topic Re: Where should I start? Updated in Rebuilding Your Credit

Where should I start?

Anonymous — Thu, 21 Oct 2010 01:30:01 GMT

Hi, I've been observing the forums here for a while now and am hoping to get some assistance on what steps I should take. My Experian score is 586, ewww - and I'm including a breakdown of what's on my credit.

My husband and I are serious on buying a home. Our rent is $750, never late, and we could buy a home for 45,000-60,000 which would be half our rent even if it had a bad interest rate.

Sidenote - I am working on paying down my revolving accounts and get my utilization in better standing. I am not charging anything, and haven't for the last 2 months.

I own my debt, and am working on not letting my debt own me.

Re: Where should I start?

Anonymous — Thu, 21 Oct 2010 01:45:12 GMT

Caital One
Current Status:   PAYS AS AGREED
Account Owner:   Individual Account.    High Credit:   $868
Revolving   Credit Limit:   $750
Date Opened:   06/2006     Balance:   $752
Date Reported:   09/2010     Amount Past Due:
Date of Last Payment:   09/2010     Actual Payment Amount:   $45
Scheduled Payment Amount:   $19     Date of Last Activity:   09/2010

CBUSASEARS

Current Status:   PAYS AS AGREED
Account Owner:   Terminated    High Credit:   $650
Date Opened:   08/2001     Balance:
Date Reported:   06/2002     Amount Past Due:
Date of Last Payment:       Actual Payment Amount:
Scheduled Payment Amount:       Date of Last Activity:   06/2002

Childrens Place Card
Current Status:   PAYS AS AGREED
Account Owner:   Individual Account.    High Credit:   $182
Credit Limit:   $150
Date Opened:   05/2006     Balance:   $73
Date Reported:   10/2010     Amount Past Due:
Date of Last Payment:   10/2010     Actual Payment Amount:
Scheduled Payment Amount:   $10     Date of Last Activity:   10/2010

GEMB/JC PENNEYS

Current Status:   PAYS AS AGREED
Account Owner:   Individual Account.    High Credit:   $926
Credit Limit:   $1,100
Date Opened:   11/2001     Balance:   $892
Date Reported:   09/2010     Amount Past Due:
Date of Last Payment:   09/2010     Actual Payment Amount:   $52
Scheduled Payment Amount:   $44     Date of Last Activity:   09/2010

BENEFICIAL NATIONAL BANK

Current Status:   PAYS AS AGREED
Account Owner:   Individual Account.    High Credit:   $1,788
Revolving   Credit Limit:   $0
Date Opened:   05/2006     Balance:   $0
Date Reported:   05/2009     Amount Past Due:
Date of Last Payment:   04/2009     Actual Payment Amount:
Scheduled Payment Amount:       Date of Last Activity:   04/2009

LES SCHWAB TIRE CENTER #38
Current Status:   PAYS AS AGREED
Account Owner:   Individual Account.    High Credit:   $593
Revolving   Credit Limit:   $500
Date Opened:   02/2003     Balance:   $140
Date Reported:   09/2010     Amount Past Due:
Date of Last Payment:   08/2010     Actual Payment Amount:   $180
Scheduled Payment Amount:   $25     Date of Last Activity:   09/2010

   MACY'S/DSNB

Current Status:   PAYS AS AGREED
High Credit:
Date Opened:   05/2001     Balance:   $129
Date Reported:   09/2010     Amount Past Due:
Date of Last Payment:   09/2010     Actual Payment Amount:
Scheduled Payment Amount:   $5     Date of Last Activity:   09/2010

NORDSTROM FSB
Current Status: PAYS AS AGREED

High Credit:   $540
Revolving   Credit Limit:   $500
Date Opened:   04/2006     Balance:   $458
Date Reported:   09/2010     Amount Past Due:
Date of Last Payment:   09/2010     Actual Payment Amount:   $32
Scheduled Payment Amount:   $23     Date of Last Activity:   09/2010

WFFNB/LANE BRYANT
Current Status:   PAYS AS AGREED
High Credit:   $706
Credit Limit:   $750
Date Opened:   04/2006     Balance:   $705
Date Reported:   09/2010     Amount Past Due:
Date of Last Payment:   08/2010     Actual Payment Amount:   $35
Scheduled Payment Amount:   $35     Date of Last Activity:   09/2010

