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I went to freecreditreport.com, got copies of credit reports for both husband and me from all 3 agencies and then together, we went through them online and disputed EVERYTHING--and I mean everything. Just as others have said, the BK came off of at least one of the reports.
Is it possible to dispute online or do you have to type a letter and send it through the mail.
So let me get this straight,The more accounts i have open the lower my score will become?From what i heard the more credit card accounts a person has the higher his credit score will become considering bills always paid on time.
In my case,I have 7 credit accounts(mastercard,visa,american express,discover,sears,macys,gap)but i only use the mastercard for just about all the purchases and I've never been late on payments.The credit limit on each card is between $5,000-$10,000.I also recently recieved new credit card offerings from capital one and WaMu.Now will accepting those new accounts help or hurt my credit score?
I wouldn't open any new cards. you have a good spread. When you looked at your credit report were the accounts showing the true credit limit? Some card will only show the highest balance as the limit. make sure the MC is reporting the correct limit because it is the main card you use.
I am not a fan of store cards they are usually the lowest credit limit. if you were to close any I would go for the store cards. leave the majors.
If you show a true incorrect trade line on your credit report you can dispute it online.
This happened to my husband when we though we were moving and were house shopping the mortgage company pulled our credit one of his scores was much lower 792 780 692 this alerted us to a problem, there was a trade line that wasn't his we disputed it on line and got confirmation in about 10 days along with a case #. Now here is where it gets interesting. Once you have a case number you can call the credit reporting company and actually get a real live person. We were then able to remove the incorrect versions of his name that ended up on his credit report due to misspelling of solicitations. The person we spoke to said if thee was anything else we wanted to address he could handle it. With out a case number we were unable to get to a live person.
Is it possible to dispute online or do you have to type a letter and send it through the mail.
I did it online thru the freecreditreport.com and then on to each agency after I got the free report for each one online. If you have to pay for the report online, it's worth it. I never had to write a letter. I'd say about 80 percent of the ones I disputed were wiped off within the time period they give you, and I got a new report and score on line. That was this past May, unless they've changed it.
I did it online thru the freecreditreport.com and then on to each agency after I got the free report for each one online. If you have to pay for the report online, it's worth it. I never had to write a letter.
I just signed up through freecreditreport.com and i only see 1 free credit report.It says if you want to see the other 2 you must by them for $29.95?
Was there a promotion or something going on before or am i not looking in the right area.
another thing to keep in mind is how many accounts you have. For example a friend of mine always said "i have great credit because I pay my bills on time' when he got his scores he was not happy to find he had a 600. review of his report showed he had close to 20 open accounts quite a few with credit limits under $1000 and balances here & there. His ratio was over 50% of the credit limits.
We started paying off the smaller balances and closing the new lower limit accounts(anything under 1 yr) keeping the long standing accounts. He reduced his ratio to under 50% and saw a drastic increase in his score.
So you might want to list all the accounts that are showing and review the limits vs balances.
NChomesomeday
I would go to annualcreditreport.com and pay the $6 to get your scores. that way you will have a baseline.
2 years of current payments will of helped counteract some of the previous credit challenges it will show lenders that you may of had so problems in the past but have been paying for 2 years. This is where manual underwriting would work in your case. We have some really good mortgage folks who have mentioned that with FHA 2 clean years may work for you .
Thank you Karla! I have always been really nervous about those 'free credit report' services. However, I took your trusted advice and got it - even paid the 6.00 for my credit score. I only pulled one report for now, but I am happy to see what is going on. VERY surprised that one large negative is not showing up though...... After reading this post, I am really going to try to get the credit cards to that 20% maximum balance. Thanks!
I just signed up through freecreditreport.com and i only see 1 free credit report.It says if you want to see the other 2 you must by them for $29.95?
