Credit guruz

[Excessive Force]

So ive owed a couple of companys a little money for stupid sh*t like late fees. i let it go for years now i wanna take care of it. i already took care of 1 collection, now i wanna take care of another one.
-Agency 1- i owed like $400 originally, they wanted $800. they settled for what i originally owed. cool. they claim my credit will read "paid in full". Cool agency to work with.
-Agency 2- i owe $400 and change. they wanna settle for $200. Original bal. was $21.99. they claim my report will read "settled.satisfied.in full". Workers there are a bunch of *ucktards. worse than dam car dealers. no offense to anyone who may be.
I need to seriously clean up my credit. Can these guys put anything they want in your credit reports?
sorry for the long history.:D

[andy01]

I knew somebody buying a house once with really jacked up credit. A lot of little collection accounts. He paid someone to do it all for him. He was able to get a lot removed.

[C-2]

Before you do anything DO NOT order your free credit report online.
I’ll explain later, but get the mailing address for each bureau and request a HARDCOPY report of your file. They are still free if you’re a Cali resident.
Ordering your report ONLINE allows creditors to take 45 days to investigate inaccurate or disputed information, instead of the 30 days mandated by FCRA.
I’ll put up some more info later – but trust me, you do not want to dispute online, even though it’s convenient (and even more convenient for the lazy arse bill collectors, original creditors, JDB’s).
Study, study, study the below website. Lots of good information – sadly creditors were successful in shutting down an even better board.
http://consumers.creditnet.com/Discussions/f-credit-talk-3.html/

[C-2]

duplicate

[Mountainstone]

Here's a trick I have used: If the account was written off more than two years ago, contact the original creditor, give them your account number and see if they still have you on file. Most companies purge their closed accounts after two or three years. If they have purged yours, they will have no record of you or your account. Contact the credit bureaus to dispute that account and ask to have it removed from your credit report. They have 30 days to contact that creditor and when the creditor reports that they have no information for your account, they have 10 (or so) days to remove it from your credit report.

[Mountainstone]

I was told, but don't know if it's true, that since everybody started doing this, most companies are keeping records long enough to fight this type of dispute until the account would drop off from age. Again, not sure if it's true, just what I was told as I have a work associate that is attempting to repair his credit using one of those credit repair people.
Changes are frequent with the credit business (and it is BIG business), but I used this particular trick about four months ago with complete success. Just call the creditor and give 'em your account nunmber. If they have purged the account, then it has to be removed from your credit report at your request (per the Fair Credit Reporting Act), but you have to call each credit bureau and have them go through the motions of disputing the account. It can take up to 45 days and usually does, so don't wait.
P.S. Capital One and Providian are both defendants in a current class-action lawsuit. Each month, they both report your credit card balance but fail to report (allegedly intentionally) your credit limit. The computer formula then defaults to show your credit limit as equal to your balance, which is interpreted to mean you are maxed out on your credit card every month. This decreases your credit score because the scoring formula takes into account your debt/available credit ratio. A lower credit score means you will not be offered a better rate from a different credit provider, so (this is an allegation) Capital One and Providian keep you as a customer, and your low credit score means they can treat you poorly with higher rates than you deserve. What's in your wallet?

[HM]

P.S. Capital One and Providian are both defendants in a current class-action lawsuit. Each month, they both report your credit card balance but fail to report (allegedly intentionally) your credit limit. The computer formula then defaults to show your credit limit as equal to your balance, which is interpreted to mean you are maxed out on your credit card every month. This decreases your credit score because the scoring formula takes into account your debt/available credit ratio. A lower credit score means you will not be offered a better rate from a different credit provider, so (this is an allegation) Capital One and Providian keep you as a customer, and your low credit score means they can treat you poorly with higher rates than you deserve. What's in your wallet?
This also affects the 0% interest rates they offer. In the small print of the 0% offer they say they can RETROACTIVELY charge you higher interest based on your credit score even if you have never been behind on any payments.

[C-2]

