Companies that tell you that they can remove information from your credit report, even if that credit information is ACCURATE.
Let’s start by saying this:
Negative information on your credit report that is accurate NEEDS to be there.
We have a few views on credit reporting agencies
- Credit is only your ability to get into MORE debt on more (or less)-link to summary favorable terms.
- Credit scores are calculated on a nationwide basis to determine borrower’s riskiness or CREDITWORTHINGESS
- Lenders pass your transgression of credit to other creditors (In the form of more fees or higher rates)
We should know this by now!
Look at your phone bill. Do you think there is something wrong with all the taxes and fees you are being charged for a $30 bill?
There is!!!
These companies are passing on their government imposed charges and fees to YOU!
It’s like saying that when you buy water from the store you will be charged $1.12 instead of $0.99 because of government impositions (before taxes and CRV).
It might seem insignificant but multiply that times 36 (the smallest phone bill I know of) and that’s almost an additional $5/month you are paying that the phone company is supposed to be paying, but decided YOU should pay it!
We will pick up that issue later (Sorry we have to stay civilized).
But to make a point, lenders build these risk models that are supposed to predict our financial behavior (And they are remarkably accurate!) and pass on specific rates to us-just like insurance companies pass on premiums to us.
So when a borrower (that’s what credit is for-borrowing) decides to circumvent the system (through unethical methods-link to page or article) they are clearing their path for more favorable borrowing.
But should they default on the risk models (meaning you expected these people to pay but they didn’t), a charge is incurred on the creditors.
Pay attention, this is good stuff!
So what will a “good acting” high powered, multi-billion funded company do?
Pass the rates on to you, your family, your neighbors, your community, AND your nation!
So when you are thinking you are acting in your OWN best interest, you are really hurting those around you ,AND IN TURN hurting yourself.
It’s funny how these things work!
Do you ever notice the difference between a 5.9998% and a 5.9999% on a mortgage?
Well, on a $500,000 mortgage it’s only $50. But on 1,000 mortgages that’s $50,000!
Or, the sum a borrower may not pay but was trusted to pay for a “spotless credit.”
Are you starting to get the picture?
Lenders have ways of making up money lost by PUNISHING unsuspectful consumers with the tiniest additions, such as $50 per borrower, but over many borrowers, such as 1,000, will add to make it up?
Well, considering that Bank of America hold 12.2% of ALL US deposits imagine how many “credit mistakes” they can correct because of one single well intentioned consumer?
Basically, if you think you can trick the credit bureaus you don’t (at least in the larger picture). The only thing you are doing is passing on your mistakes to other consumers in the form of more fees and higher interest rates.
And if you think a little bit spread out won’t hurt anyone, think about a situation where you spent over your checking balance and it was not entirely your fault and the bank charged you not one $35 fee, but two or three, or FOUR over the limit fees for ever day you were over the limit.
And when you spoke to them they were happy to remove 3 of the 4 overdraft fees (they were really only going for one!)
Would you pass that feeling to anyone else?
Still don’t believe it?
On a golf course a high executive banker (whose affiliation we won’t mention…sorry) remarked that their biggest hope is when a check bounces or when a customer overdrafts!
In fact, they maneuver the system in ways so that these instances will happen more often:
Really?
Think about times when your bank didn’t post a check or a transaction until later in the week or month (which deviates from their usual posting). ESPECIALLY when your balance was close to the limit!
WOW!
We know, it makes us angry too!
But they said they can “Repair my Credit!”
Yeah. And let me guess, they will charge you around $800 for it or sell you a system for $80 or so?
All these entities employ:
- Either unethical methods, or
- Give you information in an eBook you can get for free (link to gov. site)
Listen, misleading the credit bureaus is like misleading insurance agencies on claims, the IRS (although we all have our beef with them…), or any other system that is reliant on social behavior (that’s us America).
The truth is:
We can bring the credit system down if we wanted to very simply:
STOP BORROWING!
If our entire nation would stop utilizing credit in any shape or form for an entire year, the whole credit consortium would collapse.
Along with that many other things would collapse with it, banking, retail, real estate, wholesale, farming, and almost any major industry contributing to our lifestyle.
Sad isn’t it?
The only way to release our dependence over credit is like overcoming alcoholism (link to alcoholism), a bad addiction that cut off completely would lead of to death, but by reducing it gradually could lead to recovery.
Another note: alcoholism is a disease that does not reverse its course; meaning that an alcoholic that has not touched a drink for 20 years will pick right back up where they were on their first drink since their last!
That’s why they call it terminal!
Our Final Remedy-Please Read…
So what’s our fate?
This section is a rather somber one, and although we try to keep it light throughout our conversations, this is serious.
Responsible borrowing is just not sustainable in the long run (a bold statement). Those who have made it through either got lucky or passed it on to someone else.
Why do you think debt is so abhorred through the ages, including the bible?
Because it’s a disease.
Whether we like to admit it or not (funny that in AA your first step is admitting you have a problem) its only conclusion is just like any other non-curable disorder-tragedy.
Excuse us for reverting back to the same analogy but it parallels the situation so perfectly:
The cure for alcoholism has yet to be found in some magic pill or formula. It rests solely in the hands of our peers. We must take into consideration that this disease is widespread even to our lenders, as they know not better but short term profits, and not the damage they cause in general.
We hope that in your journey throughout our site, whether intentional or not you will consider this:
“How do we cure our dependence on credit?”
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