Now what?

[dmorey]

I started working on rebuilding about a month ago and though I still have a long way to go feel like I'm getting somewhere. But not really sure where to go next or when I might have a shot at applying for unsecured cards. Thoughts? I know it takes a while, but I just want to be done with this already, lol. I'll lay out my situation below.

Oldest account: 12.3 years

AAOA: 7.8 years

Cards in wallet: USAA Secured Mastercard, $550 (slowly increasing to $1,000) Opened 11/12, first reported November

USAA Secured AMEX, $300, opened 11/12, first reported November

Victoria's Secret, $350, opened 12/12 with SP while Xmas shopping via preapproval pop up, not yet reporting (Woohoo! I shop here a lot, was actually my most-wanted retail card)

Buckle, $250, opened 12/12 with SP, not yet reporting

12/3 MyFico of 521

It is 595 on Experian's pay site. Not sure if that is FIKO or FAKO

Already disputed and had accounts not mine/inaccuracies updated

What's on all my reports:

4 Kentucky Higher Ed student loans, paid/closed in 2007 (60, 90 and 120-day late in mid-2006. GWs so far unsuccessful, may just let fall of in a few months)

2 Nelnet student loans paid/closed in 2007 (Never late on EQ and EX, but 30, 60 and 90 day late in 2006 on TU, No luck with GWs yet but this also falls off next year)

2 current/pays as agreed Nelnet loans for $59,000 (LOTS of lates up to 180 days in 2010-2012. Most recent 10/12. Now on income-based repayment. No luck yet on GWs.)

2 previously mentioned USAA cards(open/never late)

Credit Systems International for $123 Texas Gas bill, DOFD 4/12 (Already PIF for delete, still waiting for it to delete)

Credit Protection Association for $133 Bright House cable bill, DOFD, 5/11 (Mailed offer to PIF for delete, waiting to hear back)

Only on TU and EX:

$328 bill to RJM for Target charge off (already paid 50 percent in exchange for delete, still waiting for delete)

$928 Judgement for Capital One from 2008  (Plan to deal with this but have left it alone for the moment)

TU Only:

$179 debt to Credit Collections for Progressive Auto Insurance, DOFD 2/08 (Already sent settlement offer in exchange for delete, waiting to hear back)

EQ Only:

$50 hospital bill from 2/08, lists as loan that is 120 days late every month, but was not a loan, disputed to have it reported as collection with no luck (Mailed offer to PIF for delete, previously discussed by phone and they rejected)

$199 debt to AFNI for Tmobile account from 2010 -- weird because I still have Tmobile (Mailed settlement offer to delete)

Only on EX and EQ:

$295 medical collection from 5/12 (Updated to paid on EQ, still under dispute on EX, Waiting for dispute to decide course of action. Was not paid, only disputed based on inaccurate DOFD -- should be older)

13 inquiries on EQ in last 24 months, 5 on both of the others. About half are in last year. Goal is to get decent unsecured credit lines and buy a house in 3-4 years. Also would like to secure Macy's or Dilliard's (where I buy make up few times a year), Lowes and Amazon, and maybe Sam's or Costco but think I need to wait to apply. Would like to have USAA unsecured in maybe a year or two. Eventually maybe AMEX again. Had AMEX that I closed in 95 (on good terms/never late.) My wallet was stolen and they way they handled it made me mad so I closed my card on the spot. I was in college. In retrospect not sure why I was so angry.

So, what do you guys think? What steps can I take now to move forward? How long until I might be able to app for new cards and what would I start with?

[dmorey]

Any ideas? TIA!

[llecs]

I'd suggest reading the following:

Common Abbreviations

Credit Scoring 101 - great for knowing what is in your credit score and to see how your score is impacted.

What Steps Do I Take - great for learning the repair process.

and Example letters - PFDs, GWs, DVs, etc.

Your score is a bit low and you have some new CCs. I'd lay low for a year, let things age, and focus on repair between now and then. I bet your scores can be in the 700s with some effort on the repair side.

The EX score is a FAKO (either a PLUS or Vantage...depends on the product purchased).

I'd stop on KY & Nelnet....I'd hate for them to delete the entire TL and hurt your AAoA.

Nelnet#2 - send GWs.

USAA - do nothing

Credit Systems - wait it out.

CPA - keep mailing PFDs.

RJM - wait it out.

CapOne PR - pay it and then ask the plaintiff's attorney to ask the court to have it vacated.

Hospital - keep sending PFDs.

AFNI - mail and e-mail PFD offers. Try the recoveryteam@afni address. Look around for the exact.

Medical - send PFDs.

[RobertEG]

The first huge hole to dig out from is usually the major derogs reported to your file, as they have serious effect on the highly-weighted payment history category, and keep you in a very negative scoring within that category until they are all gone.

The second major consideration would be what can happen next, not just your currrent situation.

While remaining unpaid, charge-offs can result in additional collections, any unpaid debt can lead to legal action if still within SOL, and unpaid judgments can lead to further attempts to secure their satisfaction by acts such as garnishment.

My biggest heartburn would be the unpaid delinquent debts. Offers to pay from your end may be countered by other actions on their end........

[dmorey]

Thanks for the feedback. I feel totally discouraged now, but I'll keep plugging away.Thought I was making progress since I had half a dozen collections removed and got offers for two store cards...

[Shogun]

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@dmorey wrote:

Thanks for the feedback. I feel totally discouraged now, but I'll keep plugging away.Thought I was making progress since I had half a dozen collections removed and got offers for two store cards...

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And how is that not progress?   Keep going, by the looks of the above, you're doing the right thing, no reason to get discouraged now!