Hello All, I stubbled across the forum and decided to give it a try. Hoping you guys might be able to help me. I've had a couple hiccups on the credit road and was hoping for some guidance. My credit isn't horrible, but I do have a couple issues: First, an outstanding bill from Verizon on an account opened in 2010 and settled in late 2011. I've read that I can mail in a dispute to all three credit agencies sighting general inaccuracies in hopes that Verizon will not respond in the 30 days. Any details, experience, or suggestions on removing this delinquent account would be great. Second, I have a delinquent student loan that I have agreed to pay $100 a month for nine months to get the account back into good standing. The people at my ed debt assure me that the negative payments will be removed after the nine month period and it will be as if it never happened. Is this true? Will it completely vanish? Is there some measures I should/could take to insure this happens? Third, My credit report shows an American Express account opened in 87 (I was born in 85). Obviously I didn't open the account but it's not in bad standing (it was closed 5 years ago), but I'm not sure how this happened. My Dad could have possibly added me on the account, but he passed a few years back, so I can't ask. Should I dispute this even if it's helping (or not hurting) my credit. I don't have a lot of history so I'm thinking I should leave it on? Any help would be greatly appreciated because I am really hoping to buy a house next year. Thanks in advance! William
Sorry for the delay William. Busy weekend so far for me! Here are a few thoughts for you in response to your questions: 1.) Yes, if there are inaccuracies to dispute, do it and hopefully Verizon won't respond since they've already got their money and moved on. If the CRA can't get an answer to their request for information regarding your dispute, then they'll need to remove the account from your credit reports. It works all the time. 2.) Yes, this is true if what you're doing a student loan rehab. 3.) I wouldn't touch it if it was in good standing. Where do your current FICO scores stand? Just curious...
Thanks so much! Right now they range from 590 to 660 (Not sure about the variance), but I am 6 months into the 9 month student loan repayment and I have a secured credit card that will soon be unsecured. I'm hoping that these two things coupled with responsible debt management and spending from here until next year will be enough to get them up a bit more
Sounds like you're moving in the right direction William. Make sure you're keeping your credit utilization ratio under 10% on your credit card. I'm assuming you have a fairly low credit limit, so pay close attention to that as it will have a significant effect on your FICO scores.
Really appreciate the advice! I had read 30% so I was obviously going about it the wrong way. Couple quick follow up questions: 1). Is one credit card sufficient to build a good credit score? 2). Do you have any advice on the challenge to the credit bureaus regarding the Verizon bill? Should it just be a simple letter sent to all three stating that the report is inaccurate, with my name and ssn#? Is it that easy? Thanks in advance you've been awesome! Very eye opening! William
Under 30% is OK, under 10% is great, and 0% is even better! Also, one credit card is enough, but it's a good idea to add a few more credit cards to the mix as it will increase your total available credit and help you build positive payment history even faster. Once your average scores get around the 650 range, I would look into adding a credit card for fair credit to your wallet as well. And regarding the Verizon account, you mentioned that the debt has already been settled. How does this currently appear on your credit reports?
It appears as a closed account with negative payment history (forgive me I haven't looked in a few months), after a certain amount of months with no payment they turned it over to a collection agency to recoup the cancellation fee (I believe it was 300$). I settled the debt after about a year and a half
So, did you settle with the CA or Verizon? Based upon what you've told me, I'm surprised you don't have 2 baddies on your credit reports for this debt. Anyway, your dispute with the CRAs doesn't need to be complicated. List the account name and amount, say you're disputing it because it's incorrect, and include your name, SSN, address, and a copy of your DL or something to prove who you are. There are a few samples you can check out in our Sample Letter section if you're interested.
Okay great! Will do, thanks again for all the help. The world needs more good samaritans! Best, William
