If you’ve found First Source Advantage in your voice mail or on your credit report, that’s not a good sign. First Source Advantage is a debt collector. They want money, and they won’t go away.

If First Source Advantage is trying to collect from you, one of your accounts has been charged off by the original creditor and sent to a collection agency. That leaves you with two problems.

• You need to resolve the debt. Collectors are persistent, and they can make your life miserable. They might even sue you.
• You need to take care of your credit. Collection accounts can crush your score in a hurry.

If you’re dealing with a collection agency, you can take the initiative. You can resolve the debt and protect your credit. Let’s look at how.

Who is First Source Advantage LLC?

First Source Advantage LLC is a debt collection agency focused on consumer debt, especially auto loans and medical bills. If First Source Advantage is trying to contact you or if they’ve appeared on your credit report, you may have defaulted on one of these debts.

First Source Advantage has been accredited by the Better Business Bureau and has an A+ rating, so it’s not exactly a fly-by-night operation. This is a legitimate collection agency with full authority to assume responsibility for your debt.

Here’s What You Can Do

New Federal debt collection regulations took effect on Nov. 30, 2021. The new rules will have a far-reaching impact on the debt collection industry. If you have delinquent debts or accounts in collection these rules will affect you.

Learn more about Regulation F and what will it mean for consumers with debts.

If you’re hearing from First Source Advantage – or any collection agency – there are things that you can (and should) do. There are also two things that you should not do:

• Don’t panic. It won’t help.
• Don’t ignore the situation. That won’t help either. They won’t go away.

That’s what you shouldn’t do, but what should you do?

Here’s where to start.

1. Know Your Rights

The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) spells out the rights of debtors and the obligations of debt collectors. Here are some key points.

• A debt collector cannot call you before 8AM or after 9PM.
• A debt collector cannot call your place of employment.
• If you have a lawyer, the collector must communicate with your lawyer.
• A debt collector may not communicate with your friends or family members or tell them about your debts.
• Debt collectors cannot threaten to harm you, your reputation, or your property, or use profane language.
• Debt collectors must identify themselves and the company they represent. They cannot claim to be law enforcement or other officials.
• A debt collector cannot threaten you with imprisonment or seizure of assets.

For a full review of your rights under the FDCPA see this summary from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB).

If you believe that a debt collector is violating the rules, you can report them to the FTC, the CFPB, and your state’s attorney general.

2. Validate and Verify the Debt

Under the new regulations that came into effect on Nov. 30, 2021, debt collectors must send you a Notice of Debt within 5 days of their first contact with you. This notice must contain much more information than the notices that collectors sent under prior rules.

If the notice is incomplete, it is invalid, and the debt isn’t collectible. That makes it important to know what’s required.

A valid Notice of Debt must contain an itemization date. This can be one of five different dates.

• The date of the last statement or invoice provided to the consumer by the creditor.
• The charge-off date.
• The date of the last payment applied to the debt.
• The date of the transaction that gave rise to the debt.
• The judgment date, if there is court judgment on the debt.

This date will help you establish whether the Statute of Limitations on the debt has expired and when it will drop off your credit report.

The Notice of Debt must also contain extensive information about the debt:

• The debt collector’s name and mailing address.
• The consumer’s full name and mailing address.
• If the debt is related to a financial product (like a loan or credit card), the notice must contain the name of the creditor to whom the debt was owed on the itemization date.
• The account number associated with the debt.
• The name of the creditor to which the debt is currently owed.
• The amount of the current debt and an itemized list of any payments made and added fees, interest, or other charges.

The Notice of Debt must contain a statement advising you of your rights under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FCPA), including a statement that you have the right to dispute the debt within 30 days of receiving the letter.

The notice must also contain a returnable form allowing you to declare that you are disputing the debt and allowing you to select one of three reasons for a dispute:

• This is not my debt.
• The amount is wrong.
• Other (you will need to supply additional information.)

The CFPB has published a sample Notice of Debt that will help you determine whether the one you receive is complete.

Why It’s Important

Many debt collectors who purchased debts before the new regulations came into effect will not have the required information. They may not be able to get it from the original creditor. They may still try to bluff or intimidate you into paying them or admitting that the debt is yours.

If you receive a Notice of Debt, examine it in detail to make sure it complies with the law. If it doesn’t, inform the collector that you will not discuss the debt until you receive a Notice of Debt that complies with Regulation F.

Always Dispute the Debt

If you do not dispute the debt within 30 days, it is presumed valid. Always dispute debts held by collection companies.

If you are using a dispute or debt validation letter template, be sure that the template is designed for notices received after the implementation of Regulation F on Nov. 20, 2021. Much of the information that debtors used to ask for is now required in the Notice of Debt.

Send the debt collector a certified letter addressing these issues.

• Ask for documentation that verifies that you owe the debt, such as a copy of the original contract.
• Ask whether the statute of limitations on the debt has expired. The collector doesn’t have to tell you, but they can’t lie. If they won’t say, the statute of limitations may have expired.
• Ask whether the agency is licensed to collect debt in your state. Again, the collector is not allowed to lie. You can ask for the date of the license, license number, and the state agancy that issued the license as well.
• A copy of the last billing statement sent by the original creditor.

Send the letter to First Source Advantage by certified mail.

Once you receive the debt validation letter you have 30 days to send your debt dispute letter.

Remember that even if you know the debt is yours, the more important issue is whether they know it’s yours.

Because guess what?

If they can’t prove it’s yours, they can’t collect it or report it to the credit bureaus.

They might not be able to come up with that proof.  Remember, First Source Advantage purchased your debt, in bulk with a bunch of other debt, from the original creditor.

Who knows what was lost in the shuffle?

The onus is on them to provide proof. If they can’t, they’re required by law to remove it from your credit report.

Remember the Statute of Limitations

Always check the date of the debt against the statute of limitations in your state. If the statute of limitations has expired, the collector cannot pursue legal action against you.

The statute of limitations clock begins on the date when the debt was first reported as delinquent.

Remember that making a payment or acknowledging that the debt is yours can restart the statute of limitations.

The expiry of the statute of limitations will not remove an account from your credit record. If the statute of limitations has expired or will expire soon there’s a good chance that the seven-year period of appearance on your credit record is also nearly up.

If the statute of limitations is nearly up your best bet might be to just wait it out.

3. Stop Calls from First Source Advantage NOW

Before Nov. 20, 2021, you could get as many as 15 calls per day from a debt collector, according to a Consumer Credit Card Market Report.

That’s way too many.

That has changed. Regulation F places strict limits on collection calls.

• A debt collector cannot call you more than seven times within seven consecutive days.
• If a debt collector speaks to you on the phone they must wait seven days before calling again.

Debt collectors can now contact you by email and text message as well, but you can tell them how they are permitted to contact you and when.

You can stop all communication from a debt collector.

Follow these simple steps to stop the calls.

1. Write a “stop contact” or “cease” letter telling them to stop contacting you.
2. Make a copy for yourself and mail the original to First Source Advantage.
3. To prove you sent the letter, send it by certified mail with “return receipt requested.”

