Collections, Charge Off Required to Approve Short Sale - Part 2

Here is where I'm going to show you how to remove the collection account you get after the short sale of your house closes. Timing of your response is important. Hopefully, you won't receive the first contact for about 6 months. If it's sooner, then you just start sooner. I say 6 months because that gives plenty of time for the lender to archive the file and not be able to produce what ever the 3rd party collector might try to get from them to validate.

As soon as you get the first letter in the mail, respond with a letter demanding validation. Do this within the first 30 days of receiving the letter. DO NOT SIGN THE LETTER IN YOUR OWN HANDWRITING! Make a copy for your file, send it CMRR and keep the receipt. Look for that green proof of service card to come back to you and keep it in the file.  That's all you will do for now.

If they contact you by phone to collect, you will send them a limited cease and desist letter. This letter tells them that all contact to you must be in writing and not on the phone.  If they call you after you have sent the letter requesting/demanding validation, they have committed one of their first violations worth $1000 to you.  Document the date and time of the call, company name and name of the person, plus title (if they have one) of who called.  Keep this in your file.

Should they send you a bill at this time, they have also committed a violation.  Keep that letter in your file along with the envelope it came in. You want to be able to show that the date you received it is after your demand for validation.  They may attempt to send some kind of validation instead of a typical bill. However, if they claim that you owe it with some kind of print out, it is just a cleverly disguised bill and still  not validation and still a violation.

You next respond to their bill or amateur attempt at validation with another letter. This letter to them will state that though you appreciate their effort, that is not validation and now they have violated the law because what they sent you was collection activity. Let them know that you are documenting everything and that unless they can validate within the next 15 days, they must remove any and all negative reporting and close the account. They must agree that they will not sell the account to any other party and a violation of that will cause them to be liable to a suit you may file.

In order to make this work you will be inserting a self executing contract into the letter.  With this letter, you will include a notice and declaration of fraud against the original creditor. You can actually send this with the first demand for validation you send them.  The reason I like to send it on the second letter is because I like them to rack up the violations, thereby increasing the amount that they will actually owe my clients.

You can actually repeat this process again and tell them last chance, you're feeling a bit generous. Give them another 15 days to respond, on point, hand signed, on letterhead and notarized.  The beauty of this is that you are letting them mount up violations on something they cannot possibly validate!

But this is only half of the plan of action! It gets better. Well better for you, worse for them, and possibly the credit bureaus.  Stay tuned for part 3 where I show you how to get it off your credit report!

Collections, Charge Off Required to Approve Short Sale - Part 1

If you are trying to sell  your home as a short sale and waiting for an approval from a lender, you may get a condition from at least one of them saying that they will approve the short sale but you agree that they will charge off the remaining balance and submit that amount to 3rd party collectors because you are still going to be held liable for what you didn't pay off.  Pretty crappy since the banks got multiple bailouts already.  They are so greedy. 

I have encountered this situation with 2 of my listings already and I'm expecting it with all the new short sale listings I put under contract.  This can be very frustrating for the seller and scary, because, there's already a hardship trying to pay that mortgage. So to be out of a house and still have to pay the dang thing is just ridiculous and unfair. 

I know there are a lot of folks out there that like to say that everyone is responsible to pay their debts.  I only half heartedly agree with that.  I agree when it comes to real services you've received, but I don't when it comes to credit cards and bank loans.

I've stated before in other posts that banks do not lend you their money. They are creating the money and credit out of thin air by monetizing your signature.  This is the first reason I don't agree with having to pay them back, because your signature funded the loan.

When it comes to credit cards, the second reason I don't agree to paying them back is because it is a unilateral contract which is null and void. This is according to the constitution. A unilateral contract means that only 1 party is at risk, and you can bet your last pair of underwear that it ain't the bank or finance company that has the risk. They didn't fund the credit, they have nothing to lose. Your signature did and your peace of mind, wallet and credit standing is at risk. In order to be a valid contract, all parties to the contract have to carry risk. Therefore, a unilateral contract is void and unenforceable.

