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Book Description Pages: 226 Cover: Soft ISBN: 0-9778699-0-3 Retail Price: $24.95
Dedication page 8 About the Author page 9 Acknowledgements page 10 Introduction page 11 Chapter 1 - Credit: The Foundation of Borrowing page 14 A Credit Test? page 14 Credit Strength = More Possibilities page 16 Good Debt vs. Bad Debt page 16 Federal Trade Commission page 17 Fair Isaac page 18 An Early Start page 20 How it All Began page 21 Catchy Advertising page 22 The Priceless® Campaign page 22 Welcome to the World of Centurion® page 23 Chapter 2 - Rules to Credit Scores page 27 The Five Sacred Factors page 35 Every Seven Years We Can Be Perfect page 46 Chapter 3 - A Second Set of Rules: The Fair Credit Reporting Act page 52, Landlords and Credit Reports page 64 Employment page 66 Chapter 4 - The Credit Report page 69 Overview page 69 Report Explanation page 70 Credit Reports page 72 Reason Codes page 74 2 Account History vs. 10 Account History page 75 Credit Report Examination page 76 Free Credit Reports page 78 Specialty Reports page 83 Chapter 5 - Protecting and Improving Your Credit page 86 Opting Out 87 page Automated Payments page 89 Store Financing page 91 Medical Collections page 93 Other Collections page 97 Timeshares page 99 Credit Cards page 100 Divorce page 100 Co-signing page 105 Student Loans page 107 Pay Day Loans page 108 Pay Day Tax Loans page 109 Wise Moves for Credit Cards page 110 Chapter 6 - Credit Fact or Fiction page 114 Chapter 7 - Repairing Credit page 121 Your Personal Statement page 123 The Bad Debt Market page 124 Charge-off Accounts page 126 Settling Collections page 127 Credit Counseling page 130 Credit Counseling vs. Debt Settlement page 130 Credit Repair Organizations page 131 Chapter 8 - Bankruptcy page 135 Chapter 7 (Debt Liquidation) page 136 Chapter 13 (Wage Earner Plan) page 139 Chapter 13 vs. Credit Counseling page 140 Chapter 9 - Establishing Credit page 144 The First Credit Card page 146 Authorized User page 146 Alternative Credit page 148 Co-Signer page 151 Secured Credit Cards page 152 Chapter 10 - Identity Theft page 155 Interview with an Identity Theft Detective page 156 Identity Theft Online page 159 Compromised Data page 162 Rights for Identity Theft Victims page 164 Preventing Identity Theft page 165 Procedures If You Are Victim page 166 Chapter 11 - Mortgages and Credit page 168 Conventional Mortgage page 169 Government Mortgage page 169 Stated Income page 170 Stated Income / Stated Asset page 171 No Doc (No Documentation) page 171 Second Mortgage / Home Equity Line of Credit (HELOC) page 172 Second Home Loan page 172 Appendix A: Legislation page 174 Appendix B: Credit Test page 179 Frequently Asked Questions page 187 Appendix D: Example Letters page 192 Dispute Letter To Credit Bureau page 192 Request For Free Credit Report page 193 Identity Theft Notification to Credit Bureaus page 194 Validation of Debt Request page 195 Glossary of Terms page 196 Resources page 214 Index page 216 Ordering Information page 226 Numbers | A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | Z 100-word statement, 123 1099 (IRS form), 131 401(k), 188 “900” telephone numbers, 153 accounts (credit), 35-36, 38-41, 43-45, 47-49, 51, 59, 62, 69, 71-78, 83-84, 91, 99, 101-103, 112, 114-115, 118-119, 122-123, 125-128, 134, 139-140, 147-150, 154, 156, 160-161, 164-166, 168, 172, 178, 181, 183, 185, 190, 197-198, 200, 202, 207, 212 accrued interest, 197 active account, 76, 78, 84, 190, 197 adverse action, 65, 67 adverse credit, 197 alias, 197 alternative credit, 104, 113, 149-152, 155, 182 American Bar Association, 136 American Express, 22-24, 199 amortization, 197 amount owed, 61, 71, 74, 124, 198 annual percentage rate (APR), 109, 177, 179, 197, 203, 210 annual fees, 24, 153 Anti-Phishing Working Group, 161 application, 42-43, 46, 53, 58, 63, 65, 72, 88, 102, 108, 116-117, 152-153, 165, 177, 206-207, 217 APR (annual percentage rate), 109, 177, 179, 197, 203, 210 Arizona State University, 9, 174 asset, 16, 35, 114, 118, 170, 172, 174, 198 ATM, 161 authorized user, 77, 103, 147-149, 154, 198 auto inquiries, 42 Automated Property Loss Underwriting System, 83 automated payments, 89-90, 112 available credit, 37, 41, 114, 155, 181, 185, 187-188, 198, 202 bad credit, 106, 119, 151 bad debt market, 124 balances, 15, 36-39, 44, 51, 56, 73-74, 77, 90, 114-115, 118, 136-137, 172, 181-182, 184-186, 188, 190-191, 197, 201 balloon payment, 198 bank accounts, 45, 103, 154, 158, 166, 172 BankAmericard, 22 Bank of America, 22 bankruptcy, Better Business Bureau, 18, 143, 180 Biggins, John, 21 billing departments, 93-95, 112 borrower, 75, 87, 92, 104-106, 113, 118, 122-123, 141, 150, 171-173, 175, 197-204, 206-208, 211 car loans, 29, 39, 42-43, 102, 137, 146-147, 199, 207, 211 capacity, 198 capital, 175, 198 Capital Choice Consumer Credit, Inc., 154 Capital One, 22 CCC (consumer credit counseling), 126, 130-131, 135, 137, 141-144, 182, 201 cell phone, 104, 113, 150, 155 Centurion® Card, 23-25 Chapter 7 bankruptcy, 49, 60, 137, 140-141, 144, 182, 188, 199, 203 Chapter 11 bankruptcy, 199 Chapter 13 bankruptcy, 49, 137, 140-144, 182, 199, 214 character, 30, 199 charge card, 177, 199 “Charge-It” card, 21 charge-off, 11, 47-48, 62, 101, 114, 124, 126-128, 134-135, 199 checking account, 84, 104-105, 113, 145-146, 154, 181, 184 ChexSystems, 83-84 ChoicePoint, 82 ChoicePoint WorkPlace Solutions Inc., 82 Citibank, 20 closed account, 48, 50, 200 closing (mortgage), 200 closing costs, 200, 210, 212 closing credit cards, 39-41, 48, 91, 114-115, 183, 185, 200 C.L.U.E report, 82-83, 85 Coca-Cola®, 18 collateral, 54, 198, 200, 209, 211-213 collection, 32, 48, 55, 61-62, 66, 69, 74, 76-78, 93-99, 104, 109, 112, 114, 119, 123-129, 134-135, 137-138, 170, 173, 177, 189-190, 195-199, 207 college, 14, 16, 20, 107, 147, 163 Community Reinvestment Act, 175 Comprehensive Loss Underwriting Exchange (C.L.U.E.), 82-83, 85 compromised data, 163 contractuals, 96 Congressional Research Service, 69, 131 consolidating, 39 consolidation loan, 199 consumer credit counseling (CCC), 126, 130-131, 135, 