     Erik (Erik) | Thursday, March 22, 2001 - 10:44 am 
Wow I tied Shylock!
Credit score: 622
Source of score: Equifax (BEACON®)
Reason codes: 39 14 34 8
First Reason Code: 39 Your first reason code is 39, “Serious delinquency”. This is the single most important factor affecting your score. This reason appears when your credit report shows one or more serious delinquencies on your credit accounts. Studies reveal that consumers with previous late payments are much more likely to pay late in the future. There is no “quick” fix to improve the score if the serious delinquency indicated on your credit report is valid. However, as these age and fall off the credit report (credit account delinquencies stay on your report for up to seven years), their impact on the score will gradually decrease.
Second Reason Code: 14 Your second reason code is 14, “Length of time accounts have been established”. This is the second most important factor affecting your score. This reason is based on the age of the accounts on your credit report (the age of the oldest account, the average age of accounts, or both). Research shows that consumers with longer credit histories have better repayment risk than those with shorter credit histories. Also, consumers who frequently open new accounts have greater repayment risk than those who do not. Therefore, only apply for needed credit and wait before you apply for more. All other factors being equal, your score is likely to improve as your credit history ages.
Third Reason Code: 34 Your third reason code is 34, “Amount owed on delinquent accounts”. This reason appears when there is evidence of recently missed payments on your credit report. Late payments are a very powerful predictor of future repayment risk. Research shows that the greater the balances on past due accounts, the higher the risk. In order to improve your credit rating you need to pay your bills on time. If you have missed payments, get caught up on back payments and stay current. The longer you pay your bills on time, the better your score. Note that closing an account on which a past due balance is still owed does not make it disappear from your credit report.
Fourth Reason Code: 8 Your fourth reason code is 8, “Too many inquiries last 12 months”. This reason appears when your credit report contains a large number of inquiries posted as a result of your applying for credit. Research shows that consumers who are seeking several new credit accounts are riskier than consumers who are not seeking credit. Inquiries are the only information lenders have that indicates a consumer is actively seeking credit. There are different types of inquiries that reside on your credit report. The score only considers those inquiries that were posted as a result of you applying for credit. Other types of inquiries, such as promotional inquiries (where a lender has pre-approved you for a credit offer) or consumer disclosure inquiries (where you have requested a copy of your own report) are not considered by the score.
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A couple things of interest:
According to my Equifax report I have no inquiries. Yet one of my reason codes is 8 - "Too many inquiries last 12 months". My guess is that Equifax has a bug in their software that is preventing the report they issue to me from containing everything in my file. I know I had a few inquiries last year.
Like MomOf3 I found a bad status date (after clicking around, it doesn't show up in the print view):
Company Rmapp Noaug SRS Rms005
Account Number SEARS-5XXXX
Whose Account INDIVIDUAL ACCOUNT
Date Opened
Last Activity 05/1995
Type of Account Open
Account Status CHARGE-OFF
Months Reviewed
High Credit $515
Terms
Balance $515
Past Due 515
Date Reported 08/2000
Times Past Due
Previous High Status: 120+ days past due 07/1998;
30 Days 00
60 Days 00
90 Days 01
Description CHARGED OFF ACCOUNT
The previous high status was of 120+ days was in 1998 but the last activity date was in 1995? I'm going to disupte this account as inaccurate... |
| Christine Baker (Admin) | Thursday, March 22, 2001 - 11:32 am
Erik, didn't you discharge after 95?
In that case the Sears account should be reported as included in bankruptcy.
You can do that on-line with just a few clicks. |
| Christine Baker (Admin) | Thursday, March 22, 2001 - 11:35 am
And of course, you want to find out what's wrong with Equifax. Why are the inquiries missing? |
| Erik (Erik) | Thursday, March 22, 2001 - 11:53 am
Many people on creditnet who ordered their scores are having the same problem with the inquiries not showing up. I think it's just a bug in the new system. Next month I'll probably complain to get a free report...
I, fortunately, have never declared bankruptcy so no go there... |
| Christine Baker (Admin) | Thursday, March 22, 2001 - 12:33 pm
Well, good for you, or maybe not, it all depends!
Good idea to ask for a free report. And it's just more proof that they don't know what they're doing. It's NOT a new system. The equifax site has offered on-line reports for AT LEAST 7 or 8 months. |