Make sure you follow these exact steps.

If you do, the National Consumer Law Center states, “the collector can only acknowledge the letter and notify you about legal steps the collector may take.”

When you stop the phone calls, you get some breathing room. Remember that you still owe the debt, and the collector can take legal action.

Then you can tackle the next step.

4. Contest the Debt With the Credit Bureaus

If you believe that you do not owe the debt or that the collection agency has failed to validate the debt, you can file a dispute with the credit bureaus. You will need to dispute the account separately with each credit bureau.

Credit Reporting Bureau Mailing Addresses

You can also dispute it online:

• Equifax
• Experian
• TransUnion

The credit bureau must investigate and verify your debt. If they cannot, they must remove it from your credit record.

Remember that even if the debt is removed from your credit record, the collection agency can still pursue collection efforts.

Get Your FREE Credit Dispute Letter Template

Get our winning dispute letter, plus free tips to help you boost your credit.

Download Now!

5. Settle With A Pay For Delete Agreement

While occasionally the collection debt isn’t yours, most of the time, it is. If that’s the case, a settlement is one way to resolve the situation.

Remember that debt collectors pay, on average, 4 cents for every dollar of debt that they buy. That gives you room to negotiate. A collector can accept less than you owe and still make a profit.

An article from U.S. News & World Report found that collection agencies will settle for between 40-60% of the balance – which could mean thousands of dollars saved.

You might offer 10% of your balance to see what they say.

They’ll probably ask for more, but don’t let them push you around. With a little negotiation, you can reach an agreement you’re comfortable with.

Pay for Delete

A collection agency may agree to remove your account from your credit record if you settle your debt. This is a “pay for delete” arrangement.

When you discuss a settlement, ask the collection agency representative if they will delete your record if you pay. Send a formal “pay for delete letter” to confirm the arrangement and ask for a written commitment.

Remember that you cannot compel a credit bureau to remove a legitimate account from your record. It will be recorded as paid, but it may remain on your credit report for seven years from the date when the account first became delinquent.

A pay-for-delete arrangement is a gamble. It may not work, but it’s worth trying. If they accept the settlement you will no longer have to deal with the collection agency, and that’s a big plus.

Get Your FREE Pay for Delete Letter Template

After much testing, we have put written a great pay to delete letter you can use to get started.

Download Now!

Hire A Credit Repair Company

If you don’t want to go through all the trouble of writing letters and negotiating with First Source Advantage on the phone, consider hiring a credit repair company to help.

A credit repair company is equipped to deal with aggressive debt collectors to help you get the best possible outcome.

The credit repair industry has earned a terrible reputation, and you’ll have to look out for disreputable companies and credit repair scams. There are still some companies that are legitimate and helpful.

Choosing to work with an expert sooner rather than later can save you a lot of time and money in the long run.

Get Professional Help

We analyzed 21 credit repair companies based on price, service, and results, and picked our top three choices.

Best Credit Repair Companies

Then you can sit back and relax while the credit pros do all the work.

If you’d rather do it yourself, that’s okay, too.

What If They Sue?

Collection agencies will take you to court, sometimes over quite small amounts. If a debt collector sues you, don’t ignore the case.

If you don’t respond, the judge will probably issue a summary judgment against you. You will be ordered to repay the debt. If you don’t, your wages could be garnished. In some states, your assets could be seized.

Not all companies will exercise their right to file a lawsuit against you, but a lawsuit is always a possibility when dealing with an aggressive debt collector.

Important! Read up on what to do if you get sued by a debt collector to make sure you take all the right steps.

Free Yourself From First Source Advantage

Debt collectors will not go away on their own. They will keep harassing you, and you might end up in court. Running away is not an option.

Instead, take the initiative. Learn how to communicate with debt collectors and know your rights. You can control the process and the situation if you’re aware and proactive.

It’s not going to be a pleasant experience, but it will be a better experience if you’re in the driver’s seat!

The post How to Remove First Source Advantage from Your Credit Report appeared first on FinMasters.

If you have gotten phone calls or mail from General Revenue Corporation you may be wondering who they are and why they want money.

General Revenue is a debt collector. If they are calling you, it’s likely that you’ve defaulted on a loan. The lender has turned the account over to General Revenue.

That can be stressful in several ways. You’re likely to hear from them often, they may be aggressive, and they will place a collection account on your credit report, which will do serious damage to your credit.

Here’s what you need to know about the company: who they are, what they do, and how to resolve your debt and get their name removed from your credit report.

Who is General Revenue Corporation?

General Revenue Corporation is a debt collection agency primarily focused on student loans, specifically federal loans.

General Revenue Corporation is a legitimate debt collection agency with an A+ rating from the Better Business Bureau. They are a subsidiary of Navient, a student loan servicer.

Here’s What You Can Do

New Federal debt collection regulations took effect on Nov. 30, 2021. The new rules will have a far-reaching impact on the debt collection industry. If you have delinquent debts or accounts in collection these rules will affect you.

Learn more about Regulation F and what will it mean for consumers with debts.

If you’re hearing from General Revenue Corporation – or any collection agency – there are things that you can (and should) do. There are also two things that you should not do:

• Don’t Panic. It won’t help.
• Don’t ignore the situation. That won’t help either. They won’t go away.

That’s what you shouldn’t do, but what should you do?

Here’s where to start.

1. Know Your Rights

The rights of debtors and the obligations of debt collectors are spelled out in the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA). Here are some key points.

• A debt collector cannot call you before 8AM or after 9PM.
• A debt collector cannot call your place of employment.
• If you have a lawyer, the collector must communicate with your lawyer.
• A debt collector may not communicate with your friends or family members or tell them about your debts.
• Debt collectors cannot threaten to harm you, your reputation, or your property, or use profane language.
• Debt collectors must identify themselves and the company they represent. They cannot claim to be law enforcement or other officials.
• A debt collector cannot threaten you with imprisonment or seizure of assets.

For a full review of your rights under the FDCPA see this summary from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB).

If you believe that a debt collector is violating the rules, you can report them to the FTC, the CFPB, and your state’s attorney general.

2. Validate and Verify the Debt

Under the new regulations that came into effect on Nov. 30, 2021, debt collectors must send you a Notice of Debt within 5 days of their first contact with you. This notice must contain much more information than the notices that collectors sent under prior rules.

If the notice is incomplete, it is invalid, and the debt isn’t collectible. That makes it important to know what’s required.

A valid Notice of Debt must contain an itemization date. This can be one of five different dates.

• The date of the last statement or invoice provided to the consumer by the creditor.
• The charge-off date.
• The date of the last payment applied to the debt.
• The date of the transaction that gave rise to the debt.
• The judgment date, if there is court judgment on the debt.

This date will help you establish whether the Statute of Limitations on the debt has expired and when it will drop off your credit report.

