That's how my journey started. I wanted to take advantage of my frequent flights (pre-pandemic), and applied for a card with travel benefits, only to be decline

That's how my journey started. I wanted to take advantage of my frequent flights (pre-pandemic), and applied for a card with travel benefits, only to be declined. I decided to check my credit report, and noticed a default from like 5 years ago that had been sent to collections -- it was a paltry sum. Some years ago, I was in the US for a couple months for work, and got a monthly phone contract with a large mobile provider and paid for my device upfront. I EXPLICITLY chose electronic billing ONLY for the service, as I was based out of a hotel during the time. So, when it was time to return to my country of residence, I went to the shop where I got the phone and service, and closed the account. All was well. Fast forward 5 years, and it seems that the mobile provider had actually sent (via snail mail) a final bill to my hotel address. They didn't mention this to me when I closed the account IN PERSON. I had no idea this last bill even existed till I checked my credit report. So, since I had no other credit history -- this was the single line item on my credit report from all 3 reporting agencies. I called the provider, pulled up my old contract (good thing I never delete emails), and proved to them that I had signed up for electronic bills only, thus they were in err. I paid the last bill, and they expunged it from my credit report. This all happened over a year ago. That negative item is no longer listed with any of the big 3. So I don't know if this line item is still there but unlisted (I've checked my reports from all 3 in detail), and was told by them as well that the record is 100% gone, yet I still can't make any headway in loans or credit cards. The _only_ thing that makes sense is that I'm being flagged due to my physical address in the US -- high-crime, low-income inner city neighborhood.