COLLECTIONS

CBS COLLECTIONS
Date Reported:   07/2008
Date Assigned:   05/2007
Original Amount Owned:   $1,076
Date of 1 st Delinquency:   08/2006
Balance Date:   07/2008
Balance Owned:   $0
Last Payment Date :   12/06/2008
Status Date:   07/2008

BAY AREA CREDIT SERVICE
Date Reported:   07/2008
Date Assigned:   03/2008
Original Amount Owned:   $424
Date of 1 st Delinquency:   08/2006
Balance Date:   07/2008
Balance Owned:   $0
Last Payment Date :   30/06/2008
Status Date:   07/2008
Status:   P - Paid

VALLEY EMPIRE COLL CO

Date Reported:   06/2008
Date Assigned:   07/2007
Original Amount Owned:   $334
Date of 1 st Delinquency:   09/2006
Balance Date:   06/2008
Balance Owned:   $0
Last Payment Date :   21/05/2008
Status Date:   06/2008
Status:   P - Paid
Comments:   Medical

TAX LEIN

Date Filed:    02/2010

Amount:    $445
Date Reported:    N/A
Lien Status:
Date Released:    03/2010

Re: Where should I start?

Anonymous — Thu, 21 Oct 2010 01:46:10 GMT

ADDITIONAL SIDENOTE ON THE LIEN, ITS WITH UNEMPLOYMENT, THEY OVER PAID ME, WHICH THEY NOTED WAS NOT MY FAULT, BUT HAD TO PAY THEM BACK NONETHELESS. CALLED TO PIF WHEN WE GOT OUR TAX REFUND, SPOKE WITH NICE LADY TOLD HER I WAS PIF, SHE GAVE ME THE AMOUNT, AND SENT OFF CHECK. CALLED 5 DAYS LATER, THEY HAD RECEIVED THE CHECK AND POSTED THE PAYMENT.

FAST FORWARD TWO WEEKS, GET A LETTER IN THE MAIL FROM THEM - I'M THINKING ITS A RECEIPT, NO, ITS A BILL FOR $40FOR FILING IN COURT. THEY TOOK ME TO COURT. I WAS NEVER SERVED! I IMMEDIATELY CALLED THEM AND THEY SAID THAT PAPERS WERE SERVED TO SOMEONE NAMED JEREMY SOMETHING - WHICH IS OUR OLD NEIGHBOR AT OUR OLD APARTMENT COMPLEX. I TOLD THEM THEY DIDN'T SERVE IT TO ME, AND THAT IS NOT MY HUSBAND. THEY SAID THERE IS NOTHING THEY DID WRONG AND HUNG UP ON ME.

Re: Where should I start?

RobertEG — Thu, 21 Oct 2010 02:08:31 GMT

Hi, buttercupbass, and welcome to the forums!

You have done the right things in first steps at recovery!

In brief overview of what you have reported, outside ot the tax lien issue, your major hit on your credit score are the three collections.

It is great that each now seems to have been paid. But the bad news is that a paid collection hurts your credit score just as much an unpaid collection.

FICO scores the occurance of the collection itself, and does not thereafter excuse it from scoring based on subsequent payment. You need to get the CAs to agree to delete these from your CR.

From what you have said, my primary focus would be on getting good-will (GW) deltions of those collections from your credit report.

Re: Where should I start?

Anonymous — Thu, 21 Oct 2010 02:35:52 GMT

Thank you very much,

I will work on those, I've been looking through the threads to try and find a GW deletion letter to use. I was rear ended by a 17 yr old girl named Phuc with no insurance, and couldn't work due to the fractured hip. Once the settlement was all done, and all the bills were paid, we had exactly $28 for my pain and suffering. I bought some Advil for the pain, and Godiva for the suffering and called it a day.

Anything else?

Re: Where should I start?

RobertEG — Thu, 21 Oct 2010 03:44:32 GMT

You wont see a lot of sample good-will letters becaues they are, by their nature, directed to your individual situation.They are not plain vanilla letters.

