Rebuilding Your Credit

[Dishpro]

I am rebuilding and have been for a couple of years. On my journey I have had several collection accts removed from my CR's. I am starting to think about the few CA's that were removed for one reason or another but might possibly come back to ruin things. This happened just a month ago but was able to PFD and it's gone for good. But what should I do about any other account that is not yet 7 yrs old and could come back and spoil my party. Should I contact the OC for more info? What should I do?

[llecs]

Most of my CAs went away without PFDs, usually by DV letters. Probably 80% of the debts were either resold to another CA or passed back to the OC who in turn gave it to another CA. It's a constant battle, but later on I tried to be more pro-active with PFDs to stop the cycle. IMO and IME, wait it out. Be vigilant. Be sure to opt out. And check your soft and hard pulls frequently for CA pulls. Also keep a call log as that was a great indicator as to who was collecting next.

[RobertEG]

The "removed for one reason or the other" is the key.

If the reason for removal was based on a dispute, no party (in your case, the prior or any other debt collector) can have the information reinserted without first providing a pre-certification stating that, notwithstanding its prior deletion, they have investigated and now certify as to its accuracy. 

If that were to happen, the CRA is required to send you written notification of such reinsertion within 5 business days.  FCRA 611(a)(5)(B).

Rare.

[tboy1977]

I noticed a couple of soft pulls from CAs (they are companies I do not recognize).  What could that mean?

[RobertEG]

Inquiries by debt collectors usually signify that they are considering some type of collection action, such as contact with you or bringing legal action, and want to first assess your current credit status based on review of your credit report.  If your current CR shows ability to pay other creditors, that might be an indication that you have the ability to pay.

A debt collector cannot obtain your full CR without having either assigned collection authority or ownership of the debt.  So it also tells you that a debt collector now is formally involved.

[tboy1977]

Hmmm......with this ch 7 bankruptcy, I wonder what they are planning.  The only debt I have since bankruptcy are my cards and they are in good shape.  Should I write the address from the inquiry?

[Dishpro]

Other than the free annual credit reports from the 3 major CRA's, can these CR's be purchased (with the detailed SP's) online? The FICO and FAKO reports I purchase do not have the SP's listed.