and opportunities to fix their credit score. Unfortunately, on the other side of the problem, we find companies that are taking advantage of the desperate homeowners. Many of these companies have managed to find ways to involve homeowners in scams that promise to fix their credit score, but in the end do nothing for them.
Most of these scamers promise the homeowner to erase delinquencies, judgments, foreclosures and other problems from files at the three national credit bureaus: Equifax, Experian and TransUnion.
We can find an example for these dealings in Florida. The Federal Trade Commission recently presented a complaint against Clean Credit Report Services Inc. of North Miami. This firm promised its clients it could increase their credit scores dramatically and quickly — even if the derogatory information in their files was accurate and current.
Furthermore, in national radio ads, Internet and TV commercials, Clean Credit said it could make records of "late payments, collection accounts, charge-offs, repossessions and bankruptcies" disappear from credit files, according to the FTC's complaint.
Using testimonials of so called “clients” the firm managed to convince the struggling homeowners to fall into their trap. The firm allegedly claimed that the target for clients was a 650 to 700 FICO score at the end of the file-scrubbing process.
The FTC reported that those who fell into the trap, had to pay up-front fees averaging $400; however, after the payment the company did "little, if anything, to fulfill the promises made" about increasing credit scores and purging negative files. Many of the customers who had to deal with this unfortunate situation, filed complaints with state and local authorities, and the FTC — which oversees the Credit Repair Organizations Act — then took on the case.
Moreover, in the FTC settlement, Clean Credit and its officers agreed to forfeit substantial assets to help repay Clean Credit clients. The agreement also requires that the firm and its principals pay $14.4 million for restitution in case the financial statements they submitted for settlement purposes prove to be inaccurate.