In my opinion, for what it is worth, a GW letter has two primary areas you can focus on.

First is just a plain 'ole plea for sympathy. Second is showng of how their GW deletion will benefit them in their future desire to want to keep your future business.

The more you plea woes for sympathy, the more it places, in my opinion, on you to also show that whatever prior personal woes you rely on have now been overcome. Otherwise, it just paints you as a potential future risk.

GWs are an art, and not a form letter.

Re: Where should I start?

Anonymous — Thu, 21 Oct 2010 04:02:17 GMT

Very true.

And since they're medical collections, I don't think my returning business is a real plea to stand on, lol.

I'll get over the writers block and get them finished.

Should I look into the option of having either my Sears or Best Buy re-opened? Is that a worthless feat? or would I just have to reapply all over again? I don't know if having them there is hurting me or helping me. The sears one I terminated myself, was never late. Best Buy, I was late, and they closed the account but I set up the payments to pay the full amount. (Wish I had known about this site then, might have had it deleted...oh well.)

Re: Where should I start?

RobertEG — Thu, 21 Oct 2010 04:18:20 GMT

Having an old account "reopened" will almost always, on the part of any creditor, want them to know your current credit status.

So it is almost like applying for a new account.

They will almost invariably pull your CR, and will probalby code it as a hard pull.

Closed accounts dont cause a loss of their age in your CR until, usually, 10 years from date of closing. So re-opening wont immediately help your length of credit history.

What it would give you is the restored credit limit in your % util of revoviing credit calculation. That is about it.

Re: Where should I start?

Anonymous — Thu, 21 Oct 2010 04:22:45 GMT

Meh, not really worth it then. Thinking back to what I've purchased on credit cards over the years, what I can remember buying, I don't even have half of what I bought anymore and I'm still paying on the crap.

I'll just focus my efforts on the baddies and go from there - Thank you!

Re: Where should I start? Updated

Anonymous — Thu, 21 Oct 2010 11:16:04 GMT

Alright - 3 GW letters of deletion signed, sealed and sent!

Any idea on a time frame I could be looking at before I hear anything from anyone? Weeks? Months?

In case I don't hear from them, or I get refused, I might result to calling them multiple times a day, everday demanding they make something happen. What are they going to do? Tell me its rude to call someone repeatedly after being told the same thing each time? I'd like to see em try!

Kharma = making harassing repeated calls to creditors

Re: Where should I start? Updated

Anonymous — Thu, 21 Oct 2010 12:58:48 GMT

I wouldn't start calling them, and I wouldn't expect a reply to GW. Since they're medical, you can try the HIPAA process (you will have to google it, we can't link to or quote from it here). TU will probably delete all of your medical collections with the pre-HIPAA letter in that process. Also, check out the sticky at the top of the forum - there's a bill that passed the House and should be up for a vote in the Senate (hopefully soon, like in November) that would require medical debt that's been paid to be taken off of your reports.

I'd look for any documentation you have about that tax lien and figuring out who you can contact about it.

I would also pay down those credit cards - it looks like a few are above your CLs. I'd prioritize like this: get a 10% of CL cushion on all cards with a balance, then pay the minimum each month to each of them, and if you have left over money then, put it towards the highest interest rate card until it's paid off. Repeat.

Re: Where should I start? Updated

Anonymous — Thu, 21 Oct 2010 13:54:56 GMT

I wasn't really going to call them - that was the "I've been up all night with no sleep and I think I'm funny now"

Fingers crossed on the Senate!!!

Re: Where should I start? Updated

Anonymous — Thu, 21 Oct 2010 21:44:13 GMT

Hopefully a step in the right direction~

This is what was just emailed to me...

Katheryn,

I have removed this from your credit record, this may take up to sixty
days for this to report on the bureau record. I hope all is going will
with you.

T. Warrick
CBS Collections, Inc.

What now with this account? If it is not gone are there any steps I can take to see that they follow through with their word?

Thank you forum!!!

Re: Where should I start? Updated, again

Anonymous — Thu, 21 Oct 2010 22:07:56 GMT

I've also just contacted the County Clerks office in regards to the lien judgement. Has anyone ever filed a motion to vacate a judgement while residing in a new state?

