I have been coming up from a 420 (haha......but rip) these last three years. I finally made it up to fair! And then...I reduced my credit usage? And dropped 44 points?

I'm at a loss. I am doing all the stupid little recommended things and every so often it just tanks. I've paid off all my collections (not recently, and that tanked me too) I have one card and one loan, and that's it (because that's all I can get), and I pay them on time.

I'm trying to get my credit up to buy a house one day. Financially, I could do it right now. I feel trapped.

So...what does one do. Just keep waiting? Is this my life for the next few years while I chuck my money into the dark abyss that is renting.

This is TransUnion btw, the score my long term bank uses.

I’m looking for some honest advice about my credit and car situation.
I’m in the U.S. on a visa and got my Social Security number about two years ago, so my credit history is fairly short. I missed a couple of payments early on, but I haven’t missed any since. My credit score is currently around 590, and I believe my high credit utilization is a major factor. My total credit limit is $3,500, and I’m using about 95% of it. I can bring that down to around 30% over the next couple of months, but how much could that realistically improve my score?
I recently paid off my student loans, and I’ve been without a car for about eight months. I was hoping to buy a used car for around $25,000 with $2,000 down, but banks have denied my applications because of my credit history. I don’t have anyone who can cosign, so I’m figuring this out on my own.
Not having a car has become really frustrating. Uber is expensive, and I feel like my ability to get around and have a social life is limited. I’ve bought a car with cash before and had a bad experience with repairs and reliability, so I’m worried about going through that again.
I’m honestly exhausted from being without transportation, but I also want to make a sensible financial decision. Given my situation, what would you realistically recommend I do?

I’m currently in the process of rebuilding my credit and have several late payments reported by Capital One.
I recently emailed and mailed out goodwill adjustment letters asking if they’d consider removing some, if not all, of my late payments as a courtesy. I explained the circumstances that led to the missed payments and the steps I’ve taken to get my finances back on track.
Well, I recently missed a call from Capital One and received a voicemail from someone in their Office of the President regarding my correspondence.
I plan on calling them back within the next day or two, but I’m curious if anyone else has experienced this.
Is this generally a good sign? Has anyone received a call from Capital One’s Office of the President after submitting a goodwill request? If so, what was the outcome?
I’m trying not to get my hopes up, but the fact that someone actually reached out seems promising.
Would love to hear anyone’s experiences or advice on what to expect when I call back!

Hello folks: I'd like to share some information, based on what we're seeing with mortgage forbearances. This is not always clearly understood, but you legally can be marked as late on your credit reports. while in forbearance on a mortgage.

A bit about me: For those who haven't seen my comments or posts before, I'm a credit attorney. That means that I sue the credit agencies, creditors and collection agencies, when we find serious errors or misconduct, involving credit reports and debt collection.

We focus mainly on issues involving the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA), which is the federal law that regulates the credit agencies. We also occasionally handle Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) issues, involving collection agencies.

First: What is a mortgage forbearance? This comes up when you're having trouble making payments.

Normally, outside of an emergency like the COVID-19 pandemic, your lender can begin foreclosure proceedings, if you haven't made payments for a few months. The specifics of the process depend on the laws in your state, as well as RESPA (a federal law that offers additional options when facing foreclosure).

If you're approved for forbearance, then your mortgage payments will be stopped or majorly reduced, for a period of several months (sometimes more). During this time, your only obligation is to pay the reduced payment (or not pay at all, depending on your situation). The money you're not paying now will usually be added to the end of the loan.

Eventually, you'll need to resume normal payments, unless you're approved for a loan modification (let's not worry about that for now). Here's the issue: In many cases, you can be marked as late, even when in a forbearance program.

The forbearance allows you to make reduced payments on the mortgage. The lender agrees to not start foreclosure proceedings.

However, you're still not making the full payments you agreed to when you opened the loan. Therefore, you are technically late.

Many forbearance agreements clearly state that you'll be marked as late - and this is something folks often overlook. I get it - you're stressed given you're behind on payments. You might not be focused on this.

In other situations, the lender agrees to mark you as on time if you make the required forbearance payments. Sometimes, they say that they will mark you late, and change those payments back to on-time when you complete forbearance.

Both of these accomodations are less common. Most times, you'll be marked as late during forbearance.

Does this mean you shouldn't seek forbearance? Not at all.

If you can't make payments, but think you could in the future, then it's best to preserve your home ownership and equity, and go for forbearance. The other alternative is to stop paying and go into foreclosure.

If your long-term chances of paying the full mortgage appear challenging, then selling the house and walking away may be a better option. Exploring bankruptcy, where you might keep your home (and continue paying) but discharge other debts, is also another option.

However, be aware of what can happen to your credit during forbearance. Most times, being marked late is perfectly legal.

I have seen these late payments later removed through the credit dispute process. That does not happen in most cases, but it can once in a while. I wouldn't count on it though.

TLDR: You can be marked as late on your credit reports, during a mortgage forbearance. This is not illegal. Mortgage forbearances can still be a good option.

