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CREDIT GLOSSARY

Katie's Credit Glossary

PREPARING KIDS FOR CREDIT, STUDENT ISSUES

Kids, Money, and Credit
College and Credit Cards, Student Credit Cards
How to Pay for College: Financial Aid information

ASK KATIE

The Truth About Debt Consolidation Programs
Credit & Divorce
Child Support & Deadbeat Dads
Choosing the Right Credit Card for You
Personal Bankruptcy Explained
If You Have Been Treated Unfairly By a Creditor

SCAMS!

Debt Consolidation Scams
Debt Elimination Scams
Debt Settlement Scams
Christian Credit Scams
Predatory Lenders
Identity Theft

BUYING A HOME

Tips for 1st Time Home Buyers
What to do if You've been Denied
Credit & Home Buying
Negotiating a Home

NEGOTIATING AND REPAIRING CREDIT

Negotiating Debt With Your Creditors
Your Rights Regarding Debt Collection
Free Credit Repair: How to Clean Up Your Own Credit
Easy Steps to Building or Re-establishing Good Credit
Disputing Mistakes on Credit Card Statements

CREDIT REPORT INFORMATION, CREDIT SCORE INFORMATION

How to Get Your Credit Reports
How Long Do Entries Stay on My Credit Report?
How to Read Credit Reports
Credit Score, FICO Score Explained
Innovis: The Fourth Credit Bureau

LEGAL INFORMATION

Federal Law Concerning Credit

LINKS

Katie's Links

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DISCLAIMER

Normally bankruptcies will remain on a credit report for 10 years following the discharge of the bankruptcy. Other items will remain for about seven years from the date of the last activity. The seven year period starts all over again whenever you generate any activity on a non-delinquent account, including making a payment. But once the account has gone and remained delinquent, the time cannot be regenerated as new. Some creditors will try make old debt new again by reselling the account to an outside collections agency. The FTC seriously frowns upon this practice, and if this happens to you, you do have recourse. You would need to report the agency to the FTC and tell the collector that you are doing it. This actually happend to me with regard to a debt that I had aquirred at the age of 18, imagine my shock when a agency tried to collect from me at age 40! Many times collection agencies count on and take advantage of consumers not knowing or fully understanding their rights and the laws that protect them.

The law generally prohibits credit reporting agencies from including on a credit report accounts placed for collection or charged to profit and loss which predate the report by more than seven years. The law is that the seven year period concerning a delinquent account charged to profit and loss starts no more than 180 days after the commencement of the delinquency.

Now read about Cleaning Up Your Credit Report.