Herschel here again…

In the previous blog, I shared a little bit about the seemingly ‘all-powerful’ credit bureaus …  and why they’re not too excited about removing negative or incorrect items from your report.

If you’ve ever tried to fight this battle on your own, you know what I’m talking about, right?

Here’s a little bit more, and how to put the law on your side of the credit playing field for once…

Did You Know?

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) receives more complaints against credit bureaus than ANY other type of business.  (Yes, they are a business, not a government agency like some believe)

In fact, in February of 2000, the three major credit bureaus paid a fine of $2.5 million for ignoring consumers’ requests for their files!

Here’s More Startling News …

79% of all credit reports contain errors.

29% of credit reports contain serious errors, false delinquencies or accounts that did not belong to the consumer.

20% of credit reports were missing major credit, loan, mortgage or other information to demonstrate the credit worthiness of the consumer.

26% of credit reports contain accounts that were closed by the consumer, but incorrectly listed as “closed by credit grantor.”

41% of credit reports contain demographic information that was misspelled, outdated or incorrect.

(by the way, you can get a copy of the research report that proves these facts from us by calling toll free 1-877-720-PLUS (7587), there’s no obligation).

Contrary to Popular Belief, Credit Reporting Agencies (CRAs) Are NOT Government Agencies…

The credit reporting bureaus are publicly traded “for profit” companies.  They, like all publicly traded companies, are in business to make money for their stockholders…period.

But that alone is not the scary part…

Some of their biggest customers are credit card companies and predatory lenders, who BUY their lists of people with less than perfect credit so they can prey upon them, with HIGH interest offers.

But, due to the startling statistics we just revealed, they are heavily regulated … one of the MOST heavily regulated companies in fact.

So what can you do about all of this?

Know Your Legal Rights …

Congress has given you rights that the credit reporting agencies (CRAs) really hoped you wouldn’t know.

We all know that everyone is innocent until proven guilty, right?  And, if accused of a crime, the burden of proof lies with the accuser.  But, with the credit-reporting agencies, it appears this is not so.

However, they are only a repository of anything and everything that creditors report to them.

And here’s the surprising fact about CRA’s…

They have no economic reason to ensure the accuracy of the information reported to them.  And, in fact, they have every economic reason not to at all.

They are only powerful because most consumers don’t know how to wrestle with them.

In fact, Congress set up provisions to allow consumers (you) the right to CHALLENGE information that is deemed to be inaccurate.  And you can also challenge information that is not properly validated.

In the next email, I will reveal once and for all why the Credit Reporting Agencies actually seem not to care about this information as much as consumers think…and what you can do to immediately begin the process of information removal.

Until next time…why not get your free credit repair consultation?  It’s as simple as filling out a form online (securely)…and then waiting for a call from one of our credit specialists.

Go to http://www.vantageca.com/free-consultation

to schedule your free credit consultation today (no high-pressure sales, and no obligation).

Sincerely,

Herschel Bentley

In the world of credit, divorce is an issue that must be addressed.

Divorce can cause a great deal of credit concern if not agreed to amicably. I have heard of divorces that were so bitter that all the assets were basically given to attorneys and the two parties had nothing left to restart their lives with.

Not smart.

So, you both disagree; surprised? Divide the spoils and get on with life. If you don’t agree then what will happen is that one party will destroy the credit of all parties involved, with only a huge mess left in the end.

In a divorce, it is much better to split the assets and liabilities fairly so that the credit will be saved and both of you will be able to restart your lives. It is not good to try and destroy each other, because as you do so, it only destroys yourself as well. Your credit suffers while you waste time, effort, and money; not to mention that others are viewing you as foolish and selfish. Who wants to be around someone like that?

Selfishness has destroyed more credit than anything else I can think of. Don’t just look at today; look at what you will have to rebuild if you destroy your credit and waste your money.

So, my advice about salvaging credit in a divorce is:

Be gentle, be kind, be unselfish, and above all, be fair.

Debt Settlement is one of those areas that I haven’t liked.  It usually means that the person being “helped”, is helped out of their money, their credit rating and never hear of the company again.  There are so many small debt settlement companies out there that it’s hard to find a good one that actually works, is ethical, moral and honest.  Let’s explain why…

There are several reasons that you would want to negotiate a settlement.  One is because you don’t have enough money to even pay the basics of life for food, shelter, utilities and transportation, yet alone the minimums for your debts.  You have to have the basics or you aren’t living a decent life.  Second, the debt was created by circumstances beyond your control; accident, death, business failure, national economy, etc, that would take the rest of your life and the lives of your children to pay off.  So, after careful consideration, you decide you can’t pay off the debt and can’t or won’t do a bankruptcy.

To do a debt settlement, the client discloses all their bad debt to the settlement company who says that they can negotiate a lower payment.  Well, ok… why would a creditor negotiate with anyone other than the one owing the debt?  They don’t, unless it is with someone that has some clout, like an attorney.  If they do negotiate a lower payment or lower payoff it’s as if you are doing it yourself and won’t get the deep discounts that attorneys can.  But, let’s say they get some good settlements negotiated… now what?

Now it’s time to start making payments.  There are several ways that payments are paid.  If you have money, then the first money goes to the negotiating company, then to the debt payoff itself. Otherwise you make payments on a monthly basis and the money is accumulated, (after payment to the negotiation company) and then paid off to the creditor.  The creditor will post a negative on your credit report such as a 1. charge off, 2. late payments all while it’s being paid off, 3. settled for less than owed, or 4. collection account.  All very damaging to your credit scores.  The ideal situation would be to have a service that will also negotiate a removal of all damage off your credit reports after the debt is settled and paid.  I know of only one in the United States that actually does this and they are amazing!

The payoff then could take months or even years to payoff, depending on the amount of debt paying off and your ability to pay.  The trick is to know the cost of your negotiating service before you start paying or signing a contract.  Most often, the negotiating company will scam you and get much more money than the service is worth.  Why would you pay for a negotiating service that will destroy your credit and cost you a ton of money?

So, if you get some company that says they are going to “help” you… watch out, be careful, get all the facts and put your hand over your pocketbook and your credit scores to keep them from having both stolen.

Herschel here…I’m hoping that I’ve revealed some eye-opening information for you in the previous blogs…now it’s time to reveal the scary truth about our common enemy the Credit Reporting Agency (CRA).

They really don’t care about you or about protecting your information.

Even better, if you dispute information on your credit report using the proper legal process, the CRA probably won’t even fight it…

Why?

Because the legal process of challenging information requires time on the part of the CRAs, they often find it more beneficial for them to simply remove the disputed item than to fight it.

The Legal Process…

You could, conceivably, challenge the bureaus yourself, it’s your right.  But the likelihood of you having the know-how, time and energy is slim to none unfortunately.

Why is that the case?

For the same reasons you wouldn’t represent yourself in a court case – given the opportunity, you’d prefer to have an attorney represent you in this battle as well to ensure it’s done right the first time and you can just sit back and relax, right (don’t worry, it’s really not as expensive as you might be thinking)?

As I said above, Congress says that information NOT properly validated, under the law, must be removed regardless of whether it is accurate or not.

It is YOUR right, then, to have an attorney represent you … someone who knows the law and knows how to use it on your behalf.

How little of an investment this will require will shock you (this is the really good part, and why I direct this program)…

In my next blogs I will reveal even more startling information, secrets and tips…including the actual law that Congress passed to help you and me beat our common enemy.

Until next time.

Sincerely,

Herschel Bentley
Executive Director
National Credit Federation