Advice on Discrepancies

[sunflwrgrl13]

Hi all, we are 1month post-discharge on our Ch7, and I'm beginning to look into cleaning up our credit reports. I've joined two different sites. I signed up directly with Experian last month just to see their report, and just signed up tonight with Equifax to see all 3 credit bureaus info. So according to Experian, our credit score is 712 currently, but when I looked up our Experian score on the EQ site, our Experian score is 672. I'm confused why the same credit bureau has two widely differing scores? Both of those scores are good, considering we just went thru the BK, so I know I can't complain too loudly..but I'd like to see some consistency since its one bureau's score.

Also, as far as cleaning up the reports, I have some other questions:

1) One of my credit cards are being reported as included in the BK, but the BK was filed in 11/2010 and the card was paid in full in 02/2010. I assume I shouldn't have an issue getting this removed as a negative item?
2) When it says Account Status is "WageEarnerPlan" what does that mean?
3) Is my mortgage allowed to say my status is overdue by 180 days, when I was actually only 90days past due when we filed BK?
4) When I go to the Experian website, my status shows up different than when I log in to Equifax (to see all 3 CBs) and view my Experian report. Why does my status for the same CB show up differently on different sites? ..this goes back to my score question above
5) What are they allowed to say in the Comments section? For example, one says: DEBT INCLUDED IN OR DISCHARGED THROUGH BANKRUPTCY 7, 11, OR 12 LAST REPORTED DELINQUENCIES: 03/2011=R ,01/2011=R CHARGE OFF LAST PAID:
Can they say it was a charge off when it wasn't? Can they still say it was overdue in March and Jan, when we were discharged in March?
6) Why does the same account have a different status in the CBs? One CB will show an account as "WageEarnerPlan" and the other CB shows "Collection". What's the difference and what should it say instead?

Oh, and should I worry that EQ and EX both show about 9negative accounts, Transunion shows none?

Instead of my husband and I trolling through all these accounts on our credit reports, is it worth hiring some kind of credit clean-up company to do this for us? Are there any legit ones out there?

[JvilleGarden]

I'm going to try to tackle your questions, one at a time....

1. Dispute it!! Did you include this account in your schedule of creditors in your BK filing? If so, that is probably why it is showing as included in the BK. EIther way, it sounds like it is being reported wrong, and needs to be cleared up.
2. From a quick google search, it appears that "Wage Earner Plan" is related to a Ch 13 BK. If it were my credit report, I would dispute that, as well, as it should show discharged if included in your Ch 7.
3. If your mortgage was included in the discharge, that is what needs to show on the credit report. If it wasn't included, dispute it!
4. There are several different credit scores, and types of inquiries. If you are interested in getting the score that is used by lenders, that would be your FICO score. The credit bureaus each have their own score, trying to "take away" from the FICO score, but for lending purposes, the FICO score is the one to look at. That score is only available from FICO, which you can get it at www.fico.com/12 (This is the most complete report you can get, and is suggested that you pull it when getting ready to make a financed purchase, not necessarily for clearing your report.)
5. As far as the comments field goes, they can say what has been reporte by the creditor. In the example you provide, it states that the item was included in your BK, but also shows as a charge off. Go ahead and disupte it!
6. This appears to be being double reoprted, and the item showing as a collection item can have an impact on your credit score. Dispute this one, as well.

How to Dispute items:
From the advice I have been given, it is best to dispute the items in writing, through mail (certified mail, return receipt requested). This gives you proof that you sent the dispute. Include the following items in the dispute:

a. BK Petition or Notice of Commencement of Case
b. Schedule of Creditors (including any creditors added later)
c. Discharge order

Be sure to verify the correct mailing address for the credit reporting company, as they can change regularly.

Another point, if you filed a No-Asset case and forgot to include a creditor, include a photocopy of the entire dispute.

Finally, after you have sent the dispute, pend it for 50 days. If you do not receive a response in 50 days, send a follow-up request, including a copy of the original item sent.

Different companies report to different bureaus. Not all of your credit items may appear on any one given report, and it isn't a requirement that a creditor report to any or all of the bureaus.

I'm sure there are some legit credit repair companies out there, but they aren't going to do anything different than what you can do for yourself.

Best of luck to you, and I look forward to seeing how things go for you.

[panda]

What I found right after discharge is that each individual credit bureau reported accurately, but when I pulled a combined three report from equifax is where I ran into the wage earner issue, and other discrepancies. My understanding is that one credit agency, such as equifax, does not read accurately the other agencies reporting and thus reports the others reports incorrectly. I was advised to go by the true fico reports, which I pulled for transunion and equifax, and then the individual reports I had for experian. These individual reports were reporting accurately, then all of a sudden my mortgage went from being discharged to back to being in an active BK 7, so I disputed that and it has been corrected. This apparently will be an ongoing process just to make sure things do not keep reappearing incorrectly.

So basically I would take the 3-in1 report as not correct, do nothing with it, and use the individual reports from each agency for accuracy. Plus get your fico files as well when you are ready to put the money out for them.