Our Picks

Hi, this is my first post here as I'm kind of stuck in a situation and need help. After moving out from my previous apartment in Indiana, I forgot to pay the electric bill (Duke Energy) for the final month which I did not realize until 4 days ago when I saw a collections record on my credit report. Now I did not receive any communication from the CA or OC regarding the debt until I saw the CR. I have not yet talked to either the CA or OC, but I’m more than willing to pay the whole debt amount ASAP, but would like to get the collections record removed from my CR. I’m a foreign national and do not know much about such processes, but I don’t want a near $100 debt stain my credit score for years to come. I have read some of the discussions in this forum on this topic, and understand that I should first talk to the OC and get the debt settled. What I'm not clear about is what steps I should undertake after that. I would highly appreciate if someone could guide me with this or share their personal experiences in such situations. Thanks for helping out!

Anyone have a recent account freeze because of fraud or involuntary account closure?
I still get emails from individuals who experience fraud or an account closure, which prevents them from accessing funds.
 
I have been posting this since - probably - 2007, and I still get contacted about it.
By now, I sound like a broken record, but here it is:
 
1)  Don't keep all your funds in one financial institution.
2)  Have a primary household account (Just for monthly/quarterly bills).
3)  Keep a separate account or debit card for point-of-sale and internet purchases.
4)  Split your direct deposit (if possible) between different accounts.
5)  Maintain a savings or checking (for emergencies only).
 
Recent email was from a business colleague who had her credit union account frozen on a Friday, because someone attempted a large debit card purchase.
Because of the recent banking holiday, she wasn't able to access funds until she went to the CU on Tuesday.
My suggestion was the list above.
 
 

Hello

I have about 140k in credit card debt which turned to 20+ interest after a couple of years of zero credit. 
Another 45k in student debt
FICO 2 is 732. Credit Karma etc are about 600 due to high debt. No derogs. All clean - long history - good mix of credit.
Have not paid uncle sam on my 1099 this year. About 19k.
Now the contract is over. I get to choose between credit card bills and food. 

- Do I call the credit card companies and tell them?
- Do I cut all the payments to credit card companies as they are due around the 10th of the month?

Am trying desperately to get a home equity loan to pay it all off. I have a good amount of equity and can pay off that loan through gig economy jobs (lyft, uber) until I get a new contract. it is even possible that I will get this contract back two weeks from now when the dust settles.
 
please advise. am in bind.
 

Hello, I am helping my daughter who has received collections notices from two (2) separate agencies for the same alleged debt. One was from TRS Recovery Services in early 2019, and the most recent was Transworld Systems. When she received the initial 2019 letter from TRS, she contacted her bank (this was supposedly for a returned check at Walmart, and their notice listed Telecheck Services as the 'current creditor'). The bank had no record of any such transaction. 
 
In January 2020, she received a collection letter from Transworld Systems for the same alleged debt. In this letter, they also claim that Telecheck Services is the creditor. The amount of the alleged debt is the same in letters from TRS and Transworld.
 
A certified letter was sent to Transworld listing the Transworld Systems account number, and the alleged creditor account number. This letter requested a Verification of Debt as prescribed in 15 U.S. Code § 1692g and demanded that all information related to this matter, their ability to collect, and the original creditor information, be sent.
 
We received the Return Receipt (letter was received by Transworld 10-days ago).
 
Today, we received a second letter from Transworld with a NEW account number (for Transworld). There is also a new account number tied to Telecheck Services, but the alleged debt amount is exactly the same.
 
This letter was dated 4-days after they signed for our certified letter, so they are ignoring our demand for a Verification of Debt.
 
My question is, what is the best way to address this issue. They are clearly attempting to extort money since the debt is nonexistent, and are not complying with the FDCPA requirements. 
 
I look forward to feedback.
 
Thank you.  

Lots of updates and new information to vet.  🥴
I'll post the state by state list before merging into a single PDF for credit unions, with bookmarks for each state.
Post any updates, comments or related info about AL CUs.
**The final PDF will refer individuals to the CU website to verify membership requirements.
 

