Advice needed please - Goodwill Letter Gone Wrong?

[photobrat86]

Hello,

I have been doing lots of lurking and reading posts in an attempt to improve my credit. To give you a back story on the situation I am posting about; I have a student loan through UHEAA that is broken into 4 seperate loans. Back in 2010 I made the mistake of writing down the wrong month my loan came out of deferment (I had been laid off and was having trouble finding work) resulting in me getting a 60 day late payment. The problem is that because the loan appears to be four seperate loans I was hit for four late payments which gives me a 96% on time payment rate. 

Initially I had tried to get these removed by calling in to their customer service and had a manager investigate, this yielded me no results and when I asked for a "goodwill" adjustment she acted like she had no idea what that was. 

After a few months I decided to keep investigating and that is where I started reading posts from the fine people here on the FICO forums. I was able to find the email address for the excutive director of UHEAA and sent out a goodwill letter that I had written by looking at different examples. I emailed the director and after only 2 hours received a response from someone in his office. The only problem is that it wasn't what I was hoping for...Does anyone have any advise for me? Should I try sending in letters or am I just stuck? I've been trying very hard to get my credit report in better condition since last fall and since Nov I am up about 80 points (still around 600). I have incuded my email and the response below. 

Thank you for any advise you may have to give!

My Email: 

Dear Mr. Feitz,

I am writing to you today regarding my student loan account #*********** which I have had since graduating as a massage student at Utah College of Massage Therapy. The purpose of my correspondence is to see if you would be willing to make a "goodwill" adjustment to your reporting to Equifax, Experian and Transunion.

I have one occurrence of a 60 day late on the credit reporting from UHEAA back in Dec 2010 (almost 4 years ago); as a result of my loan being split into four it appears on my credit report that these are four individual late payments and have had a large impact on my credit score. I am in the process of applying for my first mortgage to make more room for my Wife, Newborn Daughter and I; the removal of these late payments would assist me in receiving the lowest interest rate available and also assist on my path to improving my financial situation.

At the time of the late payment I was having financial trouble due to being laid off. I got into some trouble with the law and was in jail when my deferment ran out; due to this I was unable to call in and make arrangements until I was released. As soon as I was released I reached out to UHEAA to set up another deferment. I recently was on an unemployment deferment but am happy to report that I have found full time work and have already made two full payments towards my school loans. I say this not to justify why the payments were late, but rather to show that the late payments are not a good indicator of my actual credit worthiness. I hope that UHEAA is willing to work with me on erasing these marks from my credit reports.

I would like to stress that the information currently being reported is accurate, I am not disputing anything with the late payment. I am simply asking UHEAA for a courtesy gesture of goodwill in having the credit bureaus remove the late payments from each of the four listings on my report. I do recognize that this request is unique and that it may not be the normal policy of UHEAA. Please consider that the Fair Credit Reporting Act does not demand that all accounts be reported, only that any account that is reported be reported accurately. Therefore, a company does have legal discretion and permission to remove any late payment it chooses from the credit report. I'm hoping that UHEAA will do that in my case for this account.

Your kind consideration in this matter is greatly appreciated.

Best Regards,

Jeremy P.

The Response:

Mr. P,

I’m writing you in response to your email dated 05/12/2014 addressed to Mr. Feitz.  He asked that I address your concerns.  I’ve had a chance to review the concerns you’ve raised in your email, as well as the activity on your account with UHEAA.  It is the position and policy of UHEAA to strive to provide our customers with the highest possible level of service to ensure that the repayment process goes smoothly.  Furthermore, we strive to do what we can to assist borrowers who are experiencing temporary financial hardships by offering forbearance and deferment solutions within prescribed program regulations.  In most cases, these solutions also provide the added benefit of avoiding negative reporting for any delinquencies that could have happened had the customer not chosen to exercise these solutions.

As you are probably aware, UHEAA receives these types of credit exception requests on a regular basis.  Our established policy requires us to accurately report the activity of every open student loan account.  We are not at liberty to remove negative reporting that was reported accurately, nor are we able to accommodate requests to clear the trade line on an account (the line that reflects payment receipt and indicates late payments).  With this in mind, we are unable to accommodate your request to alter the credit report on your UHEAA account.