I have a lot of strange hobbies, and for several years, credit scrores, repair and other unlawful collection activty was one of them (even though I work for many creditors pursuing collection accounts).
You have to be certain you’re not poking a stick at a sleeping dog. And anything can and will happen - what works in one instance may never work in another.
Identifying who has your account is the first step – original creditor (OC), collection agency (CA), in-house collection agency (but made to appear as if they are not related), attorney or a junk debt buyer (JDB). Sometimes, the worse thing you can do is respond to a collection notice.
The statute on bad or inaccurate info is seven years from the date of last payment – of course, unless they re-age the account. Re-aging can be triggered by new collection activity based upon your inquiry. Hey, guess who called? Re-aging is also a violation of FCRA – but whadda ya going to due, sue?
The statute for getting sued on a collection account in Cali is four years.
JDB’s routinely will add a new derogatory account to your credit report. Not supposed to – but they do. So you might pay them, and they might mark paid in full – but the original creditor account might remain untouched. That’s why JDB’s are so bad – they trash your report with no consideration to accuracy, or even of they have the correct party.
Pay for deletes work sometimes; other times they don’t. If they worked all the time – nobody would pay their bills!
Summer is coming up and is always a good time to dispute stuff , especially in August/late August – tons of people on vacation and the entire chain (OC, JDB, CA, credit reporting bureau’s and even the people hired by the credit bureau to verify public records) – they’re all short staffed. The theory is if everybody pounds them with disputes during that month – they cannot investigate and verify the majority of them within 30 days. Whatever they logged in, no matter how accurate it may be – would have to be deleted due to the 30 day rule (which is why you don’t wanna give them 45 days if you do it online).
There are tons of strategies for improving your credit score. Remember, your debt-to-income ration (or *debt utilization* as they call it now) comprises 1/3 of your score. If you have a great pay history, but high balances – rectifying any past collection accounts might not yield any improvement on your credit score –especially if they’re old accounts.
You can also sign up for monthly credit monitoring – Walmart used to offer all 3 bureaus, unlimited access, for about $8 a month (half of what other services charge). Many credit cards also have FICO simulators, showing changes to your score if you paid down debt (again, it’s a huge chunk of your score).
I helped many people in the past, and along with another associate, we learned a lot about the credit game, in fact, it became a challenge…a game. It’s just another way to suck more money out of us. “Yes Mr. Jones, I know you have a perfect 60 month pay history on your auto loan, but I see hear you were 45 days late on a credit card payment”. Mr. Jones says, yeah, it was an oversight. “Sorry Mr. Jones, you will have to pay the higher interest rate.” Give me a break. Universal default – give me a break. In fact on that topic – creditors now share info – if you call one trying to strike a deal – guess what – they might turn around and sell your info to another competing creditor, kind of like they do with universal default.
Always, always remember – the three credit bureaus are private companies. Did you gibe them permission to start a file on you? No. As long as you’re not attempting to commit fraud or defraud creditors – you can lie, cheat and steal to them, and any collector or attorney. They will twist and skew every law out there against you – and you can do the same to them – in fact even more since you are not bound by collection laws and FCRA/FDCA.
You have to weigh odds and see if it’s worth the risk of starting new collection activity. Generally, if you’re outside the statute to be sued – don’t do anything.
It's no longer a hobby cuz you can never win. :D

[Excessive Force]

WOW....thanks for the great replies!! I think i may have screwed my self as it feels ive done all you all have said not to do. i do have privacy source with BofA. thats like 80 bux per yr. ive disputed thru privacy source online with a creditor or 2.:mad: ....fockin reports are so dang hard to read sometimes(PS-BofA)

[Excessive Force]

Does anyone have a hookup on credit repair? Do they even work? Never been to one but did have a friend who went to one, they took his money and didnt do squat.....any suggestions?:D

[talkinghead]

Off topic slightly, but I refuse to be a slave to the credit industry.
Life is way to short.

[acatitude]

wow a great thread here. I am in the process of arguing some credit stuff on my report. I already have 2 letters to prove the alledg3ed bills were paid and the lein doesnt exist per calling county records but they say they cant take it off because they didnt out it on there, that some agency randomly checks their records.
some one told me to do the online repair and dispute them then they had 30 days to respond or they would be pulled.. now I read here someone says dont do online...... so how do I do it and what do I have to do????
thanks in advance for the help.. I have a couple that are 5/6 years old and are just 1 late payment, then all good again. this really sucks as im old and have owned houses etc for 30 years and 1 late payment screws my credit....... any help with who where I have to write would be appreciated thanks again

[C-2]

