topic Re: Two years, still stuck in the low 600s in Bankruptcy

Two years, still stuck in the low 600s

Hockeypnc1 — Tue, 01 Jan 2019 01:22:39 GMT

Hi,

I am a long time reader but never have posted. Sorry if I don't do it right!

I am over 2 years past a CHP. 7 filing and almost immediate discharge (Oct. 16 and discharge less than 2 months after). I am struggling to recover though!

I kept a car loan from American Honda past the bankruptcy, but then re-financed with Capital One for a slightly lower payment. I still pay $322 a month for a 2014 Honda Accord with 101,000 miles on it that I got new in 2014 (originally a lease, turned into a purchase). I still owe $12,000 on it.

I burned American Express for about $12,000 and CitiBank for about $18,000. Also burned BankAmerica for $1,000 and Capital One for $500 and $1,000. I also burned a $300 secured US Bank card and an $800 Boston Store (dept store) and $200 Kohls card (dept store).

The recovery has been a slow and painful process.

I was able to get a $1000 secured card from UW Credit Union (May 2017) and after a little over a year they allowed me to get my sec. deposit back and approve me for a $1,500 unsecured Visa, non-rewards card.

I was able to get an $1800 Discover IT card by using their prequalify tool. Recently they upped the limit to $2,200 without me asking.

I have a $1,000 "creditbuilder" loan from Guaranty Bank (which is now First Citizens Bank). I got this in Sept. of 17 and owe about $500 on it. It's a 5-year loan, but I want to pay it off in the next few months.

I also have about $75,000 in student loans, which you can't burn in bankruptcy, unfortunately. They are in deferment right now, but those will come due soon.

I have multiple store cards that I got from the "shopping cart trick." All with 0 balances on them except one that was for a laptop that is nearly paid off (Overstock.com card)

My Discover Card is at about $700 balance right now, the UW Credit Union card at about $800.

I know everyone is going to say, to keep my cards below 30 percent and to pay them all down, but that just isn't possible with my pretty low income ($15 per hour) and bills like rent, cell phone, insurance, car payment ($322 per month).

Besides paying down these cards ever so slowly, is there anything I can do? Or am I just doomed with these 610 credit scores??

No card will touch me anymore because of my low score, lots of inquiries, public record present on file, and balances on my cards.

Re: Two years, still stuck in the low 600s

Hockeypnc1 — Tue, 01 Jan 2019 01:29:50 GMT

Sorry my Discover IT card is at $1495 as of this writing. I was quite far off!

Sorry!

Re: Two years, still stuck in the low 600s

csl1 — Tue, 01 Jan 2019 01:45:20 GMT

I sympathize with your income conundrum; it's hard to pay in full when your income is limited. But unfortunately, it really does seem that your high utilization is probably the culprit. Utilization is 30 to 35% of your credit score. ... And although 30% UTIL is recommended, it's even better if you're able to get your balances down between 8% and 10% if you really want to see your scores jump higher. Is there a way that you can bring in a little more income so that you can pay down your cards? Perhaps as an uber driver or in another part time job a couple of nights a week?

I wish you the best, by the way. I've been there and I totally know how it is. Best wishes.

Re: Two years, still stuck in the low 600s

Hockeypnc1 — Tue, 01 Jan 2019 02:19:46 GMT

I am a Lyft driver, but haven't done it in quite some time.

I also am a DoorDash food driver, but also haven't done it in quite some time.

I don't have that much free time with a 2nd shift job.

Re: Two years, still stuck in the low 600s

FireMedic1 — Tue, 01 Jan 2019 09:24:31 GMT

Really not much more you can do than just stop using the cards and get the debts under control. As the balances go down the score will go up. No more installment loans. You have a car loan and didnt really need another loan. So spend the new year paying down what you have and dont spend what you dont have. Once you see your scores go up it will give you more incentive to finish the goal. Happy New year!

Re: Two years, still stuck in the low 600s

pizza1 — Tue, 01 Jan 2019 16:32:33 GMT

Will agree with @FireMedic1. May not be what you want to hear, but your cards are 50-70% util! Thats way too much! Fico hates that for starters, and you will get dinged for that.

Sorry, but the only way to get better scores is to pay down your debt and pay it off. Once your debt is paid down, then let one card report a very small balance of less than 9%. YOu'll see big scores then.

Dont head down that path again. 2 yrs out and already back in debt isnt a good thing at all. I understand your lower income makes it a little more challenging, but dont spend on anything except current needs.....utilites, rent, gas, insurance etc.. give yourself 6 months to see how much you can pay off, and go from there. I also think that if you were to get another cc, it would be too tempting for you to not use it. Your current cards are already over 50% now and you're barely making a dent in them. Stick to a strict budget for 6 months, and then re-evaluate. 6 months in the whole scope of things really isnt that long.

Re: Two years, still stuck in the low 600s

Hockeypnc1 — Wed, 02 Jan 2019 01:14:10 GMT

Thank you for the replies.

I am working to pay off balances. I make small payments pretty much every day and always try to pay well over the minimum on my 2 major cards (the UW Credit Union Platinum and the Discover IT Card)

Re: Two years, still stuck in the low 600s

mrsjr — Wed, 02 Jan 2019 01:31:17 GMT

Have you also checked all of your credit reports for accuracy? Any accounts that were included in bankruptcy could be disputed and removed. All of my accounts included were removed and I was only left with the public record. My score went us significantly after that.

Re: Two years, still stuck in the low 600s

Hockeypnc1 — Wed, 02 Jan 2019 01:44:05 GMT

Those that were included in bankruptcy say:

"included in bankruptcy" and list a $0 balance.