So how does this relate to what banks are doing to short sellers?  Well, I said it's not fair because they got bailouts and should pass the good will on. Heck, we're funding their bailouts already. But, do you say fine, just foreclose then, because then you can't come after me with collections or do you sign that grimy piece of paper?

I have told my clients that they should go ahead and sign the paper. A short sale is much better on your credit than a foreclosure. Plus, that balance is going where you want it to - to a collection firm. Now, you should know by now that that collector is going to get a file for this account so they can use it against you, report to the bureaus against you and start with the harassing phone calls and letters. 

Why is this a good thing? Because the file they get does not have every thing they need to validate the account when you challenge it.  This means that you will be able to remove that collection account from your credit and get them off your back.  This means that you can start racking up violations against them and if you decide to play the game on your terms, you can make some money.

Collectors violate the law, that's a given. Use the FDCPA and FCRA to track the violations. Most are worth a thousand bucks each. When they rack up enough to satisfy you, you can either use it as a bartering chip or sue them and pocket the winnings. Either way, you will get it off your credit report.

See part 2 for how to beat them in their game!

Bad Credit Repair Advice, and now My Good Advice!

Here is a posting from antagonist.org. I was pretty ticked off when I read it. I commented but it was denied, probably since I'm not a member. I want you to read it and see the bad information that was given. Keep reading past it. I will give my answer to the poor fellow that asked the question and was given some bad advice and no hope!

Q: I have a terrible credit history with bankruptcy, charge offs etc. making it impossible to get or re-establish credit. I used to have good credit but alot of things started happening 3 years ago that I don't want to go into, which caused me to start having the problems which culminated in my credit being destroyed. Anyway I've been reading about ways to have negative things removed from one's credit report. Has anyone ever done this? Can you actually have valid entries removed from your credit report even if they're true, if they don't respond to the dispute in time? Do you have to do this for all 3 credit bureaus? What if one removes an item and the other 2 don't? Could someone take some time and please reply to this post? If I don't have to wait seven years to get a chance to work on getting a good credit rating again if I don't have to.

A: -Our local news did a piece of this just last nite. Basically the only thing that will repair bad credit is time. These companies that say they can "remove" bad ratings are scams. -Be careful; some of those "ways" are illegal. Starting a business and using the business tax ID to create a "blank" credit file, for example, is blatant fraud. And, depending on the circumstances, saying that a particular negative incident didn't happen, when you know perfectly well that it did, could be fraud as well. If you think living with a bad credit record is tough, try living with a bad credit record and a felony conviction... If you dispute an entry, and it's not verified in (I believe) 30 days, then the entry has to be removed from the credit report. However, if the verification comes in later, then the entry goes right back on; there's no law or rule that says that correct information can't be put on a credit report because it was removed once. Then a creditor that only gets your report from that credit bureau won't see the item. However, some creditors get reports from multiple bureaus, or use other companies to get composite reports combining information from all the bureaus. And asking a creditor what credit bureaus they use is bound to raise some eyebrows. It's worth pointing out that credit reports are not just "good" or "bad"; there's all sorts of shades in between. For example, if your credit report shows credit problems two years in the past, but an excellent payment history since then, then a creditor may decide that the recent history is more important. If you feel that some of the entries on the credit report are unjustified, then by all means dispute them. But you should be concentrating on rebuilding a good credit profile in the present by making payments promptly, rather than concentrating on past events that you can't control. And be forthright about your situation. When you apply for a loan, don't wait for the creditor to pull your credit report and see the damage; attach a letter saying "Here's what happened to me, and here's what I'm doing to make sure it doesn't happen again." This sort of honesty can go a long way with some creditors; and the creditors who would reject you on the basis of such a letter would almost certainly reject you on the basis of negative credit report information anyway, so you've got very little to lose.

