Just Got Scores Up--Auto Loan BooBoo by Hubby

[Watsonsbag]

First, thanks to all of you on the board for helping me and my husband get our credit scores above the 600 mark just 3 months after our BK 7 discharge. Without you, it would never have happened. The reports are cleaned up and now we are in the phase of establishing new credit lines. Hubby just got a secured (reported as unsecured) credit card so we have started on that road.

But, as some of you may already know, we need a used car, nothing special for the short trips that I make. Went to a dealer and did not want him to pull a report until there was an actual car that might fit the bill and the price seemed right. The dealer didn't even want to show me any cars until he pulled a report. I stuck to my guns, but made the mistake of calling my husband. As I was hanging the phone up, the salesman got ahold of him and, not knowing any better, hubby proceeded to give him SS#, said we could finance up to $300 a month (BS!!! And I was refusing to give ANY kind of monthly payment until a viable car was in view) and basically blew my whole battle plan.

The jig was up, so I threw in the towel hoping that we could get a car with the one pull. Actually, we were approved and the dealer immediately started pushing a 2001 car that I knew we couldn't afford just by the year & mileage alone. You know the bit--take it home, let hubby drive, you HAVE to sign today because the sale ends at 7 p.m. etc. (yeah, right) Manager came and started talking about $250-300 a month payments (thanks, hubby).

I left there without signing anything, with them still refusing to give me any kind of price on the car. It was nice, I got the VIN and it was good all around, just too much right now for us to handle. Why they wouldn't give me even a ballpark figure is beyond my comprehension.

So now I turn once again to you folks to try and preserve all the hard work of getting our scores up and not have them drop too much due to dealer inquiries. Ditto my marriage How bad are these inquiries on our reports? I understand the necessity of dealers needing to get them (even though I had printed our reports that morning and had them in my car) but we are exhausted from fighting to get the scores up. I have only a short time as my old car needs to be inspected by 7/31 and it will not pass.

Thanks again just for reading this and a happy Sunday to all!

[strix77]

Great Job You have inspired me. That car I'm sure is just around the corner.. I may be mistaken but that one pull shouldnt kill you.. right

Could you briefly describe the steps you took to increase your score after discharge? (1..2..3..) It would be very helpfull!!!

Thanks

[melisadawn]

I think their pull will be about 3 points. My fiance worthknowing was at 20 and 3 pulls put it at 15. Be careful of what the dealership tells you. I took fiance credit report in and they said we qualify for the cash back or 0% interest. So we put a hold on the truck but when they pulled (it was pulled because we were going to get this) and then sent it to bank for a pull the bank denied the loan. His score was 696 and there was no activity in last 12 months and that was why it was denied. So even if score is good but you have nothing open on credit report it will make a difference.

[Watsonsbag]

Thank you for replying. It is good to know that the damage of a hard pull is not that bad. However, the score I worked so hard to overcome--550 to 604 would drop down again under 600 if this is the case. But how can we have something open when all was to be included in the BK? The reasoning makes no sense. Actually, I was told by the dealer that since we in fact owe no one but our landlord and the usual utilities, we're actually a better risk then someone with a high score and many open, high amount accounts.

I think the bank was impressed by my husband's income, not knowing that so much of it goes towards doctors and medications. I was immediately shown a car that was worth about $10,000, although there were lower priced ones on the lot. This is only an assumption because there was no way in heaven they were going to tell me the asking price, something I don't understand.

The fact that hard pulls lower scores, especially when one can read the story behind them such as people looking for the best rates, is nothing but a shameful ploy to allow lenders to keep rates high. We are told to shop around for the best bargain, be it car or mortgage, and are punished for doing so. There is only one reason why this can be so: it gives FICO a reason to lower scores and thereby gives lenders an excuse to raise rates. It is a fraud perpetrated upon the public.

And as usual, we cannot turn to our lawmakers to do anything about it, because lenders pour trillions annually into their pockets to allow such deviousness to continue. Only a revolution will bring change. How many would actually go to protest en masse in Washington against the unfair scoring systems, the predatory lenders?

Not all the robbers are behind bars.

There, I've said my piece, and I feel better.

To answer the question of what we did: just simple things. Made sure that accounts included in the BK read exactly as they should. Got rid of the "charge offs" "put in collections" "written off as bad debt" and showing balances when they were all discharged in the BK. Believe it or not, it looks better when accounts show the BK rather then giving the appearance of being or having been in collections. Found two accounts that didn't belong to my husband. Had one removed, the other we left as it was because it was actually helping his score and showed a high balance of $300. Don't fix what isn't broke.

We found one lender, who was sold a discharged account, actually re-aging it to 7/2003 and claiming $73.00 past due. This is illegal and is to be removed within the next 30 days. Cleaned up the different incorrect variations of our names, a Social Security # that didn't belong to my husband and corrected the addresses.

