@Anonymous, as a general rule, the guidance here is to just say, "No" when it comes to credit repair companies; they can do nothing for you which you cannot do for yourself. That and I've seen reports here and elsewhere which indicate their often heavy-handed tactics can result in the opposite results of what you're seeking and cause your scores to drop.
In your shoes, I'd research this site for "Goodwill" letters, Pay for Delete, and then give things time; there typically is no such thing as a quick fix when it comes to credit repair.
Good luck in your journey and keep us posted.
@Anonymous wrote:Thank you. One question I do have, are there options for me if a collection has reported more than 7.5 years and disputes have came back in collection companies favor? I've clearly looked at the dates from my first missed payment and one account for sure should have already aged off.
I'm not sure I fully understand the scenario, but as I understand it, once past the SOL, you can have the collection removed from your reports. If all you did was dispute something which was in fact valid, just to see if you could get it removed (something which is not a good idea), that activity shouldn't rise to the level of resetting the date from a SOL perspective. However, there are certain scenarios where if you agree to pay something and then don't follow through, the SOL date can be reset. At this point, if you provide some more information here, other more experienced "myFICOers" may be able to chime in and give you more refined guidance.
@Horseshoez wrote:
@Anonymous wrote:Thank you. One question I do have, are there options for me if a collection has reported more than 7.5 years and disputes have came back in collection companies favor? I've clearly looked at the dates from my first missed payment and one account for sure should have already aged off.
I'm not sure I fully understand the scenario, but as I understand it, once past the SOL, you can have the collection removed from your reports. If all you did was dispute something which was in fact valid, just to see if you could get it removed (something which is not a good idea), that activity shouldn't rise to the level of resetting the date from a SOL perspective. However, there are certain scenarios where if you agree to pay something and then don't follow through, the SOL date can be reset. At this point, if you provide some more information here, other more experienced "myFICOers" may be able to chime in and give you more refined guidance.
Not quite. The SOL is merely the period for bringing forth legal action against a consumer. What dictates the removal from credit reports has absolutely nothing to do with SOL. The credit reporting period is 7.5 (usually just 7 though) years from DOFD, which is the date of first delinquency, or the date when a payment was first missed and the account went into default and never got back current.
OP, as I described above, the DOFD is what is used to determine how long a negative item stays. You mentioned a first missed payment with First Premier in Dec 2013. Did you eventually make up that payment and bring the account back current? If so, then that resets the DOFD. As I said above, DOFD is when you get behind on payments and stay behind and never catch up (usually resulting in a Charge Off after about 6 months). As for the Apartment account, I have the same question. Did you miss a payment and go late but then catch up later (even if only temporarily)? Also what date was that?
Finally, absolutely stay away from credit repair companies. All they do is charge tons of money to dispute endlessly with your creditors and send out letters that can result in further dings to your scores and just make things worse. They do more harm and than good, and the money you waste on their "services" could be better used towards your actual debts. You can negotiate payment plans/pay for deletes yourself for free. If some creditors don't agree to it, then you can't force it and have no choice but to pay and at least close out the accounts, or just wait it out until they fall off.
If you have proof of the DoFD (credit reports from earlier years showing it or when it will be removed, etc) then you would submit this proof to the CRAs with demand for exclusion of the TLs based on their age. A complaint to the CFPB might also be in order if they fail to comply.