Based on my experience with mortgage lending and underwriting requirements, it is unlikely that the removal of a 4-year old 60-day late will make any significant impact on the rate you receive on your mortgage loan.  Key drivers such as debt-coverage ratio, available credit, down payment/equity, current income streams, first-time home buyer, and prior bankruptcies, are still the primary factors that will impact the difference between the interest rate you are quoted and the lending rate (often referred to as the “yield-spread premium”).   Lenders have gotten more particular as demand for mortgage backed securities continues to wane in the open market, and middle-class first time homebuyers seem to be bearing the brunt of this lingering bear market.

I wish you the best of luck in your pursuit of homeownership as well as in your professional progress.  Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions about your student loan or swing by our office if you are in the area.

Thanks,

JM

[songsofexperience]

It's not the response you wanted, but it is a response, which is more than a lot of people get so in that way it's a bit of a success.

He actually does make a reasonable point - the lates are so old, they probably aren't affecting your score much at all now. I have a somilar issue with student loans - I consolidated mine (there are about 9 because I had them for my Master's and Ph.D.) and I missed a payment 2 years ago and it shows up as lates on 9 accounts

BUT . . . after 2 years had passed my score went up because those lates were no longer affecting my score as much. If you keep an eye on when your score goes up it's often related to again of such things.

I really hate that they do that with student loans and I feel your pain.

I would probably not have included the "trouble with the law" part.

If you're stuck at 600, what else can you do to raise your score? Do you have collections, judgments, or high utilization. I'd focus on other issues now. Not to say you shouldn't keep goodwilling them, but . . . .

Good luck!

[photobrat86]

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@songsofexperience wrote:

It's not the response you wanted, but it is a response, which is more than a lot of people get so in that way it's a bit of a success.

He actually does make a reasonable point - the lates are so old, they probably aren't affecting your score much at all now. I have a somilar issue with student loans - I consolidated mine (there are about 9 because I had them for my Master's and Ph.D.) and I missed a payment 2 years ago and it shows up as lates on 9 accounts

BUT . . . after 2 years had passed my score went up because those lates were no longer affecting my score as much. If you keep an eye on when your score goes up it's often related to again of such things.

I really hate that they do that with student loans and I feel your pain.

I would probably not have included the "trouble with the law" part.

If you're stuck at 600, what else can you do to raise your score? Do you have collections, judgments, or high utilization. I'd focus on other issues now. Not to say you shouldn't keep goodwilling them, but . . . .

Good luck!

---

Thank you for replying! 

The part about the mortgage was a fib intended to pull at heart strings. In reality I am trying to improve my credit...I do the Credit Karma thing and these 4 late payments give me a 96% on time rate (F rating) and CK says that late payments have a high effect on my CR. If you think that they really aren't hurting me as bad as CK makes it seem then that is great. 

I felt I had to stick to the "trouble with the law" thing because I had told their CSRs when I called in the past about it so I wanted to keep my story straight. 

As for other things I can do...I am working on compiling the bad things on my CR and i'll make another post update here in a little bit. 

[photobrat86]

I was careless in my early 20s and worked up a fair amount of debt that I was actively paying on (2 vehicles, etc)...unfortunately I was laid off and it went downhill from there.

As of Nov 2013 I have started the process of trying to improve my credit and take care of my debts. I have paid off all off the debts with the exception of my student loans which have been deferred or paid and my two repo’s that are in collections. I check my credit score with Credit Karma and have increased my Transunion score from 538 to 603 since Nov.

Also I have had a secured credit card since Nov 2013 which I have been using responsibly. My credit utilization never goes over 30% and I make sure to put something on my card once a month.

Anything that anyone would suggest on anything I could do with the negative items on my CR would be greatly appreciated. I am trying to do what I can to really improve my score so that I can look at getting a loan to consolidate my two repo debts.

Public Records:

4TH DISTRICT CT

Judgment in favor of:

NAR INC.

Status: Civil claim judgment.

Status Details: This item is scheduled to continue on record until Aug 2019.

Date Filed: 08/27/2012

Claim Amount: $898

Current status: I have paid off this amount with NAR and the collections account is closed.