137, 141-144, 182, 201 Consumer Credit Protection Act of 1968, 175 consumer debt, 138, 199 Consumer Federation of America (CFA), 109 consumer reporting agency, 52, 177, 200 consumers, 4, 9-10, 17-18, 20, 22, 26, 28-32, 34, 40, 42-44, 49, 52-55, 58, 63-65, 67, 72, 75, 78, 80-83, 85, 87-88, 109, 115-117, 122, 124, 126-127, 129-132, 136-144, 150-151, 153, 157, 160, 168-169, 174-179, 186, 188, 196, 198-202, 204-207, 209, 212, 214-215, 217-219 conventional mortgage, 170 co-signer, 65, 106, 151-152, 154, 200 co-signing, 105-106, 185 convenience checks, 200 credit applications, 117 credit bureaus, 32, 34, 36, 41, 49-55, 57-60, 68, 70, 72, 78-79, 81-82, 85, 87-88, 114, 116-117, 121-122, 124-125, 129, 133-134, 145, 151, 153, 164-166, 177, 180-182, 184-185, 188, 193-195, 197, 201-203, 205, 208-209, 213 credit cards, 20-22, 29, 36-48, 50, 56, 61, 66, 73, 77, 80, 86-87, 90-92, 98, 100-105, 110-112, 115, 117-118, 122-124, 126-128, 134-138, 146-147, 151-154, 156, 159-160, 165-166, 176, 182, 184-187, 189-190, 197-202, 204-205, 208-211 credit card issuer, 47, 200 credit counseling, 126, 130-131, 135, 137, 141-144, 182, 201 credit file, 67, 75, 89, 99, 132-133, 196, 200-201, 206 credit history, 30, 33, 36, 38, 40, 46, 51, 69, 76, 84, 91, 115-116, 119, 139, 146-151, 153, 196, 198, 200-202, 212 The Credit Jungle, 46 credit limits, 15, 20, 37, 44, 70, 92, 100, 111, 153, 180, 186, 197, 201, 208 credit monitoring, 80 credit repair, 131-134, 152, 201 credit reports, 9, 13, 18, 26, 28-38, 41-43, 46-60, 62-72, 74-81, 83-84, 86-88, 90-93, 95, 97-99, 101, 103, 105, 112, 114-120, 122-129, 132, 134, 137-138, 140, 142, 146-148, 150, 155, 163-164, 167, 172, 177, 179-181, 183-184, 186-187, 189-190, 192-194, 198-201, 203-208, 210-212, 215 credit risk, 201 credit scores, 11, 26-31, 34-46, 54, 58, 62, 64, 69, 74, 76-79, 86, 91-93, 103-105, 114-120, 134, 138, 147, 150, 152, 168-173, 179-180, 182, 184, 188-189, 197, 199, 201, 204, 212 creditors, 50, 52-53, 60, 63-64, 69, 119, 123, 127, 131, 135, 139-141, 143, 164, 174, 176, 178, 183, 196, 201, 206 creditworthiness, 202 customer service department, 56, 61, 70, 125 daily periodic rate, 203, 210 debt-to-income ratio, 35, 169, 197, 202, 210 debt buying industry, 124 debit card, 100, 116, 160, 166 debt, 16-17, 20-21, 26, 29-30, 35, 38-41, 47-48, 51, 59, 61, 72, 75, 78, 101-103, 105-107, 111-112, 114-118, 124-127, 129-131, 134-143, 146-147, 150, 153-154, 156, 169, 171, 177, 180-184, 195-204, 207-210, 212-213 debt collectors, 177 debt counseling, 130 debt settlement, 131, 143 decode directory information, 98 default, 44, 66, 86, 99, 106, 108, 113, 202, 204-205, 207, 211 deferment, 66, 113, 115, 201 delinquent, 62, 125, 128, 186, 198, 202 dentists, 93 department store cards, 46, 72, 103 Diners Club Card, 21 directory information, 98 discharge, 49, 59, 128, 136-137, 140, 143, 181, 183, 186, 197-198, 202-203 disclosure statement, 202 Discover Card, 22 discretionary income, 203 dismissed bankruptcy, 203 Disposal Rule, 175-176 dispute, 32, 34, 57-61, 65, 67-68, 72-73, 79, 81, 97, 121-122, 127, 132-133, 