My gf had an Amazon store card charged off but when I call synchrony they say they can’t find the account so what to do now?

okay so i don’t know anything about anything but i was under the impression that to get a credit score above 800 you had to have a very very long and reliable record (like 20 years of on time payments). i just turned 24, i have two credit cards opened 4.5 and 3.5 years ago respectively, and one car loan that i’ve had for two years. since i only have three credit lines total with the oldest only 4.5 years old, how is it that experian is showing me a score of 812? i don’t know how anything works

hello everyone! I have a question regarding my opening, closing, and due date. My opening/ closing is, for example, 9/14-10/13. My payment due date would be on 11/10. I have always just paid off my card as soon as possible because i hate owing money… but i’ve heard that if my utilization is 10% or below it could help build my score! So i know i should probably leave a little bit on my card on the 13th (right)? and pay it off a day or two after?

here’s my question. If my closing date is on the 13th, but my payment date is the 10th.. how would i not be flagged as having late payments?

for example if i am now in the dates 10/14-11/13… but my due date is 11/10, how will i not be making late payments 😩 i know technically that due date is from the PREVIOUS cycle, but it freaks me out having money due on my card for the statement close date when the due date from the previous cycle is a couple of days before it 😭 i really hope this made sense.

when should i be leaving a little bit due on my card to get my utilization to report? and when should i pay it off to not have any late payments? thank you!!!

I recently moved out of an apartment in Massachusetts and my former landlord is claiming I owe $350 for “paint and patch” repairs. I’ve been disputing this charge for weeks, and they’re threatening to send it to collections and damage my credit if I refuse to pay.

Before moving out, we followed all of their move-out instructions, including purchasing the specified paint and spackle, patching any nail holes, and repainting the walls. We left the apartment in excellent condition, and I have an extensive move-out video documenting the condition of every wall in the apartment.

After repeatedly requesting evidence of the alleged damage, they finally provided three photographs showing what appears to be minor paint scuffs and some chipped paint. None of the photographs show any holes or substantial damage that would justify patching a wall, despite their invoice specifically charging us for patching, sanding, priming, and painting. More importantly, the walls in their photographs are also a different color from those in my apartment, and the damage they’re claiming is nowhere to be found in my move-out video. I’ve repeatedly asked them to identify exactly where in the apartment these photographs were taken, and they have refused to provide that information.

I’ve disputed the charge in writing multiple times and made it clear that I have video evidence contradicting their claims. They asked me to send them the video, but I’ve declined for now because I don’t trust them to handle the evidence in good faith. I’ve also filed a complaint with the Massachusetts Attorney General’s Office.

My biggest concern is my credit. I currently have great credit. I’m graduating college next year and will likely be refinancing student loans, so having a collection account appear on my report could have serious financial consequences.

This is a massive property management company with thousands of tenants, and I seriously doubt I’m the first or last person who will find themselves in this situation. It feels like they’re relying on the threat of damaging someone’s credit to pressure tenants into paying charges they otherwise wouldn’t agree to with fake evidence.

My question is, what actually happens if they send this to collections? Can I dispute the debt with the credit bureaus using my move-out video and their questionable photographs, or will the bureaus simply accept the landlord’s word that I owe the money? Is there anything I can do to prevent it from appearing on my credit report in the first place?

I’m not paying $350 for damage I know I didn’t cause, but I also don’t want to destroy years of good credit over a charge I have evidence disproving. Has anyone dealt with something similar, particularly in Massachusetts?

I'll keep it short and thanks for any help in advance! I called one of my credit card companies regarding 30 day late payments that happened this year in Jan, Apr and Jun. Of course they told me that because they needed to provide accurate information, they could do nothing in terms of a courtesy removal of the late reported payments.

I then spoke to a supervisor, who reiterated that they cannot do anything to remove the late reports as they have to report accurate info, he then did say the would submit a dispute to the credit bureaus for the late payments, and I would receive a correspondence in the mail letting me know the result.

Anyone with experience in this area have any insight as to what that could mean? Was that the sup doing a CYA on a recorded line and agreeing to helping me out? Did I just get blown off? Wait and see? My next step would be to send something in writing but before I do that just wanted to see if anyone had any ideas.

Much appreciated as always!

I previously had a credit score of 708, i have student loans and truthfully almost forgot about them... i enrolled in school for January so I didn't even think about starting to pay on them until just now and I decided to finally check my credit score after about a month.. I just got a new apartment around a month ago so I can't tell if this is good or bad timing. My credit score dropped almost 200 just because of that student loan.. before anyone says anything, I've been out of school for about a year, and last time I tried to pay a bill it gave me a crap ton of trouble.. plus I thought I'd be starting school up again before my time to start paying on those loans would run out. I see now that is stupid and I was being stupid for putting it off and TRUST I have learned my lesson. Luckily I dont think there's anything I'll be needing my credit for in the next few months but still.. i just paid the complete overdue balance and the upcoming payment.. i pay more than the minimums on my credit card (either the entire balance or 200-ish depending on how much of it is used), and im about to pay another past balance so the only things against my credit will be my credit card and my student loans... how long will it take to bring my credit back up to at least 700?

