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Disabled & Need to Rebuild my Scores

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Princess9483
Valued Member

Disabled & Need to Rebuild my Scores

Hi all! I am single and was confirmed disabled in August 2010. I was never really credit savvy before this as I was young and stupid. The light bulb finally came on when I was 24 and then boom I no longer could work, back in 2007. So I had to go through the Social Security process but as we all know it can take years to be approved, as it did for me. So for 2 years all 6 of my credit cards went unpaid, even though I did have credit protection on most of them. One of them went into judgement. So fast forward to last year.....

 

I decided apartment life wasn't all it was cracked up to be and I wanted something to call my own. I applied for a very low mortgage to my credit union, <$20k, whom I belonged to for a decade, and was declined. The sent me the reason and shockingly my score was in the high 400's. I decided it was time to pull all of my reports and see what the damage was. Over six accounts in collections, most of whom I had no idea, and one judgement. I sold my car, which is the only thing I could pay off with my lump sum, and decided to get a cheaper and older car while paying off my debt. After $7k of debt being clear, previously over $8k, plus over $30k of my student loans being forgiven, my score has only improved a measly 38 pts. Currently 509 Fico, was 524 in May. 

 

I am now at at my wits end. I have no money and unfortunately had to get another car payment after being duped into getting a cheaper but older car with a complimentary rolled backed odometer. Please help! I am so sick of this one bedroom apartment I can scream!! Also, my fico simulator isn't looking that great as well. Any help would be appreciated!!!

 

Sincerely,

 

A desperate woman

Fico: Beginning 506 (11/2013)
TU 619 (10/2015)
1/2017: Equifax 659, TU 655, Experian 642
Mortgage middle: TU 630
Goal 700 (but will settle for mortgage 640)

Current: TU 665 Oct '17
Message 1 of 9
8 REPLIES 8
newmomnewme
Valued Contributor

Re: Disabled & Need to Rebuild my Scores

@Princess9483, you came to the right place for advice. Did you get copies of your credit report from all three sources? Start there....Do you have unpaid items that can be paid for deletion? This is a long process, but you can do it. 

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Message 2 of 9
alvon123
Super Contributor

Re: Disabled & Need to Rebuild my Scores

 

 

 

Do not give up!!!!!!!  You are doing everthing right!!  Change the way that you are seeing things, look at this temporary setback as simply a challenge and continue to move foward .   You have done the hardest part already, taking ownership  by paying down a huge chunk 7K of your debt,  and having 30k of student loans forgiven, That is great and shows that you are focused!!   You brought your score up from the lower 400s to 524 (that takes a lot of effort) just think of this as the first part of your plan to clean up your credit.

 

The next thing you should do is to find out what else is left on your credit that is affecting your scores.  (even when you pay off some of your debts they do not fall off of your report, they remain for a period of time)  Look to see what remains on your report, if the debt is paid off you can try to send GOODWILL LETERS to the creditor to see if they will remove it off of your reports.  If the debt is not paid off you can also send PAY FOR DELETE LETTERS ( creditor agrees to delete the debt from the credit bureau for a specified one time payment....GET THIS IN WRITING BEFORE YOU PAY ANYTHING!!)

 

Have you applied for new credit cards ect.. (these can cause inquiries on your report that will take  as much as 5 points per inquiry) You mentioned that  you applied for a mortgage, that will definatley cause you to lose some points.(mortgage companies usually shop for the best rates which can cause a lot of inquiries (this is only temporary)).

 

Do not give up, use the fact that you want to move out of your 1 bedroom apartment as your motivation to keep improving your credit scores.  There is a wealth of information on these boards and a lot of people with knowledge who have been where you are and will be glad to help you in your journey Smiley LOL

 

Remember ask away  about the letters or anything that you are unsure of and we will be happy to lend  a hand, hope to hear from you  again soon.


Message 3 of 9
Princess9483
Valued Member

Re: Disabled & Need to Rebuild my Scores

@newmomnewme Yes I have copies from all credit agencies. I am currently trying to get the remaining 3 collection accounts corrected since one of them were suppose to be paid for by credit protection, as well as the judgement that has been already paid. I do have 2 others, with low balances, that can be "paid for deletion." I wish I had known about this before I paid the others off. My main problem is finding the money to pay these off. Even though they are low balances, $500 and $130, I am on a fixed income, $975/month, with no savings and no chance of going back to work. Any suggestions?

