I notice the charges include "robo-signing," which of course has been a HUGE issue with mortgage foreclosures. Methinks we're gonna find more cases of "robo-signing" throughout the financial sytem. Scandals of this type are like cockroaches: when you see one, you know there are lots more hiding in the woodwork! ... View more

@Brian_Trying_700 wrote: CU. That is a yuppy for me and my company if TD Bank does that. Most banks don't charge a fee if your payroll or social security is direcct-deposited to your account. I believe WF won't charge customers who have at least $500 per month directly deposited. ... View more

As others have noted, there is a lot of deceptive marketing in the world of credit scores and one must read the fine print with very close attention when buying any credit score. Even when with genuine FICO scores purchased here, there may be differences from what a lender uses. There are three credit reporting agencies, each of which has its own version of the FICO scoring model. There are newer and older versions of the FICO algorithm; a lender might be using a newer or older version than what you pull here. And there are industry-specific versions of the FICO model, such as one designed for car dealers and auto loan companies (that one obviously gives greater weight to you car loan history). What you pull here should be very close to what a home loan mortgage company pulls, but even with home loans there can be differences. One poster on these forums recently pulled scores from MyFico using a laptop in the mortgage company office while the loan officer was pulling a tri-merge report on a desktop computer, and the scores from one CRA differed by something like fifty points -- probably due to that lender using a newer or older version than what is sold here. … A recent change in the law does require many lenders to provide applicants with information about the actual score they used to make their decision, which has given millions of people access to thid information. FICO encourages lenders to say exactly which version of the scoring model was used, but they don't all say which model was used. The law only requires them to say something like "for your credit score of XXX, which is in the XX percentile of applicants, we offer an interest rate of XX.XX percent APR; our lowest-risk customers get XX.XX percent…" ... View more

@adavis425 wrote: Here's the link to a very interesting article on proposed medical debt legislation.  It has to do with the lightning fast speed with which medical bills are forwarded to collection agencies even though they may be paid, in dispute, etc. and the effects on one's credit report.  Very interesting.   http://news.yahoo.com/medical-bills-wreck-credit-even-paid-off-183216201.html Yuck.  Given the complexity of sorting out what insurance will or will not pay, it is entirely possible to have an honest misunderstanding about what is owed through no fault of the individual so damaging their credit can be grossly unfair.  Fortunately for my wife and myself, we live in a State that restricts the ability of providers to go after patients for charges that have been disallowed by the insurance company.  This law was passed a number of years ago precisely because too many patients found themselves caught in the middle of fights between providers and insurers.  Every State should have such laws.     ... View more

I agree, keep both accounts open.  As a new immigrant, one wants to have multiple positive items on record.   ... View more

As a former academic, I think of the various flavors of FICO score (different credit reporting agencies, Auto-enhanced versus mortgages, older versus newer versions, etc.) as being like several instructors teaching the same college course in the same semester.  Been there, done that: no matter how hard we tried to be fair and consistent in how we assigned grades to our students, inevitably there were differences!   A while back I posted a table comparing percentiles for FICO and FAKO scores using the best information I could find at that time.  Also this posting has a link to an interesting study of credit scoring by the Federal Reserve: http://ficoforums.myfico.com/t5/Understanding-FICO-Scoring/Formula-for-converting-the-Vantange-score-into-a-rough-FICO/m-p/667574/highlight/true#M46455     ... View more

Notice in that article, a derog has more impact on somebody with a higher score. ... View more

Yep, we taxpayers bailed them out and they basically display zero gratitude. ... View more

Unfortunately a while back Experian decided to stop letting myfico sell their scores to consumers, apparently because they wanted to push their FAKO scores. If you work for the State of PA, or for some other public employers there (like teaching at a public school) or are an alum of a PA college, then you can join a credit union that provides EX FICO scores. Otherwise to the best of my knowledge you are out of luck, though I've seen some discussion here of a new website, yet to launch, that supposedly will offer FICOs from all three. ... View more

@CreditBob wrote: I wanted to let other members know how important it is to be thorough when you post information in regards to your specific situation. Credit cards (revolving accounts) are not the only information that is in your credit report. Questions have come up such as, how many points will my fico credit score go up?  The following is a list that you will need before you ask the question or go to www.bankrate.com/fico which will give you a range of what your score could possibly be.   Have you ever had an installment loan? (student, auto, or personal) If you had a loan how long ago did you get your first loan? How many accounts have you applied for within the last 12 months? In other words how many inquires have been added to your credit report within the last year? How many revolving accounts (credit cards & dept store cards) do you have? How long have you had the oldest credit card for? How long have you had each credit card open for? Keep in mind that each time you open a new one it lowers your average account age. How many credit cards have you applied for in the last 12 months? How many credit cards have a balance?         Excellent advice, giving the above details will help others give helpful replies. And I can highly recommend the FICO Score Estimator at the bankrate.com web site, a few minutes trying various scenarios will teach a lot about how CONTEXT-DEPENDENT the effect of any single factor on a score is. In general, the higher one's score the bigger the impact of a single negative will be, but a few minutes experimenting with scenarios in the Estimator will give quantitative specificity. In using the Estimator, I pay less attention to the score ranges than to differences between scenarios. For instance suppose one scenario gives a range of 690-740, then I change one factor while keeping others the same and get a range of 710-760. Well, that suggests in this context that factor has an impact of about 20 points. Now I try two more scenarios where again these two differ by that single factor and get ranges of 730-780 versus 780-830. This would suggest that in a different context that same factor has an impact of about 50 points. Basically, I suggest when using the Estimator look at how the MIDPOINT changes in pairwise comparisons of specific scenarios. It is helpful to make careful notes of each scenario, just as you would if you were a research scientist keeping a lab notebook. ... View more

