Update on results of credit clean-up and rebuild

I thought I wouldn’t have much to report at this point, but things have been going better than I ever expected.  So here are my scores as of today, and this is with approximately 2 months of credit clean-up and rebuild:

Transunion - 693
Equifax - 689
Experian - 690

It’s been a combination of factors, but this is a breakdown of the big things that have contributed:

1.  All of the accounts that were discharged with our Chapter 7 in 2001 are now gone and this was strictly due to age.  They fell off after the natural 7 year period.  I have to be honest on this one, it’s a relief to see them gone.  I still wish that I was in a financial position to have gone back and paid every one of those creditors off, but my English degree didn’t do much for me financially!  I apologize to all the creditors that got hit with that bankruptcy.  The only thing I can do to make amends at this point is to NEVER allow myself to end up in that situation again, medical issues or not.

2. I got duplicates off my record.  There were only a few, but it made a difference.

3.  I opened new tradelines that increased my available credit and decreased my utilization ratios.  This has helped boost my scores.

My process going foward will include building up my account histories and getting credit limit increases as time ages those accounts.  I am pruning out the accounts with bad terms and positioning myself so that we can buy the house we’re renting in a couple years.  I’ll continue to watch for errors on my reports, but mostly I will just make my payments on time (and in full, wherever possible).

It sounds so simple, doesn’t it?  The truth is, it’s been a lot of work and it’s taken patience - probably the one thing that I DON’T have!!  As it turns out, obsessing about it paid off.  What might be difficult now is just doing what I’m supposed to and not be active in the building process.  I’ve become so accustomed to working on this… what do I do now?

Well.  I have some more financial goals that I want to work on while I’m waiting for these accounts to age (and while I’m waiting to begin grad studies in August).  I want to establish a credit card account with Bank of America, mostly out of sheer determination to see something come of all these years I’ve been with them.

I’d like to transition to prime credit card companies, such as CITI and Chase.  Some day I’d like to be approved for an AMEX simply because they’ve never approved me and I’m stubborn.  Call them my “white whale.”  I’d love to get rid of my HSBC credit card and get a real Discover, but it’s not a huge issue for me. 

I have say that the Hooters MC I got for my husband to use has been the source of much amusement for him.  I know Merrick Bank isn’t prime, but I like them and they’ve treated me very well over the years.

One final word - Juniper still hasn’t taken any adverse action on that account I got in February.  I am still cautious, but so far I have to say that they’ve been very good to me.  Now if only I could get Capital One to do the same!!

So that’s my current status.  I’m very proud of how far my credit has come.  I hovered down in the low 600’s for a long time and never thought I’d be sitting this close to 700 on my own credit merits.  I’ll continue to prune, care for, and manage my new credit garden… even as I prepare to work on will, retirement planning, and school.

As always, keep it clean and NEVER, EVER be late!

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