I'm and 27 and still relatively new to this process, there's no much to learn. I have been trying to build my credit for the last 3 years and it's been a slow-ish process. It was going well until I got sick and my engineering job fired me without notice so my insurance was not invalid.
 
There is one medical collection that has posted to TransUnion of $308 from Wakefield and Associates. From what I can see on Credit Karma, this collection is not on Equifax.
Experian I can't tell if it is posted there or not. I can see a negative collection from Experience on Discover's Credit Score Card. However, I have an energy bill that was in my name in which half ($53) was unpaid by an old roommate that's still showing 3 years later though it has been paid off since 12/9/16, so it may be that showing as delinquent/collection on Experian. It doesn't show the itemized adverse account list on that platform.
I only requested my annual credit reports for TransUnion and Equifax to have one more to pull if needed during the year. I believe I intended to pull Experian but got mixed up since I had issues with receving them online and had to do by mail. 
 
I also just received the second and last medical collection of $568 in the mail from Account Resolution Services. This hasn't posted to of the CAs yet from what I can tell.
 
I'm attempting to use the HiPPA process for the $308 dollar collection. But when I went to put in the account number, which is what I did not have from Credit Karma, the CR is still showing the same account number format of 111111****  and I'm assuming that is not a valid account number to place on the dispute form. So now I'm confused. 
 
Can someone please assist me? I'm confused and feel as though I'm missing some vital pieces of information to understanding and executing this correctly since I've been reviewing this process for months and the picture is still not as clear as I would like it to be.
 
Above all,
Thank you for time!

Hello all! I have a few very specific questions about Chex, Tele and EWS. I'm interested in opening a bank account that fits the criteria below. I'm hoping someone knows the answers. Here is a bit of applicable information that will help you answer my questions. I have nothing negative in my past as far as EWS/Chex/Tele. However, I have really bad credit. I currently reside in Florida.
 
 
1. I know when your credit report/Chexs/EWS report is pulled by a specific bank; it leaves a record of that in the form of a hard or soft inquiry for 2 years for credit reports and 5 years for Chex/EWS.
Meaning anyone who gets a hold of that report afterwords knows from the "inquiry history" which bank ran a check on me. Does Telecheck have an "inquiry history" on their report as well? I could not find any information online on that.
 
If the answer is no then I'm ok with opening an account with a bank that does only a Telecheck. But I also wanted to know just in case......I looked at the "pinned threads" which lists which institution runs which check. However, there no information on accepting out of state/area residents. So my question is the following:
 
2. Are there any  banks/CU's outside my state (FL) that will accept FL residents who also do not run any checks (Tele/Chex/EWS/credit report)? I'm ok with online only banks as well in case anyone knows of one that fits my criteria. I'm ok with them verifying my identity using my SS card/DL/passport etc. but I dont want to be ran in the systems mentioned above.
 
3. Also, I looked at the pinned threads with a list of banks by state. I noticed that a lot of them say sometime along the lines of "they offer second chance checking" but doesn't specify any checks the bank/CU runs. Are these institutions ones that don't run any check if you open a 2nd chance checking or is the information not listed because its not known.
 
 

My searchfu doesn't seem to be working well these days as a search just on HSBC only yielded seven threads here...but I remember much discussion in years past,
 
What is the current consensus on HSBC?  Years ago, I had the Weekender card but it went by the wayside when CrapOne entered the picture (I try to avoid their cards at all costs).  I was looking to add something else on the Mastercard network to try and even out my balance, and the 3% for the first year for the Cash Rewards card doesn't seem too horrid.  It drops to 1.5% after the first year, so it becomes a sock-drawer card at that point.  The no FTF fee is worthwhile from the standpoint of other options whilst traveling just because options are a good thing.  No annual fee.  
 
Anyone with recent experiences care to chime in and potentially talk me off of the ledge? 

HI,
 
I had a credit card with Bank of America that first went delinquent in 2013.  It was charged off a year later in 2014.  BoA still owns the debt and I have been slowly paying it off every month.  It's going to take me at least 3 more years to fully pay off this debt.  Later this year will be 7 years since this account first went delinquent.  Will this account be removed from my credit report even though it's not paid off?  Thanks for the help.

