Big Daddy asked:
I had some very old debt that has caused me to have a very low FICO (568).
I had some very old debt that has caused me to have a very low FICO (568).
SInce then have started my own business and want to get credit score all cleaned up.
2 Questions:
Have checks in hand to pay the less than $2K in bad credit reports. I assume the best way to proceed is to get a secure credit card with a bank.
1.) How long to get a near perfect credit score using the secure credit card and making double payments every month?
2.) How can I get a company credit card so that my business can begin to build credit? Secure card in the company name?
Cheers,
MICKEY
#1 by MN-Mike on November 17, 2009 - 4:27 am
LLOYD
Many CC companies offer a biz card, Capitol One does. They will use your score for the application though.
It depends on how old the debt is, they stay on your report for anywhere from 4 to 10 years depending on the holder of the debt.
Double payments will start showing up in 60 days…expect your score to start going up from then on if you at least make double payments. Also, if you have the cash, pay everything with a card then pay off the card quickly, they love that
And keep to the plan, don’t spend your cash on other things “just this once”, use it to pay off the monthly charges on the card.
You can even almost max the card out then hold half the payment in cash to pay it off next month. This will show a higher balance paid off quickly but dang it, you have to keep the cash to pay it or trouble will come fast.
Mike
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#2 by Tom B on November 19, 2009 - 8:20 am
ANDREA
Have a look at the articles on credit at
They might help. Even if they don’t there’s loads of good advice you might find very useful.
#3 by Kayla G.` on November 22, 2009 - 3:15 pm
ETHAN
-Here’s a site that can help you fix your credit in a simple, easy, and most importantly free form. Taking 5 minutes to fill out this form could save you hundreds of dollars. It helped me personally get away from my bad credit; I highly recommend it.
#4 by t D on November 23, 2009 - 3:18 pm
WILBURN
1. Credit is very inclusive and a secured credit card will help, but not get you anywhere near perfect. The bureau’s rank debt in this order of importance: Mortgage, Secured Loan (car, etc), Credit Cards.
2. See Dunn and Bradstreet:
Try this to improve your credit score:
First know that the bureau must verify any debt you dispute. If they can not verify it, it must be deleted. They have 30 days to do this.
With years in the credit business, I recommend disputing them all at the same time, as you will likely need to go through several rounds of letters to get what you want done. If something is blatently wrong with your credit report, call the bureau after they write back and refuse to remove it. Go up the food chain until a manager agrees to remove or amend the incorrect info on the spot. Don’t buy into their speach about re-disputing it – but make sure you have provided the information necessary by mail already to correct the error. It will not help you to insist on something being removed if you have not provided verificaiton on why.
When you mail in the dispute letter, mail in as much information as possible with it. If your verification is a bankruptcy, send in all the pages to your petition and tab the important pages for them to review.
Also mail in a copy of an electric bill and a copy of your ID to avoid any delays. See the FTC web’s site for your specific rights with collectors and debt reporting:
If your problem is directly with the creditors, write to them ONE time. If they do not remove incorrect information, write to your state’s attorney general’s office and the FTC. This will get you the results you seek if you are in the right.
If this is a collection agency problem, write to the same people plus the ACA at. Collection agencies are generally slime, so know your rights before you call them. See your rights here:
If you have legit items that are bad, dispute them also. If they can not be verified, they must be deleted. It is not your responsibility to prove they are inaccurate, it is the credit bureaus who must demonstrate they are.
Hope this helps!