The Notice of Debt must also contain extensive information about the debt:

• The debt collector’s name and mailing address.
• The consumer’s full name and mailing address.
• If the debt is related to a financial product (like a loan or credit card), the notice must contain the name of the creditor to whom the debt was owed on the itemization date.
• The account number associated with the debt.
• The name of the creditor to which the debt is currently owed.
• The amount of the current debt and an itemized list of any payments made and added fees, interest, or other charges.

The Notice of Debt must contain a statement advising you of your rights under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FCPA), including a statement that you have the right to dispute the debt within 30 days of receiving the letter.

The notice must also contain a returnable form allowing you to declare that you are disputing the debt and allowing you to select one of three reasons for a dispute:

• This is not my debt.
• The amount is wrong.
• Other (you will need to supply additional information.)

The CFPB has published a sample Notice of Debt that will help you determine whether the one you receive is complete.

Why It’s Important

Many debt collectors who purchased debts before the new regulations came into effect will not have the required information. They may not be able to get it from the original creditor. They may still try to bluff or intimidate you into paying them or admitting that the debt is yours.

If you receive a Notice of Debt, examine it in detail to make sure it complies with the law. If it doesn’t, inform the collector that you will not discuss the debt until you receive a Notice of Debt that complies with Regulation F.

Always Dispute the Debt

If you do not dispute the debt within 30 days, it is presumed valid. Always dispute debts held by collection companies.

If you are using a dispute or debt validation letter template, be sure that the template is designed for notices received after the implementation of Regulation F on Nov. 20, 2021. Much of the information that debtors used to ask for is now required in the Notice of Debt.

Send the debt collector a certified letter addressing these issues.

• Ask for documentation that verifies that you owe the debt, such as a copy of the original contract.
• Ask whether the statute of limitations on the debt has expired. The collector doesn’t have to tell you, but they can’t lie. If they won’t say, the statute of limitations may have expired.
• Ask whether the agency is licensed to collect debt in your state. Again, the collector is not allowed to lie. You can ask for the date of the license, license number, and the state agancy that issued the license as well.
• A copy of the last billing statement sent by the original creditor.

Send the letter to General Revenue by certified mail.

Once you receive the debt validation letter you have 30 days to send your debt dispute letter.

Remember that even if you know the debt is yours, the more important issue is whether they know it’s yours.

Because guess what?

If they can’t prove it’s yours, they can’t collect it or report it to the credit bureaus.

They might not be able to come up with that proof.  Remember, General Revenue purchased your debt, in bulk with a bunch of other debt, from the original creditor.

Who knows what was lost in the shuffle?

The onus is on them to provide proof. If they can’t, they’re required by law to remove it from your credit report.

Remember the Statute of Limitations

Always check the date of the debt against the statute of limitations in your state. If the statute of limitations has expired, the collector cannot pursue legal action against you.

The statute of limitations clock begins on the date when the debt was first reported as delinquent.

Remember that making a payment or acknowledging that the debt is yours can restart the statute of limitations.

The expiry of the statute of limitations will not remove an account from your credit record. If the statute of limitations has expired or will expire soon there’s a good chance that the seven-year period of appearance on your credit record is also nearly up.

If the statute of limitations is nearly up your best bet might be to just wait it out.

3. Stop Calls from General Revenue Corporation NOW

Before Nov. 20, 2021, you could get as many as 15 calls per day from a debt collector, according to a Consumer Credit Card Market Report.

That’s way too many.

That has changed. Regulation F places strict limits on collection calls.

• A debt collector cannot call you more than seven times within seven consecutive days.
• If a debt collector speaks to you on the phone they must wait seven days before calling again.

Debt collectors can now contact you by email and text message as well, but you can tell them how they are permitted to contact you and when.

You can stop all communication from a debt collector.

Follow these simple steps to stop the calls.

1. Write a “stop contact” or “cease” letter telling them to stop contacting you.
2. Make a copy for yourself and mail the original to General Revenue.
3. To prove you sent the letter, send it by certified mail with “return receipt requested.”

Make sure you follow these exact steps.

If you do, the National Consumer Law Center states, “the collector can only acknowledge the letter and notify you about legal steps the collector may take.”

When you stop the phone calls, you get some breathing room. Remember that you still owe the debt, and the collector can take legal action.

Then you can tackle the next step.

4. Contest the Debt With the Credit Bureaus

If you believe that you do not owe the debt or that the collection agency has failed to validate the debt, you can file a dispute with the credit bureaus. You will need to dispute the account separately with each credit bureau.

Credit Reporting Bureau Mailing Addresses

You can also dispute it online:

• Equifax
• Experian
• TransUnion

The credit bureau must investigate and verify your debt. If they cannot, they must remove it from your credit record.

Remember that even if the debt is removed from your credit record, the collection agency can still pursue collection efforts.

Get Your FREE Credit Dispute Letter Template

Get our winning dispute letter, plus free tips to help you boost your credit.

Download Now!

5. Settle With A Pay For Delete Agreement

While occasionally the collection debt isn’t yours, most of the time, it is. If that’s the case, a settlement is one way to resolve the situation.

Remember that debt collectors pay, on average, 4 cents for every dollar of debt that they buy. That gives you room to negotiate. A collector can accept less than you owe and still make a profit.

An article from U.S. News & World Report found that collection agencies will settle for between 40-60% of the balance – which could mean thousands of dollars saved.

You might offer 10% of your balance to see what they say.

They’ll probably ask for more, but don’t let them push you around. With a little negotiation, you can reach an agreement you’re comfortable with.

Pay for Delete

A collection agency may agree to remove your account from your credit record if you settle your debt. This is called a “pay for delete” arrangement.

When you discuss a settlement, ask the collection agency representative if they will delete your record if you pay. Send a formal “pay for delete letter” to confirm the arrangement and ask for a written commitment.

Remember that you cannot compel a credit bureau to remove a legitimate account from your record. It will be recorded as paid, but it may remain on your credit report for seven years from the date when the account first became delinquent.

A pay-for-delete arrangement is a gamble. It may not work, but it’s worth trying. If the settlement is accepted you will no longer have to deal with the collection agency, and that’s a big plus.

Get Your FREE Pay for Delete Letter Template

After much testing, we have put written a great pay to delete letter you can use to get started.

Download Now!

Hire A Credit Repair Company

If you don’t want to go through all the trouble of writing letters and negotiating with General Revenue on the phone, you can always consider hiring a credit repair company to help.

A credit repair company is equipped to deal with aggressive debt collectors to help you get the best possible outcome.

The credit repair industry has earned a terrible reputation, and you’ll have to look out for disreputable companies and credit repair scams. There are still some companies that are legitimate and helpful.

Choosing to work with an expert sooner rather than later can save you a lot of time and money in the long run.

Get Professional Help

We analyzed 21 credit repair companies based on price, service, and results, and picked our top three choices.

Best Credit Repair Companies

Then you can sit back and relax while the credit pros do all the work.

If you’d rather do it yourself, that’s okay, too.

What If They Sue?

Collection agencies will take you to court, sometimes over quite small amounts. If you do get sued, don’t ignore the case.