 

Fortunately all of these collection accounts will expire within 3 years, but that seems like a long way from now. 

 

@alvon123 What are Goodwill letters and what is the chance my old debtors will accept these? I have applied for new credit earlier this year but I am trying to stay away from applying until my current 6 inquiries, including my application for a mortgage and my current car loan, are gone. 

 

Thank you both for your encouragement! 

 

P.S. I have noticed that even though my student loans were never late and now have a $0 balance, there is a negative mark beside them. Does anyone know why? Thanks again!

Fico: Beginning 506 (11/2013)
TU 619 (10/2015)
1/2017: Equifax 659, TU 655, Experian 642
Mortgage middle: TU 630
Goal 700 (but will settle for mortgage 640)

Current: TU 665 Oct '17
Message 4 of 9
guiness56
Epic Contributor

Re: Disabled & Need to Rebuild my Scores

Message 5 of 9
Princess9483
Valued Member

Re: Disabled & Need to Rebuild my Scores

@guiness56 It does not.

Fico: Beginning 506 (11/2013)
TU 619 (10/2015)
1/2017: Equifax 659, TU 655, Experian 642
Mortgage middle: TU 630
Goal 700 (but will settle for mortgage 640)

Current: TU 665 Oct '17
Message 6 of 9
zsepthenne
Regular Contributor

Re: Disabled & Need to Rebuild my Scores

I have two entries on my credit reports for my school loans that were discharged through disability also. I have the original servicer who is reporting, and the Department of Education. I ended up in default on my loans so my loans do reflect that in the payment history, and the status is "claim filed/or assigned to government". The discharged Dept. Of Edu. loans show up positively on my report. I have no idea if the old lender/servicer of the loans are supposed to even still report tho.
I know you have items you're wanting to payoff, but have you considered a secured card to build credit while you're working on your baddies?
Beginning Scores 9/2013: EX 651, TU 639 Short term goals: Scores in the mid 700s 1/15 TU08 701| 4/2018 TU08 800!! |11/2019 TU 785
CapOne Quicksilver $5000 | Barclaycard Rewards Mastercard $6900 | Amex Everyday $15000 | Discover It $13000 | Cap One Walmart Mastercard $8000 | BofA Cash Rewards $3200 | CareCredit $7200 | Citibank Double Cash $10500 | Chase AARP $5500
Message 7 of 9
zsepthenne
Regular Contributor

Re: Disabled & Need to Rebuild my Scores

Forgot to mention, my bank did a soft pull for my secured card. Maybe your bank could arrange something like that for you
Beginning Scores 9/2013: EX 651, TU 639 Short term goals: Scores in the mid 700s 1/15 TU08 701| 4/2018 TU08 800!! |11/2019 TU 785
CapOne Quicksilver $5000 | Barclaycard Rewards Mastercard $6900 | Amex Everyday $15000 | Discover It $13000 | Cap One Walmart Mastercard $8000 | BofA Cash Rewards $3200 | CareCredit $7200 | Citibank Double Cash $10500 | Chase AARP $5500
Message 8 of 9
Princess9483
Valued Member

Re: Disabled & Need to Rebuild my Scores

zsepthenne I have tried to apply for a secured loan through Capital one to no avail. From my understanding, a secured loans means you have to front at least $300 of your own money for this loan? Unfortunately if I had that I could payoff most of what debt I still owe.

 

I have made the student loan inquiry to MyFico via email, since like I said, there was never any late payments nor anything derogatory ever on any of my student loans. Hopefully they will have an answer for me by next week since there is no basis for a negative indicator. Thank you for your advise though.

Fico: Beginning 506 (11/2013)
TU 619 (10/2015)
1/2017: Equifax 659, TU 655, Experian 642
Mortgage middle: TU 630
Goal 700 (but will settle for mortgage 640)

Current: TU 665 Oct '17
Message 9 of 9
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