Okay. Now here is my response. I'm going to pick apart the answer and then help him with the correct information and help anyone else in a similar situation.

First of all, time is not the only thing that will repair bad credit. Removing the bad credit is possible with credit repair. That's why we have the FCRA, FDCPA, FCBA and FACTA on our side.

2nd. All credit repair companies are not scams. Yeah, lots of those law firms and companies that drag it out and do very little for you so they can keep collecting from you month after month are not completely legit, but many of us that do repair credit, do it legally, ethically and with genuine care for our clients.

3rd. The business tax id is fraud. Depends how you do it. Basically, the way they are saying is fraud. But, starting a business and building good business credit is not fraud. You should use the business credit while repairing the personal credit at the same time to really improve your credit. See my friend's blog or get his book on that. Corporate credit is a good thing! Here's a link to his blog. SecretSuperCredit

4th. Saying something isn't so when you know it is, is not fraud - if you say it correctly. This is why I don't tell people to say "it isn't mine", no, pick it apart. Are their dates correct, the type of credit correct, is it a collection account that you have never entered into a contract with that company? I've never seen a perfectly reporting credit report. They all have mistakes on them. Find the mistakes and dispute them, telling them to delete the line because it is not 100% accurate, as it must be according to law! Anything less is a violation of both the FDCPA and the FCRA on the part of the bureaus and the party that submitted the info.

5th. Items not verified in 30 days but come back on later when they do verify. Yep, this does happen, but there are laws to protect you here also. If it comes back, the bureau has to notify you in writing within 5 days that it is going to be put back on your credit report. If they do not, they broke the law. And, if you have demanded validation prior to that from the supplier of the information - the collection company, then they just broke the law too. Why? Because that is collection activity without first validating the account with you. Rack up another $2000 minimum for those violations.

6th. Letter of explanation to lenders. Only give this if they request it. What's better, is before you apply for credit, clean up the "baddies". Don't put 100 word statements on your credit report either, for those negative tradelines. You're basically admitting they are your accounts.

Now, here's my answer and suggestion of how to proceed to the original poster of the question.

Dear poster, yes you can repair your credit and no you don't have to wait 7 years for it to be improved. But let's do this right. First, look at your credit report and make a list of all the collection accounts, charged off accounts, and accounts showing late pays. Ignore the bankruptcy for now.

Write a letter to each of the negative reporting companies requesting validation. Tell them you want a copy of the original contract with your wet ink, authentic signature on it. Then tell them you want a complete accounting of the alleged account. From the date it was issued - where the money came from, every purchase, every payment, every credit, every fee, and accurate interest that was charged to the account. Send these letters CMRR and keep a file with a copy of each letter. When you get the return receipt for the certified mail that you sent them, put that in your file. Now you can send letters to the bureaus regarding each of those accounts after you have received all the green cards back (the return receipts).

You will dispute each one in the letter to the bureaus. The collection accounts, say I do not have an account with this company, please delete. Or I have never entered into any contract, ever, with this company. Please delete immediately. If it is outside of your state's statute of limitations (look that up), California, my state is 4 years. Say this. The date reporting is blatantly outside of the SOL and obsolete. Please delete immediately. Or attack it by saying I did not open an account with this company on this date nor have I ever. Please delete. Maybe it is the wrong type of account. A revolving, not a factoring, or not an installment or a mortgage, whatever. Say "I do not have a factoring account with this company, please delete it."

You see, when you dispute with the bureaus, you dispute their mistakes. Now, they are supposed to verify with the information supplier that what is reporting is accurate. So you have 30 days for them to get back to you. You have just done what is called the "1-2 Punch." The information suppliers are not allowed to verify if you have demanded validation from them and they have not sent you the validation. That would be considered collection activity. So, the ones that follow the law will not respond and it will be deleted. The only thing they are allowed to do is make a statement that the account is disputed.