If you don’t respond, the judge will probably issue a summary judgment against you. You will be ordered to repay the debt. If you don’t, your wages could be garnished. In some states, your assets could be seized.

Not all companies will exercise their right to file a lawsuit against you, but a lawsuit is always a possibility when dealing with an aggressive debt collector.

Important! Read up on what to do if you get sued by a debt collector to make sure you take all the right steps.

Get Rid of General Revenue for Good

Hopefully, you found these suggestions for getting General Revenue out of your life and off of your credit report helpful.

If General Revenue Corporation is contacting you about debt, keep one thing in mind: Don’t bury your head in the sand. You have options.

The post How To Remove General Revenue Corporation From Your Credit Report appeared first on FinMasters.

So you went to check your credit and saw the name “NCB Management Services Inc” attached to a negative mark on your report. You look over all your past and current loan accounts, credit cards, and other financial records, but nothing matches.

Or you’ve suddenly started getting calls and letters from representatives of NCB Management Services Inc.

So what gives?

You’ve probably had some form of outstanding debt sent to collections.

NCB Credit Management is a collection agency, a specialist in prying money from debtors who have defaulted on a loan or other credit line.

If you have an account in collections, you have two challenges.

• You have to resolve the account. A collection agency will harass you and could even sue you as long as the debt is not resolved.
• You have to address the damage to your credit. Collection accounts are a serious drag on your credit score.

These two challenges are related, but they are not the same thing. One involves dealing with the collection agency, the other involves dealing with the three major credit bureaus: Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion.

Who is NCB Management Services Inc?

NCB Management Services Inc is a debt collection agency primarily focused on retail, healthcare, student loans, and government debt.

The collection industry has a bad reputation – often for good reason – but NCB Management Services is a legit business organization. They are accredited by the Better Business Bureau with an A+ rating.

Collection agencies like NCB Credit Management are hired by companies after the borrower has stopped making payments for a certain length of time. They may also buy debt from the original creditors.

If you’re receiving a letter or call from NCB, it’s likely because you defaulted on a loan or bill and the original lender has sold the debt to NCB Management Services, Inc.

They may have mistakenly sold your debt to NCB Management Service, believing that you’ve willfully violated your loan agreement.

Here’s What You Can Do

New Federal debt collection regulations took effect on Nov. 30, 2021. The new rules will have a far-reaching impact on the debt collection industry. If you have delinquent debts or accounts in collection these rules will affect you.

Learn more about Regulation F and what will it mean for consumers with debts.

If you’re hearing from AFNI Collections – or any collection agency – there are things that you can (and should) do. There are also two things that you should not do:

• Don’t panic. It won’t help.
• Don’t ignore the situation. That won’t help either. They won’t go away.

That’s what you shouldn’t do, but what should you do?

Here’s where to start.

1. Know Your Rights

The rights of debtors and the obligations of debt collectors are spelled out in the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA). Here are some key points.

• A debt collector cannot call you before 8AM or after 9PM.
• A debt collector cannot call your place of employment.
• If you have a lawyer, the collector must communicate with your lawyer.
• A debt collector may not communicate with your friends or family members or tell them about your debts.
• Debt collectors cannot threaten to harm you, your reputation, or your property, or use profane language.
• Debt collectors must identify themselves and the company they represent. They cannot claim to be law enforcement or other officials.
• A debt collector cannot threaten you with imprisonment or seizure of assets.

For a full review of your rights under the FDCPA see this summary from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB).

If you believe that a debt collector is violating the rules, you can report them to the FTC, the CFPB, and your state’s attorney general.

2. Validate and Verify the Debt

Under the new regulations that came into effect on Nov. 30, 2021, debt collectors must send you a Notice of Debt within 5 days of their first contact with you. This notice must contain much more information than the notices that collectors sent under prior rules.

If the notice is incomplete, it is invalid, and the debt isn’t collectible. That makes it important to know what’s required.

A valid Notice of Debt must contain an itemization date. This can be one of five different dates.

• The date of the last statement or invoice provided to the consumer by the creditor.
• The charge-off date.
• The date of the last payment applied to the debt.
• The date of the transaction that gave rise to the debt.
• The judgment date, if there is court judgment on the debt.

This date will help you establish whether the Statute of Limitations on the debt has expired and when it will drop off your credit report.

The Notice of Debt must also contain extensive information about the debt:

• The debt collector’s name and mailing address.
• The consumer’s full name and mailing address.
• If the debt is related to a financial product (like a loan or credit card), the notice must contain the name of the creditor to whom the debt was owed on the itemization date.
• The account number associated with the debt.
• The name of the creditor to which the debt is currently owed.
• The amount of the current debt and an itemized list of any payments made and added fees, interest, or other charges.

The Notice of Debt must contain a statement advising you of your rights under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FCPA), including a statement that you have the right to dispute the debt within 30 days of receiving the letter.

The notice must also contain a returnable form allowing you to declare that you are disputing the debt and allowing you to select one of three reasons for a dispute:

• This is not my debt.
• The amount is wrong.
• Other (you will need to supply additional information.)

The CFPB has published a sample Notice of Debt that will help you determine whether the one you receive is complete.

Why It’s Important

Many debt collectors who purchased debts before the new regulations came into effect will not have the required information. They may not be able to get it from the original creditor. They may still try to bluff or intimidate you into paying them or admitting that the debt is yours.

If you receive a Notice of Debt, examine it in detail to make sure it complies with the law. If it doesn’t, inform the collector that you will not discuss the debt until you receive a Notice of Debt that complies with Regulation F.

Always Dispute the Debt

If you do not dispute the debt within 30 days, it is presumed valid. Always dispute debts held by collection companies.

If you are using a dispute or debt validation letter template, be sure that the template is designed for notices received after the implementation of Regulation F on Nov. 20, 2021. Much of the information that debtors used to ask for is now required in the Notice of Debt.

Send the debt collector a certified letter addressing these issues.

• Ask for documentation that verifies that you owe the debt, such as a copy of the original contract.
• Ask whether the statute of limitations on the debt has expired. The collector doesn’t have to tell you, but they can’t lie. If they won’t say, the statute of limitations may have expired.
• Ask whether the agency is licensed to collect debt in your state. Again, the collector is not allowed to lie. You can ask for the date of the license, license number, and the state agancy that issued the license as well.
• A copy of the last billing statement sent by the original creditor.

Send the letter to NCB Management Services by certified mail.

Once you receive the debt validation letter you have 30 days to send your debt dispute letter.

Remember that even if you know the debt is yours, the more important issue is whether they know it’s yours.

Because guess what?

If they can’t prove it’s yours, they can’t collect it or report it to the credit bureaus.

They might not be able to come up with that proof.  Remember, NCB purchased your debt, in bulk with a bunch of other debt, from the original creditor.

Who knows what was lost in the shuffle?

The onus is on them to provide proof. If they can’t, they’re required by law to remove it from your credit report.

Remember the Statute of Limitations

Always check the date of the debt against the statute of limitations in your state. If the statute of limitations has expired, the collector cannot pursue legal action against you.