Could someone please tell me what this means in lame mans terms  Response I got on an ARB I submitted. 
 
Dear Parties:
 
Claimant has filed with us a demand for arbitration. We note that the arbitration clause provides for arbitration by the American Arbitration Association (“AAA”).
 
Prior to the filing of this arbitration, the business failed to comply with the AAA’s policies regarding consumer claims. Accordingly, we must decline to administer this claim and any other claims between LVNV Funding LLC and its consumers at this time. These policies can be found on our web site, www.adr.org, in the Consumer Due Process Protocol (“Protocol”) and the Consumer Arbitration Rules (“Consumer Rules”), including the Costs of Arbitration.
 
Accordingly, we have administratively closed our file and will refund any payment received by the filing party. According to R-1(d) of the Consumer Rules, should the AAA decline to administer an arbitration, either party may choose to submit its dispute to the appropriate court for resolution.
 
If you believe we have declined this matter in error, please email ConsumerFiling@adr.org.
 
Pursuant to the AAA’s current policy, in the normal course of our administration, the AAA may maintain certain electronic case documents in our electronic records system. Such electronic documents may not constitute a complete case file. Other than certain types of electronic case documents that the AAA maintains indefinitely, electronic case documents will be destroyed 3 months after the date of this letter.
 
If LVNV Funding LLC advises the AAA in the future of its intention to comply with the AAA’s Consumer Arbitration Rules and if applicable, resolves any outstanding payment obligations, the AAA may consider at its sole discretion, accepting newly filed consumer cases going forward. Therefore, if the business wishes for the AAA to consider accepting consumer disputes going forward, the business must, at a minimum, register its clause on the Consumer Clause Registry on our website, www.adr.org/clauseregistry. Upon completion of the registration process and confirmation from the AAA that the business is now active on the Consumer Clause Registry, the business is responsible for informing all parties that Claimant may re-file their claim.

Well after many years of enjoying good credit and all that it afforded me I'm here. I repaired my once damaged credit and purchased a home for myself and my son. That was in 2014. Present day I am at the cusp of filing bk. I met with the attorneys office yesterday and went over everything with the paralegal. My home was purchased for $87k in 2014. It currently has a market value of supposedly $170k. I am way over my head in credit card debt due to severing ties with my long term boyfriend. We lived together and accumulated debt together, but it was in my name. After deciding it would be best for my mental health that he move out I am now stuck with the feeling that no matter how much I work I'm can't breathe. So now I'm here standing with overdue credit cards, a few months behind on my mortgage and being served by NASA FCU. I currently have $90k of debt which includes student loans.  Please give me your honest opinions. After going through everything with the paralegal I qualify for Chapter 13 due to the equity in my home. I in no way intended to not pay my debt. I take pride in keeping my nose clean and having repaired my few mistakes from my younger years I feel terrible. If I proceed with the Chapter 13 I'll be repaying for five years. I'll be able to keep my home as well. I was wondering what your thoughts are regarding letting the house go and filing Chapter 7? I ask because I work two jobs now. I go to school, but can't fully commit to school due to my bills. If I had the opportunity to complete my program I would be able to financially provide and save. At this point I'm not paid enough and it won't ever be enough. So I was thinking the Chapter 7 would allow me to complete school, start anew and save. Chapter 13 would allow me to keep my house and that's it. Technically, I can pay my mortgage up this month and it not be the issue. The issue is all the credit card debt that I can't keep up with.  Also, the fact that I'm being sued. I know that I could set a payment plan up with the lawyer, but there are so many others that could sue. I also know that I won't find another home for as low as I currently have. My mortgage is cheap in comparison to the current market. Any input would be greatly appreciated. 

I recently have been working on getting my credit score higher and also want to have $100k in available credit (maybe a dumb thing to do).  In doing so I have gotten about 6 new credit cards in the past 6 months.  All of them have zero balance, about $30000 in available credit, I recently noticed my equifax dropped 16 points.  I assume this is from the inquiries and new accounts?  avg account age is 2yrs 8 months.  Should I close any of the new accounts to increase my credit age?  Or just be patient and wait for the accounts to age and the inquiries to age.
 
