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Looking for a Credit Repair paid consultant

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Anonymous
Not applicable

Looking for a Credit Repair paid consultant

Not sure if this is allowed here but where would be the best place to find someone to consult with to help me improve me and my spouse's credit. Is there anyone here that you would recommend to help. We have no negative marks that need to be removed. We just have around 15 accounts with around 75% ultization and im paying around $2000 a month alone with around $60,000 in debt. I know paying it all off would be the best scenario but we arent in a position to do that right now. The monthly payments are going to interest so they arent moving much. Id like to find someone that can recommned me the best possible 1-2 year plan. Wheter it be some balance transfers, small payoff amount, or  loans to start the process. I havent been charging anything for the past 2 years or so and i have a stable job to be able to make a solid plan to try to be debt free/responsible. I just feel stuck with the high interest rates so any help would be appreciated. 

9 REPLIES 9
CH-7-Mission-Accomplished
Valued Contributor

Re: Looking for a Credit Repair paid consultant


@Anonymous wrote:

Not sure if this is allowed here but where would be the best place to find someone to consult with to help me improve me and my spouse's credit. Is there anyone here that you would recommend to help. We have no negative marks that need to be removed. We just have around 15 accounts with around 75% ultization and im paying around $2000 a month alone with around $60,000 in debt. I know paying it all off would be the best scenario but we arent in a position to do that right now. The monthly payments are going to interest so they arent moving much. Id like to find someone that can recommned me the best possible 1-2 year plan. Wheter it be some balance transfers, small payoff amount, or  loans to start the process. I havent been charging anything for the past 2 years or so and i have a stable job to be able to make a solid plan to try to be debt free/responsible. I just feel stuck with the high interest rates so any help would be appreciated. 


People here are really down on credit repair companies because they charge $100-$200 per month to do things that you could do for yourself.   But in your case, there is nothing that a credit repair company could do because you do not have any negative credit to repair.   Your entire problem is utilization and nobody can fix that.

If your debt is more than you can manage, then you can default and people can try to help you to boost your FICO scores, but this will require you defaulting on your debts.   At that point it is damage control.

 

 

Message 2 of 10
OmarGB9
Community Leader
Super Contributor

Re: Looking for a Credit Repair paid consultant

Look no further! We are here to help, and for free!

 

If you want to list out each individual account, balance, limit, APR, minimum payment, whether they're charged off/in collections, and how much you have monthly to put towards these bills, we can collectively help you come up with a plan.


Last App: 1/10/2023
Penfed Gold Visa Card

Currently rebuilding as of 04/11/2019.

Starting FICO 8 Scores:




Current FICO 8 scores:


Message 3 of 10
Anonymous
Not applicable

Re: Looking for a Credit Repair paid consultant

Thanks for the Response. I can currently afford to make the minimum and possibly more. I will list out all the accounts here and see if i can just get advice here instead. I reached out to a couple credit companies for help and yes they said there is nothing they can do and just to pay off the balances. I figured this will be a marathon and im just trying to get past the first mile...

Message 4 of 10
Anonymous
Not applicable

Re: Looking for a Credit Repair paid consultant

@OmarGB9Thanks very much. I really appreciate that. Should i create a new post or just continue here?

Message 5 of 10
OmarGB9
Community Leader
Super Contributor

Re: Looking for a Credit Repair paid consultant


@Anonymous wrote:

Thanks for the Response. I can currently afford to make the minimum and possibly more. I will list out all the accounts here and see if i can just get advice here instead. I reached out to a couple credit companies for help and yes they said there is nothing they can do and just to pay off the balances. I figured this will be a marathon and im just trying to get past the first mile...


It will definitely be a marathon, and it will take a lot of effort and sacrifices. Speaking of sacrifices, are there any "extras" you could cut back on (i.e. eating out, cutting out cable, lower phone bill, etc.)?

 

Don't listen to the post above you about defaulting - that would only trash your credit.


Last App: 1/10/2023
Penfed Gold Visa Card

Currently rebuilding as of 04/11/2019.