For the bankruptcy, before you ever dispute that you had a bankruptcy, remove all the tradelines associated with the bankruptcy. Once they are gone, attack the bankruptcy. It will possibly have the wrong court, the wrong date, the wrong amount, the wrong type of bankruptcy being reported. Remember, everything has to be 100% accurate that is on your report. So, your dispute will be that you never filed a bk in whatever court, you did not have a bk on whatever date, you did not have a chapter 13 bk or chapter 7 bk for $0 dollars (I see that a lot). Dispute their mistakes. Demand they delete immediately!

I hope this helps you my poster friend and readers.

Top 8 Complaints and Violations of 3rd Party Collectors

Every year the FTC publishes an annual report of complaints they have received from consumers about 3rd party collectors. The FTC oversees FDCPA, FCRA, FCBA, FACTA and State Statutes compliance. Here are the top complaints. It doesn't necessarily mean that they are the top violations, exactly, it means the ones that have annoyed consumers enough to complain to them about. These facts are from the 2008 annual report.

1. DEMANDING A LARGER PAYMENT THAN IS PERMITTED BY LAW : The FDCPA does not allow debt collectors to misrepresent the character, amount, or legal status of a debt. They cannot tack on extra fees for collecting, report the wrong type of debt or claim to be lawyers when they are not, not state the original creditor, calling it one type of debt when it is another, like saying it is a revolving when it is an installment, or calling it a factoring account when it is not. They are not allowed to collect any amount that is not expressly authorized by the original contract that created the debt or that is unlawful.
   
2. HARASSMENT: Debt collectors are not allowed to harass you by calling outside of inconvenient times, repeatedly calling you or your work or someone who may know you. They may not use profane or abusive language, they may not threaten you with harm or the use of violence. Amazing that such behavior has to have laws created against it, isn't it?
   
3. USE OF THREATS: They are not allowed to threaten certain actions will be taken against you if you don't pay. This includes saying they are going to sue you, when they are not, saying they are going to garnish your wages, repo your property, ruin your credit, throw you in jail or make you lose your job. One thing I've learned over the years, is that the more they threaten you, the more desperate they become, they are exposing that they have no legal standing to collect from you if you claim and use your rights against them.
4. IMPERMISSIBLE CALLS AT A PLACE OF EMPLOYMENT: They are allowed to call you at your work. However, if they are told they may not call there, then they legally are required to knock it off. I would like to take this a bit further and say that the law says they can't make that phone call to your work if they have reasonable knowledge that they should not. My thinking on this is that if they have tried to collect from someone else at that workplace, and have been told already not to call at that location, then they should have reasonable knowledge that they should not call you either.
5. REVEALING ALLEGED DEBT TO THIRD PARTIES: The only reason they are allowed to contact someone other than you about your alleged debt is to get your location information. They are not allowed to contact them unless they have reason to believe that the 3rd party knows your location. But, they are not allowed to reveal that they are attempting to collect an alleged debt. Once the 3rd party tells them they don't have any information to give them, they are supposed to never call them or contact them again. They do this to embarrass and intimidate you and it is a violation. They also have many complaints against them for harassing and threatening 3rd parties, another violation that falls in this category and the harassment category. Third party contacts include employers, relatives, children, neighbors, and friends.
   