Re: Where should I start? Updated, again

Anonymous — Fri, 22 Oct 2010 00:39:41 GMT

Well, so much for a vacate order. I emailed the county clerks office just after 3pm and 45 mins later, get a phone call from a very kind woman named Jamie. She said she makes it her mission to address every question, phone call, email promptly because typically the person on the other end is trying to fix a credit issue - Why can't they all be like this?!

Here's the issue, they have no record of the lien!!! What? HUH? All three agencies reporting the same thing, but it's not in her system. Ok, now what?

In the mean time, I sent disputes to all three agencies maybe I'l get lucky.

OH - and she was kind enough to write an email stating they have no records of any judgment with my name in their system - couldn't thank her enough!

Re: Where should I start?

RobertEG — Fri, 22 Oct 2010 01:06:43 GMT

Buttercup, I think you did the right thing, in view of no records by the OC to support the information reported, to have disputed this entry in your CR.

However, I would not have done this by disputing through the CRA. Then you just interject CRA meddling, and sanitization of yoour dispute through the use of their arcane e-Oscar automated disptue process.

I would have disputed directly with the party who reported the information to the CRA, under the direct disptue process of FCRA 623(a)(8).

Re: Where should I start?

Anonymous — Fri, 22 Oct 2010 01:33:47 GMT

Dispute with unemployment?

How should I procede with them?

Thanks Robert!

Re: Where should I start?

RobertEG — Fri, 22 Oct 2010 03:45:16 GMT

Disputing has nothing to do with current employment status or income. Those are NOT credit reporting issues, and are not in your credit file.

You have information in your credit report that you dispute, with documenation that the orginal party has admittedly said that they cannot support. Almost a slam dunk.

“This is a Notice of Direct Dispute with you, under the provisions of FCRA §623(a)(8)(D), of the accuracy of information you have reported to my credit file.

► (If sent to a debt collector, (CA), it might be beneficial to also include the blurb:

     ► This is a direct dispute of credit reporting. This is not a request for debt
             validation/verification under FDCPA §809(b).
                 (don’t let them just simply sluff it off as a meaningless DV letter)

“In compliance with FCRA §623(a)(8)(D), and enacting regulations published at 16 CFR § 660.4, this Notice of Direct dispute includes:

“Identification of the specific information being disputed:

(specify the account number, and the specific information that is disputed under

that identifying account)

“Basis for the dispute:

(how the reporting was inaccurate; was any reporting in violation of any statutory or

regulatory provisions? Creditor acknowleged no support? account or express agreements? CRA reporting gudelines?)

“Supporting documentation:

(all documents that support your dispute; make sure to include,

as part of your documentation, at least a copy of the portion only of your

recent credit report showing their reporting of the disputed information was

actually reported to your credit flle. The implementing rule requires showing

that it appeared in your credit report)

“Under the provisions of FCRA §623(a)(8)(E) and 16 CFR §660.4,, you have the duty to review all of the information I have provided to you, to complete your investigation of this Direct Dispute, and report back to me the results of your investigation within 30-days of this Notice of Direct Dispute.”

Re: Where should I start?

Anonymous — Fri, 22 Oct 2010 03:57:34 GMT

No, no, no....

I'm asking if Washington unemployment is who I dispute with. Like I mentioned in my 2nd thread, the unemployment office sued me. I was never served, so I had no idea. I had during that same time paid the ccount in full.

Where it stands now is my credit reflects the lien with the case number, file date, and court address but it is not in the system with the county clerks. The woman I spoke with checked, and heard her in the background with her another person trying to figure out where it is. According to her it doesn't exist.

I will send them a letter, hopefully not get the same person I originally spoke with.

Thank you again

Re: Where should I start?

Anonymous — Fri, 22 Oct 2010 12:38:38 GMT

You could also send a dispute to the CRAs and include a copy of the email as your basis. If you don't have information on the reporting party, I'd request that if they do verify (and put words to that effect in your letter). I like Robert's letter, but I'm not positive you have the address of the reporting party - I know there's things on my credit reports that don't include that information.