Yes, the control-plus and minus zoom keys and the scroll wheel zoom have been part of web browsers since Windows XP days. My new work laptop has a mildly annoying feature: the keystroke combinatiion for rotating the screen by 90 degrees is very similar to one I use a lot when working with Excel, so I hit that combination about once a day. Easy to change back, but still annoying so I'm gonna look for a way to disable it. ... View more

@MarineVietVet wrote: @pizzadude wrote:   It's really a guessing game.   FICO has certainly not published any details of their proprietary scoring formulas, so all we have to go on is the anecdotal evidence of the what people report here at MyFICO. Ditto.   Whatever seems to work for each person is all that matters. That's why I always say Everyone's situation is different and there is no one size fits all approach. Especially since there are a number of different scorcards for thick files, thin files, major dings, etc., etc. So what applies to somebody with a long clean history might not apply to somebody else. In any case, if you can afford to pay in full then you can experment with your own exact situation, switching which card you use for purchases and when you pay each card to manipulate the reported balances then pull you scores here after trying a particular scenario. Remember most credit cards report your balance as of the billing date, so you can go to the website, check your balance, and pay it off just before billing date to make it report a zero balance. But check when your cards report, a few report at the end of the month and Amex sometimes reports what the balance was a month or two ago. … In my own case, my wife and botn have good jobs, carry very little cash, pay in full each month, and have high limit cards. So we use our cards a lot and our balances therefore fluctuate considerably depending what we've bought this month. Nothing else in our profiles changes much from montn to month: neither of us any negatives, and neither of us has applied for credit in about five years. So I think the variations in our FICO scores from about 780 to about 810 is likely due mostly to credit card balances. ... View more

Usually the history carries over, you should be OK, but you might want to purchase your report and scores right now and once again in two or three months just to check that it is being reported correctly. A while back my wife and I got a call from the security department for one credit card company saying they had detected suspicious transactions so would send us new cards. All was OK in my reports, I did check. ... View more

I cannot sing myself so I certainly would try to teach a pig. I forget who said of another porcine cliche, "certainly a pig CAN fly given sufficient thrust, but that is hardly the most efficient way of using that thrust!" ... View more

I agree with the others, keep the 5-year-old car for at least two more years and then replace it with a used car. New cars are an expensive luxury for people who have no other non-mortgage debt. I'm still driving a 2000 Toyota Camry (which I bought in 2004) that I might replace in 2013 or 2014. About once a year it needs some sort of major mechanical work done, which may seeem like a lot but over 12 months time it's a heck of a lot less than what a new car would cost! I would suggest you open a new savings account and each month put into it what you would be paying on the loan for a new car; when the balance in that account exceeds the purchase price for a late-model used car then you can go shopping. ... View more

@jxflyer wrote: My Home Depot Credit Card (issued by Citibank NA) shows up as a consumer finance company on my credit report and is listed as a negative factor in my score.  Is this supposed to be the case and if not, how do I change it (other than closing the account and waiting 7 years).   FWIW, the account was used for a Dishwasher, paid on time, paid off in 6 months and has a really high credit limit with zero balance.   Thanks   A lot of such things are reported as consumer finance loans, but if your history is otherwise clean and long then a single such item is a very minor ding. Until quite recently I had a similar Citifinacial item for a Carrier A/C compressor on my history, and my scores were all above 780 even with that item on my reports. ... View more

@getmycreditright wrote: The only card I want is an Amex SPG. Still on the quest for that.   What is an SPG? ... View more

@RTOrockstar wrote: I recently paid off an installment loan that was reporting to TransUnion and now I only have 2 open lines of credit reporting. Is this going to hurt my TU FICO?   Usually positive paid-off accounts continue to appear on your reports for a number of years, so this account should not fall off any time soon. If anything, I would expect your score to go up a tad because your non-mortgage debt total has become smaller. ... View more

One thing you can try for experimenting with various scenarios is the FICO Score Estimator, which you can find by going to www.bankrate.com and typing FICO estimator into the search box. It makes no use of your actual data, it only uses what you tell it, so it is probably less accurate than a simulator that starts from your actual report and score. But what you can do with the Estimator is try lots of scenarios to get an idea what the impact of some factor might be. ... View more