The statute of limitations clock begins on the date when the debt was first reported as delinquent.

Remember that making a payment or acknowledging that the debt is yours can restart the statute of limitations.

The expiry of the statute of limitations will not remove an account from your credit record. If the statute of limitations has expired or will expire soon there’s a good chance that the seven-year period of appearance on your credit record is also nearly up.

If the statute of limitations is nearly up your best bet might be to just wait it out.

3. Stop Calls from NCB Management Services NOW

Before Nov. 20, 2021, you could get as many as 15 calls per day from a debt collector, according to a Consumer Credit Card Market Report.

That’s way too many.

That has changed. Regulation F places strict limits on collection calls.

• A debt collector cannot call you more than seven times within seven consecutive days.
• If a debt collector speaks to you on the phone they must wait seven days before calling again.

Debt collectors can now contact you by email and text message as well, but you can tell them how they are permitted to contact you and when.

You can stop all communication from a debt collector.

Follow these simple steps to stop the calls.

1. Write a “stop contact” or “cease” letter telling them to stop contacting you.
2. Make a copy for yourself and mail the original to NCB Management Services.
3. To prove you sent the letter, send it by certified mail with “return receipt requested.”

Make sure you follow these exact steps.

If you do, the National Consumer Law Center states, “the collector can only acknowledge the letter and notify you about legal steps the collector may take.”

When you stop the phone calls, you get some breathing room. Remember that you still owe the debt, and the collector can take legal action.

Then you can tackle the next step.

4. Contest the Debt With the Credit Bureaus

If you believe that you do not owe the debt or that the collection agency has failed to validate the debt, you can file a dispute with the credit bureaus. You will need to dispute the account separately with each credit bureau.

Credit Reporting Bureau Mailing Addresses

You can also dispute it online:

• Equifax
• Experian
• TransUnion

The credit bureau must investigate and verify your debt. If they cannot, they must remove it from your credit record.

Remember that even if the debt is removed from your credit record, the collection agency can still pursue collection efforts.

5. Settle With A Pay For Delete Agreement

While occasionally the collection debt isn’t yours, most of the time, it is. If that’s the case, a settlement is one way to resolve the situation.

Remember that debt collectors pay, on average, 4 cents for every dollar of debt that they buy. That gives you room to negotiate. A collector can accept less than you owe and still make a profit.

An article from U.S. News & World Report found that collection agencies will settle for between 40-60% of the balance – which could mean thousands of dollars saved.

You might offer 10% of your balance to see what they say.

They’ll probably ask for more, but don’t let them push you around. With a little negotiation, you can reach an agreement you’re comfortable with.

Pay for Delete

A collection agency may agree to remove your account from your credit record if you settle your debt. This is a “pay for delete” arrangement.

When you discuss a settlement, ask the collection agency representative if they will delete your record if you pay. Send a formal “pay for delete letter” to confirm the arrangement and ask for a written commitment.

Remember that you cannot compel a credit bureau to remove a legitimate account from your record. It will be recorded as paid, but it may remain on your credit report for seven years from the date when the account first became delinquent.

A pay-for-delete arrangement is a gamble. It may not work, but it’s worth trying. If they accept the settlement you will no longer have to deal with the collection agency, and that’s a big plus.

Get Your FREE Pay for Delete Letter Template

After much testing, we have put written a great pay to delete letter you can use to get started.

Download Now!

Hire A Credit Repair Company

If you don’t want to go through all the trouble of writing letters and negotiating with NCB Management Services on the phone, consider hiring a credit repair company to help.

A credit repair company is equipped to deal with aggressive debt collectors to help you get the best possible outcome.

The credit repair industry has earned a terrible reputation, and you’ll have to look out for disreputable companies and credit repair scams. There are still some companies that are legitimate and helpful.

Choosing to work with an expert sooner rather than later can save you a lot of time and money in the long run.

Get Professional Help

We analyzed 21 credit repair companies based on price, service, and results, and picked our top three choices.

Best Credit Repair Companies

Then you can sit back and relax while the credit pros do all the work.

If you’d rather do it yourself, that’s okay, too.

What If They Sue?

Collection agencies will take you to court, sometimes over quite small amounts. If a debt collector sues you, don’t ignore the case.

If you don’t respond, the judge will probably issue a summary judgment against you. You will be ordered to repay the debt. If you don’t, your wages could be garnished. In some states, your assets could be seized.

Not all companies will exercise their right to file a lawsuit against you, but a lawsuit is always a possibility when dealing with an aggressive debt collector.

Important! Read up on what to do if you get sued by a debt collector to make sure you take all the right steps.

Free Yourself From NCB Management Services

Debt collectors will not go away on their own. They will keep harassing you, and you might end up in court. Running away is not an option.

Instead, take the initiative. Learn how to communicate with debt collectors and know your rights. You can control the process and the situation if you’re aware and proactive.

It’s not going to be a pleasant experience, but it will be a better experience if you’re in the driver’s seat!

The post How to Get NCB Management Services Off Your Credit Report appeared first on FinMasters.

Collection accounts can make a mess of your credit. They can also cause enormous stress in your life. You may get constant calls, and you could even be sued.

If you’re getting calls from Mandarich Law Group, either a creditor has hired them to collect from you or they have bought your debt from a creditor. You have to face the situation. They won’t go away.

Read on for more on who they are and what you can do. who they are and what you can do.

Who is Mandarich Law Group, LLP?

Mandarich Law Group, LLP is a collection agency that focuses on consumer and commercial debt.

If you see MLG Group on your credit report or are receiving letters or calls from them, it’s possible you defaulted on a loan and the original creditor sold that debt to them.

Stop Mandarich Law Group And Remove Them From Your Credit Report

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Mandarich Law Group is a legit collection agency with an A+ rating from the Better Business Bureau, so you’ll have to deal with them sooner or later. Here’s how to do it.

Here’s What You Can Do

New Federal debt collection regulations took effect on Nov. 30, 2021. The new rules will have a far-reaching impact on the debt collection industry. If you have delinquent debts or accounts in collection these rules will affect you.

Learn more about Regulation F and what will it mean for consumers with debts.

If you’re hearing from Mandarich Law Group – or any collection agency – there are things that you can (and should) do. There are also two things that you should not do:

• Don’t Panic. It won’t help.
• Don’t ignore the situation. That won’t help either. They won’t go away.

That’s what you shouldn’t do, but what should you do?

Here’s where to start.

1. Know Your Rights

The rights of debtors and the obligations of debt collectors are spelled out in the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA). Here are some key points.

• A debt collector cannot call you before 8 AM or after 9 PM.
• A debt collector cannot call your place of employment.
• If you have a lawyer, the collector must communicate with your lawyer.
• A debt collector may not communicate with your friends or family members or tell them about your debts.
• Debt collectors cannot threaten to harm you, your reputation, or your property or use profane language.
• Debt collectors must identify themselves and the company they represent. They cannot claim to be law enforcement or other officials.
• A debt collector cannot threaten you with imprisonment or seizure of assets.

