5 ms·

Not sure exactly what you guys are building, but I hope it makes a fat dent in how credit bureaus work. I went through my first credit report from the 3 credit

Not sure exactly what you guys are building, but I hope it makes a fat dent in how credit bureaus work. I went through my first credit report from the 3 credit bureaus. Not only was the process archaic, but along the way I was bombarded by all kinds of predatory offers to sign up for paid credit monitoring services. After I retrieved my reports, I find inaccurate information, along with an account that I've never seen before labeled as an "adverse account". On top of that, I see misreported addresses and dates as well. From there, I had to do 3 separate dispute claims (all of them slightly different in process, but equally filled with spam). While on the phone with an Indian call center with Equifax, I was cut short every time I asked a question or tried to clarify, and at the end of the call I get yet another pitch to sign up for their paid credit monitoring service. Please tear down and rebuild these sloppy and fat credit bureaus. At the very least, I hope you guys provide some solid competition for them to shape themselves up.

innovate 16y ago
Fact: your info in great detail is available for about .20 for targeted marketing purposes. Thank you for the comment, we agree :)
btmorex 16y ago
Even the basic reporting is pretty terrible. For example, I have a pretty low credit limit given my income (mostly because I stupidly canceled cards I wasn't using). For months I tried to get it raised without any success. Finally, I paid for one of those credit reports that has suggestions and found out my problems are because I've been "carrying" too much debt... except I don't carry any debt. It's just that my limit is so low when the month rolls around I often am using close to the limit (which I then promptly pay off). Basically, your credit utilization can be extremely high even if you pay in full every month. Solution: pay in full right before the month rolls over. I've already had two credit limit raises after doing this... but why should I have to? Why should I have to arbitrarily change habits that have nothing to do with good finance just to appease credit bureaus that aren't doing a good job to begin with?
- jimbokun 16y ago
  What about just going cash and debit for everything? Are you afraid of not getting a good rate when it's time to get a mortgage? I've often heard the anecdotes about without debt but no credit card history getting turned down for loans, but I've also wondered if it's actually true.
  - btmorex 16y ago
    Actually, my card gives decent cash back and it's definitely worth it if you try to put as much as possible on the card. I haven't heard of a debit cash back card.
    - philwelch 16y ago
      US Bank used to offer cash back on debit cards; don't know if they still do. ING Direct occasionally has cash-back promotions on the debit card for their Electric Orange checking account, but only for new accounts. You're right in that credit cards are still useful if you use them right, though. There are certain protections (chargebacks) plus the benefits you note. Credit card companies are like casinos--they give you tons of benefits if you use them hoping you'll go on tilt and waste tons of money. If you're smart, sometimes you can beat them at their game.
      - jimbokun 16y ago
        "If you're smart, sometimes you can beat them at their game." Following your analogy, the majority of people are probably better off financially by not going to Vegas at all.
        hugh3 16y ago
        Forget the analogy, this ain't Vegas. All you gotta do is remember to pay one bill on time every month and you're a (small-time) winner. Oh, and you should make sure you never spend more on your credit card than you have in cash to pay it off; but you should have at least several months' expenses sitting around in cash anyway, so this shouldn't be an issue as long as you have good financial habits. For an average-income person with good financial habits a 1% cashback credit card is a net win of maybe two hundred dollars a year. Not a huge deal, but the best financial habit you can have is not saying no to small savings.

innovate 16y ago

Fact: your info in great detail is available for about .20 for targeted marketing purposes. Thank you for the comment, we agree :)

btmorex 16y ago

Even the basic reporting is pretty terrible. For example, I have a pretty low credit limit given my income (mostly because I stupidly canceled cards I wasn't using). For months I tried to get it raised without any success. Finally, I paid for one of those credit reports that has suggestions and found out my problems are because I've been "carrying" too much debt... except I don't carry any debt. It's just that my limit is so low when the month rolls around I often am using close to the limit (which I then promptly pay off). Basically, your credit utilization can be extremely high even if you pay in full every month. Solution: pay in full right before the month rolls over. I've already had two credit limit raises after doing this... but why should I have to? Why should I have to arbitrarily change habits that have nothing to do with good finance just to appease credit bureaus that aren't doing a good job to begin with?

jimbokun 16y ago
What about just going cash and debit for everything? Are you afraid of not getting a good rate when it's time to get a mortgage? I've often heard the anecdotes about without debt but no credit card history getting turned down for loans, but I've also wondered if it's actually true.
- btmorex 16y ago
  Actually, my card gives decent cash back and it's definitely worth it if you try to put as much as possible on the card. I haven't heard of a debit cash back card.
  - philwelch 16y ago
    US Bank used to offer cash back on debit cards; don't know if they still do. ING Direct occasionally has cash-back promotions on the debit card for their Electric Orange checking account, but only for new accounts. You're right in that credit cards are still useful if you use them right, though. There are certain protections (chargebacks) plus the benefits you note. Credit card companies are like casinos--they give you tons of benefits if you use them hoping you'll go on tilt and waste tons of money. If you're smart, sometimes you can beat them at their game.
    - jimbokun 16y ago
      "If you're smart, sometimes you can beat them at their game." Following your analogy, the majority of people are probably better off financially by not going to Vegas at all.
      - hugh3 16y ago
        Forget the analogy, this ain't Vegas. All you gotta do is remember to pay one bill on time every month and you're a (small-time) winner. Oh, and you should make sure you never spend more on your credit card than you have in cash to pay it off; but you should have at least several months' expenses sitting around in cash anyway, so this shouldn't be an issue as long as you have good financial habits. For an average-income person with good financial habits a 1% cashback credit card is a net win of maybe two hundred dollars a year. Not a huge deal, but the best financial habit you can have is not saying no to small savings.