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Rent and Cable Bills

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ClaireNash
New Member

Re: Rent and Cable Bills

You do have a point, starry1, but it might also help a lot of "unbanked" people (who have no credit accounts on file with the bureaus, but who pay all their utility bills, etc. on time every month, and use currency exchanges for their "banking" and bill-paying.) I personally know someone like this, an elderly, low-income lady. She's actually a very trustworthy person, but has, literally, NO credit file on record to back this up. 

 

On the other hand, I can also see the potential for abuse and errors pointed out by others here.

 

(Maybe the bureaus should worry about getting people's actual credit reporting correct before they add anything else to it...)

Message 11 of 17
lulybel
New Member

Re: Rent and Cable Bills

I don't see it happening. Also, cable companies make errors all the time. I had to move because of a fire and transferred the account to another address and they could not understand that it was the same account. THey put me in collections when in reality I had just moved. They set me up with another account with the same name and put the previous one in collection. What an ordeal. Hope it does not happen.Smiley Sad

Lulybel62
Message 12 of 17
lulybel
New Member

Re: Rent and Cable Bills

I agree with Clairenash that CRA should make sure that what they are posting is correct before they add anything else to it.

Lulybel62
Message 13 of 17
Val_N_TX
New Visitor

Re: Rent and Cable Bills

Honestly, I would like to see this passed. My husband is from Rome, Italy he's 46 years old, Masters Degree with 19 years in HSE (self employed in Italy) and about to become a U.S. Citizen. However, he has NO CREDIT here in the U.S. and no one will give him credit. I've had to add him on a few of my major credit cards just to get him on the radar with the credit bureaus but, that still does not help much. We have been paying rent in apartments for the past 6 years and currently we pay $1,400.00 per month (one year we paid $1,900.00) which is more than most people pay on their mortgage here in Texas. We have never been late paying rent or any of our bills. So it's people like my husband and I that are working hard to buy a home but can't get credit to do so and my income alone is not enough. So it would help people like us working towards to "American Dream."

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Message 14 of 17
Revelate
Moderator Emeritus

Re: Rent and Cable Bills


@Val_N_TX wrote:

Honestly, I would like to see this passed. My husband is from Rome, Italy he's 46 years old, Masters Degree with 19 years in HSE (self employed in Italy) and about to become a U.S. Citizen. However, he has NO CREDIT here in the U.S. and no one will give him credit. I've had to add him on a few of my major credit cards just to get him on the radar with the credit bureaus but, that still does not help much. We have been paying rent in apartments for the past 6 years and currently we pay $1,400.00 per month (one year we paid $1,900.00) which is more than most people pay on their mortgage here in Texas. We have never been late paying rent or any of our bills. So it's people like my husband and I that are working hard to buy a home but can't get credit to do so and my income alone is not enough. So it would help people like us working towards to "American Dream."


Welcome to the forums!

 

That's an interesting and valid point; however, there's plenty of credit available to newcomers, even credit products designed for exactly that demographic.  Also many secured cards have either minimal or no credit checks on them, in addition to the Authorized User route you went.  There are lots of ways to build out of no-file status without this, the problem again boils down to credit education as I see it.  I don't see this bill changing that issue, nor are lenders required to evaluate this information even if it is on one's credit report (lenders can and do discount certain tradelines they deem as inappropriate).

 

Put simply, it won't be in the traditional, classic FICO model for years to come, and it'll be even longer for customer (lenders) adoption.  There's already at least with FHA the ability to use a non-traditional score which takes into account some of these regular payments as well.

 

End of the day, I don't personally don't see this as making much of a difference, and I'm of the opinion I'd rather have less information reported to the bureaus than more; however, I'm an admitted cynic when it comes to financial institutions, bureaus, and the local and federal governments.  I do not think this proposed bill is going to work out as the idealists hope of getting more people access to credit.

 




        
Message 15 of 17
StartingOver10
Moderator Emerita

Re: Rent and Cable Bills


@Revelate wrote:

@Val_N_TX wrote:

Honestly, I would like to see this passed. My husband is from Rome, Italy he's 46 years old, Masters Degree with 19 years in HSE (self employed in Italy) and about to become a U.S. Citizen. However, he has NO CREDIT here in the U.S. and no one will give him credit. I've had to add him on a few of my major credit cards just to get him on the radar with the credit bureaus but, that still does not help much. We have been paying rent in apartments for the past 6 years and currently we pay $1,400.00 per month (one year we paid $1,900.00) which is more than most people pay on their mortgage here in Texas. We have never been late paying rent or any of our bills. So it's people like my husband and I that are working hard to buy a home but can't get credit to do so and my income alone is not enough. So it would help people like us working towards to "American Dream."


Welcome to the forums!

 

That's an interesting and valid point; however, there's plenty of credit available to newcomers, even credit products designed for exactly that demographic.  Also many secured cards have either minimal or no credit checks on them, in addition to the Authorized User route you went.  There are lots of ways to build out of no-file status without this, the problem again boils down to credit education as I see it.  I don't see this bill changing that issue, nor are lenders required to evaluate this information even if it is on one's credit report (lenders can and do discount certain tradelines they deem as inappropriate).

 

Put simply, it won't be in the traditional, classic FICO model for years to come, and it'll be even longer for customer (lenders) adoption.  There's already at least with FHA the ability to use a non-traditional score which takes into account some of these regular payments as well.

 

End of the day, I don't personally don't see this as making much of a difference, and I'm of the opinion I'd rather have less information reported to the bureaus than more; however, I'm an admitted cynic when it comes to financial institutions, bureaus, and the local and federal governments.  I do not think this proposed bill is going to work out as the idealists hope of getting more people access to credit.

 


^^^Yes, this is my opinion too. The more info that is reported the greater the chance for 'error'.  As pointed out, there are programs in place for newcomers.

 

Every person that wants to establish a credit file has to go through the process of actually obtaining credit. It can be a painful process. The only thing more painful is re-establishing yourself after a serious derogatory (BK, f/c etc).

 

Adding reportable items to the CR's is a receipe for disaster for the consumer. It is an opportunity for additional revenues for the CRA's, but IMHO, not a good thing for the consumer at all. More items = more errors. Smiley Sad

Message 16 of 17
yudeology101
Senior Contributor

Re: Rent and Cable Bills


@starry1 wrote:
I think its just a way to make the poor even poorer by paying more for everything. I don't know that many people who wouldn't bat an eye at a $400 heating bill in the winter, and certainly not the people who are barely making ends meet anyway.

+1, I can't agree more.

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Message 17 of 17
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