----

3RD DISTRICT COURT

Judgment in favor of:

BONNEVILLE BILLING AND COLL.

Status: Civil claim judgment.

Status Details: This item is scheduled to continue on record until Apr 2020.

Date Filed: 04/29/2013

Claim Amount: $11,690

Current status: Currently making a small monthly payment to the law office that works with Bonneville. See below for more details on the debt.

Credit Items:

BONNEVILLE BILLING

Original Creditor: ROCKY MOUNTAIN POWER

Status: Paid,Closed.

Date Opened: 11/2007

Type: Collection

Credit Limit/Original Amount: $248

BONNEVILLE BILLING

Original Creditor: AMERICA FIRST CREDIT UNION (Originally was with SST, I think that they may be owned by AFFCU)

Status: Collection account. $12,758 past due as of Apr 2014.

Status Details: This account is scheduled to continue on record until Jul 2017.

Date Opened: 11/2012

Type: Collection

Credit Limit/Original Amount: $11,690

Recent Balance: $12,758 as of 04/2014

Current status: This one has been a nightmare and they have a judgement against me. The lawyers tried to pull money out of my bank account before I could set up a payment arrangement but I had already got a new bank account (without knowing what they were doing). This is my toughest one, I was laid off and my car got repossessed. The interest just continues to accrue and accrue; I’ve made a payment promise with the lawyer involved to pay $50 a month which I have been doing but they want to discuss upping the payment next month. I know that I can’t realistically pay this off with $50 a month. My hope was to better my credit score so that I could get a loan to consolidate this loan with my other remaining outstanding debt.

CAPITAL ONE

Status: Paid in settlement. $1,086 written off. (Charge Off)

Status Details: This account is scheduled to continue on record until Nov 2016.

Date Opened: 01/2009

Type: Credit card

Credit Limit/Original Amount: $750

High Balance:$1,212

Comment: Account paid in full for less than full balance

EXPRESS RECOVERY SVCS IN

Original Creditor: QUESTAR GAS

Status: Paid,Closed.

Date Opened: 05/2013

Type: Collection

Credit Limit/Original Amount: $70

MIDLAND FUNDING

Original Creditor: HSBC BANK NEVADA N.A.

Status: Collection account. $11,927 past due as of Mar 2014.

Status Details: This account is scheduled to continue on record until Nov 2016.

Date Opened: 12/2013

Type: Debt Buyer

Credit Limit/Original Amount: $11,927

Current Status: Midland recently bought this debt from Asset Acceptance who originally bought it from HSBC. This was my other vehicle that was repo’d when I was laid off back in 2010. I had made an agreement with Asset Acceptance to pay them $25 a month until I could figure out something else but I then lapsed in paying them. Midland has had the account since March 2014 per my CR but have not attempted to contact me as of yet. Not sure what the best course of action is with this one.

NORTH AMERICAN RECOVERY

Original Creditor: MOUNTAIN AMERICA CREDIT UNION

Status: Paid,Closed.

Date Opened: 07/2010

Type: Collection

Credit Limit/Original Amount: $230

NORTH AMERICAN RECOVERY

Original Creditor: UTAH COMMUNITY CREDIT UNION

Status: Paid,Closed.

Date Opened: 04/2010

Type: Collection

Credit Limit/Original Amount: $610

(This was a joint account with my ex-wife, she ended up paying the debt.)

OPTIMUM OUTCOMES INC

Original Creditor: SARATOGA SPRINGS INSTACARE -SS

Status: Paid,Closed.

Date Opened: 03/2010

Type: Collection

Credit Limit/Original Amount: $77

SST/AFFCU

Status: Transferred,closed. (now with Bonneville CA as previously mentioned.)

Date Opened: 12/2008

Type: Auto Loan

Credit Limit/Original Amount: $17,415

Comment: Account transferred to another lender.

Shows Repo in payment history

CAPITAL ONE (secured credit card)

Status: Open/Never late.

Date Opened: 09/2013

Type: Credit card

Credit Limit/Original Amount: $300

UHEAA

Status: Open

Status Details: By Jan 2018, this account is scheduled to go to a positive status.