Starting FICO 8 Scores:




Current FICO 8 scores:


Message 6 of 10
OmarGB9
Community Leader
Super Contributor

Re: Looking for a Credit Repair paid consultant


@Anonymous wrote:

@OmarGB9Thanks very much. I really appreciate that. Should i create a new post or just continue here?


Just continue here.


Last App: 1/10/2023
Penfed Gold Visa Card

Currently rebuilding as of 04/11/2019.

Starting FICO 8 Scores:




Current FICO 8 scores:


Message 7 of 10
HowDoesThisAllWork
Frequent Contributor

Re: Looking for a Credit Repair paid consultant


@Anonymous wrote:

Not sure if this is allowed here but where would be the best place to find someone to consult with to help me improve me and my spouse's credit. Is there anyone here that you would recommend to help. We have no negative marks that need to be removed. We just have around 15 accounts with around 75% ultization and im paying around $2000 a month alone with around $60,000 in debt. I know paying it all off would be the best scenario but we arent in a position to do that right now. The monthly payments are going to interest so they arent moving much. Id like to find someone that can recommned me the best possible 1-2 year plan. Wheter it be some balance transfers, small payoff amount, or  loans to start the process. I havent been charging anything for the past 2 years or so and i have a stable job to be able to make a solid plan to try to be debt free/responsible. I just feel stuck with the high interest rates so any help would be appreciated. 


Welcome to the forum.

 

I am not sure about the default comments.  I am sure that @CH-7-Mission-Accomplished  was not suggesting that you actually default on things.  I think - and I hesitate to speak for anyone - that @CH-7-Mission-Accomplished was simply suggesting that since you do not have any "baddies" to fix (with "baddies" typically being defined in these forums as a late payment or a collections account or a charge-off account.....not exclusively one - or more - of these three things) that there is no "technical assistance" that we can offer.  Additionally, your issue  -  if I may call it that  -  is that you have extremely high revolver utilization.  @CH-7-Mission-Accomplished  is correct (if one 'bottomlines' things): no one can help you there except you.  Again, I am sure that @CH-7-Mission-Accomplished was referencing the fact that what happened has already happened.

 

Now, what has been suggested by others in here is that we can indeed brainstorm multiple ways to get ahead of your monthly payments so that there is an end in sight.

 

As @OmarGB9 (smart dude.....I enjoy his posts immensely) has stated already, if you could list the accounts, the Credit Limit, the balance, the Interest Rate, and what you have available monthly then we might be able to brainstorm ways.

 

If I were in this situation, I would be most concerned about "quality of life" and then concerned about Credit Scores.  So, Finances over FICO comes to play (for me.....we all run our race our way....and what works for me | how I perceive something might not work for you | you might perceive it very differently).  So, while we are all here to help you, ultimately you have to figure out what works for you.  And ain't nobody got s**t to say as to how you approach things, ultimately.

 

So, I will  throw out there the concept of snowballing.

 

If you have 15 credit cards, then start with the Credit Card with the smallest balance on it.  Pay that sucker down to $0 balance.  All the while making a tiny bit more - if possible - than the minimum payment on the 14 others.  Then, take the next credit card....with the smallest balance, and focus on it.  Rinse and repeat.

 

The other side of the coin - for me, anyway, this is a two-sided coin - is the behavior that resulted in this situation.  Again, please know that I am not judging you.  At all.  We are here to help you, not judge you.

 

As others have suggested, is it possible for a bit of a lifestyle change?  Cut back for a year.  And cut back HARD?  Or, get a side job here and there?  And, crazy question here, but do you budget?  Meaning, do you have a formal budget in place?  The kind where you - and you can do things how it fits your brain - list out all of your "needs" (like food, shelter, transportation, et al) and your "wants" (eating out, NetFlix, et al).  And then you live by that budget.

