Dragonfly66

That was what I wanted to hear. Thank you and everyone else on this forum that responded. I feel much better pursuing this option now.

Good point. That's something I didn't even think about.

Thanks, CV. That doesn't surprise me. I was just curious if they would look at it negatively for some reason, but it sounds like it's just viewed like any other debt.

Hello. I'm planning on buying a house this summer and was thinking about getting a loan from my credit union to consolidate some credit card debt in order to lower my overall monthly payment. Would this be something that is viewed negatively by a potential mortgage lender? It would be around $13K. I know there are a couple of mortgage gurus on this site so I was hoping they might give me some insight. Thanks in advance.

Great news! Thanks for sharing.

It's been a long time since I've asked for one but I used to dispute them as obsolete. That did work once upon a time, but it doesn't seem to be the case anymore. What I've seen in my research on this site is that people have had success actually calling the CRA's and asking for an EE. It can be hit or miss, but some have had success doing it. The most they can do is tell you no. TU - online works if you're not more than 5 months out. EX - call the month before the 'estimated to remain on record until' date. EQ - don't bother This is good to know. I wonder what made EX delete early for me without my asking them to. Not that I'm complaining. I'm definitely going to try TU after Christmas. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

It's been a long time since I've asked for one but I used to dispute them as obsolete. That did work once upon a time, but it doesn't seem to be the case anymore. What I've seen in my research on this site is that people have had success actually calling the CRA's and asking for an EE. It can be hit or miss, but some have had success doing it. The most they can do is tell you no.

OK, so here's the deal. I have 2 baddies left on my credit report, both due to fall off in March/April 2017. The worst is a BK13 that I got dismissed. The other is a 2nd mortgage with Ditech that I defaulted on and ultimately settled for less than what I owed. A few days ago my EX score shot up 23 points to land at 702. Needless to say, I was ecstatic. I attributed it to a CLI from Lowes ($300>$5,000) and the addition of my Macy's Amex with a $2,000 SL. It wasn't until I received a paper copy of my EX report in the mail today that I realized they have pulled Ditech off my report early without me even asking! I now realize that was the more likely reason for the 23 point jump. Whatever the reason, I'll take it. Let's hear it for EX giving the gift of EE this holiday season! I had been reading about how difficult it is to get EE's from the CRA's, especially EX. I just tried it with EQ a few days ago and they gave me a hearty "NO", and said I would have to wait for the deletion date. Needless to say, I'm going to at least try to get an EE of this (and my BK13) with TU and see what they say. Maybe they'll be in a giving mood also. Just wanted to share in the event that this helps someone else.

Congratulations, Carnut!! That is excellent. I am on the exact same journey with the exact same time frame. I'm not there yet, but I just broke the 700 barrier (702) with EX as of today so I'm on my way. I'm waiting for a BK13 and one other baddie to fall off in March 2017. I'm also working on lowering utilization and doing a goodwill for some 5-6 year old late payments on a previous mortgage. Hopefully that will get me there before June.

Yes it absolutely does. Congrats on TU! They are the stingiest with me. They only gave me 1 point for the addition of my Macy's Amex. Lowes still hasn't reported to them yet, so we'll see. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I understand exactly what you're going through. I just got a notification today from MF that EX just jumped 23 points to land at 702. My first one to break the 700 barrier. I couldn't stop staring at it. [emoji1] It was because of a $300>$5,000 increase on my Lowe's card and the addition of a Macy's Amex with a limit of $2,000. I can't wait to see what effect that has on my other two reports. I still have an Amex Everyday with another $1,000 limit that hasn't reported yet. I hope that will help too. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Wow! Very nice! Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Excellent progress. Congrats. I'm in the same boat. Waiting for the last 2 bad items to drop off in March 2017 so I can buy a house next summer. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Big, fat NO! Especially since I have just gotten back in Amex's good graces after they excommunicated me so many years ago. I'm hoping to make it grow over the coming months.

Thanks, Brian. That was pretty much what I expected. Just wanted to be sure.

I am planning on applying for a mortgage at the beginning of June 2017. I know that you have to be able to show the source of your down payment funds. I am planning on pulling my down payment funds from 2 sources shortly before I apply: I am going to sell some company stock that I own for one half of it, and I will get a loan from a whole life insurance policy for the other half. Will mortgage lenders have an issue with the down payment funds coming from either of these sources? I can't imagine this would be an issue due to the fact that the money is coming from sources I already own, but I don't want to get caught by surprise at the last minute. Also, is there any timing issue that I need to think about in terms of when I sell the stock and get the loan against my life insurance policy so that I have the money in my account ready to pay? I appreciate any insight you can provide.