176, 180, 183-184, 186, 192 dispute letter, 59, 192 disputing, 58-60, 72, 87, 122-123, 182, 187, 193, 196 divorce, 100-104, 112, 116, 136, 182, 185, 197 doctors, 93 down payment, 16, 30-31, 33, 118, 138, 150, 169-173, 199, 203 eBay, 24, 162-163 electronic funds transfer (EFT), 175, 203 Electronic Funds Transfer Act, 176 employment, 30, 46, 50, 62-63, 66-67, 72, 81-82, 108, 117-118, 121, 132, 136, 170-172, 174, 180, 184-185, 209 Equal Credit Opportunity Act, 40, 177 Equifax, 31, 55, 58-59, 79, 193-195, 201, 209, 215 errors, 53, 69, 86, 176, 199 example letters, 60, 192-195 Experian, 31, 33, 49, 55, 58, 79, 193-195, 201, 209, 215 Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act (FACTA), 79, 177 Fair Credit Billing Act, 175 Fair Credit and Charge Card Disclosure Act of 1988, 177 Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA), 52-53, 57, 64, 67 Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, 178 Fair Isaac Corporation, 18-19, 26, 30, 39, 46, 151, 181, 184 Fair, Bill, 18 Family members, 26, 46, 148, 167, 177 Fannie Mae, 18, 188-189, 203-204 Federal Criminal Code, 177 Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council, 122 Federal Housing Administration (FHA), 34, 138-140, 149-151, 169-170, 182, 184, 190, 206 Federal Reserve, 97, 168, 181, 215 Federal Trade Commission (FTC), 17-18, 26, 28, 80, 83, 88, 106, 110, 125, 133, 154, 165, 176, 180, 184, 187 FICO®, 18, 20, 26, 30-31, 39-40, 42-43, 46, 150, 183, 188-189, 201, 203, 214 FICO® Expansion™ score, 151 filing bankruptcy, 107, 135, 143 finance charge, 196, 203 Financing the American Dream, 4 fixed rate, 203 Flatbush National Bank, 21 forbearance, 107-108, 113, 115, 204 foreclosure, 47, 78, 99, 112, 139, 204-205 fraud, 17, 81, 84, 132, 137, 158-159, 161, 163-164, 166, 194, 200, 204 fraud alert, 163-164, 194, 204 Freddie Mac, 18, 188-189, 203-204 free annual credit report, 70-72, 84 credit report, 55, 78-81, 84, 193 garnishment, 204 good credit, 13, 25-26, 36-37, 41, 119, 171, 185, 212 government mortgage, 117, 149, 152, 170-171 grace period, 111, 176, 204 Griffin, Al, 46 gross monthly income, 205, 208, 210 guarantee, 87, 102, 205, 211 hard inquiry, 205 health insurance, 93, 96 HMO, 96 “hold” (credit card), 100 home equity line of credit (HELOC), 173, 206, 209, 212 hospitals, 93 house, 14, 16, 37-38, 40, 89, 92-93, 99-100, 102, 136-139, 142, 149, 171, 177, 199, 208-209, 211 identifying information, 200 identity theft, 55, 80-81, 88, 155-157, 159-160, 162, 164-165, 175, 177, 184, 194, 200, 204-205, 214 The Identity Theft and Assumption Deterrence Act of 1998, 178 Identity Theft Detective, 157 imposter websites, 79 income, 16, 31, 34-35, 75, 96, 100, 107, 116, 118, 130-131, 136, 150, 169, 170-174, 176, 181, 197, 202-203, 205, 208, 210 incomplete loan, 205 index, 207, 210, 213 inquiry, 42, 92, 117, 165, 206-207, 211, 213 inquiries, 28, 41-43, 50, 71, 74, 84, 117, 164-165, 168, 207, 211, 213 installment, 38-39, 44, 48, 70-71, 197, 207-208, 211 Interbank Card Association, 22 interest rate, 29-31, 34, 44, 46, 54, 57, 59, 90, 93, 95, 111, 