Yes, you do need to look at your credit reports before you start seriously looking for a house. Credit report errors will either prevent you from buying a house or will make you pay more for your mortgage loan (interest rate, points, etc) so you need to use good practices and the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) to make your reports accurate. Here is a summary of why you need to look at your reports sooner than later in the house… (Read more)
When you have a company (or companies) violate the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA), you can get money damages but there are some twists and turns to it.
Let’s talk about the following:
Basic timeline of when you can file an FCRA case . . . the oddities of this law make it counter-intuitive
Compensatory (actual) damages . . . to make up for your loss
Punitive damages . . . to punish companies for breaking this law
Statutory damages… (Read more)
You were foreclosed on by your mortgage company. And you are likely still feeling the effects of this — maybe you have been sued for ejectment, there is a deficiency balance allegedly owed, you had to uproot your family to move, etc.
It may seem as if all hope is gone — your mortgage company got away with this.
But there may yet be hope….
In a very surprising development, the law in Alabama has actually improved for consumers. Very… (Read more)
“What is a furnisher of information to my credit report?”
You’re looking at your credit reports, and you realize that there’s some false information on there.
So you do some research, and you find out about the FCRA (Fair Credit Reporting Act).
While you’re looking at the FCRA, you learn about the credit bureaus and agencies, like Equifax, Experian, TransUnion, etc.
They collect all this information and put it into a report.
Then you read about this person that’s called… (Read more)
Why checking your credit reports before and after a foreclosure is vital
A large part of our practice at Watts & Herring is helping people who are facing foreclosure in the state of Alabama.
In addition, we help consumers with credit reporting errors.
Are these two practice areas completely separate, or do they merge together from time to time?
Sometimes they merge.
This is why we recommend checking your credit reports whether you’re facing a foreclosure, or you’ve just gone… (Read more)
“What should I do if I win my lawsuit against an original creditor, but credit reports aren’t fixed?”
Let’s say that you’ve already won your case, and you go the credit company and let them know that you don’t owe the debt on your credit report.
You ask them to fix your reports so that your reports will be accurate, and they don’t do it.
They reach out to Capital One (or whoever the original creditor is) and ask them… (Read more)