Loon-A-TiK Posted September 26, 2006 Share Posted September 26, 2006 hiya- my credit rating used to be great before this string of losing jobs and my bipolar disorder getting way out of control. the first order of business is my student loans, which are in default and show that way on my credit report. i know that i have to do a "rehabilitation" program with those banks in order to get them back to normal status and off of my credit report, where they hurt it worse than a bankrupcy would. then my mom went and put me as a joint user on her cards and then didn't pay on them until they were going to sue her, and then she paid them all in full (she took out her 401k), but she didn't negotiate that the negative remarks be taken off of her credit report. this has resulted in the negativity staying and the lower scores remaining. i also have medical bills, which are really secondary to this other stuff. i have no credit card debt (because i can't get credit cards and haven't been able to for a long time due to this shit). what books or other resources can i use, besides expensive on-line legal services, to rehabilitate my own credit? i know i need to do the rehab program on those loans, but i don't have a clue on how to negotiate that those negative remarks be removed from my credit report when they were my mom's accounts (yes, it is legal for them to show on my report- sucks, huh?). now that i have the time, what can i do? start with the creditors themselves and work towards the credit bureaus, or with the bureaus and dispute and make the creditors come up with evidense? i think i need a good, solid book. i haven't seen any that i feel answer my questions. i bought one workbook that was a total piece of donkey dong. your help is appreciated! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wifezilla Posted September 26, 2006 Share Posted September 26, 2006 what books or other resources can i use, besides expensive on-line legal services, to rehabilitate my own credit? You may want to check out this article.... http://troubleshooter.com/cf_misc/Columns/...fm?ColumnID=198 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bryan Posted September 26, 2006 Share Posted September 26, 2006 One thing to keep in mind---I do believe that they cannot garnish income earned from SSDI and SSI. If you receive direct deposit into a bank account (for SSDI and/or SSI), technically the money in the accounts earned from SSDI/SSI is protected from garnishment; however, I would not expect your friendly bank to know this. The SSA encourages direct deposit---it is easy, convenient (for both the beneficiary and the SSA), and most importantly, it saves the SSA (and taxpayers) money---from the cost of printing the checks as well as the cost of the envelopes and postage and hiring the staff to process the checks and stuff the envelopes! I also like the idea of direct deposit for environmental reasons (save resources!). However, in your case, if you find out a creditor plans to sue you, or collect from what's in your bank account, I suppose you could close your bank account (and keep the remaining amount in cash, as long as your total assets are under $2,000 in order to keep SSI, if you still want to keep SSI), and call the SSA at 1-800-772-1213 and speak to a live person and tell them that you wish to switch from direct deposit to paper checks in the mail. If you do this, be sure to cash them at the bank right away when you receive them! And be sure that you use the money (for food, rent, etc.) so that your total assets are aways LESS than $2,000. FINAL NOTE: If you receive SSI, I would suggest not having ANY "interest-bearing accounts" (such as savings accounts). Why? Because you are required to report any interest you receive as income each month! Instead, close your savings accounts (and other interest-bearing accounts) and switch to a checking account. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loon-A-TiK Posted September 26, 2006 Author Share Posted September 26, 2006 thanks for the info both WZ and bryan- i went to the site WZ and there's some really good info there, especially on how to DIY it. i think for all those phone calls and probably letters i'll have to pay the $20 and get a landline phone and maybe buy a new printer/scanner/copier/fax/pasta maker thing, but that's ok, they're pretty cheap (because they break all the time, lol). bryan- i always thought they COULD garnish SSDI! i'm going to have to make sure one way or the other, just in case. my money is direct deposited and i do not have any interest on the account. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bryan Posted September 26, 2006 Share Posted September 26, 2006 Nolo publishes some great books on legal matters. To find the books on the subject of credit (perhaps you could request them through an interlibrary loan at your local public library): http://search.nolo.com/query.html?qt=credi...amp;col=b2store As for the printer/copier/scanner/fax machine in one, several years back, I invested in a good one (Canon brand) for $500 and it hasn't broken yet! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jen5276 Posted October 12, 2006 Share Posted October 12, 2006 Loon, you might also want to check out www.creditboards.com Lots of useful info there, I have also started cleaning up my credit and this board has been enormously helpful. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Libby Posted October 12, 2006 Share Posted October 12, 2006 Loon, you might also want to check out www.creditboards.com Lots of useful info there, I have also started cleaning up my credit and this board has been enormously helpful. OK< I went there, and see a bunch of links. Then what? I've seen my credit report recently. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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