I'm coming up on 2 year aniversary of BK.. For those out there who have worked on credit repair what's been your experience? Is 2 years a magic number? I've seen my EQ score go up to 663, dare I hope for more? What have you done to get results? Does it do any good to dispute an account that was included in BK? In other words does it look any better if I have 4 accts included in BK rather than 8? Have you had any results in getting the BK removed? Julie
I'm at 2 years in July and my FICO actually went DOWN when I started disputing and correcting - down a good 30 points. I got 30 derogs removed but in the process wiped out most of the legnth of my credit history, so FICO went down taht far. It is gradually coming back up, but still isn't where it was before I started disputing. maybe the lesson is - don't dispute, just let sleeping dogs lie and let the derogs age off.
We are 4 yrs out. A few of our BK entries were incorrect...charge off instead of included, some still showing a balance owed. But have diputes in right now w/all three CRA How do you go about getting these BK entries removed? That is interesting
Re: Re: if you filed bankruptcy.. lets talk That's interesting. Seems counter-intuitive, but I suppose it's not inconceivable. I was looking at my Equifax Score Simulator and it similarly suggested that credit history does account for a higher score. So I guess keeping an inaccurate but aged account might--in some cases--be better than fighting to have them deleted. I can, however, attest to deletion possibly being the better option. When applying for a loan through my credit union, they would not approve me unless a particular trade line that was in dispute was deleted. My score didn't matter to them, only that outstanding or charged off accounts were evidenced by payment. Just my $0.02
Re: Re: if you filed bankruptcy.. lets talk I'm joining the club too. My two year mark is this July. Julie, your score is pretty good considering the bk and all. Yes, it will get better. Many members here can attest to that! Pay everything on time, take REALLY good care of any new credit you've established post discharge. I've been told the # of accounts doesn't actually make a difference, (4 vs 8) but getting things deleted is helpful to some extent. It's something that is up to you really. It might help if you do a search and read through some posts here about bankruptcy and you'll get the jist of how others have accomplished different goals. Some dispute as "not mine" to start out with, and get a lot of deletions that way. Then if tradelines keep getting verified, dispute specifics on each account. Some, like myself, who sent their first disputes as "Included in bk" pretty much blew that chance of getting the tradelines deleted. (There is a good thread here also others advice on credit mistakes - has a lot of good info!) I"m still working on getting them to read simply as "Included or Discharged in bk/ ch. 7. They should also show a zero balance so they essentially mean "unrated". Mine state the bk, but include lates during my case and some notations of charge offs along with the bk info. The public record seems to be the main factor and some people even manage to get that off (again, many stories in the archives). The sequence of your dispute tactics can make a difference depending on what you choose to do. It's all here though so wishing you good luck! Just hang in there! It doesn't happen overnight. (Which I have to keep reminding myself! LOL!) Newstdt
Re: Re: if you filed bankruptcy.. lets talk The thing to watch is that the dates of your negs match the BK otherwise it looks like you defaulted and files BK too. In a manual review the bank wants to see that there aren't any negs outstanding.
I can't recall if the 2 year mark was the magic one for me. Providian did provide me with a card at the 2 year point and Target VISA at the 5 year point. I have not received many offers for credit cards in the last 6 years plus, ones I do received are sub-prime lenders. Did received one from DMB today. I do know that that at the 3 or 4 year mark my bk-13 was not really much of a factor for a home mortgage. My current scores are in the 650-700 range, so the climb has been slow but steady. In my opinion the bk-13 notation no matter how long it's been on will always be used as a factor against me when I try for prime credit. Best regards, Mirage
The 8 CC that show BK, all showed current/paid as agreed right up until the day of filing for BK... (I saw the train coming). The fact that I didn't have any collections or any late pays right up until the day of filing is the reason I account for a 663 FICO (EQ, the others are close). Has anyone gotten a prime rate on a mortgage whith a BK still showing? Thanks for all the replys, I don't feel so alone now. When you look at that explanation of where your score stands with others and see things like; 77% of the country has better scores than you, makes me feel kind of crummy. Julie
Hi All, Filed BK13 april 1998, discharged July 2001. Refi in progress. Rate is 6.35. Not prime, but much better than we currently have, 8.00.
There is a lender called First Frankling that will do mortagages 1 day after BK. Rate will be in the middle of prime and non prime. I talked with a rep and they seem to realize that things happen and credit goes south.
I was able to secure good ol'e fha 30 yr fixed rate mortage @ 6% on Dec 2 2002,,,,,, one year out of BK 7....... YUP I did. I too paid my bills up to filing. That is what got me the loan. I am still having to fight for other credit .... the mortgage helps. good luck. piggycat
I'm considering filing chapter 7, and am current with everything, never been late on anything and my credit reports reflect that as well. Should I continue to stay current until I file chapter 7, or does it basically not make a difference at this point since I'm going to file anyway?
Check with your lawyer. I've heard of cases where the judge won't let you file if you're current. The theory is if you're current why are you filing.
My two year BK discharge anniversary is in July too. I think the Spring of 2001 must have really sucked for a lot of people. dlmoses do you have any credit cards with small balances that you can afford to pay off? If you pay them off and close these accounts they will report as "ACCOUNT CLOSED BY CONSUMER". This way you'll have less negative tradelines on your reports after the BK. I have three old tradelines that had tiny balances when I filed, that are now junking up my report. I wish I'd paid those off, instead of making those last big payments on my Amex and MBNA cards. I found these sites helpful for BK information: http://www.prairielaw.com/messageboards/board.asp?channelid=25&mbid=7 http://www.moranlaw.net/consider.htm
Gli, You've made a very good point. Close any accounts on your own before the BK. It does make a difference. Julie
Kathy Moran is a BK lawyer in the San Francisco area. She is also the host of the Prairielaw website. I've chatted with her a few times. Overall, she seems OK. Of course on the website she has to be by the book, but offline she is more like us. The only thing to be aware of with her is she thinks it's better to file BK and get on with your life rather than go through the disputing process that we do.
