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04_08_97_ Life After Debt
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MW Hammond: Welcome to "Life After Debt with Bob Hammond"
MW Hammond: Is there really, "Life After Debt?"
MW Hammond: Good evening sggolfman, welcome to life after debt
MW Hammond: Welcome deb at wr
Sggolfman: Thanks, what is it about?
DEB AT WR: Thanks.
MW Hammond: How to eliminate debts, erase bad credit, obtain financing,
financial privacy, etc.
MW Hammond: Any relevant questions or comments are welcome
DEB AT WR: Is there such a thing as to erase bad credit other than time?
Sggolfman: Not for me! Have a good day>
MW Hammond: Absolutely, deb at wr. There are several ways to erase bad
credit files
DEB AT WR: How?
MW Hammond: For example, you can "dispute" items you don't agree with. They
must be reinvestigated
MW Hammond: If after a reasonable time (30 days) the information isn't
verified, it must be deleted
MW Hammond: Another method is negotiate directly with the creditor, offer a
discounted settlement of th
MW Hammond: account. Offer to pay it if they agree to delete the negative
reference to the account
DEB AT WR: How long does it take to show you have gotten back on track (no
slow pays) and be able to
DEB AT WR: get a better rating?
MW Hammond: Welcome to life after debt dma15
DMA15: hello
MW Hammond: It can be done in a few weeks
MW Hammond: Depending on your situation
DEB AT WR: What do the banks look for?
MW Hammond: They look at several things, including ability to repay, past
credit history, stable employ.
MW Hammond: They start with the info you include on the application (yrs. at
residence, income, employ,
DMA15: I HAVE A LOT OF NEGATIVE ENTRIES ON MY CREDIT RPT THAT IS FALSE HOW
CAN I GET IT OFF?
MW Hammond: Then also your credit reports from all 3 major bureaus may be
checked for negatives
DEB AT WR: We had several years great credit, then had problems for 3 years,
things are better now but
DEB AT WR: am anxious to get things back on track.
MW Hammond: You have the right to dispute any item on your reports that you
believe is inaccurate, mis..
MW Hammond: leading, or obsolete
MW Hammond: Anything not verified must be deleted
MW Hammond: First step is to get copies of your reports from all 3 bureaus
(Experian, Trans Union and ..
DMA15: TRIED THAT BUT DOES NOT GET DELETED. I KEEP GOING OVER AND OVER AND
THE SAME THING SHOWS UP
MW Hammond: Equifax. Sometimes it takes a "strong" follow-up letter,
threatening to take legal action
Snick700: does anyone know the http good morning america gave out about
personal financial info on web
MW Hammond: Also, you can write directly to the creditors and tell them to
remove the "wrong" info
NRossMVP: What did the Dow close at today?
MW Hammond: sorry snick700, I don't know that one, but check out
www.uni-sol.com/crc
MW Hammond: I don't have stock market info. Sorry
NRossMVP: Hammond, are you familiar with the Stein Roe Young Investor Mutual
Fund?
MW Hammond: The web site I just gave gives info on disputing credit reports,
MW Hammond: Somewhat
Snick700: MW does it tell anything about "Your" personal fin. info?
NRossMVP: Do you believe it is a good Fund for a teenager trying to save
money for College
MW Hammond: Again, this particular chat show provides general info. on credit
restoration, debt negotiat
MW Hammond: ion, asset protection, and creative financing strategies
Snick700: OK thank you MW
MW Hammond: Yes. NRossmvp. Also check out Twentieth Century Growth
DMA15: so you think i should write to the companies to remove wrong info
DEB AT WR: MW, just got a car loan with a higher interest rate because of the
last few years, how long
MW Hammond: Yes. (dma15) Tell them they are adverseley affecting your
finances.
DEB AT WR: before I can try to refinance it with a lower interest rate?
MW Hammond: If you make major improvements to your credit profile, you can
refinance within a few months
DEB AT WR: Do you mean by staying current on all loans and credit cards?
MW Hammond: In the meantime, you should pay off and close as many credit card
accounts as possible
MW Hammond: Reduce your debt to income ratio as well as dispute any negatives
you can on your reports
MW Hammond: You can negotiate settlements with creditors to accept less than
the full amount
DEB AT WR: I haven't checked my report, but am sure it's correct as we have
been late, always been paid
MW Hammond: And get the creditors to mark the accounts "paid satisfactorily"
or "paid as agreed"
DEB AT WR: but sometimes late charges.
MW Hammond: As I mentioned b4, get copies of all 3 reports and check them for
accuracy.
MW Hammond: Consumer Reports found a a48% error rate on credit reports
MW Hammond: That means nearly half of all credit reports contain errors
DEB AT WR: How long doe slow pays, (30 days) stay on your credit report?
