debtcare.ca

Tag: credit problems

  • Credit Report Spring Cleaning

    debt2Spring is here, and that means it is time to get down to the nitty-gritty and clean things up. Tackle those oft-neglected areas of your life – the closet under the stairs, the garage, the pantry, the bank account. Wait, the bank account? Yes, make a credit report spring cleaning part of the plan this year – your bank account will thank you!

    How do we spring clean the credit report? Start by requesting it, either through

    Equifax, at http://www.consumer.equifax.ca/home/en_ca, or TransUnion, at https://www.transunion.ca/ca/personal/credit-report.page?channel=paid&cid=ppc:bing:brandtransunionexact. Doing so will give you a much better idea of what lenders see when they pull your report, and it will also help you identify areas that may need a bit of work.

    If your score is not as high as you thought it would be, the next step is to identify what could be impacting your credit. Some examples of issues include too many inquiries, late payments, credit balances that are too close to, or over, the limit, or collection items. One or all of these may work to bring down your credit score. If your overall debt is high, this too may negatively impact the bottom line.

    Some people assume that late or missed payments are what most reflect borrowing behaviour and therefore are the items that make up your credit report and score. However, you can have a history which includes never making a late payment but actually have bad credit because you built up too much debt or maxed out cards or applied for a lot of credit.

    Right away, try to avoid making any more applications for credit, and then work on a plan to start paying off some of your debt. This is the best way to bring that credit report and score back up.

    What about errors? Sometimes credit reporting agencies make mistakes – but those mistakes, if not corrected, can seriously impair your credit and ability to obtain financing. These mistakes need to be corrected as soon as possible.

    One of the most common myths that still catches people off guard is that after time, things just disappear. And sure, after a period of time, most will just fade into the background, but we have seen people with things on their credit from 8, 10 even 12 years ago that are still reporting.

    If you have credit problems, we have the solution.

    DebtCare can help you get your credit report back on track. Call us today at 1 (888) 890-0888.

     

  • Creating a Plan to Repair your Credit in 2016

    debt12015 is coming to a close, and the past year has likely been full of change – such is life. For many Canadians, this means more debt accumulation, followed by a concern regarding bruised credit. So, why not get started on your New Year’s resolution early and get a plan in place to repair your credit for 2016?

    The first step is to request your credit report from Equifax AND Transunion – sometimes they report different information. This will give you a clear picture of where you stand credit-wise – as well as highlighting any issues with your credit, and should give you a good idea regarding how to start repairing it.

    Generally people have credit problems which fall into a few different groups. Your plan to repair your credit will be based on what the problem is, but typically the problem is bad credit history – defaulted debts and late payments.

    How you deal with this will depend on 3 factors:

    • Whether you owe the money or not – if you don’t owe the money, see below regarding inaccurate items.
    • Whether you have the ability to pay the debt – if you don’t have the ability to pay, see below regarding too much debt and maxed out credit cards.
    • If you owe the money and can pay in full or settle in full, you are about to start a long and arduous process that will involve documenting what the creditor will accept to settle the account, paying it, collecting acknowledgement from the creditor that it has been paid and ensuring that your credit report is updated.

    Something to keep in mind: R9s and collection items come off the credit report 7 years from last activity or when they were settled or paid – that said, you can begin rebuilding right away.

    Old items and inaccurate items on the report:

    In this instance you will need to file a dispute with the appropriate consumer reporting agency and be able to prove the error. This may include providing copies of letters or documented exchanges with your creditor, proof of payments, settlements, etc… This is a formal process – being represented is a good idea. If the agency doesn’t follow the law, a complaint to the government may need to follow.

    Too much debt and maxed out credit cards:

    In this instance you have to deal with the debt before you can fix the credit.

    If there is a lot of debt and no reasonable way you can pay it off, even over a long period of time – making minimum payments, no assets or assets like a home with limited equity – a consumer proposal may be the answer.

    Benefits of a consumer proposal:

    • Stops interest and debt from growing
    • Stops collection action
    • Allows for one monthly payment
    • Can be paid in full at any time – and because payments are generally much lower than the total of all minimum payments to your creditors, you can double and triple up on payments, use income tax refunds and other credits and get the total owed down!
    • Comes off the credit report 3 years from the date it is paid in full

    Once the proposal is filed, it should be independently reported to the credit reporting agencies immediately – the same should also occur once it has been paid.

    Creating your 2016 plan to rebuild and repair your credit should not be stressful – you just have to sit down, be realistic about your credit and finances and make it happen!

    Want to get started? Call DebtCare Canada today – we can help you through the entire process: 1-888-890-0888.

     

  • How to Deal with Credit Report Errors

    Thousands of Canadians have credit report errors on their credit reports – the scary part is many of them don’t even know it.Credit Report Errors

    Credit report errors most commonly occur when your creditors don’t accurately report information to your credit report. The reason credit report errors are so common is because the data is reported electronically by your creditor to your credit report.

    You may be getting declined for credit or quoted higher interest rates on credit because of credit report errors and new lenders you apply to for credit are not allowed to tell you what’s on your credit, so it won’t be pointed out to you.

    The most common types of credit report errors are payments and settlements that have not been reported. The only way to avoid credit report errors is to know what’s being reported to your credit report. The first step you have to take if you want to avoid credit report errors is to request your credit report from both Equifax and TransUnion.

    Credit report errors can be extremely difficult to get resolved because Equifax will require evidence from you to support that there is an error and if you don’t have it or they won’t accept what you provide you then have to rely on your creditor to report the correct information. Creditors can take months to do so, if they do so at all.

    The only way to get credit report errors corrected quickly is to know your rights and to dedicate the time needed to accomplish the task.

    1. The Ministry of Consumer Services is the ministry responsible for the Consumer Reporting Act which is the legislation that consumer reporting agencies like Equifax and TransUnion, as well as your creditors, must follow when reporting your personal information.

    2. Any communication concerning corrections that are needed should be sent in writing and should be sent by registered mail.

    3. You must know the timelines in which you should expect credit report errors to be updated, make sure that you request your credit report to ensure that they have been made and if they have not follow up again in writing.

    Failing to ensure that there are no errors reporting to your credit report can have serious consequences. Not just because you may not be able to obtain the credit you need but also because you will most certainly pay higher interest rates on credit products if lenders view the credit report errors as derogatory which could cost you thousands of dollars or more.

    If you are thinking right now that you don’t have the time, energy or know-how to take on your credit report errors on your own – you are not alone. Many who advertise ‘fix your credit’ programs are actually companies looking to see you deal with credit problems through a bankruptcy or credit counselling. We take the position that credit errors are credit errors – not bad credit – even bad credit can be addressed using various financial strategies that do not involve bankruptcy. Following the Consumer Reporting Act and leveraging our in-house legal counsel, we fight Equifax, fight your creditors and get your credit fixed.

    If you need to fix credit report errors on your credit report, contact DebtCare Canada today by calling 888-890-0888.