For a full review of your rights under the FDCPA, see this summary from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB).

If you believe that a debt collector is violating the rules, you can report them to the FTC, the CFPB, and your state’s attorney general.

2. Validate and Verify the Debt

Under the new regulations that came into effect on Nov. 30, 2021, debt collectors must send you a Notice of Debt within 5 days of their first contact with you. This notice must contain much more information than the notices that collectors sent under prior rules.

If the notice is incomplete, it is invalid, and the debt isn’t collectible. That makes it important to know what’s required.

A valid Notice of Debt must contain an itemization date. This can be one of five different dates.

• The date of the last statement or invoice provided to the consumer by the creditor.
• The charge-off date.
• The date of the last payment applied to the debt.
• The date of the transaction that gave rise to the debt.
• The judgment date, if there is court judgment on the debt.

This data will help you establish whether the Statute of Limitations on the debt has expired and when it will drop off your credit report.

The Notice of Debt must also contain extensive information about the debt:

• The debt collector’s name and mailing address.
• The consumer’s full name and mailing address.
• If the debt is related to a financial product (like a loan or credit card), the notice must contain the name of the creditor to whom the debt was owed on the itemization date.
• The account number associated with the debt.
• The name of the creditor to which the debt is currently owed.
• The amount of the current debt and an itemized list of any payments made and added fees, interest, or other charges.

The Notice of Debt must contain a statement advising you of your rights under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FCPA), including a statement that you have the right to dispute the debt within 30 days of receiving the letter.

The notice must also contain a returnable form allowing you to declare that you are disputing the debt and allowing you to select one of three reasons for a dispute:

• This is not my debt.
• The amount is wrong.
• Other (you will need to supply additional information.)

The CFPB has published a sample Notice of Debt that will help you determine whether the one you receive is complete.

Why It’s Important

Many debt collectors who purchased debts before the new regulations came into effect will not have the required information. They may not be able to get it from the original creditor. They may still try to bluff or intimidate you into paying them or admitting that the debt is yours.

If you receive a Notice of Debt, examine it in detail to make sure it complies with the law. If it doesn’t, inform the collector that you will not discuss the debt until you receive a Notice of Debt that complies with Regulation F.

Always Dispute the Debt

If you do not dispute the debt within 30 days, it is presumed valid. Always dispute debts held by collection companies.

If you are using a dispute or debt validation letter template, be sure that the template is designed for notices received after the implementation of Regulation F on Nov. 20, 2021. Much of the information that debtors used to ask for is now required in the Notice of Debt.

Send the debt collector a certified letter addressing these issues.

• Ask for documentation that verifies that you owe the debt, such as a copy of the original contract.
• Ask whether the statute of limitations on the debt has expired. The collector doesn’t have to tell you, but they can’t lie. If they won’t say, the statute of limitations may have expired.
• Ask whether the agency is licensed to collect debt in your state. Again, the collector is not allowed to lie. You can ask for the date of the license, the license number, and the state agency that issued the license as well.
• A copy of the last billing statement sent by the original creditor.

Send the letter to Mandarich Law Group by certified mail.

Once you receive the debt validation letter, you have 30 days to send your debt dispute letter.

Remember that even if you know the debt is yours, the more important issue is whether they know it’s yours.

Because guess what?

If they can’t prove it’s yours, they can’t collect it or report it to the credit bureaus.

They might not be able to come up with that proof.  Remember, Mandarich Law Group purchased your debt, in bulk with a bunch of other debt, from the original creditor.

Who knows what was lost in the shuffle?

The onus is on them to provide proof. If they can’t, they’re required by law to remove it from your credit report.

Remember the Statute of Limitations

Always check the date of the debt against the statute of limitations in your state. If the statute of limitations has expired, the collector cannot pursue legal action against you.

The statute of limitations clock begins on the date when the debt was first reported as delinquent.

Remember that making a payment or acknowledging that the debt is yours can restart the statute of limitations.

The expiry of the statute of limitations will not remove an account from your credit record. If the statute of limitations has expired or will expire soon, there’s a good chance that the seven-year period of appearance on your credit record is also nearly up.

If the statute of limitations is nearly up, your best bet might be to just wait it out.

3. Stop Calls from Mandarich Law Group NOW

Before Nov. 20, 2021, you could get as many as 15 calls per day from a debt collector, according to a Consumer Credit Card Market Report.

That’s way too many.

That has changed. Regulation F places strict limits on collection calls.

• A debt collector cannot call you more than seven times within seven consecutive days.
• If a debt collector speaks to you on the phone, they must wait seven days before calling again.

Debt collectors can now contact you by email and text message as well, but you can tell them how they are permitted to contact you and when.

You can stop all communication from a debt collector.

Follow these simple steps to stop the calls.

1. Write a “stop contact” or “cease” letter telling them to stop contacting you.
2. Make a copy for yourself and mail the original to Mandarich Law Group.
3. To prove you sent the letter, send it by certified mail with “return receipt requested.”

Make sure you follow these exact steps.

If you do, the National Consumer Law Center states, “the collector can only acknowledge the letter and notify you about legal steps the collector may take.”

When you stop the phone calls, you get some breathing room. Remember that you still owe the debt, and the collector can take legal action.

Then you can tackle the next step.

4. Contest the Debt With the Credit Bureaus

If you believe that you do not owe the debt or that the collection agency has failed to validate the debt, you can file a dispute with the credit bureaus. You will need to dispute the account separately with each credit bureau.

Credit Reporting Bureau Mailing Addresses

You can also dispute it online:

• Equifax
• Experian
• TransUnion

The credit bureau must investigate and verify your debt. If they cannot, they must remove it from your credit record.

Remember that even if the debt is removed from your credit record, the collection agency can still pursue collection efforts.

Get Your FREE Credit Dispute Letter Template

Get our winning dispute letter, plus free tips to help you boost your credit

Download Now!

5. Settle With A Pay For Delete Agreement

While occasionally, the collection debt isn’t yours, most of the time, it is. If that’s the case, a settlement is one way to resolve the situation.

Remember that debt collectors pay, on average, 4 cents for every dollar of debt that they buy. That gives you room to negotiate. A collector can accept less than you owe and still make a profit.

An article from U.S. News & World Report found that collection agencies will settle for between 40-60% of the balance – which could mean thousands of dollars saved.

You might offer 10% of your balance to see what they say.

They’ll probably ask for more, but don’t let them push you around. With a little negotiation, you can reach an agreement you’re comfortable with.

Pay for Delete

A collection agency may agree to remove your account from your credit record if you settle your debt. This is called a “pay for delete” arrangement.

When you discuss a settlement, ask the collection agency representative if they will delete your record if you pay. Send a formal “pay for delete letter” to confirm the arrangement and ask for a written commitment.

Remember that you cannot compel a credit bureau to remove a legitimate account from your record. It will be recorded as paid, but it may remain on your credit report for seven years from the date when the account first became delinquent.