Date Opened: 04/2004

Type: Education

Credit Limit/Original Amount: $2,625

One late payment DEC 2010

UHEAA

Status: Open

Status Details: By Jan 2018, this account is scheduled to go to a positive status.

Date Opened: 04/2004

Type: Education

Credit Limit/Original Amount: $4.000

One late payment DEC 2010

UHEAA

Status: Open

Status Details: By Jan 2018, this account is scheduled to go to a positive status.

Date Opened: 04/2004

Type: Education

Credit Limit/Original Amount: $1,313

One late payment DEC 2010

UHEAA

Status: Open

Status Details: By Jan 2018, this account is scheduled to go to a positive status.

Date Opened: 04/2004

Type: Education

Credit Limit/Original Amount: $2,000

One late payment DEC 2010

UTAH COMMUNITY FCU

Status: Paid,Closed. $569 written off. (Charge off)

Date Opened: 11/2006

Type: Unsecured

Credit Limit/Original Amount: $3,000

(This was a joint account with my ex-wife, she ended up paying the debt.)

This is the original debt but is still on my report even tho the CA has a listing for this further up in my CR. It shows as paid,closed. Is it possible to get this original listing removed?

VERIZON WIRELESS

Status: Paid in settlement.

Status Details: This account is scheduled to continue on record until Sep 2015.

Date Opened: 06/2008

Type: Cell Phone

Credit Limit/Original Amount: $246

Comment: Account paid in full for less than full balance

HSBC BANK

Status: Closed.

Date Opened: 02/2009

Credit Limit/Original Amount: $10,100

Comment: Purchased by another lender.

On my Experian CR this looks like it’s just a closed account and says that it was purchased by another lender, but on my other reports it says that it is a charge off. Also this shows up on my report with Midland Funding.

[photobrat86]

Any feedback anyone could offer on my last post would be greatly appreciated. I'm trying hard to improve my CR and besides working to pay off my two existing collection accounts I'm hoping there are other things I could look at doing. 

[Shogun]

---

@photobrat86 wrote:

I was careless in my early 20s and worked up a fair amount of debt that I was actively paying on (2 vehicles, etc)...unfortunately I was laid off and it went downhill from there.

As of Nov 2013 I have started the process of trying to improve my credit and take care of my debts. I have paid off all off the debts with the exception of my student loans which have been deferred or paid and my two repo’s that are in collections. I check my credit score with Credit Karma and have increased my Transunion score from 538 to 603 since Nov.

Also I have had a secured credit card since Nov 2013 which I have been using responsibly. My credit utilization never goes over 30% and I make sure to put something on my card once a month.

Anything that anyone would suggest on anything I could do with the negative items on my CR would be greatly appreciated. I am trying to do what I can to really improve my score so that I can look at getting a loan to consolidate my two repo debts.

Public Records:

4TH DISTRICT CT

Judgment in favor of:

NAR INC.

Status: Civil claim judgment.

Status Details: This item is scheduled to continue on record until Aug 2019.

Date Filed: 08/27/2012

Claim Amount: $898

Current status: I have paid off this amount with NAR and the collections account is closed.

You would need to contact the court this was filed with to see what actions are needed to vacate or put aside this judgement since it is paid.

----

3RD DISTRICT COURT

Judgment in favor of:

BONNEVILLE BILLING AND COLL.

Status: Civil claim judgment.

Status Details: This item is scheduled to continue on record until Apr 2020.

Date Filed: 04/29/2013

Claim Amount: $11,690

Current status: Currently making a small monthly payment to the law office that works with Bonneville. See below for more details on the debt.

Credit Items:

BONNEVILLE BILLING

Original Creditor: ROCKY MOUNTAIN POWER

Status: Paid,Closed.

Date Opened: 11/2007

Type: Collection

Credit Limit/Original Amount: $248

BONNEVILLE BILLING

Original Creditor: AMERICA FIRST CREDIT UNION (Originally was with SST, I think that they may be owned by AFFCU)

Status: Collection account. $12,758 past due as of Apr 2014.

Status Details: This account is scheduled to continue on record until Jul 2017.

