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I am only about 6 weeks into my journey, I've had some successes on my CR and my DH. on mine 2 PFDs, 1 goodwill success, 2 Deletions because of the 2008 FTC Ruling. Started with 9 baddies and am down to 4. I had a score alert today and I saw a 34 point jump in my FICO score. AND not all of my above success has been fixed on my CR yet so I am excited to see what my score does in the yet 6 weeks.
i have learned so much from this forum and gotten such good advice. I wish I would have found it years ago!
Vipor1:
I personally use the FICO service provided by my credit card. Day to day monitoring is a bit too much for me. I get my score updated once a month.
Thanks AmateurHour. I'll check and see if CapOne has such a service.
Anyone else?
CapOne does have a monthly credit score. Log in to your account and you can see it. It's based on TransUnion though and it's not a FICO score. Most creditors don't pull TransUnion for apps so it's less valuable.
I'm a huge fan of ScoreWatch (EQ FICO). I love being notified every time something changes on my account and watching my score go up. It's highly motivating for me and I figure I'm saving a ton in the long run getting my score up since eventually I'll be applying for a mortgage. Plus you can google discount codes for it online.
@DD60 wrote:Live and learn. I received notice from FICO today that my score had dropped by 13 points, from 813 to 800. The reason cited was a change in my Equifax credit report, which had triggered an alert.
I checked the alert, which was the result of my address having been changed from "1234 Main Street, Penthouse 2, Boondocks, Florida 55555" to 1234 Main Street, Boondocks, Florida 55555." So, somebody's omitting "Penthouse" from my address cost me 13 points?
I was thinking about this - it seems like the CRA thinks you have a "new" address. If you disputed the new address that was reported as inaccurate/incomplete, and reaffirmed the current address as correct, maybe your score would go back up. Otherwise I'll bet it would go up again after a year or two when your "new" address aged a bit.
@Vipor1 wrote:
I read a little on "Score Watch" but still a bit iffy on pulling the trigger.
I just learned that you can call in to MyFICO customer service and request a $9.95 monthly rate - it's the lowest they will (supposedly) go.
I have stayed the course. I paid towards 2 old medical bills in hopes that it isn't sent to collections. I still haven't received my CapOne Secured card but I hope to have it next week.
A minor victory. I needed sign up for home internet (I had been using a portable broadband modem) and decided to try AT&T. AT&T said because of my credit score the only thing they would require is Auto Pay. I was so excited about this. In the past everyone wanted a $300-$400 deposit because of my score.
I have to admit, I let things falter a bit. I took the challenge in 2013, and saw great success, but unfortunately with a job loss, having to get a place to live, my rebuilding got pushed to the side, and I ended up with new collections added. Welp, that's the bad part, now lets get to the good.
So I now have a firm goal of getting a car before classes start for me in October (don't want to be on public transport at night or in the cold) I went to my CU and they told me I would need a credit score of 620 to qualify for an auto loan without having to get CU Board Member approval. I was given the TU report they pulled so I could look everything over. That was in May. Since that time I have paid 4 of the 11 parking tickets listed on my CR. I am waiting to see those drop off before I pay anymore, as the agreement with Professional Acct. Management and DC Gov't says they will be deleted from TU and EX once paid.
I suggest to anyone to get the report run by your bank or CU, as on their report it includes full acct numbers and contact info for the CAs so you can waste less time looking for them.
I was 2 months late on my one secured CC, and paid that down by 43%, I saw an immediate 60 point increase from EQ!! I was all smiles. I negotiated a settlement with RJM Acquistions that will allow me to PFD 4 more accounts that will be removed from TU and EX. I am going to pull my EX today, and hopefully by next week I will see an update on TU for those accounts that are being deleted.
I also disputed 4 items on my EQ report, and 3 of the 4 will be deleted! Once I see if they are on EX (not on TU), then I will dispute with EX as needed.
I am confident that I can hit the 620 I need, once I get all my info updated. I can't wait to be able to just sit back and garden, but that one 60 point increase gave me the mental boost I needed to stick with it. It will work if you work at it. I had much better scores a year ago, so I now understand how important it is to keep on top of things.
Sorry if this was long winded, but I finally have a job I love that will allow me to take care of all this mess, and not cringe when something says "credit report required"
I will check back in July to let you know how things are going!
-If you are still breathing it can always get better ~ Hnycaraml
I started working on getting my FICO score up Janurary of this year. I've raised it almost 100 points and most of my debt is paid off. I'm excited about finishing this year strong!