140, 153, 155, 169, 171, 174, 187, 197, 204, 207, 210, 213 IRS, 109-110, 130, 138 Isaac, Earl, 18 joint account, 101-103, 118, 185-186, 198, 207 joint debt, 101 judgment, 33, 47-49, 62, 92, 98, 129, 138, 143, 154, 184, 197, 205, 208, 211, 213 Kleenex®, 18 landlords, 30, 64 late, 35-37, 41, 43-44, 47-48, 50-51, 54-55, 60-62, 66, 70-71, 73, 75-78, 84, 89-90, 92-93, 99, 101, 103, 105, 108, 111-112, 114-116, 118-120, 122, 125, 140, 148, 150-152, 173-174, 180, 184-185, 187, 190, 197, 200, 203, 205, 207-209 lease, 28, 65, 99, 146, 208 legal, 3, 23, 49, 65, 79-80, 88, 93, 101, 103, 116, 125, 141, 144, 175, 187, 198, 204-205, 207, 209, 211-213, 215 lender, 9, 16, 18, 30-37, 41, 46, 49-53, 57-58, 68, 70, 89-90, 93, 102, 105-108, 113, 115, 117, 124, 126, 129, 142, 146-148, 151, 153, 156, 164, 171-172, 175, 180, 187, 189, 198, 202-205, 207-210, 212 length of credit history, 38, 51, 91 liability, 118, 199, 208 lien, 209 line of credit, 117, 137, 154, 173, 185, 209 loans, 18, 20, 29, 32-34, 38-40, 42-44, 46, 48-49, 53, 57-58, 66, 70-72, 90, 92, 103, 105-110, 113, 115-118, 128-129, 138, 146-153, 155, 169-175, 179-180, 182, 184, 186, 188, 190, 197-198, 200, 203-210, 213 loan-to-value ratio (LTV), 209 lost credit card, 50, 56, 137, 157, 168, 174 LTV (loan-to-value), 209 mail, 43, 79-80, 86-89, 105, 113, 121, 157-158, 164, 166, 167, 193-195, 211 mailing list, 87-88 manual underwriting, 152, 170 MasterCard, 22-23, 215 McNamara, Frank, 21 medical collections, 93, 95-97, 112, 138-139 Medicaid, 96 Medicare, 96 merged credit report, 209, 213 military veterans, 149, 170 minimum payment, 71, 110, 137, 201, 208-209 mortgage, 16-18, 29-31, 33-34, 36-37, 40, 42-43, 46-47, 66, 70, 75, 77, 86-87, 89-90, 99, 102-103, 105, 117, 119, 138-140, 142, 147, 149-152, 169-173, 182, 184, 188-189, 191, 200, 204, 205-206, 208-212 MyFICO.com, 20, 215 myth, 48 Nader, Ralph, 23 National Consumer Law Center (NCLC), 109 National Foundation of Consumer Counseling (NFCC), 130 NCO Group, 125 negative, 11, 26, 32, 36, 38, 40, 44, 47-51, 54-55, 57-58, 62, 67, 71, 74-76, 78, 83-84, 92, 101-102, 105, 112, 116, 123, 126, 132, 134, 139-140, 148, 154-156, 177, 190-191, 197-198, 209 net income, 209 Nilson Report, 124 no doc (no documentation), 172-173 non-compliance, 65, 176 non-profit, 130, 142, 163, 201 obsolete information, 209 The Ohio State University’s Center for Human Resource Research, 100 online, 72, 79, 84, 160-161, 168 opting out, 43, 87-88, 112, 211 origination, 200, 210 paid in full, 48-49, 101-102, 104, 126-128, 191, 197, 211 parents, 8, 45, 105, 14 pay day loan, 108-109, 113 paying, 15-17, 26, 30, 35, 39-40, 45, 47, 57, 87, 90, 96-97, 100, 102-104, 106-107, 109-112, 119, 127-129, 134, 136, 138, 142-143, 146-147, 150, 154, 162, 182-183, 185-186, 190-191, 199, 202 payment history, 35, 38, 51, 73-74, 102, 117, 146, 150-151, 155, 170-171 PayPal, 162-163 periodic rate, 203, 210 personal statement, 123 phishing, 160-161 PITI, 210 points, 75, 87, 200, 210 police, 107, 156-157, 164-165, 167, 195 positive, 33, 36, 38-40, 47, 50, 71, 76-78, 115, 119, 123, 139, 