A pay-for-delete arrangement is a gamble. It may not work, but it’s worth trying. If the settlement is accepted, you will no longer have to deal with the collection agency, and that’s a big plus.

Get Your FREE Pay for Delete Letter Template

After much testing, we have put written a great pay to delete letter you can use to get started.

Download Now!

Hire A Credit Repair Company

If you don’t want to go through all the trouble of writing letters and negotiating with Mandarich Law Group on the phone, you can always consider hiring a credit repair company to help.

A credit repair company is equipped to deal with aggressive debt collectors to help you get the best possible outcome.

The credit repair industry has earned a terrible reputation, and you’ll have to look out for disreputable companies and credit repair scams. There are still some companies that are legitimate and helpful.

Get Professional Help

We analyzed 21 credit repair companies based on price, service, and results, and picked our top three choices.

Best Credit Repair Companies

The post Stop Mandarich Law Group And Remove Them From Your Credit Report appeared first on FinMasters.

Credit score terminology can get confusing.

For such a simple idea – quantifying a borrower’s creditworthiness with a number – it’s amazing how many terms, companies, and concepts a consumer needs to know just to grasp the basics.

So when it comes to names like Equifax, TransUnion, Experian, FICO, and VantageScore, how can the average consumer keep it all straight? How do these terms relate to each other, and how do they influence a credit score?

Let’s start by taking one of these terms – Equifax – and breaking down what you need to know.

What is Equifax?

Equifax is a credit bureau, or a company that compiles information about individual consumer lending habits to create a credit report. Equifax is the oldest credit bureau and began in 1899 as the Retail Credit Company.

Lenders, banks, and credit card companies report account activity to credit bureaus like Equifax. If you’re evicted or default on a medical bill, your landlord or doctor’s office may report that information to Equifax and the other credit bureaus.

Companies are not legally required to report information to all three credit bureaus, which explains the discrepancies between one credit report and another.

Did you know that 90% of lenders use FICO credit scores for underwriting decisions?

When you apply for a new loan, credit card, or other lines of credit, the lender or credit card provider will look up your credit report. They may view reports from all three credit bureaus or just one or two. If you’re applying for a major loan like a mortgage, the lender will pull credit reports from all three.

When it comes to TransUnion vs. Equifax, some consumers assume TransUnion is more reputable because of the 2017 Equifax hack. In reality, both companies have experienced data breaches in recent years.

In 2019, TransUnion announced that a hack could have affected about 37,000 Canadian consumers. This is much smaller than the Equifax hack, which affected 147 million people. In general, all three credit bureaus collect similar information about your habits and are long-standing companies.

How to Check Your Equifax Credit Score

Consumers who want to check Equifax scores have two options. They can either view their Equifax FICO score or their Equifax VantageScore. FICO and VantageScore are the two main credit score models that lenders use when approving an applicant.

FICO is more widespread, with over 90% of banks, credit card servicers, and loan companies relying on FICO credit scores. Free credit score sites usually rely on VantageScore. There are other credit score models, but they’re rarely used.

You can check your Equifax FICO score through MyFICO, which shows all 28 FICO credit scores. There are different credit score models for various lenders, such as mortgage lenders, auto lenders, and credit card companies. That’s why you’re likely to see multiple Equifax FICO scores.

Ways to Boost Your Equifax Score

Your Equifax credit score is important. It can affect the interest rate you receive on your mortgage, the credit cards you qualify for, and even whether or not you can sign a lease without a cosigner.

Understanding FICO Scores
Did you know lenders pull different FICO scores when you apply for a car loan vs a home loan?  And yet another for credit cards?  And the scores can vary (a LOT!)
Learn all about the 30+ different credit scores you have.

An Equifax boost can improve your chances of getting a better deal on a mortgage or auto loan.

Track Your Credit Score

First, check what type of credit score you have through the MyFICO site, which shows all 28 variations of the FICO credit score.

If you sign up for regular monitoring, you’ll receive an updated score once a month.

Seeing your latest credit score will help keep you on the right track.

Make Payments on Time

On-time payment history accounts for 35% of your FICO credit score. Your score will increase if you pay your bills on time, but missing even one payment could cause a significant dip.

Find a way to ensure you never miss a payment. Even if you have autopay or bill pay set up, always monitor your loans and credit cards to verify that a payment went through.

Lower Your Credit Card Utilization

If you have credit cards, check that your utilization percentage is lower than 30%. This percentage is calculated by dividing the current balance by the original credit limit.

If your current balance is $300 and the credit limit is $1,500, your utilization percentage is 20%.

Credit card companies don’t monitor this ratio, so you’ll have to do the math yourself.

Use our credit utilization ratio calculator to find yours…

Keep Old Accounts Open

The average age of your credit history makes up 10% of your FICO score.

Every time you close an old account, you risk lowering the average age.

Keep credit cards open as long as possible and avoid closing any credit cards unless there’s a steep annual fee.

Become an Authorized User

It can take longer to build a credit history when you’re starting with nothing.

Much like applying for an entry-level job that requires experience, it’s hard to be approved for a line of credit when you’ve never had one before.

Lenders are hesitant to give money to someone with no track record.

Becoming an authorized user on someone else’s credit card is one of the best ways to build your credit history quickly. If you have parents with stellar credit scores, ask them to add you as an authorized user on their oldest credit card.

When you become an authorized user, the history for that card is then added to your credit report. This helps you apply and get approved for your own credit products.

Get a Credit Builder Loan

Unlike regular lending products, credit builder loans are solely designed to help consumers improve their credit. Here’s how they work.

The consumer in question applies for a credit builder loan from a reputable company like Self, which does not conduct a credit check. The individual starts making regular monthly payments to Self, which keeps the payments in a secure account.

After the loan term is over, the consumer receives their money back, minus some fees. By this point, they should have a solid credit score.

Know Your Credit

These basic steps will improve your credit score at all three credit bureaus. To know the differences between your scores at the three bureaus, you’ll need to get your credit reports.

You are entitled to a free credit report from each credit bureau every year. Many consumers get one every four months, to monitor all three.

Learn to read and understand your credit reports, and you’ll have a better understanding of what Equifax does and what Experian and TransUnion do! You’ll also have a better understanding of your own finances, and that will help you improve your financial future!

The post What is Equifax? How to Check (and Boost) Your Equifax Score appeared first on FinMasters.

They’re a numerical indicator of your reliability as a borrower, used by lenders to determine the terms of a loan.

A good score is high, and a bad score is low.

But when you start to learn how those scores are calculated – and how many companies are doing the calculating – things get a little more complicated.

There are multiple credit scoring models, each with its own algorithm for determining the score assigned to consumers.

The FICO score is the score most often used by lenders, but even FICO offers multiple scoring algorithms, and your FICO score from each credit bureau could be different!

Here’s what you need to know – how the scores are calculated, what constitutes a high score, and why your score matters.

What is a FICO Score?

A FICO score is a credit score calculated by the Fair Isaac Corporation. Bill Fair and Earl Isaac, the founders of FICO, wanted an impartial way to evaluate borrowers before lending them money.

