Expert: Regan Shinski - 8/11/2010

Question
First, having read your profile, congratulations for the proactive manner in which you dealt with your own adversity.  I am in a much similar situation.  My Chp. 7 was fully discharged July 2010.  I have three questions:

1) I had 3 revolving credit cards which were charged off and turned over to collection agencies prior to bk filing.  In my filing I included the original lenders as well as the collection entities.  On all three credit reports the original lenders are listed as charge-offs and debt purchased by another lender.  Do I have the right and would it be to my benefit to request the credit report entries be amended to discharged in bankruptcy?

2) While preparing my bk filing I pulled my credit reports and discovered for the first time that a creditor had obtained a judgement against me two years earlier. I had lived at the same address for ten years, they had communicated with me at that address both before and after the date of judgement and never once referred to it.  I went to the court and requested the judgement be vacated.  The court pulled the records and found that they had served someone by another name, at another address, in another city.  As the creditor chose not to appear at that hearing the judgement was first vacated without prejudice and a second hearing date was set. When the creditor failed to show up on that date the judgement was vacated with prejudice.  Two credit reports list the judgement as being discharged through bankruptcy, one does not list it.  I would like to have the judgement removed from the public records section of the report even though the discharged debt would still remain in its section of the report. Do I have the right to have the judgement removed from the public records section since it has been removed from the court record and would I benefit at all from having no judgement listed as opposed to the present listing of a judgement discharged through bankruptcy?

3) I have been trying to get a secured credit card through my bank, Wells Fargo, and have been getting somewhat of a run-around.  They acknowledge that their stated rules allow for a secured card once 12 months have passed since bk discharge - but after 12 months I was denied due to bankruptcy and their advice was to ask to have the application reconsidered in another month or two.  My bank manager even called on my behalf and got the same response. Wells Fargo was not part of the bk filing and my record with them in the four years I have been a customer is excellent. I have always had consistent, guaranteed direct deposit monthly income. I maintain ample balances in both checking and savings accounts, and have no overdrafts or any outstanding credit obligations with any source. I would prefer to get my credit card with by own bank and am surprised that I am encountering this ambiguous resistance. Any thoughts or advice?

Thank you for your help.


Answer
Hello Joe:

Thank you for the kind words.  Please see my answers in CAPS to your specific questions (copied and pasted below):


1) I had 3 revolving credit cards which were charged off and turned over to collection agencies prior to bk filing.  In my filing I included the original lenders as well as the collection entities.  On all three credit reports the original lenders are listed as charge-offs and debt purchased by another lender.  Do I have the right and would it be to my benefit to request the credit report entries be amended to discharged in bankruptcy?

A:)  YES YOU HAVE THE RIGHT AND IT IS PROBABLY WORTH THE EFFORT TO GET THEM UPDATED.  HOWEVER, YOU SHOULD DISPUTE THEM SIMPLY AS INACCURATE AT FIRST.  WITH LUCK, THEY MAY BE ACTUALLY DELETED INSTEAD OF JUST UPDATED TO SHOW DISCHARGE IN BANKRUPTCY.  IF THEY ARE NOT DELETED OR UPDATED, YOU CAN DISPUTE IT AGAIN, THIS TIME BY PROVIDING MORE EVIDENCE OF THE UPDATE.

2) While preparing my bk filing I pulled my credit reports and discovered for the first time that a creditor had obtained a judgement against me two years earlier. I had lived at the same address for ten years, they had communicated with me at that address both before and after the date of judgement and never once referred to it.  I went to the court and requested the judgement be vacated.  The court pulled the records and found that they had served someone by another name, at another address, in another city.  As the creditor chose not to appear at that hearing the judgement was first vacated without prejudice and a second hearing date was set. When the creditor failed to show up on that date the judgement was vacated with prejudice.  Two credit reports list the judgement as being discharged through bankruptcy, one does not list it.  I would like to have the judgement removed from the public records section of the report even though the discharged debt would still remain in its section of the report. Do I have the right to have the judgement removed from the public records section since it has been removed from the court record and would I benefit at all from having no judgement listed as opposed to the present listing of a judgement discharged through bankruptcy?

A:)  YES YOU HAVE THE RIGHT AND THIS IS A MAJOR - REPEAT, MAJOR - THING YOU CAN DO TO IMPROVE YOUR SCORE.  A JUDGEMENT IS A SIGNIFICANT HINDERANCE ON YOUR CREDIT.  SEND PROOF OF THE VACATED JUDGEMENT DIRECTLY TO EACH CREDIT BUREAU THAT REPORTS IT.  IT SHOULD COME OFF IN ABOUT 30 DAYS.

3) I have been trying to get a secured credit card through my bank, Wells Fargo, and have been getting somewhat of a run-around.  They acknowledge that their stated rules allow for a secured card once 12 months have passed since bk discharge - but after 12 months I was denied due to bankruptcy and their advice was to ask to have the application reconsidered in another month or two.  My bank manager even called on my behalf and got the same response. Wells Fargo was not part of the bk filing and my record with them in the four years I have been a customer is excellent. I have always had consistent, guaranteed direct deposit monthly income. I maintain ample balances in both checking and savings accounts, and have no overdrafts or any outstanding credit obligations with any source. I would prefer to get my credit card with by own bank and am surprised that I am encountering this ambiguous resistance. Any thoughts or advice?

A:)  THIS IS DIFFICULT FOR ME TO ANSWER BECAUSE IT REALLY IS UP TO THE LENDER AND WHAT THEIR REQUIREMENTS ARE.  THERE ARE OTHER SECURED CREDIT CARDS OUT THERE.  SIMPLE INTERNET SEARCHES SHOULD BE ABLE TO HELP.  I DON'T WANT TO RECOMMEND ONE OVER ANOTHER AS IT REALLY DEPENDS ON PERSONAL SITUATIONS.  MY ATTITUDE WAS I NEVER GAVE BUSINESS TO COMPANIES THAT WOULDN'T HELP ME WHEN I WAS DOWN AFTER MY BK.  TODAY I HAVE AN 800+ SCORE AND THOSE CREDITORS THAT REFUSED TO WORK WITH ME ARE SENDING ME PRE-APPROVED OFFERS VIRTUALLY EVERY DAY.  I JUST LAUGH AS I THROW THEM AWAY AND STAY WITH COMPANIES THAT WERE WITH ME (OR AT LEAST NOT AGAINST ME) IN MY TIME OF NEED.

Good luck, I hope this helps.  It's a long road ahead but it can be done with patience and persistence.

Regan