MW Hammond: Most negative info stays up to 7 yrs. www.uni-sol.com/crc has
info on obtaining, disputing
MW Hammond: credit reports and negotiating with creditors
DMA15: so request all credit reports and go through each entry and pay them
off or get up to date
MW Hammond: That is the Citizens' Rights Council
MW Hammond: Yes that
MW Hammond: s correct dma15
DEB AT WR: So 30 days is as negative as a charge off or bankruptcy?
MW Hammond: If you don't have any good current accounts, you may need to open
a secured credit card
MW Hammond: no, 30 days late is not nearly as bad as a bankruptcy or charge
off
DMA15: do have to wait for rejection letter in order to get free reports
DEB AT WR: All accounts are current and have been for about 4 months
MW Hammond: Sometimes one or two 30 days late wont' even be counted against
you
MW Hammond: You can also write to the bureaus and tell them you don't have
any money and they'll send a
MW Hammond: free credit report
MW Hammond: Otherwise its normally about $8 per report
DEB AT WR: I thought with all the trouble with TRW a few years ago, you can
now get one free per year?
MW Hammond: They just stopped doing that
MW Hammond: last month
MW Hammond: You can also get a free report by telling them that you have been
a victim of credit fraud
DEB AT WR: Do certain banks report to only certain bureaus?
MW Hammond: In other words, someone may have been using your credit
MW Hammond: Yes, deb at wr, each bank may use one or two bureaus
DMA15: where do get address info
MW Hammond: Negative info may not always be reported to all 3 bureaus by each
creditor
MW Hammond: check www.uni-sol.com/crc for info on credit bureau addresses
DEB AT WR: What other useful info do they have at uni-sol?
MW Hammond: They have info on negotiating with creditors and preparing for a
mortgage, etc.
DMA15: just use letters no special forms to dispute
MW Hammond: When you get your credit reports, they will contain a dispute
form. Or you can just write a
MW Hammond: letter
MW Hammond: Be sure to include account name, number, and reason for dispute
(such as "not my account")
MW Hammond: Never dispute by saying something like, "I was late because....."
MW Hammond: That only confirms the fact that you were late. Case closed.
DEB AT WR: I know creditors use a point system to qualify, does each account
that is slow receive a poi
DEB AT WR: nt or just 1 for all
MW Hammond: Not quite that black and white. Points may be relegated to
issues like yrs. on the job,
MW Hammond: more than 3 inquiries in last 6 months, number of delinquencies,
etc
MW Hammond: The point scoring system is described in "Life After Debt" or
"Life Without Debt" (Career Pr
DEB AT WR: What do you mean inquiries, if you apply for a loan and someone is
checking your credit?
MW Hammond: Yes. Excessive inquiries can be negative. See www.drprivacy.com
for related publications.
DMA15: i would like to get mortgage, if i show up to payments say for the
last 6 mo. can that help
MW Hammond: Be careful not to apply at too many places within a short period
of time.
DEB AT WR: Is life after debt your book?
MW Hammond: Excessive inquiries can appear as though you are desparate or
being turned down all over
MW Hammond: Yes. Life After Debt is one of the dozen books I've written. See
your library or book store
DEB AT WR: I just picked it up today at the bookstore.
DEB AT WR: Thought I recognized the name.
MW Hammond: Great. I hope you enjoy it.
MW Hammond: Feel free to send me your comments or questions after you read
the book.
DEB AT WR: Just looked through it quickly, some great info.
MW Hammond: Thanks. It was just updated last year.
DMA15: so you should not apply for anything until you are sure you will not
get rejected
DEB AT WR: Any other books you might recommend?
MW Hammond: Well at least make sure that you've done all you can to correct
your credit records
MW Hammond: Also check out "LIfe Without Debt" and "Repair Your Own Credit"
MW Hammond: They are available thru www.amazon.com
DEB AT WR: Can you write a letter to be put in your credit report explaining
some of the bad times?
DEB AT WR: Will it help?
DMA15: i will pick those books up
MW Hammond: You can have a statement of up to 100 words added to the body of
your credit report
MW Hammond: Be careful, however, of just making excuses for why you were late
DEB AT WR: Do creditors really look at them?
MW Hammond: Medical problems or insurance disputes can, however, provide good
justifications
MW Hammond: They can't help but see it on the report. Best is just to delete
the negatives
MW Hammond: You can also add positive information to your report to
compensate for the negatives that
MW Hammond: you can't eliminate thru dispute or negotiation
DEB AT WR: Positive meaning current payments?
MW Hammond: In other words, 2 or 3 new accounts with no late payments will
make up for earlier mistakes
DEB AT WR: Do secured cards report to bureaus?
MW Hammond: You can obtain a secured credit card or a small jewelry or
furniture account
MW Hammond: They generally do report to the bureaus. Ask them before you
apply though.