Go over the accounts marked negative and see if they are reported EXACTLY as they should be. If you're not sure that an account belongs to you, dispute it as not yours. Remember, if a lender doesn't cooperate in the bureau's investigation, they are booted off your report. My husband had 3 deleted due to 3 lenders not bothering to reply.

Then go over accounts which are helping your score. As noted above, if something is there that may not be yours (we really aren't sure about the Blair account) but it is marked as a good entry, leave it. Don't shoot yourself in the foot.

Make sure that items which should have been dropped due to the time limit are actually gone. Likewise, go over inquiries with a fine tooth comb and be sure that nobody pulled your file (a hard pull) who had no right to do so.

That's about it. It takes a lot of work and time, but not a day went by that I wasn't checking on something. Lenders and the credit bureaus can make mistakes, get lazy, have typos--everything humans can do when not paying proper attention to their job.

Hope this helps in some way. I still think the whole system is designed to allow the highest interest rates possible by using even the tiniest of excuses to raise interest rates. It is not for nothing that some people call them FAKO scores. The human touch is entirely gone and now computer software determines how you can live your life. Food for thought.

Thanks again, everyone. I've decided that if we can't find something at a decent price ($3000-6000) we'll just sell the car off, probably get about $500 for it, and I'll just go without one. Since I became disabled my driving has gone down about 80% anyway from my pre-accident days. It's just that where we live you can't get anywhere without a car, so we'll just have to make the old truck do double duty for a while. I could start in on how ridiculous the car selling business is, but that's a whole different story in itself. I've been thinking of writing a book about the fleecing of the public, if and when my health ever reaches the point where it is possible to do so.

Good evening, everybody.

[melisadawn]

Well we settled on a 1996 baretta for 1000$. No financing. What we were looking at was 33,000$ and the dealership thought by looking at our report I took in we would get it. Like I said he has no debts on his report. No negs and 1 pos but DOL was 2001. So when I called the bank and asked why (bank said he had no score) They said no activity in last 12 months. I do not work and my score is low so I did not try. But dealership even went through our finances- rent, utilities ect... and said according to our regular finances we can afford a 1000$ payment (hahaha i wanted to laugh). But anyway like I said after it went to bank we got nothing. Also we did not end up trying for a smaller loan for a used car. Which 1 dealership said we could prob. get but with high interest rate. So I am gonna try for c.c. for him and keep pulling worthknowing for now. Then maybe in a year we can do this.

[Watsonsbag]

So, you could afford a $1000 payment! Sure, why not. Just don't pay anything else, including mortgage or rent. My hubby makes between $50,000-55000 a year, maybe we could afford $1000 too!

That shows how far fetched these dealers can get. Trouble is, a lot of people fall for their tactics. I know a couple who are driving a nice 2002 Dodge Ram that a dealer talked them into buying. Payments $360 a month. This couple have no regular source of income but were captivated by the truck and the dealer of course didn't care whether a year later they couldn't keep up with the payments. Last month they called us up and asked if we wanted to buy the truck or take over the payments because they could no longer afford to make them. I don't know what eventually happened.

Now if they wanted a mortgage, that $360 would have to be subtracted from their potential house payment, lowering what they would qualify for, perhaps substantially. One must keep all this in mind when applying. Dealers make it sound soooo easy.

So we have no recent credit lines because we are just out of BK, yet no one will give us credit because we have no recent credit lines. Round and round she goes....hubby was just approved for a $300 credit card. Well, that's a start!

[melisadawn]

I am trying for a Chase card for fiance but it is pending right now. Our payments were to be 396 for 2003 ram. But its not now. Which I am kinda of glad because now fiance has a speeding ticket (1 of many) and if he can not get this off he will be out of a job. Attorney wants 750$ to fight it. When it rains it pours!!!!!!!!

[Watsonsbag]

Sometimes things happen for reasons that we can't understand at the time. In a way the speeding ticket sort of pointed to the things in life that can come up, making it difficult to meet such a large car payment. That's how many credit problems start. It's always best to shoot lower and think ahead, because those car payments last pretty long and life always holds surprises.

Do tell your fiancee to always remember not to drive faster then his angel can fly, whether or not the speeding ticket was legit. My husband is a nurse and he has seen the sad results of speeding mishaps.

Good Luck! That's the exact same attorney fee we had to pay when my hubby was fighting an allegation brought against him on his job. Guess it's a standard fee.

Regards to you and your fiancee. Be safe and I hope the ticket problem turns out in your favor.

P.S. Aren't these car payments ridiculous? Like the vehicles are made out of gold.

[melisadawn]

Thank you. Yes payments are terrible.Since if you buy a 30,000$ car as soon as you drive it off the lot it is worth 15,000$ lol. I am hoping it gets dropped. He does speed but this time he wasn't. He was driving his loaded semi truck and he said the car in front of him was flying. Cop said it was him that he was doing 65mph anround a 45mph curve. He says he could not do the curve that fast. Says this is one time innocent.