I am looking to buy a car next year, and maybe refinance my mortgage, and really want a 750+ score before I do so

Good evening all, I'm hoping to get some pointers on the best way to get a lower interest rate even with my crappy credit, I'll do my best to include all relevant info, but forgive me if I leave something out.  So here's my situation currently.
 
About a year ago, (Feb. technically), I bought a 2015 Subaru WRX.  The price of the car was $19,999.  But they bullied me into getting every single back-end bell and whistle they offered, telling me my monthly payment would go up if I didn't get the extended warranty and a whole bunch of other bs that I tried fighting with them about, but they just didn't really listen and included it all anyway.  They knew I wanted the car, they knew I had poor credit, so they basically man-handled me.  So I got financed through Flagship Credit Acceptance at a cold hard 21%.  I have made a years worth (roughly) of payments now at a nice $500-$600 (official monthly payment is around $545/month) a month.  Since I got the car, my FICO has gone from a 500 to a 571.  On Credit Karma and similar sites it shows all of my payments being made on time.  (I was a few days late once or twice at the most).  But I'm hoping that this is enough to help me to refinance and get a lower rate so my balance actually diminishes, cause it's quite depressing to see it literally go nowhere pretty much.  My payoff amount is $21,522.31 the NADA value of the car is currently Clean trade in $15,150 and clean retail is $17,225.  I'm not sure which number lenders use in this case.  I have been at my job for 3+ years, I make roughly $50k a year, little less, and this is really the only debt I have besides a couple things in collections that I'm fighting with at the moment maybe about $2k worth.  
 
The only company I have tried with thus far I believe is OpenRoadLending and I tried back in July and was declined.  Well that's my situation.  I'm really hoping to get some pointers/advice anything to help me get out of 21% hell.  Thanks for reading and thanks in advance for any help.  I appreciate it.
 
Regards,
 
Jeff W

I got a letter from collections on a medical debt and plan to use the HIPPA method. I have a few questions if anyone could help me answer and validate my planned approach :
Debt Amount  ~ $4,700 Debt is Not showing up on Credit report DOS - Apr 2019 I know I owe the amount to OC but have not validated the debt with CA  
Planned Approach:
 The debt is not showing up on credit reports so I don't plan to send a letter to CRA  I do owe the amount to OC and plan to pay directly to OC. Should I also send a DV letter to CA?  When using the HIPPA letter template, I do have to insert the State's name. Is this my state of residence or the state where the service was performed.   Should I send the banker's check as a single amount or 4 check's (The bill is for 4 amounts totaling to $4700)  
 
 

I get my credit score from Experian and they are constantly promoting Experian Boost to add points to your score.  I don't like the idea sharing more information and I'm assuming that it'll only make a difference with lower scores?  Is this true?  My score is 835 now so I don't need a boost but I can't help being curious.  
Does anyone have a boost they can share?

Hi, I'm new here and got a notice from a credit agency on my private student loan.  It's been 3 years since I last paid as I was contesting the amount and got sick.  I signed for the loan in D.C. and the loan originated in OH.  I now live in OH.  I also stopped paying while I lived in NY (before I moved to OH).  I just got a letter from a CA based in NY state (don't know if the CA state location makes any difference).  My question is which SOL will apply?  OH, NY or the shorter DC SOL of 3 years?  OH has a number of SOLs, 6 years, 8 years so I'm not sure which SOL would even apply to the promissory note for the bank based in OH.  How could I look this up at a law library.  I'm not very familiar with the process if anyone could help with legal research ideas?  I'm also contesting the validity of the loan because the promissory note states that the repayment period is 240 months and I think I have passed this point.  Any help I can find would help a long way; very stressed out by this situation---there are so many ways this could go---if the CA goes through with a judgment and wage garnishment (I'm disabled and earn a very small part time income) can they revive the judgment every five years for 15 years (OH) even after the SOL expires on the private loan itself (3 yrs DC SOL, 6 yrs NY SOL, 6 or 8 yrs SOL OH)?  I don't know if I should just ignore the CA or write them to dispute this loan (and risk waking the sleeping giant) or wake the sleeping giant with a dispute letter and prepare myself to go to court (have no idea how I would defend myself but would like to dispute amount of the loan, SOL etc).  This all seems very risky.  Can this debt sold to a credit agency be invalid?