How should I dispute them?

Re: Two years, still stuck in the low 600s

pizza1 — Wed, 02 Jan 2019 05:05:32 GMT

@Hockeypnc1 wrote:
Those that were included in bankruptcy say:
"included in bankruptcy" and list a $0 balance.

How should I dispute them?

You shouldnt, as they are reporting correctly . 0/IIB

Re: Two years, still stuck in the low 600s

DIYcredit — Sun, 06 Jan 2019 09:39:36 GMT

I would do as pizza1 said don't open any more cc's,You have two.cc's,store cards and student loans.That's more than enough.Concentrate on paying your bills on ime,low cc utilization,let the derogatories age,build a long history and your Fico score will increase over time. GOOD LUCK...

Re: Two years, still stuck in the low 600s

Anonymous — Sun, 06 Jan 2019 20:15:09 GMT

I had perfect 100% on time payment history on all of my cards before bk. Once the balances got above ~50% on the cards, my score plummeted from 760 to low 600s and no bank would give me a loan or credit card. This was without a single "baddie" on my credit report. You must pay down the balances on your cards if your goal is to increase your credit score. Your 2 year-old public record and the inquiries are a minor influence on your score compared to the % utilization.

Re: Two years, still stuck in the low 600s

Hockeypnc1 — Wed, 16 Jan 2019 00:50:15 GMT

Bumping this for more replies.

Re: Two years, still stuck in the low 600s

FireMedic1 — Wed, 16 Jan 2019 09:15:45 GMT

No reason to bump this. Theres really not more more to add. Pizza is the post BK expert IMO on this forum with the success they've had. The responce will stay the same. Pay down the debts and the score goes up. Good Luck!

Re: Two years, still stuck in the low 600s

Hockeypnc1 — Mon, 28 Jan 2019 23:58:07 GMT

Updated as of 1-28-19

MyFico 8 score, Transunion from Discover, date of score 12-17-18--- 635, revolving utilization at 20 percent, length of credit 12 years, 6 inquiries, 33 total accounts, 1 missed payment reported,

CreditKarma scores, date of score Jan. 28 2019--

Transunion-- 615, revolving utilization 20 percent, "age of credit history" 1 year, 10 months, total accounts 35, 35 hard inquiries, payment history 99 percent

Equifax--599, revolving utilization 20 percent, "age of credit history" 2 years, 5 months, total accounts 32, hard inquiries 33, payment history 99 percent, 1 derogatory mark (BK Oct. 2016)

Re: Two years, still stuck in the low 600s

Anonymous — Thu, 31 Jan 2019 22:00:07 GMT

I can only imagine you're at 20% total UTIL, because of the numerous SCT store cards you have, and not because youve managed to pay down everything this quickly (as you early replied you had a lower income.) You need to work on lowering the UTIL on each card. Besides the student loans which you will likely be paying forever, the other debt seems easily lowered with some good discipline. Don't open any new accounts, keep paying down balances. Numerous strategies for paying things down. I know youre looking for a solution to bump your scores sooner, but there is no other way but hard work and discipline.

Re: Two years, still stuck in the low 600s

Hockeypnc1 — Thu, 31 Jan 2019 22:20:24 GMT

That is correct. I have not made much of a dent into my two major credit cards, the Discover Card and the UW Credit Union VISA.

You are correct, with better discipline and trying to get those credit cards paid down my card utilization will start going down.

You are also very correct about the student loans, those will stick with me for life.

Thanks for the responses and pointers!!

Re: Two years, still stuck in the low 600s

Hockeypnc1 — Mon, 04 Feb 2019 20:32:29 GMT

Latest:

Approved for DCU basic platinum card, unsecured, $3,000 limit

FAKO scores (CreditKarma)

Transunion- 616 (up 1 point in last 7 days)

Equifax-604 (up 5 points in last 7 days)

Overal credit utilization: 20%

Re: Two years, still stuck in the low 600s

joltdude — Mon, 04 Feb 2019 23:11:06 GMT

I wouldnt have gone for another card at this point but... it does make for some interesting options... would a BT be cost effective for you ? You still got to work on paying down, but at least now your not relying on store cards for padding... still the only real thing you can do is find a way to cut expenses and pare off wants vs needs... it sucks.. but cable tv, daily coffees and other niceties will not get this accomplished.. and i do kinda hate how folks recommend lyft and uber.. In this state just the commercial insurance alone will kill you for occasional lyft/uber.. and if you rent a car your losing a good swath of your income unless you drive 40+ hours a week.. Kill the cable and/or bring down the service tier for internet, even disconnect it if you must... Dialup and going to a coffee shop ... Less eating out even fast food... Folks here know its hard but you do what you gotta do.. and Pizza's advice is one of the best when coming back from BK ... Hang in there and really take a deep thought...

Good luck and stick around

-J

Re: Two years, still stuck in the low 600s

joltdude — Mon, 04 Feb 2019 23:15:20 GMT

And FAKO scores.. are not very useful.. Its been rumoured that some apartment rentals use them.. but for most everything else.. Not so much.. they arent a good guideline... Is Karma good for seeing activity... mostly... not for scores.. really would be good if you did the CCT 1$ trick and got a baseline and full data to work off of... Also you can get *another* free score from Discover thats different if you sign up for Credit Scorecard (the website) vs the one in the app ... CS is EX if i recall while Discovers in account one is TU..... So theres 2 Fico 8 scores there...free every month...

-J