wow a great thread here. I am in the process of arguing some credit stuff on my report. I already have 2 letters to prove the alledg3ed bills were paid and the lein doesnt exist per calling county records but they say they cant take it off because they didnt out it on there, that some agency randomly checks their records.
some one told me to do the online repair and dispute them then they had 30 days to respond or they would be pulled.. now I read here someone says dont do online...... so how do I do it and what do I have to do????
thanks in advance for the help.. I have a couple that are 5/6 years old and are just 1 late payment, then all good again. this really sucks as im old and have owned houses etc for 30 years and 1 late payment screws my credit....... any help with who where I have to write would be appreciated thanks again
Generally, the goal when disputing is to have them either correct the entry, update it, or remove it.
Once a dispute is filed, the CRA has 30 days to investigate the accuracy of the lien, unless you submit an investigation request online, in which case it gives the CRA an additional 15 days to investigate (kind of bass ackwards).
In the case of ANY tax lien, the ideal goal is to have the thing removed in its entirety. However, tax liens are removed seven years from the date THEY ARE PAID, not filed. If it was recorded in 2000 and you paid it this year, the clock starts ticking this year.
If it's a tax lien, then a lien is a lien and scoring models don't differentiate between $1, or $100K - it's a lien to them , irrespective of the amount. the only thing they are concerned with is whether or not the lien has been satisfied, thus removing the prohibitions put in place by the lien.
In Cali, an unpaid tax lien stays on your report for 10 years.
-SO-
Depending on what you are doing - sometimes, it might be to your advantage NOT to have lien updated to a paid status. Mainly, cuz it resets the clock again - 7 years from the dtae paid.
If you have a release in hand, this is often all you will need to prove to the credit grantor that the lien has been paid. In fact, the IRS gives you an option after paying a tax lien - either they will record a release; or simply give you one to do whatever you want with it.
For example, I had a substantial Federal lien filed against me shortly after I bought a business in 1997. My fault, my own ignorance, we all agreed. I got on a repayment plan and paid it in 5 years. Fast forward to 2006 and time to refinance - and of course, it appeared there was a lien. I coughed up the release; escrow made the call, and yup, no lien and I refinanced just fine.
So rather than have a release recorded in 2003 (after the pay off date), and have it remain until 2010 - I jst took the release in hand and by default, thelien will disappear later this year, a full 3 years sooner than if they recorded a release. Do your math though - sometimes it's not worth the hassle.
Carrying a recent open lien with some prime creditors like Citi, BofA and WAMU might hinder the ability to open a credit card account. But the liens effectiveness seems to dwindle after a few years - for example, I have credit cards whith all the above. Some credit grantors won't bat an eye over an open tax lien.
And then there are the auto enhanced scoring models. They bend you over no matter what you do, just part of the game to suck mor emoney out of you.
Lemme guess - a personal property tax lien from the boat, often times mistakingly called a "luxury tax" lien?

[Excessive Force]

bump

[acatitude]

Generally, the goal when disputing is to have them either correct the entry, update it, or remove it.
Once a dispute is filed, the CRA has 30 days to investigate the accuracy of the lien, unless you submit an investigation request online, in which case it gives the CRA an additional 15 days to investigate (kind of bass ackwards).
In the case of ANY tax lien, the ideal goal is to have the thing removed in its entirety. However, tax liens are removed seven years from the date THEY ARE PAID, not filed. If it was recorded in 2000 and you paid it this year, the clock starts ticking this year.
If it's a tax lien, then a lien is a lien and scoring models don't differentiate between $1, or $100K - it's a lien to them , irrespective of the amount. the only thing they are concerned with is whether or not the lien has been satisfied, thus removing the prohibitions put in place by the lien.
In Cali, an unpaid tax lien stays on your report for 10 years.
-SO-
Depending on what you are doing - sometimes, it might be to your advantage NOT to have lien updated to a paid status. Mainly, cuz it resets the clock again - 7 years from the dtae paid.
If you have a release in hand, this is often all you will need to prove to the credit grantor that the lien has been paid. In fact, the IRS gives you an option after paying a tax lien - either they will record a release; or simply give you one to do whatever you want with it.
For example, I had a substantial Federal lien filed against me shortly after I bought a business in 1997. My fault, my own ignorance, we all agreed. I got on a repayment plan and paid it in 5 years. Fast forward to 2006 and time to refinance - and of course, it appeared there was a lien. I coughed up the release; escrow made the call, and yup, no lien and I refinanced just fine.
So rather than have a release recorded in 2003 (after the pay off date), and have it remain until 2010 - I jst took the release in hand and by default, thelien will disappear later this year, a full 3 years sooner than if they recorded a release. Do your math though - sometimes it's not worth the hassle.
Carrying a recent open lien with some prime creditors like Citi, BofA and WAMU might hinder the ability to open a credit card account. But the liens effectiveness seems to dwindle after a few years - for example, I have credit cards whith all the above. Some credit grantors won't bat an eye over an open tax lien.
And then there are the auto enhanced scoring models. They bend you over no matter what you do, just part of the game to suck mor emoney out of you.
Lemme guess - a personal property tax lien from the boat, often times mistakingly called a "luxury tax" lien?
yup from the boat which was sold previuosly to an out of state buyer and state never took it off even after numerouis letters and phone calls... my biggest bitch and the reason I hate Bof A, is in oct 06 they appearenti bought a crdit card company I had a card with. I get mail from BA, it goes in trash, no accounts there , I donT open, then in JAn I get a call about being late, after saying sorry no accounts they explain, long story straight, they reduce my cc almost 50k, raise my int rate etc etc and now it shows as no pay on credit. then they say write letter if I dont agree with int increase so I write letter agree not to use card and still get bills for increase int.... they piss me off so bad im tempted not to pay them unless I can get a letter gauranteeing removal of credit from them... if I can does that mean it comes off or stays as something on there.. kinda confusing to me