This is probably the biggest question we get in the credit reporting industry, “how much will (blank) affect my credit score?” You can fill in the blank with inquiry, opening a new account, closing an account, having a late payment, etc. The list goes on and on. The truth is there is not a set … Read more
Effective June 15, 2016 some consumers will start to see a little relief on their credit report as it pertains to certain collections that will now no longer be able to be reported. These are debts that “did not arise from a contract or agreement to pay.” This would include library fines, parking tickets, speeding … Read more
Is rescoring the same as credit repair? No, they are not the same thing! We have all seen the ads – a company can erase all your bad credit and within 30 days or less you can have an A+ credit score. True? In a skewed way, possibly, but only for a very short period … Read more
No matter how well you protect yourself, chances are at some point you will become a victim of some sort of identity theft. It is virtually impossible, no matter what you do, that you will be 100% protected. In reality your identity probably already has been stolen and just not used yet. According to the … Read more
There are three kinds of public records that can appear on credit reports: Bankruptcy Chapter 13 and Chapter 7, state and federal tax liens and civil judgments. However unlike creditors who are data furnishers like credit cards, mortgage companies, etc., courts do not, in most cases, actually furnish the information directly to the credit bureaus. … Read more
You may recall Fannie Mae’s October 2015 announcement regarding their planned use of trended credit data beginning in 2016: Fannie Announcement on Trended Data. Although implementation information from Fannie Mae has been scarce since this initial announcement, Advantage Credit has recently received updates from the two national credit bureaus, Equifax and Transunion, who are participating … Read more
There’s no doubt that having a mortgage on your credit report can be a big help to your credit scores. However if you file bankruptcy you may notice that your mortgage is no longer reporting or at least no longer reporting your monthly payments. This is even if you have continued to make payments on … Read more
The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA), the agency that oversees mortgage investors Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, have ordered the companies to make plans to utilize alternate and/or updated scoring models in 2016 and to move forward in implementing them. This change would have a major impact on credit reports once they are implemented. Right … Read more
Being an authorized user on someone else’s credit card can sometimes be a double-edged sword, as can having someone as an authorized user on one of your credit cards. At the onset it might seem like a good idea and even help, but without proper consideration it might not turn out to be such a … Read more
It’s that time of year again. Christmas music, holiday lights, beautifully decorated trees and lots and lots of presents. It’s also the time of year when a lot of consumer’s credit scores drop the most. This could take the entire next year, if not longer, from which to recover. This is especially true if the … Read more