I have 2 loans for car at 5% and education (private) at 8% totallying around 12,000. Upon looking into consolidation loans and/or private bank loans I can not find a loan at less than 7% or 8%.
My fico is at 770 and will likely go to 800 after a recent dispute. 
If I use 0% intro rates, this would mean I would need to continue to open new accounts after  each 12 - 16 month 0% intro APR run. 
Should I use credit cards at 0% to transfer this debt ?
What are some other options if any? 

Hello Everyone!  I am hoping someone can confirm that I am on the right path. 
I am in Texas and I have 2 collection accounts with Capital Accounts(based in TN).
 
 
1. $72 
2. $380
 
I sent a debt validation letter to the collection agency and they responded back with a ledger of the services. They are both for dental services from 2013 and 2015.   I believe they have violated a few fdcpa violations but wanted to confirm before I respond.
 
1. "Interest"- the CA responded stating that the original balances were for $50 and $305. They blatantly state that the additional fees/ amount are for interest. They continue to add on interest, changing the balance by only a few dollars (typically $1-3 depending on the CRA).  They did not send me anything that shows that the original agreement between myself and the dentist had stated that interest would accrue. Is this not a clear violation of FDCPA 807 False or Misleading Representations- I thought that CA is not allowed to add interest to medical debt, unless it was stated in the original agreement with the OC. 
 
2. HIPAA/ Medical Collections- The OC apparently faxed the collection agency a ledge of what services were done. I never gave authorization.  violation?
 
3. Stature of Limitations is 4 years for Texas. I know this typically means they cannot sue me BUT do I have any leverage here? Based on the ledger they sent
       (a), current balance is $72, original balance was $52, 04/11/2013 was date of last payment made to the OC by my health insurance and the OC sold it to the CA
       (b), current balance is $380, original balance was $305, 10/13/2015 was date of last payment made to the OC from insurance company, and they wrote it off as bad debt 05/17/2017 and      sold it to the CA.
 
I am familiar wit the medical collections forum, but wanted to see if  I have valid points when writing a response to the collection agency. 
 
Thoughts?
 
TIA!!

Greeting CB family. straight to the point, I'm looking to purchase my first home within the next 6 month. But I currently have 3 negative accounts listed on my credit report. I tried disputing 2 of the 3 accounts online with the big 3, a year ago with no success. Here are the accounts:
 
1. GreenDot Bank (Secured Card)
Open: 1/4/2017: 
Date updated: 6/19/2018
Last payment: 3/11/2017
Status: Charged Off
Balance: $89
 
-- I requested to have this account closed in March 2017. But the account was never closed and a annual fee was charged which represent the balance you see. How do i dispute this with Greendot Bank? They are the worse people to deal with. Sample letter(s)?
 
2. Credit Collection Servic
Placed for collection: 9/4/2014
Date updated: 10/25/2019
Balance: $239
 
-- This is a old debt from Progressive insurance that I believe I owe. This account is due to be deleted 10/2021. Last i checked Progressive still owns this debt and even was willing to take payment for it over the phone. So should I pay this directly to Progressive? And will CCS have to automatically delete this account sense I will be paying Progressive directly? The amount owed make this worth not fighting over, plus having this negative collection account off my report is worth $239. What do you guys think i should do?
 
3. Jefferson Capital System
Placed for collection: 8/1/2017
Date updated: 12/26/2019
Balance: $1,520
 
-- These people are the devil, they claim to own a debt they purchase from Verizon wireless. I've never had an account with Verizon wireless. i tried disputing this online, but it came back verified. They act like they want to help me get this account removed but want me to fill out identity theft forms. I'm not doing that until they show me proof this account even exist. How do I send certified debt validation letters to them? Does anyone have a sample letter? Should that be my next step?
 
