Student Loan initial borrowed amount changed?

[Anonymous]

I just got a MyFico alert that said I had a credit limit decrease. The amount that was reported as initially borrowed was 35,722.00 but that decreased on my EX report to 30,500.00. The actual amount I borrowed while in school was 30,500.00 but I had defaulted on the loan and then went through rehab which is why I think they were reporting the 35,722 amount. My score dropped by a few points because the CRA took this as a credit line decrease. Has anyone experienced anything like this? Is there anyway to get the CRA to give me back those points since it was not a credit line decrease? It was only 4 points so I'm not too worried. I'm just more interested in what triggered this action.

[Anonymous]

Hi gmadventure, just got the same alert from Experian and i was just about to ask similar question. Why will your score decrease because your loan amount decrease? This is a bad way of scoring if they taking loan payment as credit line decrease then it means they just want to see people in debt. For me, i have no negative on my file and do not know why their model is indicating to me that my score may decrease because my student loan amount has decreased.

[jazhead077]

I recieved an alert on Saturday from CCT that my EX scored dropped 19 points (which hurts because I was planning on buying a truck from Ford Credit and have been knocking on a score needed for 0% financing) Anyway, I received the alert of my student loan balance decrease from myfico today. Sorry, I have no answers...

[Anonymous]

It's strange that it only changed for EX. I'm in the same position, trying to buy a car in the next month and didn't need anything knocking my score down, even only four points. Maybe if I have time I'll call EX and ask them what triggered the change. I don't really want them to think I'm disputing, I'm genuinely just curious and a little aggravated. 

[jazhead077]

I am considering a dispute. I will call Experian tomorrow before disputing,19 points is a big hit for me.

[Anonymous]

I am having the same issue. On 7/9, my Experian account reported credit increases for all four of my SL accounts that were coming out of deferrment. The balance amounts increased based on the accrued interest accumulated during my deferrement. Then, on 8/13, all four of my accounts showed a credit decrease as the reported "credit line" amount was changed from my current balance to the original loan amounts, thus droppping my score 22 points. 

[Anonymous]

I too had the same problem and I contacted the student loan carrier. it appears that they have changed their reporting structure and will now only report the amount disbursed as the credit limit, where before they reported the amount disbursed, plus interest and late fees as the credit limit total. With that being said, for a vast number of us, we are now OVER our credit limit, which in turns has a negative impact on our scores, thus dropping our credit scores.... 

Please let me know if anyone finds out anything any different, or if there is a way for us to fix this. I think its really unfair to change the reporting structure, without notice, affecting thousands, if not millions of people. And yes we only know now because we actually check and monitor our credit reports on the regular....

[Anonymous]

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@Anonymous wrote:

I too had the same problem and I contacted the student loan carrier. it appears that they have changed their reporting structure and will now only report the amount disbursed as the credit limit, where before they reported the amount disbursed, plus interest and late fees as the credit limit total. With that being said, for a vast number of us, we are now OVER our credit limit, which in turns has a negative impact on our scores, thus dropping our credit scores.... 

Please let me know if anyone finds out anything any different, or if there is a way for us to fix this. I think its really unfair to change the reporting structure, without notice, affecting thousands, if not millions of people. And yes we only know now because we actually check and monitor our credit reports on the regular....

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I wonder if this something that is happening with multiple loan servicers or just one? Great Lakes is my loan servicer. I will try to call them this evening to see if I can find anything out. I can't imagine that reporting this way helps anyone. Any student that recieves Un-subsidized loans while they are in school will graduate owing more than they "borrowed". Nothing like starting off your career with a pile of debt and a lower credit score despite playing by the rules.

[jazhead077]

Great Lakes is also my loan servicer. I called Experian yesterday and could not get anywhere I am calling Great Lakes today. I have not heard a explanation why the balance changed and why only with Experian. I refreshed TU and EQ report and they are reporting the same balance. I am leaning towards a dispute, it will take me months to bounce back from -19 points.

[Anonymous]

The same thing happened to me on Monday. It reported a decrease in credit line. It only affected my Experian score. It dropped from 737 to 723, 14 points, which is quite huge, since it wasn't a negative. I also am with Great Lakes. I would be curious to hear if this is permanent and will all CRA be heading towards this trend. If so, that is disheartening.