Was there a promotion or something going on before or am i not looking in the right area.
as per their commercials the free reports are if you sing up for the credit advantage thing
thats why I recommend annualcreditreport.com
Quote:
Originally Posted by stacylee926
Thank you Karla! I have always been really nervous about those 'free credit report' services. However, I took your trusted advice and got it - even paid the 6.00 for my credit score. I only pulled one report for now, but I am happy to see what is going on. VERY surprised that one large negative is not showing up though...... After reading this post, I am really going to try to get the credit cards to that 20% maximum balance. Thanks!
stacy
I am going to take a guess here but did you pulled the trans union ?
20% is great,but as long as you keep you total balances to 35% you will be fine
Karla - I pulled the Experian one for now. My credit card limit on these 2 little ones are $1300 and my balance is around $1100 - so I understand if I get them down to around 20% of my limit, my score will improve. This should not be too hard to do over the next few months.
I DO have a really nasty bad debt that is being paid off slowly thru a judgement, and that is not listed anywhere. However, it started around Jan, so it just may not have been reported yet.
I just signed up through freecreditreport.com and i only see 1 free credit report.It says if you want to see the other 2 you must by them for $29.95?
Was there a promotion or something going on before or am i not looking in the right area.
It's been awhile, but I believe I paid to dispute them. Can't remember the amount, but it was SO minimal compared to those "credit washer" guys (see a previous post of mine) and worked great. I do remember I had to pay for Trans Union, I think.....again, minimal. There should be a link on the online credit report for disputing, or you COULD call them on the 800 number for instructions. I believe the tel # is provided on the report.
Someone had also asked about writing "letters" to dispute. THis is not necessary usually to the credit agency if you dispute online. Or, they will ask you for documentation as part of the dispute process online. Mine didn't ask for any documents. A letter can, usually is, required if the "dispite" process online does not fix; then you have to start with the creditor, either disputing that the debt is not "yours", is inaccurate, or start the negotiation process.
I had one credit card that was "marital" but not getting paid, and I was paying "x" dollars a month even though it wasn't "all mine." It had been joint. They wrote me and asked if I was interested in a reduced settlement (no interest) if I paid a lump sum. I took it, but CONTINGENT ON they would NOT report this to my credit agencies as a "negotiated settlement." They refused at first, but I told them I would not pay the lump sum unless they sent me a letter to this effect. So far, the negotiated settlement is NOT on my cr report (have to check again) and shows "paid." If you get a negotiated settlement, though, you are supposed to report the amount taken off your balance on your taxes. At least that was true then, not sure now.
Each agency also has a website (Trans U, etc.) and there may be more info on there about disputing.
Also, "about.com" has a credit newsletter that has some very good info. They also have back newsletters you can view, and I have found the info to be accurate.
Karla - I pulled the Experian one for now. My credit card limit on these 2 little ones are $1300 and my balance is around $1100 - so I understand if I get them down to around 20% of my limit, my score will improve. This should not be too hard to do over the next few months.
I DO have a really nasty bad debt that is being paid off slowly thru a judgement, and that is not listed anywhere. However, it started around Jan, so it just may not have been reported yet.
hmmm the reason I thought maybe trans union is they don't report as extensively as the others
Is the debt that is attached to the judgment reported ? It can take 45 to 60 days for things to be added to your credit report depending on how often the creditor submits the info.
There is a slight chance that it slipped through the cracks and wasnt reported
i have seen stranger things happen
a good way to help reduce balances is to add the finance charge to the minimum payment.
also check to see if there is a interest rate on the judgment if it is higher than the rate you are paying on your cards once you get the balances to 45% slam as much extra as you can to the judgment.
also check the interest rate on the accounts if they are accounts in good standing and the interest is high you can call and speak to the account retention team and request a lower APR (one of my favorite things to do )
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and got it - even paid the 6.00 for my credit score. I only pulled one report for now, but I am happy to see what is going on. VERY surprised that one large negative is not showing up though...... After reading this post, I am really going to try to get the credit cards to that 20% maximum balance. Thanks!
