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When/How to start after '07 Discharge

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Eyejon
Member

When/How to start after '07 Discharge

Greetings!

 

I signed up for Score Watch today.  I am at 654 with Equifax as of today.

 

My FICO score ingredients have me rated Very Good for amount of debt, length of credit history, and amount of new credit.

 

Payment history is rated not good.  They all are from the period prior to the bankruptcy filing/discharge.

 

My bankruptcy was discharged in January 2007.

 

I currently am not in debt for anything, and have not been since the bankruptcy.

 

On one hand, I am thinking just wait out February 2014.  On the other, I am thinking start trying to build some credit.

 

But where and what to start with is the answer that continues to elude me.

 

Other helpful information:  

 

retired from the military June 2000;

I stopped working in August 2006 due to health issues;

no disability with VA;

I have been living with family and friends since 3 July 2007;

I sold my car in 2007 after moving in with family;

I only have my monthly cell phone bill, which is one of the lowest priced plans, and rarely use the phone;

I would like to buy a bungalow size house in a state that doesn't tax military retirement;

I bank with USAA and their calculator said I should be able to pre-qualify for a 60,000.00 home loan;

I have 1500.00 in savings and put 500.00 in each month that I can;

 

Helpful comments would be most welcomed!

Message 1 of 7
6 REPLIES 6
Tazman81
Established Contributor

Re: When/How to start after '07 Discharge

I recommend trying to get some revolving credit accounts so that you can show a good payment history.  Try to get a credit card through USAA.  They are normally pretty good.  Especially if you plan to use them for your mortgage, it will look good showing them you are responsible and can make payments on time.  Don't charge up your card.  Maybe just use it to pay your cell phone bill and PAY IT OFF at the end of every month, ON TIME!  Cannot stress making those payments on time enough because that is what will help you get that loan.  It sounds like your credit score is not doing to bad, but if you can get into the 720s then you can likely qualify for the lowest interest rate and lowest monthly payments for your house.  Good luck, and let us know how it goes.  Oh, make sure that the credit card you get does not have a yearly fee.  You may also want to see if they have a credit card where your "rewards" are either cash back, or can go to pay down the principal on your mortgage when you get it.


Current Score: Eq: 823 Tu: 830
Goal Score: Eq: 850 Tu: 850

Wallet: PenFed Power Cash 50k | AMEX Blue Cash (AU) 49.5k | Cap One QSMC 26.5k | AMEX Platinum NPSL | USAA Signature Visa 25k
Message 2 of 7
Eyejon
Member

Re: When/How to start after '07 Discharge

Many thanks for your response and suggestions.

 

- I was declined on a USAA credit card.  I had contacted them and they too said to apply with them.

 

- I see that myFICO site has a credit card page.  I was considering trying for one of them, but am unsure.

 

- I haven't submitted an updated online application with USAA for a home loan.  I am unsure, but I am thinking I should wait until next spring or next fall.  I don't want to move in the hot summer here in Texas.  Last time I was in contact with an USAA loan officer she said I should try to have at least 1k in savings before trying again.

 

- A friend from my Air Force days is letting me live in his house.  We have set a goal for me to move out by 2013.  He wants to sell his house after 5 years in it.  Living in the same house has strained our friendship almost to the breaking point.  We rarely speak but don't argue or fight or anything like that.  That is the main reason I am looking to try for a house this year.

 

- Moving in with family is not an option anymore.  Another thing that makes renting is I have 2 medium size dogs.  It is hard to find someone/somewhere to accept 2 medium size dogs.

Message 3 of 7
Anonymous
Not applicable

Re: When/How to start after '07 Discharge

Hi eyejon,

 

Glad to see you here.  You'll find a lot of folks have been in situations similar to yours and will share lots of helpful information.

 

You definitely want to rebuild after BK as soon as possible.  There's no need to wait until your BK ages off your reports (that's ten years from filing date for a Ch 7 - seven years from filing date for a Ch 13).

 

Give the Credit Card Center a try.  For folks, like me, with a BK, I'd select the credit card advisor option.  This will ask you a few questions, i.e.

__________________________

 

Do you currently have a credit card?

Yes              No

 

When did you get your first credit card or loan in the USA?

Choose...Never had a loan or credit card  Less than 2 yrs ago, 2 - 5 yrs ago, 5+ yrs ago

 

Have you had a foreclosure or declared bankruptcy in the past 7 years?

Yes              No


Have you ever missed more than 2 payments in a row on a credit card, medical bill or loan payment?

Choose...Yes, 0-6 months ago  Yes, 7-12 months agoY  es, 13-36 months ago  NOT in last 36 months

 

Are most of your credit cards 'maxed out'?

Yes              No


You have at least one credit card with a limit above:

Choose...$10,000 $5,000 $2,000 $500 $200

__________________________________________

 

Don't enter your score (the first question the credit card advisor asks) because that will override the next questions and you want to be able to enter that you filed BK.

It will give you some options that may work well for you.

 

Also check the BK Friendly Credit Cards Listed.  And consider going the secured card route if that works best for you.  (I didn't do secured.  I started with HSBC/Orchard for a year, then went to Juniper).

 

And consider GW'ing those old lates.  You may find folks are willing to work with you.  We had good luck doing that with ours.  Good luck to you.

 

 

Message 4 of 7
Eyejon
Member

Re: When/How to start after '07 Discharge

I don't understand ' GW'ing those old lates'.


I believe the late payments were for those items discharged in the bankruptcy.


I will give the credit card center a go.


Many thanks for the advice and well wishes.

Message 5 of 7
scrubs
Regular Contributor

Re: When/How to start after '07 Discharge

i too file for bk on april 2009 when my bk was discharge on july 2009 i started to rebult my credit. as of now my fico score is 671 for eq from 498 and 696 tu from 505 ex who knows. if you need an cc go to orchard or cap one those were my first two cc after bk.  never, never  be late on paying, i am also an member of ussa dont applied for there cc because they are not bk friendly.  my advice to you is if you are retired miltary join navy federal credit union asap because they are bk friendly and they will give you an second chance and odds are will give you an very good cc, if you get an cc with navy treat it like gold and never be late or burn them, they can be your worst nightmare and if you treat them good then the sky is limit.

 

as for the house.  most hfa, va etc want an least two years of  of on time payments sometimes  18 months so getting a house this year does not look good. also get a copy of your cr and see if you can clean it up and make sure everything is reporting correctly. and read this forum because you will learn so much here and you will have alot of good people will help you.

Message 6 of 7
Eyejon
Member

Re: When/How to start after '07 Discharge

Update as of 2 Jul 10.  I was not able to get a car loan.  I needed one for healthcare appointments.  Those are on hold for the foreseeable future.

 

I was not able to get a credit card through my bank or the credit card center on this site.

 

I ended up getting a secured credit card through Capital One.

 

I would appreciate guidance/suggestions/comments on where to use it and how often to.  I was thinking of transferring funds to the card and making all purchases on the card.

 

One question I have and Capital One will not answer via e-mail (I have have a phone phobia) is if I put more funds on the card than the minimum required do I have to now keep the balance at that amount?  

 

Thanks in advance for your wisdom/experience/etc.

Message 7 of 7
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