@Repo-ed wrote: Grats OP! I once recieved one of those from AMEX - then they turned around and cut the limit to less than 1/2 after the great recession of 2007, and then cancelled the card all together on me None of them cut my limits in the Great Financial Crash, but ALL of them raised my APR substantially. One of them had been under 7% for years before the crash, now it's over 12% which seems preposterous, if I ever needed to borrow money there are much cheaper options available to me. Their computers must have noticed I always pay in full, do they really think I'm gonna pay such rates? ... View more

@pizzadude wrote: Yes ~ unless specifically prohibited by law, insurance companies can check your credit and factor that into their risk model to determine your rates. They use a soft pull though, so there is no score impact.   I do not recall seeing State Farm among the soft pulls of my credit and I have been checking my annual free reports for some years. I dunno if CT prohibits insurance companies pulling credit, or maybe they feel they know me well enough based on my history with them: I've been covered by State Farm since 1988. ... View more

@haulingthescoreup wrote: So how do you like the tablet? Great for casual websurfing, email, reading ebooks, etc. When traveling instead of taking books and full size laptop, I take this. Right now I'm sprawled on the sofa with my tablet resting on a couple of pillows. ... View more

AMEX Centurion, Citi Chairman, and JP Morgan Palladium   AMEX keeps trying to get me to upgrade from Gold to Platinum, but most of the benefits that are unique to Platinum (I already get excellent customer service, Roadside Assistance, etc., with my AMEX Gold) are geared to frequent flyers and I only make about six airline trips per year, so the perks are not enough to justify the increased annual fee for me.  If I spent much more time in airports and hotels, it might be worth getting.   ... View more

  Many years ago, shortly before moving I went in person to the Phone company office and said: I am moving out of state, here is my new work address because I don't have my new residence address yet, I want service at my old address to end on [date], how much should I pay you right now such that I will end up not owing anything?  I added that I would put any toll calls on a prepaid calling card I had just purchased for use while between residences (this was before everybody had cell phones).  After a few minutes of pushing buttons on her computer, she said "X dollars and Y cents" which I paid.   A couple months later at my new work address I got a bill for something like seven cents (I suppose the estimate of payoff amount had been slightly in error), I forget the exact amount but I specifically remember it was less than the postage they had paid to send me that bill.  I ignored it, and never heard from them again.   ... View more

Yep the free annual report is where I get my softs.  Odd that Wells Fargo does regular soft pulls on my history: the only relationship my wife and I have with WF is a mortgage.  It's fixed-rate so even if WF were to learn from one of those soft pulls that my credit had suddenly gone bad all they could do is hope my wife and I keep paying them.   ... View more

@pipeguy wrote: ... But what the Bowers never imagined was that their old loan, the one Wells Fargo told them was paid off, would resurrect itself, trashing their credit report, scotching their son's student loans and throwing the whole family into foreclosure. All, they say, even though they didn't miss a single mortgage payment.   http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/46145645/ns/business-real_estate/   When my wife and I refinanced a number of years ago, we got the original Mortgage Deed with our signatures.  I am very careful to keep that document.  On most of my accounts I have switched to online statements, but for the mortgage I still get hardcopy statements every month, which I keep.  Where the mortgage is concerned, I want a complete documentary record just in case of future errors.   The whole robpo-signing mess reminds me of a classic Russian novel: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dead_Souls   Note: the official term used for the legal instrument varies from State to State.  While most folks call all of them "mortgages," technically in about half the States one of the many documents you will sign at closing will say Deed of Trust at the top and in about half the States it will be called a Mortgage.  CT sorta splits the difference and calls it a Mortgage Deed.   ... View more

  Does it have a picture of Suze's toothy smile?   I do think she is being a tad disingenuous when she says it can be a good deal "if you use it like I tell you to."  First of all, looking at all those gotcha fees in the fine print it seems clear that company expects to make nearly all their profits from people who don't use it like Suze tells them to.  Second, anybody who has been carefully following the standard advice handed out by Suze and many others is likely to have access to credit.  So the only people who might benefit from this card are people who (1) have not been following her advice but who (2) suddenly start following her advice upon getting her card.  Isn't the fundamental assumption behind FICO and all similar scoring systems that deep behavioral change (1) is rare and (2) almost never happens quickly?   One guy whose name I am sure will never appear on any card: Dave Ramsey.  I don't agree with everything he says, but I am sure what he says in his books and media appearances is exactly what he honestly believes.   My personal take on credit is, it's sort of like alcohol.  Medical data seem to show there are health benefits from moderate drinking, but for some people who cannot control their drinking the best option is total abstinence.  Similarly, I think moderate use of credit can be OK, but on the evidence there are lots of people who would be better off going the DR route of completely avoiding credit.   ... View more

My wife and I have never done business with Capital One so I do not have any opinion about their customer service.  My wife and I regularly get preapproved offers from Cap One, which we feed to the shredder since we do not need another card at present.   ... View more