Credit Repair Agencies...what do you think?

I am considering contacting a local agency. I have no credit card debt...its mainly old utility and medical bills holding me back. What is your experience or opinion on these companies?
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You're better off contacting the utility companies & medical offices directly to work something out with them.

Also, a good resource is...

http://debt.123thebest.info/credit_card....

All the best to you.
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they're a sham because you have to pay them for doing what you yourself can do for you.

If you have a utility bill then pay it (how large could it possibly be?) and if you were hurting when that bill first arrived you should have gone to your county and asked if they would help you pay for it, or get into some "share" program that the electric company has for those who can't pay. About medical bills there too SSI should have helped, or if not then at least part, or your insurance should have kicked in or your employer should have helped out (even with overtime), or perhaps you could work off that bill by getting two jobs and cutting your other expenses till it's paid off.
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How old are these medical and utility bills? Are they past the statute of limitations? (Usually 7 years) You could be doing more harm to your credit by digging these up.

As for the question of contacting a credit repair agency --- forget it. What they will do is charge you an up front fee...and basically do nothing but cause you more problems with your credit. Most will let your bills go for 60 or 90 days (sounds like this isn't you) then will try to negotiate for pennies on the dollar. What happens is no credit agency or medical collections etc has to accept their terms. They can decide to sue you and believe me the credit repair agency will not be standing beside you in court. They will have their fee and be gone.

What I wonder is what do you think a credit repair agency is going to do for you concerning this debt that you couldn't do yourself? If you have the money to pay them off or offer some sort of settlement, you can do that yourself. BUT, if this is old debt, I would leave it alone. Now, with the utility bill, if you are going to need to get an account with that utility again, you will have to pay them sooner or later.

If you want to pay this off, what you can do is contact a not for profit credit counseling service. They will work with you to get on a budget and talk to your creditors to pay this off. AND they will NOT charge you a dime!!

Credit repair is not going to magically fix anything or restore your score. Just doesn't work like that. In fact, most times, they make things worse.
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Only go with a non-profit that doesn't charge any fees. You can pretty much call them yourself and negotiate with them what you can pay every month. If you can only pay $100 every month then send them that. Honestly send them anything that you can. If you can only afford $5 then send them that. If you can only afford $10 send them that, send them anything. At least they will know you want to pay off your balance.