6. FAILING TO SEND REQUIRED CONSUMER NOTICE: When collectors get a hold of an account they allege is yours, they are required by law to notify you in writing the amount of the debt, the name of the creditor to whom the debt is owed, and a statement that, if within thirty days of receiving the notice the consumer disputes the debt in writing, the collector will obtain verification of the debt and mail it to the consumer. The reason they don't always do this is because they don't want you disputing something that they can't verify or validate.
7. FAILING TO VERIFY DISPUTED DEBTS: This one I believe, is under reported. They are not allowed to resume collection activity until after they verify your dispute. This includes sending back a letter saying, "yep, you owe us, here's the amount, now pay up". That is not verification. That is not validation. What it is, is a violation! They just keep collecting because they can't provide the actual validation that proves you legally owe the alleged debt. What they commonly do, is ignore your dispute and sell the account to another collector, sometimes a sister company of theirs, and then keep attempting to collect.
8. CONTINUING TO CONTACT CONSUMER AFTER RECEIVING “CEASE COMMUNICATION ” NOTICE : If you in writing, tell them to stop contacting you, by law, they must. But, they like to claim they never got the notice. This is why your communication needs to be in writing to them and sent certified, return receipt. That way, you have a copy of the notice to them and the proof that they received it, should you have to go to court against them.
   

So, now that you know many of the common violations that collectors commit, what is your plan of action? Here's what it should be. Dispute, document consistently all communications, keep an accounting of the responses, keep all your proofs of service and copies of letters you send or receive and a phone log of every phone call you or someone else received, along with the company name, employee's name, date and time, if possible. Each violation, and since they usually violate in several ways at one time, because they violate the FCRA and FDCPA many times at the same time, can add up to big bucks for you. They are usually worth $1000 each. You need to document consistently and accurately. That way, it can be a huge bargaining tool for you or great supporting evidence if you end up suing them or counter suing them in a court of law! Repairing your credit can give you a nice fico and good credit report, and make you money at the same time! Sweet!

Should You Pay Off Those Collection Accounts?

So you've decided that this is the year to work on rebuilding your credit. You get a copy of your credit report and there are some collections on it. Or maybe you keep getting calls or letters from collectors - or both, and think that you should finally try to take care of some of them.

Stop! If you're thinking about paying them off, wait just a minute here! If you think it's going to improve your credit, think again. Always remember this. Once a negative, always a negative, when it comes to your credit report. Just because it's paid, does not mean they are going to move it into the positive accounts section. It's still a collection account, which is negative, it is just paid.

So, here are the facts for you to ponder. A collector bought your account. Basically, he paid off your debt for you, voluntarily I may add. If you asked a friend to make a payment on an account for you, does that make him or her a party to the original contract? No! They are voluntarily making a payment for you. You might make a little contract between you and your friend to pay back the money they used to make the payment, but, they are not part of the contract between you and the original creditor. That's a different agreement between the two of you.

It is the same with the collector. You did not enter into a contract with them to pay for this account, they did it on their own and now are trying to make you think that you have some obligation to them. You don't! Unless you signed another contract with them agreeing to pay them, they just took a chance, they gambled that they could coerce you into making them richer.

The best thing to do before giving any collector money, wait let me rephrase that. The best thing to do INSTEAD of giving any collector money, is to demand validation. The law says they have to prove you owe them money. You don't and they can't - prove it, that is. Dispute the debt with the collector. Do not accept a printout of a bill or charges as being validation. That is not validation, it is a bill. It is collection activity AFTER validation of the debt is requested. It is a violation of law.

The law says that when you dispute a debt with a collector, they must cease all collection activity until the debt is validated. Just about anything they do that does not validate is actually considered collection activity and is a violation of law. Keep track of every thing they do. Every letter, every phone call, every update made on your credit report. Every violation they make is worth money to you. Most violations are worth $1000 payable to you. That's a thousand bucks. They start adding up fast, to where they might actually owe you more than any credit line that was originally issued to you!

So here is what you do. Send them a letter, certified, return receipt. (CMRR). You will get a green card back in the mail as your receipt that they received it. The letter should tell them you are not avoiding paying, but you are not going to pay for something that you do not owe, and not to someone you don't owe it to. You are going to request from them several things that are very important.

First, request a copy of the original, wet ink signed, authentic, contract. Now, request that they supply you with the actual accounting of the debt. I mean, where did the money come from that created the credit issued to you? Where did the bank get the money they supposedly loaned to you, or the credit that they issued to you?