143, 148, 154, 190-191, 198 PPO, 96 pre-approval, 210 pre-screened offers, 43 Priceless®, 22 primary user, 198, 210 prime rate, 207, 210, 213 principal, 197, 204, 206, 210-211 privacy, 52, 63, 67, 88, 97, 168, 178 problems, 53, 66, 83, 97, 126, 131, 172 promissory note, 211 promotional inquiry, 211 public records, 88, 117, 204, 208 qualifying ratio, 211 rapid rescoring, 86-87 re-aging, 122-123 reaffirming, 138 Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act (RESPA), 179 reason codes, 74, 84 refinancing, 211 refund anticipation loans (RAL), 109-110 repairing credit, 121 repayment period, 211 repossession, 200, 211 Resident Data Inc., 82 revolving balance, 182, 185, 211 rights, 52-53, 67, 72, 97, 132, 165, 180 sample letters, 193-196 satisfied, 49, 211 savings account, 83, 153, 161, 181, 212 scams, 162 Schneider, Ralph, 21 Schrader-Whitcher, Mrs. Hilda, 160 scoring model, , 30, 34, 42-43, 46, 116, 152, 181, 184-185, 189-190, 202, 204 second home loan, 173 second mortgage, 173, 206, 209, 212 secured credit cards, 153 secured loan, 212 security, 79, 99, 106, 163-164, 200, 209, 212 service charge, 212 servicer, 63, 212 settlement, 110, 127-128, 131, 135, 140, 143, 179, 200, 212 settling collections, 128-129 shopping, 25, 42, 45, 161 shred, 166 Social Security (SSN), 53, 57, 72, 83, 123, 159-160, 164, 166, 181, 202, 206, 212, 216 soft inquiry, 213 sources of identity theft, 157 specialty reports, 82-83, 85 spyware, 160 statements, 56, 61, 64-65, 98, 102, 110, 127, 132, 134, 140, 158, 166, 167, 176, 196 stated assets, 172 stated income, 171-172 statute of limitations, 48, 124, 130, 134 stolen credit card, 50 store credit cards, 92 store financing, 91, 112 student loan, 29, 38, 40, 43, 66, 107-108, 113, 115-116, 128, 188, 200, 203, 205-206 sub-prime, 75, 213 tax lien, 33, 47, 49, 62, 143, 184, 208-209, 211, 213 telephone, 18, 31, 44, 64-65, 72, 79-80, 95, 149, 151, 153-154 Texas Automobile Dealers Association, 28 thin file, 145 three-in-one credit report, 213 time frame, 42, 137 timeshare, 99 tradeline, 41, 127, 147, 213 trademark laws, 23 traditional credit, 46, 150-152, 212 TransUnion, 31,33, 55, 58, 79, 193-195, 201, 209, 216 treasury bill rate, 207, 213 tri-merge credit report, 31, 55, 209, 213 Truth in Lending Act (TILA), 179 unfair, 17, 26, 178 Uniform Retail Credit Classification and Account Management Policy, 122 universal default, 44 unpaid, 49, 93, 99, 104, 129, 200, 213 unsecured, 117, 126, 154, 166, 213 U.S. Government Accountability Office, 18 U.S. Public Interest Research Group, 69 USA Today, 9, 20-21 U.S.D.A. Rural Housing, 190 VA, 149, 170, 190, 206 vacate, 49, 213 variable interest rate, 207, 209, 213 Veterans Affairs (VA), 149, 170, 190, 206 Visa, 20, 22, 136, 216 wage earner plan, 140, 144, 199, 214 The Wall Street Journal, 23 wallet, 22, 45, 56, 157, 160 Western Union, 162 Zagorsky, Jay, 100
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The Credit Road Map | info@TheCreditRoadmap.com Copyright © 2006, 2009
Patrick Ritchie |
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