Hello. I'm very glad I found this site. I have begun the credit repair process and have had a few successes. I may have made a serious mistake with one-- Basically I'd like to ask the advice for the more knowledgeable members of this board. I started writing letters to both GNB & Bealls (part of Stage Stores) about an old account that appears on all 3 reports in January. The first letter was ignored (I don't have proof since I didn't send it certified/rr). I did an online dispute with Experian which listed the account as $313 balance, LDOA - 11/01, Open Current/Was Past Due. This was "verified" 3/03. I compared this to the listings on TransUnion & Equifax. I had varying dates of last activity from 1/02 to 5/02, balances of $343, to past due over 90 days. I made copies and then disputed this with Bealls-- I asked for validation (not a formal letter) of the debt and stated that if it were a valid debt how I could pay it. They then took the worst information from each report and updated all 3 reports: highest balance, latest date of activity & charge/off collection status. They copied me with 2 letters stating that they were updating with the CRAs- Debt owed $343 (HANDWRITTEN on the line-FORM LETTER). Included a copy in case I wanted to provide it to anyone (???) but NO information on what to do about this balance they say I owe. What should the next step be? They've already shown they've verified incorrect information with Experian and seem to have NO interest in collecting if this is a real debt (honestly I can't remember if I paid it off-- but I wasn't getting bills from them).
