Has anyone here heard of or used eCredable ?

[MRsolis]

I received an email about it today and did some resaearch but didn't find much info on them.

Basically it is a voluntary credit bureau that allows you to report your monthly bills like phone bills, cable bills, etc. Basically anything that may not show up on your regular credit report. Since it is voluntary YOU have to pay $20 per bill per month to report to them and they claim to verify the bill with the company to make sure it is yours. Also the website says that creditors are required by law to take their report into consideration when applying for credit....is this true?

Here is the website: http://www.ecredable.com/pricing 

[MarineVietVet]

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@MRsolis wrote:

I received an email about it today and did some resaearch but didn't find much info on them.

Basically it is a voluntary credit bureau that allows you to report your monthly bills like phone bills, cable bills, etc. Basically anything that may not show up on your regular credit report. Since it is voluntary YOU have to pay $20 per bill per month to report to them and they claim to verify the bill with the company to make sure it is yours. Also the website says that creditors are required by law to take their report into consideration when applying for credit....is this true?

Here is the website: http://www.ecredable.com/pricing 

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The link is not working for me.

[Anonymous]

The link worked for me.  The website is right that lenders are required by law to consider data that could reasonably support a person's reliability in paying his debts, e.g. utility bills, rent payments, etc. even if the accounts in question do not appear in a particular CRA's database.  The website seems to suggest, however, that the only way you might be able to get creditors to do that is via this particular web portal, which is not true I don't think.

The law in question is Regulation B of the Equal Credit Opportunity Act.  John Ulzheimer discusses it here:

http://www.thedebtmyth.com/regulation-b-and-credit-reporting/

There's been increased interest in developing ways to support borrowers who do not have enough data for a traditional score, or who do but who have additional supplementary records like never missing a rent or electric bill payment at the place they have been living for the last 8 years.  Regulation B can even be leveraged by people with decent/good credit but who have a relevant record that doesn't appear in their current report.  (An example would be a person who had a really nice mortgage history account on his report which fell off his report recently.)

I think Reg B is a good thing, though as a matter of practical guidance I would always recomend to any friend of mine that he do the legwork to build a traditional file with the Big Three.  Even people with bad credit can start with a secured credit card with a small credit limit and go from there.

[MRsolis]

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@Anonymous wrote:

The link worked for me.  The website is right that lenders are required by law to consider data that could reasonably support a person's reliability in paying his debts, e.g. utility bills, rent payments, etc. even if the accounts in question do not appear in a particular CRA's database.  The website seems to suggest, however, that the only way you might be able to get creditors to do that is via this particular web portal, which is not true I don't think.

The law in question is Regulation B of the Equal Credit Opportunity Act.  John Ulzheimer discusses it here:

http://www.thedebtmyth.com/regulation-b-and-credit-reporting/

There's been increased interest in developing ways to support borrowers who do not have enough data for a traditional score, or who do but who have additional supplementary records like never missing a rent or electric bill payment at the place they have been living for the last 8 years.  Regulation B can even be leveraged by people with decent/good credit but who have a relevant record that doesn't appear in their current report.  (An example would be a person who had a really nice mortgage history account on his report which fell off his report recently.)

I think Reg B is a good thing, though as a matter of practical guidance I would always recomend to any friend of mine that he do the legwork to build a traditional file with the Big Three.  Even people with bad credit can start with a secured credit card with a small credit limit and go from there.

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This is great information! Thank you . I am working hard on cleaning my credit and things are going a lot great but I figured if I could add another clean file why not? This almost seemed like a scam but I guess there exists companies like this. I hinestly did not know they had to consider other payment histories. I will remember this next time I get a car or other loan. 

[Anonymous]

Hi MRSolis.  What I would do is carefully assess your own needs and do a cost/benefit analysis when you get close to some significant credit pull.  If, as you say, it costs $20 per bill per month, that's a huge amount of money to do over the long haul.  But if you could do it for exactly two months on three accounts perhaps you'd be able to pay $120 (2 x 3 x $20) to get a record of several years of positive payment history on your rent, cell phone, and electric bill.  I wouldn't pay more than that though -- definitely don't get into a relationship with eC for years since that sounds like it would cost you a fortune.

Remember too that Reg B gives you the right to do this yourself without any fancy intermediary like eCredable.  You may also wish to do a pull of your NCTUE report and see what it says.  They are a CRA specializing in cell phones, internet service providers, electric and water bills, etc.  You may find that you already have a positive history of data there.  And getting your NCTUE report is free.

Regardless, your decision to continue with standard rebuilding techniques within the framework of the traditional Big Three credit bureaus sounds very wise.

[Anonymous]

The $20 fee is for each account you have verified to be included in your AMP Credit Report.  It's a one-time fee at the time you use your report and AMP Credit Rating to apply for credit.  If you have 5 accounts verified, it would cost you $100.  You don't pay this every month - it would be too expensive!

[Anonymous]

That makes more sense.  I think the OP was under the impression that you paid those fees each month.

My feeling is that you should use it judiciously.  I.e. only before a significant application for credit, and even then talk to the potential lender(s) beforehand and see how much it would really help you.  Then assess the total cost and see whether you feel you are getting a benefit worth what you pay.

[MRsolis]

Yes I do apologize but I was mistaken. It is actually $20 per bill one time and you only want to verify within the same month that you are receiving the loan. It is good to know about but also good to know that I don't neccesarily have to go through them but when I plan to buy a house this might be helpful