I'm a first-time poster here. I did a search on "credit report" and didn't come up with the information I was looking for, so I was hoping someone here could help me out. My husband and I are planning to buy a home next year, so we are now making sure all of our ducks are in a row. My credit report is great (myFICO score = 805, for what it's worth). Yesterday, my husband finally checked his credit report for the first time (his myFICO score is 672). His credit report is great except for one collection item from the city of Naugatuck, CT. My husband had rented an apartment in a complex and lived there for a year from Feb 1999- Feb 2000 (ever since then residing in MA), but was not aware of any issues with the city. This is how the collection item is listed on the report: Collection Agency 289YC00145 Original Creditor TOWN OF NAUGATU Account Number XXXXXX Whose Account Individual Date Assigned April, 2006 Date Reported July, 2006 Amount $113 Balance $236 Balance Date July, 2006 Date Last Activity July, 2000 Collection Status Unpaid Status Date July, 2006 He called the town this morning and found out that the collection item is the car tax for the year he lived there. He is pretty sure he never got this bill. It sounds like they sent it to him after he moved back to MA (although why it was not forwarded is beyond me). My husband is VERY responsible about paying bills, as well as changing his address properly, etc. So my question is: Can the town just now decide to collect on a bill he may never have received? He was always very easy to find. Do they have to provide some sort of proof that he didn't pay this? And if he does pay it, how will this affect his credit report and FICO score? And how will this affect our rate when we apply for a mortgage? Any and all help is greatly appreciated.
When he registered the vehicle, didnt they get the tax money up-front, along with registration fees? If so he may be being billed for the following year (year #2), if not, then he was probably aware it was going to be billed at a future date, and forgot. My credit score was around 680 for my mortgage and it cost me about 3/4 of a point on interest. No other penalties were incurred. I would make a agreement with the city it will be deleted for payment in full, regardless of who was responsible.