DEB AT WR: I already have major credit cards, if I stay current with them, is
that the same?
MW Hammond: Life After Debt also describes a method of adding up to 10 yrs
positive credit history
MW Hammond: Yes. In fact, you should probably try to pay some of these
accounts off and close them
MW Hammond: Enough good will usually outweigh the negatives over time.
Especially over the last 2 yrs.
MW Hammond: Many lenders don't put much weight on negatives older than 2 or 3
yrs
MW Hammond: The older accounts are also easier to dispute and negotiate
MW Hammond: Example, after a couple years, many banks can no longer verify
the account
MW Hammond: That is especially true of closed accounts
DEB AT WR: I had great until until 3 years ago, that probably doesn't show up
does it?
DEB AT WR: Sorry, typo
MW Hammond: ]It may still show up. Usually the last 5 years of good credit
will show up
MW Hammond: Unfortunately, they go back 7 to 10 yrs for negative credit info
MW Hammond: 7 yrs for most negatives, 10 yrs for bankruptcy. Unpaid tax
liens can stay forever
MW Hammond: Then 7 yrs after being paid
DMA15: after 7 years shouldn't most come off without disputes
DEB AT WR: I have been trying to paid triple payments on my credit cards,
never seems to go down.
MW Hammond: They're supposed to be automatically deleted. You have to check
though
MW Hammond: I know it doesn't seem to go away. But it will in time. Most
important is to stop adding ..
MW Hammond: more charges. Stop incurring all additional unsecured credit
debt
Transportu: Hi, I have a question, but do not want to interrupt. Let me know
when you're available.
MW Hammond: Go for i9t
MW Hammond: transportu?
Transportu: I have alot of credit card debt but am trying to save at the same
time how much do I send in
Transportu: to the cc and how much goes to the savings?
MW Hammond: Always pay more than the minimum on your credit cards. Figure it
like this...
MW Hammond: Your cc debts are probably 14 to 20% and your savings is paying
about 3%, right?
Transportu: right.
SSW13: I KNOW 'THEY' SAY TO SAVE - BUT DOESN'T IT make more sense to pay
'all' to cc each month &
MW Hammond: If you had 10,000 in savings (at 3%) and owed 10,000 in cc debt
(at 18%) - youre losing 15%
SSW13: then use card if necessay?
MW Hammond: No you don't have to pay everything to the creditors. Keep
credit use to a minimum
Transportu: I have $4000 in cc debt, $250 in savings!
MW Hammond: If you can save 10% of your income each month and pay 20% toward
debts that may work.
MW Hammond: Continue saving, but put more of your disposable income toward
the debt for now.
Transportu: What's the first step to a good, lasting budget?
SSW13: we tried it to clear up all debt - paid every extra $$ of payck after
monthly bills-
MW Hammond: Once you've paid off the cc debts, then add more to savings
MW Hammond: First step is to write out a list of all expenses and incomes
SSW13: then chg'd only absolute necessities all month - balance came down in
a hurry!
MW Hammond: Sounds like a good strategy ssw13.
MW Hammond: Look at total income and expenses. Find out what changes you can
make (percentage of budget
SSW13: the trick was 'absolute necessities'! movies, cd's, new clothes
didn't qualify!
MW Hammond: In other words, look at the percent of total income going toward
each category.
Transportu: What if your wages differ each pay period - what do you put down
for income?
MW Hammond: That's good. There are hundreds of ways to save on expenses
every month w/o totally changin
MW Hammond: your standard of living. Find cheaper ways to do the same things
(bargains, coupons, etc)
MW Hammond: My book, "Life Without Debt" ($15, Career Press) has details on
rapid debt elimination
Transportu: Is it at
BJ Goldie: love your book Life after Debt. I am making progress with the
credit bureaus.
MW Hammond: Realize that most of this financial recovery process does take
time.
Transportu: Barnes and Noble?
MW Hammond: Barnes and Noble, B Daltons, Waldenbooks, or www.amazon.com
SSW13: is there a list of mw experts, theie e-mails & their pub's??
MW Hammond: My latest book is SUPER PRIVACY: THE COMPLETE GUIDE TO PERSONAL
PRIVACY
MW Hammond: AND FINANCIAL FREEDOM IN TOMORROW'S CASHLESS SOCIETY ($15,
Paladin Press)
DEB AT WR: MW-Totally enjoyed your chat tonight, lots of great infor, look
forward to it again. Thanks
MW Hammond: See www.paladin-press.com or www.drprivacy.com for more info.
Times about up. :-)
DMA15: thanks
MW Hammond: Best wishes all. I can be reached at mw hammond (e-mail) or
www.drprivacy.com. Bye!
Transportu: Thanks for the advice, I will go buy your book