Before the FICO score came about in 1989, there were several basic credit bureaus in operation. These companies tracked whether or not consumers paid their bills on time, but they weren’t as accurate or unbiased as today’s data-based systems.

90% of lenders use FICO credit scores for underwriting decisions rather than the VantageScore you get from most free credit score providers.

Nowadays, the FICO score is a sophisticated piece of financial technology that lenders rely on to evaluate creditworthiness and assign interest rates. The FICO score is the most popular option for lenders.

When you check your credit score for free through a third-party service, you’re often seeing your VantageScore credit score and not your FICO score. There are still many ways to get a free credit score from FICO.

You have more than one FICO score. FICO provides general purpose scores, and also specialized scores like the FICO Auto Score, widely used by auto lenders, and the FICO Bancard Score, used by credit card companies. Each score has several versions, and lenders may continue to use older versions after the newer ones are released.

Not all lenders report to all credit bureaus, so there can also be differences in your FICO score depending on which credit report it was based on.

How FICO Scores Change

There are multiple iterations of FICO scores, with slight discrepancies between each of them. You can get your 28 FICO scores here.

Approximately every five years, FICO updates its scoring models to create an algorithm that more accurately reflects how responsible consumers are. Factors that may have seemed significant at one point may be disregarded, while others may be deemed more important.

When FICO creates a new general-purpose scoring algorithm, it can take several years before lenders start using it. For example, FICO 9 was released in 2014, but FICO 8 is still the version most commonly used by lenders. Many mortgage lenders use even older versions when approving borrowers.

FICO’s latest scoring model, FICO 10, was released in 2020, but has not been widely adopted by lenders. FICO 8 remains the most widely used credit score. However, the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) has selected the FICO 10T score as its preferred variant, which will increase the use of this score in Mortgage lending.

FICO score updates can have a small update on your credit score, depending on the update and what’s already on your report. For example, unpaid medical bills sent to collections have a lesser impact on credit scores using the FICO 9 model.

If you had an unpaid medical collection, then this update would benefit you.

What Makes Up the FICO Credit Score?

Even though there are slight differences between various FICO models, the main tenets remain the same. The FICO credit score is made up of the following factors:

• Payment history: 35%
• Credit utilization: 30%
• Length of credit history: 15%
• Recent applications: 10%
• Credit mix: 10%

If you want to improve your FICO score, pay your bills on time, watch how much available credit is left on your credit cards, and avoid opening new accounts unless you really need them.

Be aware that it can take time for your credit score to improve, especially if you have serious negative entries like a bankruptcy or collection accounts on your credit report.

What is the FICO Credit Score Range?

Most FICO credit scores range from 300 to 850. Some scores designed for auto lenders and credit card companies use a range between 250 to 900.

Here is the general FICO credit score range:

• Poor: Less than 580
• Fair: Between 581 and 669
• Good: Between 670 and 739
• Very Good: 740 and 799
• Excellent: 800 and more

People with better credit scores are offered better interest rates and terms on loans, credit cards, and even car insurance.

The range you fall into as a borrower can mean a difference between thousands of dollars in interest over the life of a loan. If you’re buying a house, a good credit score can save you tens of thousands.

Conventional mortgages usually require a score of 620 or higher. If you have a credit score below 580, you won’t even be able to qualify for an FHA mortgage unless you have a 10% down payment.

Many high-paying rewards or travel credit cards are only available to those with scores of 700 or higher.

Credit scores can also be used for non-lending purposes. In some cases, utility companies may require a deposit for account holders with a low score.

Some careers and specific positions require a credit check during the application process, especially those dealing with some level of financial responsibility.

The military can even use a low credit score as grounds for revoking security clearance.

O Scores?

Now let’s quickly discuss how Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion (the big 3 credit reporting companies) fit into your FICO scores.

In our food metaphor, FICO was our master chef.

The big 3 credit bureaus have the ingredients (all your credit history that makes up your credit file).

How do they get this info about you?  Various entities may furnish credit information to the credit bureaus, such as banks, debt collectors, loan companies, and other creditors.

But here’s the thing.

Sometimes these entities only report your credit activity to one or two of the credit bureaus, so the ingredients that make up your score could be different at Experian than it is at, say, TransUnion.

FICO then comes in and overlays its unique credit scoring model on top of the information at the credit bureaus (which, again, may be different). This results in… you guessed it… three separate credit scores, which often do not match.

Notice these real scores provided by my brother, Mark. In some scoring models (like the Auto Scores), they differ by more than 50 points.

TransUnion FICO Scores

Experian FICO Scores

Equifax FICO Scores

That’s why you hear people ask why their TransUnion score is different than their Experian score.

You see, the chef (FICO) prepared the scores like always, but it was the ingredients that were different!

Types of FICO^® Scores

FICO offers scores for general use as well as industry-specific scores such as auto scores. Today there are more than 20 different FICO scores being used to asses people’s creditworthiness.

The most widely used general credit score today is FICO 8. If you are applying for a personal loan, a student loan, a credit card, or any type of retail credit, this is the credit score you need to know.

Industry-specific scores are particularly skewed towards helping lenders in a specific industry calculate the risk that a borrower will default on their particular loan product.

Auto lenders, credit card companies, and mortgage lenders mostly use FICO industry-specific scores. These are called:

• FICO Auto Scores
• FICO Bankcard Scores
• and FICO Mortgage Scores

FICO Auto Scores will give more weight to auto loan and lease payment history, while Bankcard scores weigh credit card and personal loan activity more heavily.

Remember how we said that your FICO score could vary depending on which credit bureau you get your credit report from? As you can see in the table below, not all credit bureaus use the same FICO scores.

Here is what credit scores are used by each of the 3 major credit bureaus:

Ranges for All FICO Scores

Many people assume the FICO score range is from 300 to 850 across the board, but the reality is that is the range for less than half of all FICO scores.

350 – 850:  Mortgage & General Score Ranges (10 Scores)

Your FICO score will range between 300 to 850 for all of the general scores, such as FICO 8 and 9 as well as your mortgage scores (FICO 2, 4, and 5).

FICO 3 also has a range of 350 to 850, although it is mostly used for credit cards.

250 – 900:  Auto & Bankcard Scores (18 Scores)

FICO assigns a different scoring range

Where Can I Find My FICO Credit Score?

Finding your FICO credit score is harder than finding a credit score from VantageScore. Most free sites, including Credit Karma and Credit Sesame, only show your VantageScore.

Discover Bank has a free credit score service that will show your FICO 8 score, even if you’re not a Discover customer. You just have to register for an account and provide some personal information, like your Social Security number and address.

You can also purchase your score directly from myFICO for $19.95 a month. This provides access to a monthly updated FICO credit score, as well as a credit report and basic credit monitoring.

Tracking your FICO score is useful for consumers looking to buy a house or take out another major loan. Once you have a FICO score in the “very good” or “excellent” range, you can confidently begin the lending process.

If you’re interested in viewing your credit score, click here to get all 28 credit scores with this tool and learn how to improve your score.

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