Stuck at 680

[cascade159]

I also pulled my report from the site you suggested and it shows exactly the same information as ScoreWatch and Equifax.com. The account I mentioned has 25 30-day lates but the most recent is over three years ago. Maybe it's just the number of lates that is killing me?

There is a PUBLIC RECORD that was added to my credit report about four months ago for a Federal Tax Lien. However, when it was added my score did not move so I didn't mention that earlier.

[MarineVietVet]

The number of lates can make a difference. Among other things counted in your payment history are:

• Severity of delinquency (how long past due)
• Amount past due on delinquent accounts or collection items
• Time since (recency of) past due items (delinquency), adverse public records (if any), or collection items (if any)
• Number of past due items on file

Here is where it talks about What's In Your FICO Score.

From a BK years ago to:
EX - 9/09 pulled by lender 802
EQ - 7/06-663, 3/10-800
TU - 8/10-772
You can do the same thing with hard work

[RobertEG]

Something in this posting of payment history is kinda confusing to me.

It regards the numerous posting of consecutive 30-day lates.

Take, for example, the reporting for 2006.  It shows consecutive 30-days late in Jan, Feb, Mar, and Apr.

Start with January.  Posting of a 30-day late would indicate both that you were late in payment after the billing due date for Jan, and further that payment was not received for more than 30-days after its Jan due date. So that resulted in the posting of a 30-day late for Jan.

Then the Feb billing cycle came along.  Still being delinquent for over 30-days from the Jan due date when Feb billing was made, did you then make payment of the overdue Jan bill, then go delinquent on the due date for the Feb bill, and also not pay it for more than 30-days from its due date?  And so on and so on, through March and April.

30-day lates are usually separated by at least a month of good standing reporting.

I would have expected your history profile to show a 30-day late in Jan, a 60-day late in Feb, a 90-day late in Mar, and a 120-day late in April.

This is important because DOFD on an account is reset after a prior DOFD occurs, the account is then brought back into good standing, and then a new first defalut occurs. 

Each of those 30-day lates continue to affect credit scoring for 7 years from their date of occcurance.  They, together, put up a wall against improvement.

[cascade159]

Basically the account was being paid between 28-32 days late so sometimes it would be 30 and sometimes it would not. I was living overseas between those years and the account was being paid by a relative. I didn't realize it was so close to the 30 day late mark. I am in the process of GW so we'll see how that goes.

[RobertEG]

Thanks for the update!  That kinda explains the strange reporting

I would be interested in hearing how the OC treats this in response to your GW letters.

Having over a dozen paments that were both untimely, and then more than 30-days past timely, will be tough.

I wish you luck!

[RobertEG]

Upon review of your posts, I think the main reason for your stall in credit scores is that you have what is commonly called a "dirty credit file."

Dont take personal offense at that terminology.  It is general scoring terminology, not mine.

A "dirty credit file" is one that has multiple former derogs, and/or  more seriously, the posting of a major derog.

The multiple  (25) OC account derogs, even though each individually may only be a minor, 30-day late,nonetheless, collectively, become major.

There is no question that posting of a public record is a major derog, and in and of itself puts you in a major derog category.

So you are being scored under one of the lower FICO algorithms, and to move forward, that requires removal from major or repetitive derog status before you can get into the better scoring algorithms.  I dont think new credit is the issue.

I think it is your payment history, compounded by the PR.