Orlando Short Sale Expert | Orlando Short Sales, Orlando Short Sale Realtor / Agent

CardRatings.com recently conducted a poll asking readers whether they had ever found errors on their credit reports. Of 2,142 respondents, 1,568, or approximately three out of four, reported that yes, they have at one time or another found such an error, according to Amber Stubbs, the managing editor of CardRatings.com in Foster City, Calif.
With these findings, and the increasingly clever schemes of identity thieves, it shouldn’t take much more to convince you to review your credit report regularly and act promptly if you find errors in the report.
Here are the steps you should take to dispute inaccuracies on your credit report, which you are entitled to do under the Fair Credit Reporting Act.
1. Get your free credit report. All consumers are allowed one free credit report every year from each of the three credit-reporting bureaus, Equifax, Experian and TransUnion, says Gail Cunningham, the vice president of public relations for the National Foundation for Credit Counseling in Washington, D.C. Go to AnnualCreditReport.com to request the free annual reports from each bureau. You can either request all three reports at once or spread them out over different times of the year.
2. Check for errors and omissions. Review your credit report for errors, Cunningham says. “A poor credit report impacts your ability to obtain credit, obtain insurance, rent an apartment or get a job. So it’s very important to make sure the information is corrected if it’s not.”

It’s also important that your credit report doesn’t shortchange your history. Don’t see that gas credit card you paid off last year? Make a note to get it added. According to Rod Griffin, the director of public education for Experian, “An accurate and complete credit report is an important financial tool, and it can be treated just like a bank statement.”
3. If there’s an error, gather documentation. This step is critical. Take the time to assemble all the information you’ll need to prove your case, such as copies of canceled checks and creditor statements.
If, for instance, the credit report shows that you still owe money on a bill that has been paid in full, include the statement that documents the zero balance, Cunningham says. “You’re just stating the facts and making sure they understand your arguments,” she adds.
4. Put it in writing. Contact the bureau whose report you believe to be inaccurate, giving your name, Social Security number and date of birth, Cunningham says. If you’ve moved recently, verify your previous address.
Write as if you were writing to a potential employer. Explain that you are disputing certain items, and give clear, factual reasons why. Include all the details of your case, such as account numbers, invoice numbers, check numbers and payment dates. Number your attachments to make it easy for the reader to find them. Make it clear what you want changed. Don’t forget to sign your letter.
You can send your dispute to the credit-reporting bureau by snail mail or online. If you use mail, Cunningham advises sending your letter by certified mail, with the return receipt add-on requested, so you can document that the bureau received the letter. As well, keep a copy of the confirmation of receipt.
However, it may be faster to send the dispute via the Internet. “You can dispute online. It’s quick, it’s secure, and it’s the same process,” Griffin says. “And you will receive confirmation the dispute was received.”
At the same time, let the creditor know you’re disputing the report, “so you’re coming at this from both sides,” Cunningham says. Include copies of the disputed charges and proof you’ve paid them, just as you did for the bureau.
5. Wait. Once the credit-reporting bureau receives your dispute, its team must begin to investigate it immediately and must finish the investigation within 30 days. The bureau will notify the creditor initiating the report that it is investigating your dispute.
“That triggers another investigation on the part of the creditor reporting,” Cunningham says. “The creditor has to investigate and confirm the accuracy.”
If the creditor finds the information is inaccurate, it must notify all three credit-reporting bureaus so they can correct information in your file, she says.
When Experian receives a dispute, Griffin says, “we go back to the source of that information, typically a lender, and have them review records and either verify to us the information is reported correctly and should remain the same, or that they agree with the dispute and the information should be updated.”
What if the lender doesn’t respond? Griffin says, “If they don’t respond in the mandated 30 days, the information will be deleted.”
6. Get your results. In all likelihood, the dispute will be settled in much less time than 30 days. In most instances, just seven to 10 days are required, Griffin says. “The 30 days go back to the era when everything had to be mailed,” he adds.
If you’ve built a good case in your dispute and you prevail, the credit-reporting bureau must remove the inaccurate information from your report, Cunningham says.
But if the decision doesn’t go your way and the investigation does not confirm your side of the dispute, you have another option. “You can ask the credit-reporting agency to include a copy of the statement of dispute in your file, and that will go out with future credit reports,” she says.
This action may or may not make a difference to a future lender, Cunningham adds. But at least it shows you’ve done all you can to state your case.
Where to start
The best place to start the dispute process is on the credit-reporting bureau’s website. Here is the current contact information for each of the three major credit-reporting bureaus:
• Equifax: Dispute online with Equifax
• Experian: Dispute online with Experian
• TransUnion: Dispute online with

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Jerry LaRose is an Orlando Area Residential Real Estate Expert and Foreclosure Specialist who can assist you with the purchase and/or sale of Real Estate in Orlando, Windermere, Winter Garden, Kissimmee, St. Cloud, East Orlando, Longwood, Altamonte Springs, Maitland, Winter Park, Oviedo, Apopka, Lake Mary, Clermont, Ocoee  Florida or any place in the country. Jerry has created a team of professionals throughout Orlando and the country to ensure that you enjoy a smooth transition to your new area.