Any and all replies will be helpful. 
 
 
 

Link:  https://www.marketwatch.com/story/chase-hikes-the-annual-fee-for-its-popular-sapphire-reserve-card-to-550-and-rolls-out-new-perks-2020-01-08
 
Quote:  "Chase JPM is increasing the annual fee on its popular Sapphire Reserve card, intensifying the ongoing competition with American Express’ Platinum card."
 
Maybe I'm slow, but how does increasing the cost of a card intensify the competition?  Next, will American Express increase the price of their card to $1,000 to keep up?  Anyway, I wouldn't pay $550 for any card.  The benefits aren't worth it for me.  For $550 I could take a week vacation to Las Vegas if I want (I don't really care for Vegas, but I needed an example).
 
Anyway, all my annual fee free not-very-fancy cards all work the same at McDonald's like the Sapphire Reserve card.
 

So my TransUnion score is about 60 points lower than the others. On the 3rd party sites that give me my score, they mention a derogatory account being the reason so I pulled my report and there are no derogatory accounts. 
I called TransUnion and they were no help, trying to get me to buy something. 
So here I sit, decided to buy my TransUnion score directly from them, found it to be 9.95, 19.95 and 24.95. The lower prices are displayed but then when I log in to buy, the other prices disappear and they want 24.95 
Starting to feel a bit bullied. 😡
 
Any idea why my score would reflect a derogatory mark but my report does not?
 
Thanks!

Hello Everyone,
 
Happy New Year to all! Question for some pros. I disputed a Verizon Wireless collection account on all 3 CRA's. The usual "verified" thing happened on TRANS and EXP but, it was removed for EQ. 
 
The question is, am I able to dispute again with TRANS and EXP stating that the account was removed on EQ simple and plain? If so, do I just dispute and say TL was inaccurate and removed from EQ and should have been removed on all 3, please remove?
 
Thanks in advance!

Well, I exceeded an established limit set by a lender, 48.00 bucks and change.  Notice arrives referencing the delinquency having with an offer to remedy the default. Irksome is wording that implies the outstanding amount due is an amount to make the balance $0.00. While due really is a minimum payment 78.00 bucks even. 
 
Someone with a better working knowledge of those laws regarding language, syntax, technicalities of painting, respond with insight including an answer to this question could the lender be on the hook for misrepresenting the amount, or some other infraction?
 
To date, the account is open, no notice received of account closure wherein then the whole amount is due. 

Flew back into IAH the other day after spending the week in Vegas.  As I went to exit the garage, I had my parking ticket and AXP Plat out and ready to go.  IAH uses one of the machines at the exit where you insert the ticket and then it prompts for the card, and then returns both to you, with the ticket serving as the receipt.
 
Somewhere in the time since my last departure from IAH in August, they have added a little sticker to the machine that says "No Metal Cards." They don't staff the credit card lanes with humans.  Fortunately, I had options and more fortunately, there was nobody in the line behind me being inconvenienced as I dug for a plastic card.
 
Anyone else seeing similar things? 
 
I am curious as to what prompted the change since they have never been a problem previously.  I do on occasion see instances where the silver mag stripe on AXP doesn't read correctly and the card has to be swiped a second or third time (not at IAH), but that wouldn't seem to be the issue here since, as noted, I have used the card on other travels without problem...
 
I have an inquiry in to the IAH powers that be, but don't expect a meaningful reply...if one does get generated, I will post. 

Wondering what the best first credit card for my SO would be so she can continue to build her credit?
 
Background: She's 21, has made around 25-30 on-time payments on her vehicle that's in her name, and has a couple years of on-time utility and phone bill payments.  She's never had a credit card before or anything negative on her credit. She has no debt other than what's left on her vehicle. She's looking to apply for her first CC to start building her credit. She is very responsible and is employed full time as a police officer. Though it's not too important to her at this point, cash back would interest her most with earning miles coming in second.
 
What are your suggestions?