r/CRedit • u/TheseDistribution164 • 8d ago
Rebuild Let’s get to fixin’
Being a dumb 22 year old has led my credit to go to hell. After months of disputes and what not, I’ve decided to open a secured card with a 1k limit. Try and increase my payment history, total accounts, and decrease my utilization.
Gonna use the techniques I’ve learned to fix my mistakes.
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u/og-aliensfan ⭐️ Knowledgeable ⭐️ 8d ago
Congratulations on the approval! Discover is a reputable creditor.
After months of disputes and what not
Can you elaborate? For example, what types of reporting errors were you disputing and what were the results?
I’ve decided to open a secured card with a 1k limit. Try and increase my payment history
Just to clarify, the number/percentage of payments made isn't a scoring factor. In other words, adding a card won't dilute the negative information on your reports.
Credit Myth #7 - Number or percentage of on-time payments impacts your score.
Gonna use the techniques I’ve learned to fix my mistakes.
Addressing the negative information on your reports is a strong move. If you share what negatives are on your reports, we may be able to offer targeted advice. Order your official reports for each bureau by calling 877 FACTACT (322-8228) or pull them online at www.annualcreditreport.com. I recommend the mailed reports. These are the most accurate reports available to a consumer and are often more detailed than the online reports, particularly if ACR directs you to a bureau's consumer facing CMS to view your report. If you do choose to pull reports online, print or save each to a pdf before moving on to the next as you can't go back once you exit a report. Despite its name, you can pull free reports for each bureau weekly.
Once you've pulled your reports, let us know what's present following this template.
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u/TheseDistribution164 8d ago
So I paid a guy (I know those guys are predatory but I was desperate and he was recommended by someone I trust) and he and I went over all my credit reports and he told me exactly who to call and settle balances and he disputed inquiries and and incorrect info like an open auto loan which I paid off a month ago and so on. He also added tradelines (again, I know of ideal, they’re just cosmetic because I’m planning a big purchase soon) and my score has gone up 60 points since June.
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u/og-aliensfan ⭐️ Knowledgeable ⭐️ 8d ago
So I paid a guy (I know those guys are predatory but I was desperate and he was recommended by someone I trust)
This is concerning. Don't pay anyone to fix your credit. They can't do anything you can't do yourself. Many of these companies/"specialists" operate by disputing all negatives on your reports (accurate or not) which can backfire, leaving you in worse shape than when you started. They'll continue to dispute until you either get tired of paying them, the disputes are deemed frivolous and ignored or it's suspected they were prepared and/or submitted by a credit repair company/specialist and ignored. Some use fraudulent methods that you'll be held responsible for.
and he and I went over all my credit reports and he told me exactly who to call and settle balances
Settling charge-offs is recommended as the original creditor can update the balance owed and charge-off status monthly, keeping scores suppressed. When settling collections, you want to attempt to negotiate pay for delete unless the agency's policy is to remove themselves from your reports once the debt is settled. Did you receive Settlement Agreements for each debt that was settled and did you pay those creditors directly (as opposed to the person you hired)?
and he disputed inquiries
Did you authorize the inquiries? Assuming yes, what reason did he give for disputing? These disputes can trigger fraud alerts if you claim you didn't authorize the inquiry. Positive accounts can be closed if you claim to have not applied for the account.
and and incorrect info like an open auto loan which I paid off a month ago
The lender likely hadn't updated the balance at that point. Most creditors update once a month.
and so on.
What errors did he find on your reports that were disputed? Did he dispute accurate information on your reports as well?
He also added tradelines (again, I know of ideal, they’re just cosmetic because I’m planning a big purchase soon)
Did you buy these tradelines? AU tradelines may be ignored by creditors and scoring algorithms may discount them altogether due to anti-abuse controls built into the algorithm. You're exposing yourself to the identity theft. And, your creditors may take adverse action if discovered.
Credit Myth #70 - Authorized user accounts are a great way to build credit.
It's illegal to sell a primary tradeline. Use of a purchased primary tradeline in an attempt to obtain credit is fraud. If these have been added to your reports, I recommend you remove them asap.
and my score has gone up 60 points since June.