Please visit:

Avoid Foreclosure / Short Sale Help  http://OrlandoShortSaleExpert.com, or http://ShortSellMyOrlandoHome.com

Our Website http://JerryLaRose.com or www.JerrySellsOrlando.com,  or http://OrlandoRealEstateVoice.com ,

If you’re a Buyer looking for Great Deals –  http://InvestmentPropertyDealsOrlando.com

Please give me a call if you have questions about the Orlando and Central Florida real estate market.

P.S. If you are listing your home as a short sale in Orange, Seminole, Polk, Lake, Osceola and Brevard County Florida and Orlando, East Orlando, St. Cloud,  Davenport, Clermont, Longwood, Windermere, Winter Garden,  Kissimmee, Winter Park, Altamonte Springs, Maitland,  Apopka,  Lake Mary, Oviedo or Ocoee Florida make sure you hire an agent and realtor who knows how to do short sales and has the experience to get the job done. We are doing successful short sale packages. The short sale process is complicated and we can help simplify it.

We also have now expanded to help homeowners to Stop Foreclosure in Brevard County Florida. Servicing Melbourne, Coco, Coco Beach, Satellite Beach, Palm Bay, Indian Harbour Beach, South Patrick Shores, Palm Shores, Rockledge, Cocoa West, Merritt Island, Port Saint John and Titusville Florida

Call us at 407-580-7011 or email at jerry@JerryLaRose.com  to find out more about Orange County Short Sales and Orlando Area Short Sales.

Orlando Short Sales, expert, specialist, Realtor, Keller Williams Realty, agent, broker, short sale, stop foreclosure

Financially distressed homeowners not only face painful personal circumstances, but also they must consider choices that have both tax and credit implications. While a variety of professionals may be able to explain taxation issues in these circumstances, not as much seems to be known about credit consequences — other than that they are bad.

It is said that a person is not eligible to obtain a home loan for a certain number of years, that means that Fannie Mae won’t buy a home loan made to that person during that time. Granted, most lenders want to be able to sell their loans to Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac (whose rules tend to be similar), but there might be portfolio lenders or other institutions that would make such a loan.

That said, it is well worthwhile to review the contents of the memo.

Five years after a foreclosure, a consumer may be eligible to obtain a home loan. Of course, certain restrictions may apply. At least a ten percent down payment is required, and a minimum credit score of 680. Also, purchase of a second home or investment property is not permitted.

A consumer may be eligible three years after foreclosure if “extenuating circumstances” had led to the foreclosure. Extenuating circumstances are “nonrecurring events that are beyond the borrower’s control that result in a sudden, significant, and prolonged reduction in income or a catastrophic increase in financial obligations.”

Four years after giving a deed-in-lieu of foreclosure, a consumer may be eligible for a home loan. If there had been extenuating circumstances, that period is shortened to two years.

In the case of a short-sale, when the mortgage had been delinquent, a consumer may be eligible for a home loan two years after completion of the short sale. There are no exceptions due to extenuating circumstances.

If the consumer had executed a short sale, but had not been delinquent on his or her mortgage, then there is no two-year period applicable. To be eligible for a home loan, the borrower must not have had any mortgage delinquencies of sixty days or more during the past twelve months, and the borrower must not have “entered into any agreement with the short sale lender to repay any amounts associated with the short sale, including a deficiency judgment.”

In the case of bankruptcies, other than Chapter 13, there is a four year period from the discharge or dismissal date of the bankruptcy before the consumer may be eligible to obtain a home loan. With a Chapter 13 bankruptcy, the period is two years.

It is frequently said that short sales have a less damaging effect on credit than do foreclosures. While this may be true with respect to the length of time before one can obtain a home loan again, it should also be noted that a short sale has no greater effect than a deed-in-lieu when there are extenuating circumstances. Moreover, it is certainly not true with respect to one’s FICO score. A deed-in-lieu, a foreclosure, or a short sale all have the same impact as far as FICO is concerned. Some people will not believe this. They should visit the FICO web site and look at the question regarding alternatives to foreclosure.

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Jerry LaRose is an Orlando Area Residential Real Estate Expert, who can assist you with the purchase and/or sale of Real Estate in Orlando, Windermere, Winter Garden Florida or any place in the country. Jerry has created a team of professionals throughout Orlando and the country to ensure that you enjoy a smooth transition to your new area. Please visit http://OrlandoShortSaleExpert.com or www.JerrySellsOrlando.com for your real estate needs.  Please give me a call if you have questions about the Orlando and Central Florida real estate market.

P.S. If you are listing your home as a short sale in Orange or Osceola County Florida and Orlando, Windermere, Winter Garden,  Kissimmee, Winter Park, Altamonte Springs, Maitland, Lake Mary, Oviedo or Ocoee Florida make sure you hire an agent who knows how to do short sales and has the experience to get the job done. We are doing successful short sale packages. Call us at 407-580-7011 to find out more about Orange County Short Sales and Orlando Area Short Sales