Thanks for letting us know about this. I called and was given a choice between 18.49% going forward (not on current balance) or 12 months at 0%. I took the 12 months because I figured that I could always call back at the end of the promotional period and get a new offer that they had available.

There is the Georgia Dream homeownership program. They offer $5,000-$7,500 in downpayment assistance and financing based on where you buy and certain income levels. You can look them up online to see some of the specifics. They have a downloadable brochure.

One other question in addition to my post above. FXGuy (in his post above) reminded me that this particular account is actually rather old and is about to be obsolete. When they settled they sent me a letter saying that they would change the status on each of my credit reports to "Settled In Full", however the only change that occurred was with EQ. That was the CRA they used to report the charge off. They changed it back to show it as being included In the BK13 that I had filed several years ago (but had it dismissed). The other 2 CRA's were still reporting that same thing and were never changed. If this account is removed from my credit due to age, does it still become a factor? Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I'm not sure if the LO that mentioned 1 year was talking about FHA or another program. Is it the same whether you do a conventional or FHA loan? So even though Green Tree had charged it off and had it showing as a $0 balance on my credit report at the time I settled with them, it's still seen as a short sale or foreclosure now that I've paid it? Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

It would have been sometime in 2009 I believe. I know it was before I actually filed for BK 13 in 2010. I'll have to look into that. I think you make a good point. In the event I can't get it off, I still wonder which of those loan officers is correct. I feel like I should be able to buy a house after 1 year of settling that 2nd mortgage. There is nothing on my credit report that indicates a short sale, so how would the next mortgage company know?

I'm getting conflicting information and need some help from the mortgage experts. Here's my story: I just recently completed a settlement agreement with Green Tree Servicing, who held the 2nd mortgage on my former home. It was for 35% of the amount owed. The 2nd mortgage had been charged off by Green Tree and had been reflecting a $0 balance on my credit reports and they had stopped reporting back in 2010. I knew that I would need to settle with them in order to get them to release the 2nd lien so that I could sell my house and buy a new one. I had an FHA loan on the first mortgage, so I had to sell that house in order to get another FHA loan for the house I was buying. This is where the issue comes in. I was able to sell my house, but I wasn't able to close on the house I was buying. The loan officer at the mortgage company went through my credit report with me at the beginning of the process and asked me a number of questions but never brought up the issue of my 2nd mortgage not reporting any payment history. I paid Green Tree the settlement amount at the closing of the sale of my house. When the underwriter at my mortgage company saw the payment to Green Tree on the HUD-1 form, she suddenly tells the loan officer to tell me that I can't close on my home purchase unless I can show 12 months of on-time payments to Green Tree Servicing, due to some FHA guideline. This occurred on the day I was supposed to close. I explained to the loan officer that I wouldn't have 12 months of payments to Green Tree because the 2nd mortgage was included in a BK13 back in 2010 so there wouldn't be any payment history (this showed on my credit reports that the loan officer reviewed). I never completed the BK13 and had it dismissed in 2011 (the loan officer was already aware of that part also). Green Tree never pursued it after that, they just stopped reporting. I also explained to him why I had to settle with Green Tree. After the settlement, I received a letter from Green Tree stating that there was no remaining balance and that they are requesting that the credit bureaus change the status to "settled in full". I consulted with a couple of other loan officers after all of this happened and I got 2 different answers regarding when I would be able to purchase a house again. One told me that I would be able to buy a house after 1 year from the date of my settlement payment, due to Green Tree reporting it as "settled in full". Another told me I would have to wait 3 years because a settlement is viewed the same as a short sale, and the reporting status didn't matter. The obvious question is: Which one is right? I'm currently renting a house now and I would love to be able to buy a house next year when this lease is up. I really don't want to wait for 3 years before I can buy another house.

Just to bring this topic to closure, I did finally reach a settlement with Green Tree Servicing. I paid them 35% of the balance I originally owed and they released the 2nd lien on the house and I was able to sell it without a problem. Of course it all occurred at the last minute, but at least it got done.