 

SIDEBAR - I can speak from personal experience here.  I started formally budgeting a tad bit more than one year ago and it has truly changed my life.  I know that sounds extremely cliche and way too dramatic, but it is the God's honest truth.  So, I will *ALWAYS* promote budgeting.  Find a budget that works for you.  I am unclear if mentioning the budget that I use is allowed in these forums so I will refrain from mentioning it....but I can only speak very enthusiastically about it.  I no longer look at my bank account to see if I can afford something....I now look at the category in the budget and if there is money available there......

 

Anyway, off the top of my head - without any details from you - I would humbly contend that snowballing and budgeting very likely could be part of the solution for you.  But, the devil is indeed in the details so maybe not?!?!?!?!?!?

 

You will get there.  We will gladly help.

FICO 8 Scores as of 2022 JULY 04:

FICO 9 Scores as of 2022 JULY 04:

FICO Auto 8 Scores as of 2022 JULY 04:

FICO Auto 9 Scores as of 2022 JULY 04:

FICO Bankcard 8 Scores as of 2022 JULY 04:

FICO Mortgage 2/4/5 Scores as of 2022 JULY 04:

Starting Score: Exp 627
Current Score: Exp 713
Goal Score: Exp 750+

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Message 8 of 10
Anonymous
Not applicable

Re: Looking for a Credit Repair paid consultant

@HowDoesThisAllWork Thank you again for taking the time to give me all that information. It makes me feel so much better that there is a light at the end of the road. I would love to learn more about that budgeting system you have. Also i wanted to say that this is both me and my spouses accounts. Its been a situation where every year it went up having to deal with being unemployed and trying to survive over the past 15+years. Currently I havent been adding for the past 2 years, except i just found out my spouse used one of the cards that took him over 30% usage and dropped his score a lot, then I went and saw that one of my cards halved my credit limit of $10,000 so i know it was just going to start going down making it more difficult to recover. 

 

Here is the start of my plan

  1. I have $10,000 to pay down and $2,500-$3000 a month to pay. After doing my budget maybe I can try to even do more since I have a stable income. 
  2. Use any balance transfer offer to save on interest
  3. Add authorized users to each others account
  4. Develop system to use the credit cards but payoff every month no excuses.
  5. Close any card I dont need
  6. Follow advice I receive here


Spouse Fico: 691 (was 720+ last month)
My Fico: 668 (was 690 last month dropped after $10,000 CLDecrease) 

Im not sure if links to images are allowed here is all the information that I use to keep track. . I sorted them two ways by Usage % and then the other file is by Balance. 

https://ibb.co/1MN6b4Y
https://ibb.co/7XqrKRD

Thanks Again

Message 9 of 10
HowDoesThisAllWork
Frequent Contributor

Re: Looking for a Credit Repair paid consultant


@Anonymous wrote:

@HowDoesThisAllWork Thank you again for taking the time to give me all that information. It makes me feel so much better that there is a light at the end of the road. I would love to learn more about that budgeting system you have. Also i wanted to say that this is both me and my spouses accounts. Its been a situation where every year it went up having to deal with being unemployed and trying to survive over the past 15+years. Currently I havent been adding for the past 2 years, except i just found out my spouse used one of the cards that took him over 30% usage and dropped his score a lot, then I went and saw that one of my cards halved my credit limit of $10,000 so i know it was just going to start going down making it more difficult to recover. 

 

Here is the start of my plan

  1. I have $10,000 to pay down and $2,500-$3000 a month to pay. After doing my budget maybe I can try to even do more since I have a stable income. 
  2. Use any balance transfer offer to save on interest
  3. Add authorized users to each others account
  4. Develop system to use the credit cards but payoff every month no excuses.
  5. Close any card I dont need
  6. Follow advice I receive here


Spouse Fico: 691 (was 720+ last month)
My Fico: 668 (was 690 last month dropped after $10,000 CLDecrease) 

Im not sure if links to images are allowed here is all the information that I use to keep track. . I sorted them two ways by Usage % and then the other file is by Balance. 

https://ibb.co/1MN6b4Y
https://ibb.co/7XqrKRD

Thanks Again


@Anonymous 

 

Good morning!  Please excuse me as I have been MIA for the last couple of days.

