Built Credit Without a Social Security Number = Merged File/ No File

[creditlady1]

I was recently introduced to a lender " Self Help Credit Union " in San Francisco who lends to Non U.S. CItizens who do not have social security numbers.

To my knowledge the credit bureaus do not report ITIN Numbers nor do they recognize them as their system is designed to block 9 digit numbers beginning with a "9".

So the credit profile of the non U.S. Citizen is created based only on their Full Name, DOB and past addresses. There are many lenders who lend to different ethnic communities

and report to the bureaus in this manner. When ordering a credit report they simply enter 000-00-0000 where it states " Social Security "and as long as the address and past addresses match that

credit profile comes up.

 

Unfortunately, I was asked how to "unmerge " a mixed file of an individual as this Non U.S. Citizen's credit profile merged with another persons credit who had the same last name.

I am familiar with un merging Jr's and Sr's as this is typical since they lived at the same address and shared the same name. All I would have to do is provide ID's and SS Cards and the documents

will obviously show they are 2 different people.

 

I have forwarded the passport of my Client, including his ITIN Letter from IRS, Notarized affidavit of Identity, 2 bills with his address and name. I keep getting the same letter stating that they do not recognize ITIN numbers and to provide them with a SS Number. YET this Client has built up credit, has a 700 score, has a credit profile and the bureaus state they cannot locate a file for him.

I have done a background check on him to make sure there were no other numbers used and there are no other name variances - associated with him and there was ONE name close to his first name and same last name - Jestuso vs. Jesus, same DOB and different past addresses with an actual Social Security Number. Obviously a different person and it keeps merging with my Clients credit when ever it is pulled. We know this is a different person as his current address is in Texas. Not California. The common denominator is they both lived at the same apartment complex in california but different Apartment numbers at different times.

 

Does anyone know how to correct a "MIXED FILE" when there is no Social Security Number to reference? Is there a special mixed file department at the bureaus? By the way when I tried ordering an annual credit report from each of the bureaus - they all still tell me they cannot locate his file. Keep in mind he owns a mortgage (from Self Help Credit Union), best buy cards and Sears etc. I even sent a copy of this report to the bureaus but still no luck.

 

HELP! ANY SUGGESTIONS? - By the way I am a Credentials Specialist - with the County and work with a lot of Re-Entry men and women coming out of prison who's identities and credit have been stolen. So I am kind of a database expert already with 20 years behind me but this situation has me stumped and the bureaus are never a help with their canned responses!

 

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Addresses, letters anything. Thank you.

 

 

 

 

 

[KARMA2678]

I can't exactly help you,but am eager to hear suggestions on how to correct merged file. My husband has been dealing with his file being merged for years and we are getting SO very tired of this problem. I am at my wits end and feel we should hire an attorney. He has had this issue corrected SEVERAL times over the years, but it continues to happen and is so time consuming to get corrected.

 

My husband has a twin brother and they were both named after their father. So my husband father is senior and then my husband's brothers middle name is my husbands first and vice versa. They have the same date of birth and their socials are not the same (of course) but we learned after dealing with this issue that their numbers are almost the exact same! I wouldn't have expected the SSA to issue numbers so closely together, but I guess back in the 70s they did not expect these issues. The last two digits of their numbers are different. We have sent my husbands license, ss card, w2s, utility bills, paystubs etc.. but if an account doesn't belong to my husband and we dispute it, its usually verified as his even though its not. They have more matching information than not and we don't know what to do about it. They haven't lived at the same address in many years, but we do all live in the same neighborhood so our street address numbers are different, but not the road name.

 

I am eager to hear how others have dealt with this issue. I am also curious why the accounts that show on my husbands file are almost always collection accounts. We don't have trouble with regular credit accounts. Confused!

[KARMA2678]

My mother married a man from India and before he received his green card he had a ss card just for work purposes. He was able to use that number to apply for and receive multiple credit accounts. He had a bank account, auto loan and cards with amex and bank of america. He never had any issue with using that number.

[fury1995]

Have you attempted to request your client's credit reports in writing directly from the 3 major bureaus using only your client's information?

 

You have that option. You don't need to provide a SS# or ITIN# to request a credit report in writing. If there is a file with a match to your client's name, dob and address they will return one to you.

 

Once you obtain the report, you can dispute incorrect information as normal.

 

FYI, from the Experian website:

 

"An Individual Taxpayer Identification Number (ITIN) is issued to an individual for taxation purposes only. They are not meant to be used for as identification for obtaining credit. Therefore, our system recognizes ITINs as invalid Social Security numbers.

Because you do not have a Social Security number, you will need to submit your request for a credit report in writing.

Mail your request for a free annual credit report to:

Annual Credit Report Request Service
PO Box 105281
Atlanta, GA 30348-5281

Please include your full name, full address, any past mailing addresses during the last two years, and your date of birth.

Your personal credit report will include a toll-free telephone number, mailing address and web so that you can contact Experian and submit your dispute.

If you have used your ITIN to open credit accounts in the past, you should include this information in your correspondence as well.

Experian does not just match to your Social Security number. All of the identifying information you provide is used to search our database for credit information reported as belonging to you. If there is credit report information in our system linked to the identifying information you provide, you will receive a credit report, even without an SSN."

Edited October 28, 2015 by fury1995

[MR.Solis]

I am not sure if I am breaking the rules posting this but a while back I had an issue with the credit bureaus and was directed to a mortgage broker who has to deal with the bureaus on a daily basis. Any who this guy posted a guide online at http://dallasloanguy.com/dispute-comments-how-to-remove-dispute-comments-from-your-credit-report/that tells you how to get in contact with a human and who to ask for. I don't know if this will help

[Pam]

I am not sure if I am breaking the rules posting this but a while back I had an issue with the credit bureaus and was directed to a mortgage broker who has to deal with the bureaus on a daily basis. Any who this guy posted a guide online at http://dallasloanguy.com/dispute-comments-how-to-remove-dispute-comments-from-your-credit-report/that tells you how to get in contact with a human and who to ask for. I don't know if this will help

 

You could send DallasLoanGuy a PM on here, too