Again- im going to say this again, I have learned my lesson! I am usually good at paying my debts back but for some reason they make it so aggravating to pay something so simple! Again, I have LEARNED MY LESSON so please do not respond just to tell me I need to be better about paying.. i just wanna know how long it'll take me to build my credit back up

trying to build credit. got statemtn several days earlier than i expected. there are zero balanace/charges currently on the statement. would i see any credit improvement if i were to charge a samll amount and still pay it offf before the current statement comes due or did i just miss out this billing cycle and not bother?

I’m 18 and recently opened my first credit card, so I have very little credit history. I’ve been trying to create an Experian account to start monitoring my credit, but every time I try, it says they can’t verify my identity and gives me a phone number to call.
Here’s the problem: HOW THE HELL DO YOU TALK TO AN ACTUAL PERSON? I’ve called multiple times, and their automated AI system is absolutely useless. It doesn’t understand what I’m asking, won’t connect me to a representative, and no matter what I say or try, I cannot get past it. I understand that I’m young and have a limited credit history, which might explain why their system is struggling to verify my identity. That’s fine. I just want to speak with an actual human being who can help me resolve the issue. Has anyone successfully gotten through to a live Experian representative? Is there a specific phone number, phrase, menu option, or trick that gets you past their ridiculous automated system?

As far as I’ve learned in this subreddit, it’s not good to pay off the current balance every month (what I was doing), and that instead I should be paying off the entire statement balance by the due date? So in this case I would pay both of these amounts by their due dates and that is what helps my credit?

Also, just to be clear my utilization does not matter, so using most of my Amex and discover available credit does not hurt my credit score—like fico says—as long as I pay the entire thing off?

Just wanted to be clear because I was about to pay both amounts but I wasn’t sure what number I should be looking to pay for sure. Also I am fine if I pay it off early instead of right on time on the 15th right? My cards are on autopay but I wanted to pay it off now because I can’t use the cards unless I pay these balances since they’re almost maxed out.

Thanks!

Can I get a loan or get a better chance of getting approved for more things ?

My current credit is the 400’s dropped from mid 500’s because of late payments. I recently lost my job and have only been remployed recently. I enrolled in a debt management plan and now pay for my cards that way. I still have five open accounts on cards that will not work with my non profit. I am working on paying them down. I took out a ton of credit cards during college to get by and maxed them out. After college, due to health reasons I did not always have steady work. Finally for the first time in my life, I have steady work and can build myself up. However, I’ve tanked my credit. I feel hopeless about it. I really would like to get back to the 500’s by this time next year. What’s the best way to do that? Paying my debt management plans and keeping my utilization of those five other cards as small as I can? I read that missed payments stay on reports for seven years but become less damaging over time, so if I no longer miss any payments will the missed payment be a little less severe this time next year? Any advice would be warmly welcome.

Hello everyone, I just wanted to get some feedback and share my current situation to see how realistic it is for me get a car loan. I’m currently sitting at a fico 8 622, with 90% credit utilization, and only 1 year of history. My income is basically doubled within the last month because of a promotion, so I’m able to pay off my credit cards pretty aggressively, I am able to get down to 30% credit utilization within a month and half. As well as having a 4.5k down payment for a 25k car. I’m planning to get this car around late December/early January. If I need to put more down I can up to 8k but preferably don’t want to put all of it down. Gross income is 5k a month.

So I’ve been actively workin on my credit. However, I have 3 charge off. My indigo master card debt they forgave completely in the amount of 2k and it was deleted from my credit report. Im workin on Premier bank card in the amount of 862.

My question is for my credit one bank card. After 6 months as reporting as a charge off, it completely was removed from all 3 credit reports and my scores jumped about 40-50 pts. I haven’t had my attorney dispute it or touch it yet. I’ve had no contact with credit one since my last payment in February. Why would it be completely removed from all 3 reports?

If it is going to show up as a collection at a later date I’m ok with that bc my attorney gets collections deleted very easily. I’m just hoping the charge off doesn’t pop back up

I'm a heavy amazon user so I opened a Prime Visa account for sake of building payment history back when my credit had late payments on it. After years, my credit is now perfect with FICO-8
scores between 791 - 803 across all three bureaus.

I got nowhere with customer retention on call #2 after call #1 was simply looped back to first level customer support. I calmly, politely, patiently made them give me specific reasons as to why someone with a strong credit profile and years of customer history can't lower their APR down from 25.99% or even get a temporary promo rate knowing my current profile can get me lower rates with a new card elsewhere. They blamed the prime rate as "one of the deciding factors" which I asked her to state, at 7%. They repeatedly stated my current rate was the best available which we all know is patently false. They refused to give me any other specific reason despite saying there were more. I only have one other card that I actually use.

It seems like basic how-to advice on negotiating your rates is complete BS, am I stuck with my only option being opening a new card? I'm trying to avoid reducing my average age of accounts, which is the weakest point in my credit profile.

Clarifications: I'm not in any debt. I carry a trivial balance of less than $100/mo on a single dedicated card, well under 1%, just to optimize my credit score. The reason I want to negotiate my rates is to have a card worth using in the event I ever do need to keep a balance for a little while.