 

I would suggest *NOT* adding each other as Authorized Users.  That is not what that "program" is for or intended.  You would want to find a family member that has a long, outstanding credit history with an outstanding FICO score and be added to his/her specific card (typically, the one with the longest history....and potentially a really high CL and perfect payment history....).  In your specific case, please do not do this.  That would NOT help you.

 

In terms of assisting with your specific situation, I would suggest *NOT* closing any cards at this point.   Since the immediate issue is Credit Utilization, removing a card from your portfolio is going to remove that "Credit Limit Amount".  That will not likely help you.  Sure, you would have to pay down that balance.....THAT would help you.....but then you loose that CL.  So, maybe hold off on that idea.   If/when you do come back to this idea, please keep in mind that Credit Age is a small piece of the FICO Score pie and there are some scoring and segmentation metrics involved.  Please be mindful if you do ultimately decide to close a card or two.  As a starting point, I would suggest staying away from your oldest revolvers.  I might focus on a 'newer' card.  Again, as a starting point (read: be aware and make decisions accordingly).

 

I will message you the budget software that I use.  Again, not sure if it is "in bad taste" to mention it here.  I want to say that I have in another post (maybe two....) but I do not want to get that swift kick in the head by a moderator.  So, I will message you.  Is that okay?

 

You would have to get a balance transfer card in order to do that, right?  Maybe not the best of ideas at this point.

 

So, remember that Credit Utilization is 30% of your FICO Score.  The "markers" for Credit Utilization are at 9%, 29%, 49%, 69%, and 89%.  So, those are the percentages that we need to "cross over" to drop down in Utilization in order to potentially experience an increase in FICO Credit Score (based on that one metric.....there are usually several things involved, all based on your specific credit profile - or scorecard as some call it).

 

Now, for the immediate pay down and then the monthly payments......with that $10,000 I would focus on getting the following:

 

1.  Spouse (Apple Card)

2.  You (CitiBank)

 

Those two are your highest utilization hits - by far.  They are maxed out.  Get both of them down to that 29% marker if you can.  That will take up the majority of your $10,000.

 

There are lots of potential plans that you could then implement to pay off your $70,000 in credit card debt.  You could also chose to snowball with that $10,000.  Take the card with the lowest amount and pay that off.  Then take the next lowest and pay that off.  And so on.

 

In general, it looks like you have about $2,000/month in "minimum payments" due.  You could use that available $2,500 - $3,000 to meet the roughly $2,000 and have some $1,000 to debt snowball.

 

Is it possible to increase that number from $3,000 to something higher?  Do you have any subscriptions that could go away.  Do you have anything that you can sell (like a 'garage sell' or something on Facebook Market)?  Can you get a "side hustle"?  Can you cut back other things?

 

There are lots of ways you could approach this.  I would - and possibly others would have different approaches - approach this as attacking the two maxed out cards with that $10,000 and then possibly debt snowball.

 

Ultimately, keeping things under 9% (possibly 4%, depending on credit profile) is the goal.  And, maybe implementing AZEO (All Zero Except One) would be a good thing for you both as well.  Possibly.

 

I would encourage you and your husband to sit down together and develop a plan.  It is important - at least, in my opinion - for both of you to be working together on this and - in my opinion - the best chance for this is for both of you to be active participants in the conversation (well, I do not know your dynamics....gonna use the 'both active participants' as a starting point).

 

Does this help?

FICO 8 Scores as of 2022 JULY 04:

FICO 9 Scores as of 2022 JULY 04:

FICO Auto 8 Scores as of 2022 JULY 04:

FICO Auto 9 Scores as of 2022 JULY 04:

FICO Bankcard 8 Scores as of 2022 JULY 04:

FICO Mortgage 2/4/5 Scores as of 2022 JULY 04:

Starting Score: Exp 627
Current Score: Exp 713
Goal Score: Exp 750+

Take the myFICO Fitness Challenge
Message 10 of 10
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