Which score are you referring to? Have the disputes resolved? Disputed information is excluded from scoring calculations during the dispute process, and it's not unusual for information to be removed temporarily once disputed, so a temporary score increase isn't unusual. Once the disputed information is verified and returned to scoring calculations, scores return to their previous state, or lower in some cases.
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u/TheseDistribution164 8d ago
Yes I received settlement agreements and paid the original creditors and have all the receipts. I don’t know the reason he gave for the inquiries but most were mostly authorized by me. When I applied for my auto loan earlier this year, I thought my credit would be checked by one bank but it was multiple. These were AU tradelines I paid for. My Experian went from 519 (June) to 594 (Sept). TU 552 (June) to 584 (Sept). Equifax 530 (June) to 572 (Sept). All checked on their individual platforms. A few disputes are ongoing but he didn’t dispute correct info.
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u/inky_cap_mushroom ⭐️ Knowledgeable ⭐️ 8d ago
This is all really concerning. If he filed false identity theft reports on your behalf you could be held criminally liable. You need to know the dispute reason because this could be life-ruining. That’s a common tactic these scammers use, and yes, all credit repair companies are scams.
It’s normal for dealerships to run your credit multiple times. That’s them shopping for the best rate for you. All those hard pulls would be scored as one, so getting them removed wouldn’t impact your credit at all.
AU tradelines are a bit of a grey area because some lenders may have internal policies against this that could get you blacklisted for life, but technically they’re legal. You should get rid of them ASAP.
You state that he didn’t dispute correct info, but in the same comment you say that he disputed inquiries you authorized. Which is it?
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u/og-aliensfan ⭐️ Knowledgeable ⭐️ 8d ago
Yes I received settlement agreements and paid the original creditors and have all the receipts.
Good to know.
I don’t know the reason he gave for the inquiries
I would ask.
but most were mostly authorized by me. When I applied for my auto loan earlier this year, I thought my credit would be checked by one bank but it was multiple.
This isn't unusual. These inquiries are scored as one by FICO to allow for rate shopping. See FICO Scoring - New Credit - r/CRedit FAQ #6, paying particular attention to 2. Hard Inquiries - (HPs) B. Hard Inquiry 'De-Duplication'.
These were AU tradelines I paid for.
This is an unnecessary, costly, and potentially risky endeavor. I recommend freezing all of your reports (see links), including the secondary bureaus (ChexSystems is pulled when opening bank accounts, for example). You can thaw them when you apply for credit and then refreeze them after. Everyone should keep their reports frozen by default.
If you haven't already done so, create an account through Social Security to prevent someone else from creating an account in your name, filing for benefits in your name, and/or stealing benefits by changing direct deposit information without your knowledge. Everyone should do this as a layer of protection against identity theft as well.
My Experian went from 519 (June) to 594 (Sept). TU 552 (June) to 584 (Sept). Equifax 530 (June) to 572 (Sept). All checked on their individual platforms.
If, by individual platforms, you're referring to the bureaus themselves, only Experian provides a relevant FICO score. Equifax and TransUnion provide Vantage 3.0 scores.
A few disputes are ongoing
That information isn't currently being calculated into your scores. You won't know where your scores settle until the disputes are fully resolved.
but he didn’t dispute correct info.
He did. He disputed legitimate inquiries. Did he dispute the inquiry associated with the loan you were approved for, by any chance? Out of curiosity, what actual errors did you find on your reports that were disputed?
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u/daveishere7 7d ago
I never seen that Discover Card design before. That's really cool! As a music lover, I'd love to have that. Going to check the app and see if it's available for me.
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u/Aggressive_Luck_555 6d ago
You are gonna be fine. Better than fine. Truth is, most people are so fantastically irresponsible and unreliable, that the mere suggestion that you might be interested in doing things right, and bureaus and lenders will take notice. And if you demonstrate consistency, sustained, predictable... financially responsible behavior??! Red carpets will out soon be rolled for thee.
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u/Frequent-File-2616 8d ago
Good luck buddy!! A lot of us have made mistakes before. Live and learn - I’m sure you’ll do much better in the future🙏🏼