Date Opened: 11/2012

Type: Collection

Credit Limit/Original Amount: $11,690

Recent Balance: $12,758 as of 04/2014

Current status: This one has been a nightmare and they have a judgement against me. The lawyers tried to pull money out of my bank account before I could set up a payment arrangement but I had already got a new bank account (without knowing what they were doing). This is my toughest one, I was laid off and my car got repossessed. The interest just continues to accrue and accrue; I’ve made a payment promise with the lawyer involved to pay $50 a month which I have been doing but they want to discuss upping the payment next month. I know that I can’t realistically pay this off with $50 a month. My hope was to better my credit score so that I could get a loan to consolidate this loan with my other remaining outstanding debt.

You will need to pay/settle this one.  Then see about getting it vacated also.  And I'd really look into the whole situation of this.  How much did they get for the vehicle when sold?  This should have been deducted from the amount.

CAPITAL ONE

Status: Paid in settlement. $1,086 written off. (Charge Off)

Status Details: This account is scheduled to continue on record until Nov 2016.

Date Opened: 01/2009

Type: Credit card

Credit Limit/Original Amount: $750

High Balance:$1,212

Comment: Account paid in full for less than full balance

This one has some time left for exclusion due to CRTP.  Cap1 is a tough cookie too.  Look at the forums how others have dealt with these.  IE:  EO, CEO, Facebook, etc.

EXPRESS RECOVERY SVCS IN

Original Creditor: QUESTAR GAS

Status: Paid,Closed.

Date Opened: 05/2013

Type: Collection

Credit Limit/Original Amount: $70

Send them a GW

MIDLAND FUNDING

Original Creditor: HSBC BANK NEVADA N.A.

Status: Collection account. $11,927 past due as of Mar 2014.

Status Details: This account is scheduled to continue on record until Nov 2016.

Date Opened: 12/2013

Type: Debt Buyer

Credit Limit/Original Amount: $11,927

Current Status: Midland recently bought this debt from Asset Acceptance who originally bought it from HSBC. This was my other vehicle that was repo’d when I was laid off back in 2010. I had made an agreement with Asset Acceptance to pay them $25 a month until I could figure out something else but I then lapsed in paying them. Midland has had the account since March 2014 per my CR but have not attempted to contact me as of yet. Not sure what the best course of action is with this one.

OK... I've seen this a few times recently.  Is this the amount of the debt after the vehicle was sold?  Were you that upside down on the vehicle or are they trying to collect for the whole amount.  I would definitely look into this. 

NORTH AMERICAN RECOVERY

Original Creditor: MOUNTAIN AMERICA CREDIT UNION

Status: Paid,Closed.

Date Opened: 07/2010

Type: Collection

Credit Limit/Original Amount: $230

Send them a GW.

NORTH AMERICAN RECOVERY

Original Creditor: UTAH COMMUNITY CREDIT UNION

Status: Paid,Closed.

Date Opened: 04/2010

Type: Collection

Credit Limit/Original Amount: $610

(This was a joint account with my ex-wife, she ended up paying the debt.)

Send them a GW.

OPTIMUM OUTCOMES INC

Original Creditor: SARATOGA SPRINGS INSTACARE -SS

Status: Paid,Closed.

Date Opened: 03/2010

Type: Collection

Credit Limit/Original Amount: $77

Send them a GW

SST/AFFCU

Status: Transferred,closed. (now with Bonneville CA as previously mentioned.)

Date Opened: 12/2008

Type: Auto Loan

Credit Limit/Original Amount: $17,415

Comment: Account transferred to another lender.

Shows Repo in payment history

CAPITAL ONE (secured credit card)

Status: Open/Never late.

Date Opened: 09/2013

Type: Credit card

Credit Limit/Original Amount: $300

Garden

UHEAA

Status: Open

Status Details: By Jan 2018, this account is scheduled to go to a positive status.

Date Opened: 04/2004

Type: Education

Credit Limit/Original Amount: $2,625

One late payment DEC 2010

Keep it up... pay on time

UHEAA

Status: Open

Status Details: By Jan 2018, this account is scheduled to go to a positive status.

Date Opened: 04/2004

Type: Education

Credit Limit/Original Amount: $4.000

One late payment DEC 2010

UHEAA

Status: Open

Status Details: By Jan 2018, this account is scheduled to go to a positive status.

