Hi all. I've never posted here before, but I've been reading these boards for weeks and some of the things I've learned have been a great help. In 2006 I filed Ch. 13 bankruptcy because I was stupid and made many poor decisions. Because Ch. 7 made more sense at the time, I converted to a Ch. 7 sometime in 2007. My bankruptcy was discharged in January 2008.
Since 2008 I have had no need for credit. I do have one credit card which I've paid on and I've paid on my student loans monthly. Since learning my lesson, only recently have I decided to take on more debt. Right now I'm driving a 2003 Ford Focus with 110,000 miles on it and it's starting to have issues. Not major issues, just issues. Ordinarily I wouldn't be so scared of my car, however this is the car I had during my financially strapped days and this car was not maintained nor taken care of at all during its first five years of life.
When I decided to buy a new car I decided to check my credit and I was shocked. Shocked isn't the word. HORRIFIED. My Equifax FICO was 390, my TransUnion FICO was 520, and who knows with Experian. There were accounts listed as recent chargeoffs, collections, and still showing past due which were included (and discharged) through my bankruptcy. I've been on a letter writing campaign and have spent about $200 in postage for certified letters. Luckily after sending copies of my Schedule of Creditors and Discharge Letter, these collectors and creditors are closing these accounts properly and removing them from my credit report. When I first checked I had 17 collections and now I have four medical collections which I do technically owe and will address.
Okay, enough rambling... I disputed several things with Equifax and contacted this lady named Dinah [Edited to remove personal information] at Equifax. I faxed her my Discharge Letter and every creditor that was listed on the Certificate of Service on the second page had a dispute filed. It was a blanket dispute that basically disputed everything on my credit. The problem: my auto loan. I kept my car through bakruptcy, did not reaffirm the debt, but I continued to make payments. Since the auto loan was a part of my Ch. 13 that subsequentlly became a Ch. 7, they were still listed as a creditor. The entire history disappeared. The only thing it shows now is AUTO: INCLUDED IN BANKRUPTCY $0 BALANCE. It's not showing paid in full (which it did) or anything other than included in bankruptcy. The entire history was deleted.
My auto loans before this one have already fallen off my credit. When I go to buy a car it's going to look like the only car I've financed in the past 10 years was included in my bankruptcy! Does anyone know how this is going to affect me? I know the auto enhanced scores look heavily at installment loans and how you've paid previous auto loans, and all that history has been wiped out.
Since starting my credit repair, my credit scores have come up about 200 points on Equifax (590-600), and my TransUnion is around 600. I'm not trying to buy a $90,000 Mercedes. I've decided to buy a new Honda Civic for $19,305 and plan to put 35% down. Other than my proposed car payment, one credit card with a $78 balance, and my student loans, I have no debt. I make around $30,000 a year and I live in the apartment complex where I work so my rent is only $300 a month. I would estimate my debt to income including the new car payment to be around 34%. Does anyone have any idea on my chance of approval with a reputable bank and not someone like Capital One, Santander Auto, or Drive Auto Loans?
