Rebuild credit

Hi Rallythis

Welcome to the forums.

As of now your having 6 accounts that have been charged off.Since you want to rebuild your credit,gas cards and department store cards are a good way to start things off.
Major credit cards are scored much higher than Finance cards (Store cards like Best Buy card).You can also choose to opt for Secured credit cards if your credit situation is not good.
Credit score takes into account :

1) Total amount of credit available
2) Current balance on your cards

Normally, the following method is used to calculate your debt ratio,

Debt Ratio = Current Total Balances/Current Total Credit Limits

Ideally, you should have less than 25% of your credit limit used up.

Hope this info helps.

Regards
Peter

I notice that a few of my department store cards that have gone to charge off have their credit provided by GE Money Bank (GEMB.) I take it that it would be a bad idea to apply at another department store that has their credit provided by GEMB?

And if I am declined, what is a general waiting period before I apply at another store. I don't want to build up too many inquiries.

Hi rallythis

As you know that your accounts with GE Money Bank (GEMB.) are charged off, so it is possible that they won't be granting you credit. You should try for a different lender to acquire a new credit.

I will suggest you to pay off your charged off accounts first as it will stay in your credit report as a negative mark. You should try to mend it first.

Regards
Roxette

When you apply for credit, what does is really mean when your responce says: "Your application needs more time for proccessing. We will contact you by mail in 10 days?"

In all my time, I have always received a decline. Has there ever been a good turn out?

Rallythis

The lenders will grant you credit only if your credit report is free from the negative marks. They will never hesitate in lending credit to you if you have clean and wonderful entries in your credit report. You can make this report clean by settling all your charge off accounts first. You need to concentrate on them first.

Regards
Roxette

I want to know should I pay off all my debt and charge off to boost my credit score, or will it hurt me in the long run. I'm reading that paying off my charge offs will hurt and start over another 7 years.

Will a credit reporting agencies remove charge offs or will the creditor? Will pay as a settlement hurt you on your credit report?

[quote=delphenia]I want to know should I pay off all my debt and charge off to boost my credit score, or will it hurt me in the long run. I'm reading that paying off my charge offs will hurt and start over another 7 years.[/quote]

So many factors are taken into account while calculating credit score. Timely payment is one of those factors. Thus if you pay off all your debts, that will definitely help you increase your score. You can see the effect once your accounts start getting paid off.

Charge-off is a derogatory notation that hurts your credit. Once a charge-off is recorded in your credit report it will be there for 7 years from the date it went delinquent. Chances are there the clock will be restarted if you make further payments to these accounts.

However, if you are pretty sure that you can pay monthly installments regularly this time or, can pay a lump sum amount to close this account, then only you should contact with your original creditor. You can request them to settle it at a lower amount and ask them to report it in your favor as well.

[quote=delphenia]Will a credit reporting agencies remove charge offs or will the creditor? Will pay as a settlement hurt you on your credit report?[/quote]

Credit reporting agencies keep track of consumers' accounts as they are reported by the creditors. They only change or remove incorrect entries on request.

The term ???Settlement' in your report supports your endeavor to repay your debts, however, some of your future financers might dislike this term. A good debt consolidation company always insists creditors to report consumer account as ???paid in full' or ???paid as agreed' so that no one can raise any question. You can also negotiate with your creditors and ask them to report your accounts favorably.

Hope it helps. Also browse this forum to collect some tips on how to boost your credit score.