Date Opened: 04/2004

Type: Education

Credit Limit/Original Amount: $1,313

One late payment DEC 2010

UHEAA

Status: Open

Status Details: By Jan 2018, this account is scheduled to go to a positive status.

Date Opened: 04/2004

Type: Education

Credit Limit/Original Amount: $2,000

One late payment DEC 2010

UTAH COMMUNITY FCU

Status: Paid,Closed. $569 written off. (Charge off)

Date Opened: 11/2006

Type: Unsecured

Credit Limit/Original Amount: $3,000

(This was a joint account with my ex-wife, she ended up paying the debt.)

This is the original debt but is still on my report even tho the CA has a listing for this further up in my CR. It shows as paid,closed. Is it possible to get this original listing removed?

Send them a GW.

VERIZON WIRELESS

Status: Paid in settlement.

Status Details: This account is scheduled to continue on record until Sep 2015.

Date Opened: 06/2008

Type: Cell Phone

Credit Limit/Original Amount: $246

Comment: Account paid in full for less than full balance

Send them a GW

HSBC BANK

Status: Closed.

Date Opened: 02/2009

Credit Limit/Original Amount: $10,100

Comment: Purchased by another lender.

On my Experian CR this looks like it’s just a closed account and says that it was purchased by another lender, but on my other reports it says that it is a charge off. Also this shows up on my report with Midland Funding.

---

[photobrat86]

Shogun, thank you so much for replying!

For both repo's they did subtract an amount after the vehicle has sold but they have been charging me interest ever since. So for the Midland one I now owe more than the original cost of the vehicle...and that is after they subtracted the sale amount. These both got repo'd back in 2010...even if I am to go back and find my records am I able to contest things this far down the road? With Midland having just bought the debt am I cable to contest if it is valid? I have read about getting results in that fashion sometimes but I was under the impression that once a lawyer is involved and time has passed I'm kind of stuck. 

one more question. On sending GW letters for the other ones you recommended...would I be requesting they remove the listing totally? 

[Shogun]

If everything was done on the up and up, then you would be stuck.  Many times however, things aren't done that way.  It's difficult to determine these things though.  I'm sure at the time of the "sale" of the vehicle, they stuck it to you.  Sorry about that, but that's the way these things work.  And of course they are sticking it to you with the interest.

My best advice on the situation.  Keep the payments going, but try like hell to save as much money as you can to do a lump payment to them for a settlement.  That might give you some leverage a little while down the road.   You could try a settlement offer for XXX amount, or you will file BK.   

[spike69]

Have any of the unpaid CAs offered the option to settle for a lesser amount? With the judgements if an arrangement is not made and kept the next step is a payroll Garnishment. And as you have said, the interest will continue to accumulate. It is really a matter of seeing what you can do to stop the "bleeding" so to speak. Also, and I am not suggesting what to do one way or the other but is BK something to consider. It will not do anything for your student loans (which you are paying on so no biggie) but the amount of outstanding debt may be such that as it gets sold and fees are added on may just get too much to ever get ahead of?  I have seen quite a few on this site rebuild in a significant way post BK.

Just a thought. No personal experience with this.

[photobrat86]

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@spike69 wrote:

Have any of the unpaid CAs offered the option to settle for a lesser amount? With the judgements if an arrangement is not made and kept the next step is a payroll Garnishment. And as you have said, the interest will continue to accumulate. It is really a matter of seeing what you can do to stop the "bleeding" so to speak. Also, and I am not suggesting what to do one way or the other but is BK something to consider. It will not do anything for your student loans (which you are paying on so no biggie) but the amount of outstanding debt may be such that as it gets sold and fees are added on may just get too much to ever get ahead of?  I have seen quite a few on this site rebuild in a significant way post BK.

Just a thought. No personal experience with this.

---

Initially before I had paid off a lot of the debts I thought about BK, but I ended up deciding to try and take care of things with out that. From what I know BK really wrecks your credit so I guess I don't know enough to see if it would help me. I know that I am going to be trying to buy a house and car in the next 1-3 years..not sure if BK would mess trying to do that up. 

My game plan thus far has been to try and improve my CR enough to get a signature loan that will cover the settled amounts from both of the debts, then I could just pay that one going forward.