Are credit agencies really this stupid?

[Dinner]

Arghhh! I'm about ready to pull out my hair. I've decided I would really like to buy a house with in the next two month so I call up a mortgage broker that one of my co-workers recommended so I could get pre-qualified for a home loan. I give the broker my information, tell him I'm a first time buyer, and wait patiently as he pulls up my credit report online. The broker then says "I thought you said you were a first time home buyer?" to which I assure him that I am. He then tells me that the credit agency is reporting that I have four home mortgages; two in San Diego, one in Green Bay, WI, and a fourth one some where in Florida. Further more he tells me that I declared bankruptcy last year, have a $50k home equity line of credit out, and some where near a dozen credit cards.

I tell the man that isn't correct and that there must be some mistake. The man does a bunch of searching and then figures out that since I have a very common name the credit agency has lumped about five other people's credit reports into the credit report with my social security number! What the hell? Doesn't the credit agency bother to check social security numbers or middle names? You'd figure that since I've never lived in Florida or Wisconsin they'd take that as a hint they've made a mistake but no they don't. Now, I have to write a dozen letters to the creditors who are misreporting on me so I can straighten this mess out.

The worst part about it is one of those home loans was taken out in 1991! I was like 14 to 15 years old in 1991 so I really doubt I bought a house.

[GePap]

Do you really have to ask?

[Dom Pedro II]

Wow... I'm shocked and yet not so much... I can believe it.

That sucks..

[Asmodean]

HeHeHe...fortunately we have laws against this in Denmark.

But I feel for you. That really must suck.

Asmodean

[Arrian]

Bastards!

Send the letters certified mail, and carbon copy the appropriate state better business bureaus (or whatever the proper agency is).

-Arrian

[Dinner]

I found out the two houses in San Diego belong to my dad (who has the same name) and they just put it on my credit report on accident. Still, I have a totally different social security number and with so many mistakes I'm really wondering about how incompetent these credit agencies are.

We should have a legal right to sue the credit agencies for their mistakes. Right now they have no incentive to fix mistakes nor to make them be careful about supplying false information about people. Once they get hit with a few million dollars in law suits from pissed off people they'll make damn sure that what they're saying is correct.

[Japher]

Well Oerdin, this why they tell you to check your credit report at least every 2 years... Good thing that you started now, it may be 6 months before you clean up this mess... I wouldn't fret too much, they can clean it up, it will just take time.

[HershOstropoler]

You should be able to sue them for providing false data and make them correct the data, unless they bought some exemption from tort law?

[Spiffor]

Bastards !
And Arrian is right: certified mail, carbon copies, and your personal archive is the way to go. Make sure nothing goes wrong with the correcting of th situation, otherwise you'd risk to have stressful problems over deeds that aren't your own

[Japher]

Or you can call in the deeds and sell the property out from whoever has bought them

[Dinner]

Originally posted by Japher
Or you can call in the deeds and sell the property out from whoever has bought them

This may be the way to go.

[MichaeltheGreat]

A similar thing happened to my parents, specifically with my mom.

My parents own rental properties, have a long credit history (hell, they're in their 70's), long time at specific addresses and cities. Out of the blue, they got denied on a refi of a rental property, and had a bunch of credit cards yanked (one they'd had for 26 years with no problems ) because some deadbeat twit with the same first and last name, and the same middle initial, but different middle name) filed a BK in Riverside County, after running up a totally separate bunch of credit card debts.

40 years difference in age, totally different SSN (even in the credit agencies own records, so it was obvious to anyone who could read they mixed two people), never lived in the same county, and never had credit cards with the same issuers.

My parents weren't very patient with the agency bull****, so after six weeks of runaround, they solved the problem by a letter from their personal lawyer. Who happened to be a well known partner in the largest law firm in SD at the time. Instant attention, and they never had a problem after that. Plus they get regular letters from the agency that originally screwed up asking them if everything's ok.

[Dinner]

I wish I had a lawyer friend who could write them a nasty letter.

[chequita guevara]

You have a right to sue, Oerdin. Instead of writing to all the creditors, however, simply write letters to the credit agencies contesting the information. They have to pull it for 60 days while they check it out, and that's when you can start your mortgage applications. Anything the credit agencies cannot verify as applying specifically to you they have to permanently remove from your credit history.

[Dinner]

Cool! I didn't know that. That is a huge help to me Che.