Noday

Hi there...I just wanted to report back here that I checked my credit score again yesterday and it was at 684. So, in four months, I went from 617 to 684. Yay! I can only hope that it continues to rise as I keep paying off my credit cards every two weeks. I've got two more years before my BK is 7 years old, and hopefully after that, I'll be in the 700s again. Thanks for the suggestion re: the RRSP loan. I'll look into it and see what BMO can do for me, as I have my RRSPs with them.

Regarding the mortgage situation, I've solved the issue, at least for now, by agreeing to buy an income property with my parents. They have bought and paid off 3 houses with BMO, so that bank has agreed to give my parents and I a mortgage, conditional on the sale of their current property. This way, I will have a smallish mortgage to take care of (about 100K) with my parents as cosigners; hopefully, this will continue to bring up my credit to above the coveted 700 mark. On the credit card side of things, I guess I'm going to wait a bit seeing as I already have a Visa and an MC both of which are secured. Perhaps in 2 years I can get an unsecured one...

How long ago was your discharge? Mine was in 2006 and I'm still afraid to even apply for any credit cards because I don't want any hard inquiries on my credit report...Guess I won't be getting a mortgage anytime soon!

bump...

bump...why is this board so quiet suddenly?

Hmm, well, I pay off my credit cards every 2 weeks, when I get paid and I always pay them in full. I already have 2 secured cards: 1 visa from TD and 1 mastercard from Capital 1. Don't think I'll get another Mastercard...if only Amex would give me a card (5 year post-bk...HA!).

To which credit bureau does Peopletrust report? Is it worth getting their secured MC if you already have a secured MC from Cap 1?

Crud. Capital 1 says that though my payment history looks good, they can't give me a specific timeline for when my account will be up for review and possibly changed to an unsecured one. Guess there's nothing more to be done except to gamble and apply for an unsecured card...dunno which one though.

The TD secured Visa was obtained 6 months ago. My bank rep told me it'll take another 1.5 years before it become unsecured, which seems fair. The Cap 1 card is 5 years old, and has already been renewed once. I guess I'll call them today to see what they say about increasing my limit or releasing the funds. Quasei...I pay my cards off every 2 weeks, whenever I get paid, and I pay off almost the entire balance every time. I also never charge up to the limit...I just use the TD card to pay for my cell (50$/month) and my gym membership (55$/month). This is why I don't understand why my score hasn't gone up more than it has... I'm kind of afraid to apply for an unsecured card because of the negative impact it might have on my score. I've read that certain places won't even consider you for an unsecured card until it's been a good 7years since the bankruptcy has been discharged.

The last inquiry on my report is dated 2008...

My Transunion report shows my TD and Capital One cards reporting. All other debts have been paid off and reported as such on the report. There were Citifinancial and CIBC cards included in the bankruptcy. The CBV collections account was closed because I paid it off.

Good morning all, Six months ago, after having paid off all debts and contested incorrect entries on my credit reports, I obtained my credit score. It was roughly 599. Today, Equifax's report tells me it is 617. I had gotten myself a secured Visa from TD for 1K and I continue to use the secured Mastercard I've had from Capital One since my discharge from bankruptcy 5 years ago. Is there anything I can do, aside from using my cards and paying them off every month, to help up my credit score faster? Put more funds into the secured cards? Get another type of loan? I'm at a loss...I was a smidge disappointed to see that it had only gone up 18 points in six months.

Thanks for the response Stu. After examining my credit reports from Equifax and Transunion, I discovered that the collection account I had with Collectcents for an old Telus Mobility bill STILL showed as not having been paid, despite the fact that I settled the account in January 2010, and had received confirmation from the agency of the settlement. I had insisted that they contact the credit bureaus to update my report, but apparently, they never did. I just faxed and mailed both credit bureaus with an explanatory letter, supporting documentation from Collectcents and supporting identification documentation, in the hopes that they'll at least write "SETTLED" under that collection account. Do you think that modification might up my rating? After this is done, there won't be any "active" collection accounts left on my reports. And no, Capital One doesn't offer any products for Quebec residents, so I'd have to go to my local TD branch to apply for a card.

Bump...anyone?

Hi all, I'm baaaaaaaaack. Ok, after a long hiatus, I wanted to poke my head back in here to ask for some words from the wise. Just as a recap, I had a lot of fun fun accounts in collections due to my soon to be ex husband's mad spending sprees and my "duck your head in the sand" attitude. On top of those, I also had arrears due to Rev Canada and 20k of student loans that kept piling up. And finally, I had declared bankruptcy in 2005 and been discharged in 2006. When I pulled my Equifax and Transunion credit report last year, it was...rather messy. Since then, I've managed to pay off every account in collection (or negotiate down to a reasonable amount), and I'll be done paying the 8K to Rev Can next month. All that will be left will be quiet little monthly payments on my student loans. I obtained my FICO score from Equifax today and found it to be at 653, which considering my history isn't surprising. My question is...since my prepaid Capital One card is going to expire in August and won't be renewed (they don't offer service in Quebec), should I try to obtain a "regular" credit card and just keep making monthly payments so it eventually gets reported to Equifax and TRansunion, and eventually ups my score? Or is it too soon after my financial troubles (and too risky considering my poor score)? Or should I just ask my bank to issue me a secure credit card once more and wait another year? Also, is there anything else I should actively keep doing to continue to improve my score? I have full-time employment and right now, I'm only dealing with my student loans and Rev Can. Thank you!