No questions here--just another small essay regarding the entire FICO/credit score scenario and how it affects your mental health.... I have to admit, before I got into the lending industry, I never realized how important your credit is, and how equally important it is to protect it..... When the wife and I got married, she filed a Ch 13 (her ex filed a 7, I was in school, couldn't pay everything); took three years to pay it all, but we did it--thought we were morally "all that" cause we did a wage earner plan--we PAID people, while her ex went out and had a new house and decent car less than two years after his discharge....we drove the junkers, and didn't have any credit cards...but we were better people for it (morally, you understand). Then, after her 13 was discharged, we thought we were ready to start a-new---WRONG. All three bureaus were incorrect mincemeat--along about 1997, we got all that fixed on her bureaus--and still no one would give us the time of day--let alone a credit card (or a decent one anyway--had a couple of Cap Ones with $200 c/l--geez). I can still remember standing in Circuit City when we finally picked out our big screen TV--waiting for the "word" on their card--"Uh, hi there--yes--we're Mr. and Mrs. Loser--have they got an answer yet on our credit application?" "Yes, sir, unfortunately....(you know the rest). Of course, after a while, you get so accustomed to not getting anything you apply for that you just figure that's the way it's gonna be until I'm taking the big dirt nap...Mr. and Mrs. Loser--here's our little boy Subprime...and our daughter FICO 600... Of course, our two good married couple friends keep trading cars, charging this, charging that....all the while, we can't even have a Sears Card (another moment I'll never forget--the friend's wife gets one, my wife gets declined--right at the Sears counter while Christmas shopping--circa 1998.) Was I embarrased, despite my friend and I's relationship of 20 plus years? Yeah, a little. But, having credit at your disposal, and KNOWING you can go trade your car off if you want to? Completely different mindset (yeah, I know--that's probably obvious). My wife says I've turned into a cheapskate over the last 2-3 years--I haven't--but I save religiously, I invest in the stock market--and I keep a reign on frivilous spending (mine and hers both)--and nothing will ever be late/go unpaid again--I don't care what the reason. And the friends--credit's kind of subpar now--got them to do a consolidation loan to bring some relief---they've been in CCCS prior to that---turned right around after the consolidation and got another SUV with a $100 higher payment--now they're singing the paycheck to paycheck blues (again)....the wife says bankruptcy's just a matter of time... Not us though--it took me 7,8 or 10 years to learn my lessons (some more than once)--- Sorry for the rant--but mental health with good credit is a lot more enjoyable than mental health with average or subpar credit--- And, for the people I see everyday that don't seem to care about their bills/credit score/future? They will one day--- It took me some years, but I learned--you never want that bad taste in your mouth again. Cheers-- David
David, you hit the nail right on the head. Good post! I have a friend who filed for bankruptcy two years ago, and has already amassed another 50K in credit card debt. Huh???? First off I can't figure out how she ended up with that kinda credit, but mostly I simply could not imagine ever going through something so traumatic (filing bankruptcy and the stress that one would have by that point is something I would personally find traumatic) and then turning around and doing the same exact thing that got me there in the first place all over again! And this time there is no relief for her cuz you can't file every other year, yanno? L
David, Your story is very inspiring. Congratulations, & keep up the good work. I've learned many of the same lessons you have, though nothing as severe as a BK. The less debt I carry, the less I worry about the state of the economy.
Just another reason I believe curriculum should be taught to high school juniors/seniors on the importance of credit in today's world. This would definitely many teens today to learn how to manage it responsibly. Your story is very inspiring. It was nice to read.
Well, the jist of it is this: I (though clearly a 30 something adult with 2 kids and 3 stepkids, wife, house, job, and all the associated "trappings"--LOL) was terribly naive about how credit worked....I thought that if you paid your bills ontime for a reasonable length of time (in my situation--3 to 4 years), then your credit/FICO would cartwheel upwards proportionally.... I was wrong, wrong, wrong---and (the wife and) I have said this many, many, many times: if we had the Ch. 13 to do all over again--we would have done a Ch 7---hands down---unsecured debt---b'bye--and her credit would have been much better, much sooner--and so would have mine--since we wouldn't have been late on student loans and my Citibank VISA while her 13 was in repayment. Little, if any, "credit" is given for trying to do the right thing/walk the moral high ground when it comes to your credit---that's probably the hardest lesson I've learned. Cheers (coffee this a.m.) David