You see, the law says that banks cannot lend their own money. It also says they cannot lend their own credit. It also says they must have reserves that are a fraction of what they lend. Those are their member's deposits that are the reserves. So, they are not lending the member's reserves, not their own money, not their own credit. So, where did they get the money to lend you?

They created it out of thin air, basically. Actually, they monetized your signature on the contract and created a ledger for the account. Then they put an amount on the ledger of the value of your signature that they "approved". So, really, you supplied the "money" or "credit" with your signature. Then, they put another entry on the books. This one says that they gave that money to you and now you have to start paying it back. But, why would you pay them back money when they didn't give you the money? Your signature supplied the funds for the money or credit that you received.

Sounds confusing doesn't it? It's supposed to. They don't want you to know or understand it.

Here's another thing about credit. The contract you signed is void because in order for a contract to be legal and binding, all parties have to be at risk. But, who is actually at risk? Only you! It is a unilaterally risked contract and void. Since they really didn't put any money into it, they didn't risk anything. They assign an interest rate for the money that you loaned yourself. That is their profit. But actually, the whole amount and the interest is profit for them. Again, this is because they did not come out of pocket to issue the loan or credit. Your signature did!

Now here's a little more. When you default on this contract, they charge you more and more and more. Then the law says that after 6 months, they must charge off the account. So they do. That puts your balance at $0. All "monies" in the bank are insured. So now we're going to see them commit insurance fraud. They get paid off from the insurance the amount insured. They take a credit to their taxes for a loss - which I must remind you is not an actual loss, but a loss on what they wanted to fraudulently make. Then, here it comes.... they sell the account to a third party collector! Bang! They just made more money on an account they got a tax credit for, for an account they were paid in full by the insurance company, and now the collection company.

Daaanng! Not too bad of a trick for that original creditor, now was it? So, don't feel sorry for them that you can't "pay back" for this credit or money you were "given". The original creditor is out the cost of "managing the books", and from projected future earnings. The collector will be out the money they gambled on forcing you to pay back something you don't really owe, and the insurance company will write off the amount on their taxes.

What did it cost you? Well, hard earned money that you paid them, negative marks on your credit report, stress from worrying how you are going to pay and the harassment you have received from the pain in the butt phone calls and letters they sent you.

Dispute, dispute, dispute. And while you're at it, let them know that you know they didn't front the money, so they can just pay back all the money you sent them in error while not realizing that your signature funded the deal! Don't forget to dispute with the credit bureaus after getting the green card back for the letter you sent to the collector. That will help remove it from your credit report.

Are you feeling better about not paying them now? I hope so. Better to just dispute and get it off your credit and out of your life. Get a great credit report again, get some more credit cards, use them, take cash advances, and wash, rinse repeat! Your signature created the credit, it's your money, enjoy! You're not the one committing the fraud and creating faulty contracts that are void and unenforceable, they are. Who cares what your intention is with your new found knowledge? Play the game, but play it to your advantage!

Myths and Bad Advice Regarding Credit Repair - Part 2

Credit bureaus, as stated before, are in the business of making money. So they don't always tell the whole truth about information that is on your reports, especially negative information, and whether or not it can be removed.

First myth. The tradeline has to stay on your credit for 7 to 10 years. This is false. There is no law that says information has to be there at all.

Second myth. You can't remove accurate negative tradelines. This is tricky, but more false than true. This is because of the word "accurate" in that statement. The truth is that more than likely, though most of what is reported may be "accurate", it can be removed because the law says it has to be 100% accurate. It is very, very rare that it is 100% accurate. Little mistakes like the type of account it is can make it not completely correct. Maybe the amount is off by a few dollars. Maybe the date is not exactly right. It doesn't matter. If it's not a charge off, and being reported as one, then it is not 100% correct. If it is a bankruptcy and the amount is $0, well why the heck would you need to file bankruptcy if the amount was $0. That's a very common mistake.

