@Anonymous wrote:Thanks for your response gdale. I have never been through a mortgage process so was unaware if they ask for CAs or baddies that aren't on your CR. So just want to note I would have no intention of committing such fraud. This is great info though.
Ultimately, it sounds like the only true option is PFD with PIF (or PFD with a slight discount if I'm lucky since the account is so old). Otherwise even if I let the Suncoast debt falloff next year it seems it will come back to haunt me when I might apply for a mortgage a couple years from now. If an account is settled is the difference between the balance that was owed and what I settled for still considered outstanding debt on a mortgage app? FYI, my Suncoast debt should only be about $4k total.
Also, how do I find out the CA if the account has been sold multiple times and the current CA isn't reporting on my CR?
Settled debt is just that settled and there is no further consideration to the amount that was forgiven. There is no way you can find out who has owned a debt if they have not been reporting it on your CR, if you have such debt floating around you would just have to wait for them to contact you. If the OC has just sold a debt to a JDB you can get the info from the OC on who they sold it to though sometimes they may need pushing to reveal it.
@Anonymous wrote:
@tiger_uppercut wrote:
@Anonymous wrote:Hello everyone,
I discovered this community yesterday, and I am quite intrigued by the genuine interaction amongst members. Like many others, I sufferred from the aftermath of the great recession of 2008, which caused me to lose multiple jobs and struggle to keep up with bills. I also take responsibility for being careless with credit allotted to me at the time.
After several years of strictly using cash and ignoring credit cards, I decided to take the leap and make steps to improve my credit standing. I pulled my credit reports and scores using Credit Check Total a couple days ago.
The results:
- Experian 651
- Equifax 580
- TransUnion 610
I was surprised to see my scores higher than I expected. Although I'm not sure if these are "FAKO" scores instead of actual FICO scores. I did hire Lexington law and it seems they were sucessfull in removing a few baddies, including Midland, a cable company debt that was sold to a collection agency, and some medical charges. This is assuming Credit Check Total provided me with a full report. Does anyone know their reputation for credit reports? Should I reach out to each bureau individually to get a true measure of my FICO score and credit reports? - Just FYI, Lexington Law is a waste of money. They don't do anything you can't do yourself using the resources on this board, and in fact all the do is dispute items on your behalf to the CRAs, which can sometimes harm more than help. Search LL on this site for more stories. Honestly, a relative signed me up for Lexington Law. It's cancelled now and I am doing everything myself through the help of this forum, which is the reason for my original post. Good! The money is better in your pocket or toward debt.
- Suncoast FCU – This account was charged off around the same time as Bofa, 3-5 years ago. I haven't heard from the collection agency in a few years. Experian advised that this negative account will fall off in October 2016. - When was the last time the account was updated? Is there a CA? Send PFD letters to the CA if applicable, and if not, try Suncoast directly. I saw a derrogatory mark added April of 2014. So that sounds like around the same time Lexington Law may have been disputing some of my stuff. Maybe they are the reason for the recent update. There is a CA.............but I haven't heard from them in years. Suncoast has written it off almost 5 years ago and sold to a CA, so I doubt they care about anything I saw? Maybe I can send them a GW explaining the reason for the debt? How do I find out who the CA is if they are on my CR? I think it may have been sold off by the original CA....making it even more of a confusing situation. Yeah, if the balance on Suncoast is $0, then they sold the debt. The updated derogatory mark is most likely from Lexington Law disputing it on your behalf - when the disputes have no validity, they sometimes are updated and you get dinged further. It's one of the reasons why people on this forum steer people away from LL and preach care about using disputes and which bears you poke. I would GW Suncoast directly - and contact the CA that is listed. Even if they haven't been active with you, they will have you on file - or better, will have no authority to collect the debt anymore (someone else will) and will delete the CA from your report. They are your first stop, though. Send them a PFD letter and then follow up.
- Fifth Third – By the time I got around to this account, I was able to salvage it and keep it with Fifth Third. However, the payment history is horrible and the account has been closed for almost 5 years. I have a few batches of late payments ranging from 60 to 120 days. In the past 12 months, the account has been on time, except in January of 2015. Apparently my minimum payment increased and I wasn't informed. So I sent a payment and they didn't apply it and said I was past due 30 days. Maybe I could GW this? I was also thinking of paying off the balance of ~$1,200 completely with a PFD letter. Any advise on this or the address info to send a PFD letter? I called their collection department but they were ignorant to any information. Experian advised that the first batch of late payments will fall off in December 2016. - So is this open or closed? You seem to say it's been closed for 5 years, but then talk about recent payments. Explain further, please. GW will likely be your only course of action here either way. This account is closed. I was put on a hardship program by Fifth Third collections department and the account is now current. It seems GW fits this scenario well....I owe ~$1.2k...Have you heard of PFDs when the account is still with the original CA but closed? They're unlikely, but you will have a much better chance of negotiating them removed the tradeline completely after the debt is paid. Focus on that first, or if you have the $1.2k payment right now, call them and discuss your options for final payment. Companies tend to be a lot more willing to GW delete when they've been paid in full.
- Honda Financial – Paid off car loan. Only one 30 day late payment reflecting negative; the rest of the account is positive. I was thinking of GW this one. Experian advised that this late payment will fall off in Feburary 2017. Definitely GW this one, but it is likely not hurting your score at all. 30 day lates hurt less over time and after 2 years or so, the score impact is minimal if any. I might GW this with little effort put forth since it probably isn't affecting my credit much like you mentioned. Yeah, I wouldn't go crazy over it, the other things are overshadowing this one much more. Put your effort there and good luck.
Positives on my credit include:
- Student loans – I started paying these about 10 months ago
- A couple closed credit lines with no negative history
My goals for 2015/2016:
- Bring scores above 700
- Establish unsecure credit lines
I think you're blacklisted from BoA due to your CO, so I'd say Wells Fargo is a good secured card that can graduate. Are you a member of any credit unions? They tend to have secured cards that can graduate and even offer rewards. Is it possible to get unbalcklisted with BoA if I PIF the remaining balance? That's probably not worth it even if it is. I'm not a member of any credit unions at the moment. I'm thinking of the strategy of pulling all my paper copies of my CRs and walking into some local credit unions to try to get "qualified" before a hard pull is made. Some people really love BoA, but I tend to think it's not worth it if you have other options. They are generous with CLI, but that's about it. I would hang onto your money, you may eventually fall off their blacklist with time. For the record, I am blacklisted with BoA and I don't feel like I'm missing out on anything. I am fast becoming a credit union believer, though I will keep my BoA checking account for family and roommate transferring.
I apologize tiger. I completely missed this post. Thank you for your time reading my original post. See my above comments in red.
No worries. The biggest (most annoying!) part of this process is patience. When you just get started, it feels like you want everything to move SO much faster. You want your score to rise NOW NOW NOW. Your sanity will thank you if you try and approach it from a patient, methodical place. Don't go crazy with store cards, make sure every rebuilder card or tradeline you open has been thoroughly considered. It will take time for deletions, updates, for cards to report, etc. It can be maddening, I'm right in the middle of it. But the rewards are waiting for us if we stick with it. Good luck!
