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Summer is here and the fall will be here quicker than we think. I know you are all hard at work with your credit goals. Have we progressed as far as we hoped? Were there any unforseen expenses that cropped up and may have thrown you off schedule?
As a reminder, participation in these monthly check-ins is optional, but encouraged. The goal is to help keep you on track, so feel free to post your progress updates here.
Did you hit any potholes or speedbumps? Achieve some milestones, either small or mighty? Change your goals or add new ones?
Let us know how you're doing! What have been your biggest accomplishments and obstacles so far in the myFICO Fitness Challenge for 2014?
Feeling very good as July begins.
Scrubbed TU report and the one judgement is now showing as paid. That's the last fo them. I'm tired of writing GW letters to the other baddies. All the lates are 30 days and almost 4 years old. It's not worth the effort at this stage.
Still scrubbing Equifax and Experian, neither is as responsive as TransUnion. Both have a different variety of TL on them, Still don't get that, but I'm dealing with it. I have one old CO that I negotiated from $16k to $4k as I was a guarantor for an old business. Payments will be done by December and I can start 2015 clean!
Scores steadily rising - that is gratifying. I know I need to stay strong in the garden and not be tempted to add anything else right now.
Goal is to get everything in as tip-top shape as possible before I ask PenFed to recon my file. I asked once via chat and was told it would be another hard pull and to be honest, that's the worst thing I have on my reports right now - lots of inquiries. I explained that to them, that the score has risen significantly, but they'd be just adding more to what they already denied me for by repulling right now. He didn't get it, but again, it's not a requirement and I'm willing to wait.
Otherwise, finances are good, vacation is paid for so I can go with a clear conscience, school is out and its finally acting like summer around here!
I have reached(ish) my goal! I started the year in the mid-600s across the board and in the process of buying a house. After I closed (what a harrowing journey!), I apped for a number of new cards to ultimately lower my util and give my score a boost in the process. I just saw from my credit monitoring here at myFico that the last of those new cards is now reporting, and I am up to 718 (EX) 709 (EQ) and 707 (TU). My goal was 710, so I made it on one bureau and so close on the other two.
I am hoping that once the negative impact of the INQs for the new credit lines (and the mortgage application) is reduced by the passage of a few more months I will see more of a bump!
Then I'd like to set a new goal of 750.
Hope everyone is doing well. Happy July!
Just checking in! I have two remaining judgements, of which only one I will be attempting to pay off sometime during the rest of this year. I just finished paying off PRA judgement. Hopefully those snakes will vacate the judgement in court. We;ll see...
Hello,
I did not check in during June. I had a lot going on. I was doing really well, but circumstances forced to run up my CCs. My utilization is high, but I am working on getting it back down. The good news is that I met one of my goals. I closed on my new townhome yesterday with a rate of 3.75% which is better than I thought I would get. I am not teaching summer school due to low enrollment for my class. Everything is working out due to giving me more time to move and we recently came into some money. Now to work on the other goals. It might take me a little longer to hit them, but I am not worried. I can do it.
Finally realized what has been holding my score down.
(This from my last credit report)
Number of your credit accounts in good standing 35 accounts
FICO High Achievers have an average of 17 accounts in good status.
I have also complained to the CRA's that they seem to have missed the first 25 years of my financial life. My records date back to just before I retired, missing ten cars I financed and three home mortgages I have had and paid off. I am afraid I have lost confidence in the competency of the CRAs.
My #1 goal for this year has been met -
1. Get last baddie off credit (100.00 med. coll.) Accomp. April '14
goals still in progess-
1. paydown debt (36% Util.) Down to 22% now
2. let accounts age by not applying for anything new @ least till Fall- have frozen reports
3. let all inquires hit 1 yr mark
4. Stay in garden and continue to learn more about credit and scoring
Checking in for July! I have had a big score bump and I am ecstatic about it! I am hoping that as I decrease my util I will only see it go higher. I currently have two collections I am working on (1 TU and 1 EXP) and maybe I can get an Amex. My lates w/ NFCU have hit the 1 year mark this month so maybe a little bump from that too? We will see. I am grateful for any increase in my score considering when I started I didn't think I would get past 620 in 10 months. My score has jumped more than 100 points in that short time.