Third myth. You can't remove personal information from your report. This is false. If it's not exactly right, maybe the street name is misspelled or the numbers or correct apartment is not there, or missing, it's inaccurate. Dispute it. Just remember 100% accuracy is required by law.

Fourth myth. They verify the accuracy with the submitting party as required by law. Nope, false again! They verify, but it is not done the way the law says is sufficient. They verify electronically using codes. The info submitter sends a code back saying it is accurate or not. Well, the courts have upheld against all 3 major bureaus - TransUnion, Experian, and Equifax, that electronically verifying is not thorough enough. It's case law. Black's Law Dictionary sums up verification as being Confirmation of correctness, truth, or authenticity, by affidavit, oath, or deposition. This means that the actual person verifying the information as accurate must have first hand knowledge (they don't) willing to state under oath in a court of law, that they know as fact that every bit of information regarding the disputed tradeline is correct. You are the only one who knows first hand everything about the account. Do you think whoever punched in the code back to the bureaus would be able to accurately and honestly testify under oath that the information they have supplied to the bureaus is 100% true? No! They can't and won't, and if forced to, would commit perjury!

Fifth myth. Information removed from your credit report can be re-inserted at a later date. This is true. It sucks, I know. But there is a catch. The law says that if they are going to re-insert something on your credit report, they have to notify you in writing within 5 days. Now, go back to the fourth myth. Supposedly they have verified the information, it just took longer than the 30 days the law gives them. Have they really confirmed the information with someone willing to testify under oath that they have first hand knowledge that what they have just verified is accurate? NOOOOO! If they re-insert and do not notify you, they have violated the law, nothing new. However, that violation is worth $1000 to you. That is the fine that will be imposed on them should you follow through and take them to court. Then, they will have to pay you AND remove the tradeline. Not bad!

Last myth for today. Writing a 100 word statement regarding a negative tradeline is good to do. False. I don't do this because you are kind of admitting that you had an account with whoever. If you don't accept it as being yours, it's easier to dispute. Sure lender's may read it, but it's still a "he said/she said" situation. The tradeline with or without a statement affects your credit score. If it's negative, it's better to keep trying to get it removed than resign yourself to adding a statement. Always remember that like in a court of law, the burden of proof lies on the company or entity that submitted the information. By law, they are supposed to remove what they can't prove.

It is hard to get some of this stuff off. This is because they all think they are above the law. It's "catch me if you can" with them. You need to demand from the bureaus that they give you the name, title and all contact information for the person that verified the information. The law says that if you demand that information from the bureaus they have to supply it to you. But what do they do? They send you a letter stating that they verified electronically. That doesn't meet the burden of proof as required by law. It's a crappy game. So, sometimes, you will have to drag their butts to court. If you prepare and document consistently and take it to court, you can end up getting a monetary judgement against them and have the tradeline removed. Many people have been successful with this. It's not easy, it's not quick, but it does work.

Here's a couple tips for you on your credit repair journey. Dispute with the collectors first - before disputing with the credit bureaus. Always dispute CMRR. Then, when you get the "green card" back saying that the letter was delivered, dispute with the bureaus. This is because the law says when you dispute with the creditor/collector, they have to stop all collection activity until they have validated the debt with you. Verifying with bureaus is considered collection activity. So, if they obey the law, the bureaus will not get a response and will have to remove it.

If you are trying to remove a bankruptcy, don't go after it first. The first steps in that is to dispute and remove the tradelines that are negative that have any association with the bankruptcy. They are not going to remove a bk when there are tradelines stating that it was included in a bk.

Remember also, collectors that report do not have the entire file regarding any account. They buy in bulk and get whatever the creditor forwards to them. They do not have first hand knowledge. They are not a party to the original contract, so they are a voluntary payee and just paid off your account for you at a settled amount. You don't owe them a dime! They took a gamble, stand firm and make them eat their losses!